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 MAY 2005
TABLE OF CONTENTS
A Fun Father's Day Party!Looking for a unique way to celebrate Father's Day? PSMBC has booked the hottest party place in town! Come bounce with your kids at "Pump It Up!" in Kirkland on Saturday June 18th. This indoor facility has huge bouncy castles of all shapes and sizes, fun not only for the little people but the big people too. For full info, including photos and a map, visit the Pump It Up! Website Tickets must be bought in advance. There is a limit of 40 kids, so please hurry! Details
Moms are welcome too.
PSMBC Picnic -- Save the DateThis year's picnic will be extra special because it's the 10th annual picnic. What a lot of babies those 10 years represent! The picnic is scheduled for Saturday, September 17th from Noon to 4:00pm at Cottage Lake Park in Woodinville. We'll have more details closer to the event. The 4th TrimesterExciting! Exhausting! Exhilarating! Eventful!The 4th Trimester... ...is a support group and class for new parents and their babies (prenatal – 4 months) to explore the common challenges and joys of the early months with baby. This is a place to celebrate, commiserate, confirm, and connect. Join Licensed Midwife and mother, Ann Gugat & other facilitators for weekly early parenting education, support, and sharing in the 4th trimester. Thursdays, starting July 7th at Birth & Bodywork in Bellevue. Time to be announced. $50 for 12 class punch card or $5 drop in fee. Snacks provided Sponsored by Birth & Bodywork and Puget Sound Midwives & Birth Center Call 206-663-6767 for information or visit http://www.birthandbodywork.com A New Pain-Easing OptionWe're excited to announce that PSMBC will soon have a new pain-easing option for labor. At the end of this month, all the midwives will be trained in the use of a TENS unit. TENS stands for Transcutaneous Electrical Nerve Stimulation. TENS pads can be placed on the back to provide stimulation to the nerves which are then less efficient at transmitting pain signals. TENS can be particularly effective in situations such as prolonged back labor. In the UK, TENS machines are frequently used in labor, and women can even rent a unit from a drugstore and use it without a midwife's order. In the next newsletter, we'll have more details about this new option. In the meantime, you can get further information at the following website: http://midwifeinfo.com/topic-TENS.php Share a Birth StoryDo you have a birth story you would like to share with other PSMBC clients and newsletter recipients? We would love to include a birth story in every newsletter we send out: homebirths, births at the birth center, births that went exactly as you hoped, and births that were more challenging than you expected. These stories are how we share birth knowledge now that, in modern society, most women rarely or never have the privilege of witnessing birth. Please email newsletter@birthcenter.com with your unique story. Well Woman CareA reminder that a new Well Woman Care option is now available! Rebekah Couper-Noles is accepting new clients now. Come and experience how nurturing Well Woman Care can be. Call Ardie at (425) 823-1919 to make an appointment. Or for more information, visit the PSMBC website. [Editorial Note: I just had my first appointment with Rebekah last week and it was wonderful to experience midwifery-quality care outside of pregnancy] MANA StatisticsIThe Midwives Association of North America (MANA) has embarked on an ambitious prospective study on the safety of out-of-hospital birth. All midwife members of MANA are required to participate in the study. With client permission, data such as age, number of previous pregnancies, and due date are sent to MANA when each client first starts care. Then, when care ends, data about the outcome, including any complications, are submitted. Uniquely identifying data such as name, address, birth date, or social security are not sent in so that client privacy is maintained. The expectation is that, when all the data are analyzed, it will provide yet more proof that out-of-hospital birth is a safe and reasonable option. If you have any questions about this project, please talk to your midwives. Infant and Child Massage Helps the Whole Familyby Kendal May, Licensed Massage Therapist, Certified Doula and Childbirth EducatorThe Science is clear…babies love massage… As a Licensed Massage Therapist for over 15 years, I get the benefits of massage but I am always most moved by the power of massage when I share the following information with new and expectant parents. “Researchers at the department of Pediatrics at the University of Miami School of Medicine studied the effects of massage on thirty cocaine-exposed premature babies who were randomly assigned to receive massage therapy or placed in a control group. The fifteen babies in the treatment group received three 15 minute massages over a period of three consecutive hours each day for ten days. The researchers found that the massage group showed significant improvements over the control group. At the end of the ten day period the babies who received massage averaged 28% greater weight gain per day even though the dietary volume and calorific intakes were the same in both groups. The babies in the massage group also showed significantly fewer post-natal complications and stress behaviors than the control group, and they also demonstrated more mature and organized motor skills.” (1) While the bulk of research of infant massage seems to be on premature babies, these findings give fascinating insight into the possible benefits of massage therapy for all babies. The benefits that seem to motivate most parents to try infant massage are: helping your fussy baby feel better whether the discomfort is caused by colic or being over-tired or over-stimulated, helping your baby to sleep longer and more restfully and interacting and bonding with your new baby. It is my belief that these are all one in the same. Relaxed Parent…Relaxed baby… It is very common that a fussy, over-stimulated baby doesn’t sleep well and may result in an anxious, over-tired parent. The connection should not be lost on us. Relaxation is important for the baby and the parent, especially since touch is such a powerful form of communication. The one-on-one intimate, and reciprocal interaction of massage can be pleasurable and relaxing for both the giver and receiver. However, like all touch, there is an essential respectful awareness that must occur. So the “when” and “how” of infant massage is very important. Infant Massage Therapist, Carla Steptoe puts it well: “In order to help a baby through this period it is important to first do a self assessment. How can you calm another if you are anxious, nervous, or tense? If you wanted someone to comfort you, what would you like them to be like? You would probably like them to be centered, present, and a good listener. In infant massage, the baby communicates pleasure and relaxation and reinforces the parent’s confidence and competence in touch. In time, the baby will lead the massage”. Ms. Steptoe recommends using relaxing techniques like breathing, soft music, simple stretching to prepare yourself for you massage time with your baby. Sound familiar…a bit like preparation for childbirth perhaps? In my Confident Birthing Class, I am always pointing out to expectant parents how what we are doing now is not just preparation for birth but for early parenting as well. This is a great learning for expectant dads because infant massage given by dads is especially beneficial for the family. The Power of Dad’s hands and heart… In his book Touching: The Human Significance of the Skin, Ashley Montagu stated "If, in our culture, we could learn to understand the importance of fathers as well as mothers giving their infants adequate tactile satisfactions, we would be taking a considerable step toward the improvement of human relations." Frank Charneco, of New Orleans, LA., attended one of Ms. Steptoe’s infant massage class and expressed "I learned more about my new son and became more comfortable with handling and touching a person so small and fragile. I was able to become better acquainted with my newborn, and realize that he is not so fragile and that I don’t have to be afraid to hold and touch him". “The father is fully present and focused on the baby during the massage. He provides a role model for active listening, empathy, and support”, says Steptoe. “A trusting loving relationship is established. These healthy emotional beginnings in the first year of life form the foundation for future relationships. The baby learns to incorporate these same behaviors in future relationships”. (2). The benefits of loving, nurturing touch are so far-reaching and, if given by both parents, may have truly transformative potential in the experience of the family. Massage benefits growing children too… Another study of massage, conducted at the University of Miami Medical School with children who were suffering from depression and adjustment disorders found that a 30 minute back massage for 5 days left these children less depressed or anxious. In addition, nurses rated the massage group as being more co-operative and noted that the children were sleeping better than the children in the control group. Massage therapy also had the effect of reducing the stress hormones of cortisol and norepinephrine levels in the children. The researchers were left in no doubt that massage therapy offers real benefits for children suffering from stress and anxiety. (3) Often, in Infant Massage Classes, guidelines are given to adapt the strokes to the growing so the massage can continue over the years. What child doesn’t need a massage after soccer or dance practice? How helpful to receive massage during emotionally and mentally stressful times in school? The time set aside at bedtime, after dinner, or after school for a head, hand, foot or back massage is an excellent avenue to keep the closeness and communication lines open that were established in infancy. (4) ********************* Infant Massage ClassesPuget Sound Birth Center and Birth & Bodywork:Birth & Bodywork holds Infant Massage Classes periodically. Visit Birth and Bodywork for dates or for information on arranging private individual or group classes. Evergreen Hospital: Five-week series begins June 18, 11a.m.-12:30 p.m., $75 per family. Seattle Holistic Center:A four-week series Tues. 11:30-12:45pm June 7, 14, 21 & 28th $95 per baby Individual sessions in homes:
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