Last day of 2009

Wow — hard to believe it’s already here! At the risk of sounding terribly clichéd… where has the year gone?!?!? There have been some big changes in obstetrics — that’s right — ACOG has changed its name from “American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists” to “American Congress of Obstetricians and Gynecologists.” That is big news, [...]

Open Letter to Dr. Amy

Recently on The Unnecesarean blog, you have participated in many discussions, saying lots of different things, occasionally including some things I agree with. However, one thing that stuck out most to me was your insistence that natural childbirth (i.e., not receiving pain medications) made no difference in a woman’s birth experience — basically, that the [...]

Twin Home Birth Story

Click here to read Robin Elise Weiss’s story of the home-birth of her 5th and 6th children — identical twin girls. A lovely story!

Follow the Money

“Follow the money” is a catch-phrase that people (including myself) often say, as they point out some problem that they perceive — “look to see who is benefiting monetarily.” And there is a certain element of truth to that — greed is a powerful force. People will do a lot of things for money. So [...]

Would’ve, Could’ve, Should’ve

It’s so easy to play “Monday morning quarterback.” Take any situation, and say, “Well, if that had been me…” or, “If I had been in that situation…” And you may be right. Some people are just wired differently — are able to come up with a witty comeback, or are able to think more clearly [...]

Men vs. Women

First up — sleeping men can’t hear a baby cry, but sleeping women can. I know, I know — pick your jaws up off the floor, because that is so shocking! What about you — who hears the baby first in your household? Researchers believe it is women’s maternal instincts — whether they have children [...]

Merry Christmas!

~*~*~ Merry Christmas, Everyone! ~*~*~ Totally unrelated poll:

Nurses Top “Honesty/Ethics in Professions” Poll

A recent political article mentioned Gallup’s “Honesty/Ethics in Professions” poll, noting that members of Congress rank very high in the “low/very low” ranking of ethics and honesty — for the first time, 55% of people rated members of the House of Representatives as low/very low, while U.S. Senators did slightly better at “only” 49% low/very [...]

Doctor or Midwife?

Take this quiz to find out which would be a better match for you, based on your preferences. h/t to Midwife Connections for the link

What happens after a miscarriage?

With a miscarriage, the woman may choose to go naturally, use herbs or medication, or have a D&C. Depending on how far along she is, she may or may not pass tissue that is recognizable as a baby. If she has a D&C, she will likely never see anything (unless she has the D&C for [...]