Doula Connection Meeting March 10th

This Thursday, from 6-8pm at Cicero United Methodist Church, the Doula Connection will be having our monthly parents' meeting. Expectant parents can come get answers to their questions about pregnancy, birth, local birthing options, breastfeeding and more!

The Doula Connection meetings are relaxed and comfortable, and usually end up looking like a cross between a natural childbirth class and a LLL meeting.

Light refreshments will be provided and older children are welcome to come.

The church is located at 8416 Brewerton Rd, 13039.

For more information, you can call Liz at 443-690-6212 or Roz at 315-320-4232.

Open House Tonight!

Tonight, Thursday, from 6-8pm at Cicero United Methodist Church! The church is located at 8416 Brewerton Rd in Cicero.


Come meet our doulas, ask questions and find the right doula for your birth or postpartum care.

For more info, visit http://www.cnydoulaconnection.com/

- Liz Baer
443-690-6212

Pregnant? Come find your doula January 13th!

Who's invited? Pregnant ladies and their families.


When? Thursday, January 13th from 6-8pm.

Where? Cicero United Methodist Church, 8416 Brewerton Rd, Cicero 13039

What? Why? A doula is a woman who is trained to support women during the birth process and in the postpartum period. During our doula Meet & Greet, parents will have a chance to meet local doulas and find the doula for them.

How? Register by emailing cnydoulaconnection@gmail.com or learn more by visiting www.cnydoulaconnection.com

Mee & Greet December 9th

Next Thursday, December 9th from 6-8pm, the Doula Connection is having an open house for expectant parents at Cicero United Methodist Church. Parents can meet the doulas and find someone who they want to attend their birth or provide postpartum care.

More information about our group can be found at http://www.cnydoulaconnection.com/

If you know anyone who is pregnant, please let them know.

Elizabeth Baer
443-690-6212
Doula Connection

Business Meeting

Are you an independant birth or postpartum doula who works in Syracuse, NY or nearby? Come check out our group, the Doula Connection!

Our next business meeting is November 11 at 6:30pm.

For more information, you can email cnydoulaconnection@gmail.com or check out our website at http://www.cnydoulaconnection.com/

- Liz, Group Coordinator

Getting Your Baby Into Position

While my 9 year old and 7 year old were in their swim lessons at the YMCA today, I was sitting on the bleachers reading a copy Optimal Foetal Positioning that I have out on loan from the Syracuse ICAN chapter. A lot of it was things that I'd heard before, having taken the Bradley childbirth classes when I was pregnant with my second.

One thing I hadn't remembered though, was that the cervix actually needs to open wider than 10cm to properly accomodate a posterior baby. With an anterior baby (facing mom's spine) the presenting part of the baby's head is 9.5cm and with a posterior baby (facing mom's front), the presenting part of the head that needs to get through the cervix is 11.5cm. Now, a cervix can and will stretch much more than the 10cm that we hear about in the childbirth classes, but it sounds to me like this may be one of the reasons that pushing out a posterior baby can take more time.

Additionally, moms who go into labor with a posterior baby often report having increased back pain, known as "back labor." This can be a challenge to cope with.

Optimal Foetal Positioning talks a lot about posture and the fact that how we go about our daily routines, things like the way we sit and the kinds of furniture we use, can affect the positions of the babies we carry.

The following video clip talks about what moms can do during pregnancy (before labor begins) to encourage their baby into an anterior postition:




During pregnancy, I'd also recommend that moms see a chiropractor who is trained in and experienced with the Webster technique. The ICPA has this to say:  "The Webster Technique is a specific chiropractic analysis and adjustment that reduces interference to the nerve system and balances maternal pelvic muscles and ligaments. This in turn reduces torsion in the uterus, a cause of intra-uterine constraint of the baby and allows for optimal fetal positioning in preparation for birth."

If you are in labor and find that your baby is posterior, there are things you can do to encourage him or her to get into a better postion:

• Walk up and down stairs, sideways if possible
• Try an Abdominal Lift during contractions
• Do chair lunges (with a partner for support)
• Lean forward over a birth ball
• Sit on the toilet with one foot raised on a stool

One reason to have a doula, both during the actual labor and talking to your doula in the weeks leading up to birth, is that a well-educated doula will have this information. She can offer you information on getting your baby into the best position for birth before you actually go into labor and she can help you work with your body while you're in labor so that you're using the most effective positions to help your baby descend through the birth canal.

If you're in Syracuse, New York or nearby and have questions about how a doula can help you, feel free to email me at cnydoulaconnection@gmail.com

- Liz Baer

Yeah, Baby!

If you haven't had a chance yet to meet the ladies of the CNY Doula Connection, come on out to "Yeah, Baby!" at the Holiday Inn in Liverpool this coming Sunday, September 26th!

Check it out:

http://www.yeahbabysyracuse.com/

We can't wait to see you there!