When and where do we meet?Your visit should be scheduled around your 36/37th week in pregnancy. Typically, your doula will come to your home however, if you feel more comfortable meeting somewhere else or virtually this can be arranged. Budget around 1-2 hours at your prenatal appointment.What will we discuss?What happens after the prenatal visit?During the prenatal visit, most clients utilize the time to discuss their birth preferences, delve into their options, and address any anxieties or fears that may be …
Explaining the Bishop Score For Labor Preparation
As expectant parents approach their due dates, healthcare providers often assess their readiness for labor. One tool commonly used for this assessment is the Bishop Score. Developed by Dr. Edward Bishop in the 1960s, the Bishop Score helps determine the likelihood of a successful induction of labor or the progress of spontaneous labor. What is the Bishop Score? The Bishop Score is a numerical system used to evaluate the cervix in terms of its readiness for labor. It takes into …
So What Exactly Does a Postpartum Doula Do?
What exactly a postpartum doula does is such a hard question to answer, because it is so uniquely tailored to our clients. All I can say is so many people enter a new parents’ home, and the focus is all on the baby. Even all the doctors and lactation consultant visits in the initial months focus almost solely on the baby. The birthing person gets ONE visit at 6 weeks. The Partner doesn’t get a check in. The main thread through everything …
3 Elements Every Parent Should Include in Their Nursery
Being an expectant parent comes with a pretty extensive to-do list. For one, you need to find the right support for the birth of your child, and Balanced Birth Support can provide this. You also need to make sure your home is a safe, warm, and welcoming space for that little one. It all starts with creating a comfortable and soothing nursery. Here’s what you will want to provide for both your baby and you in your nursery: Warmth Keeping …
Ways Birthing from Within Helps Parents
In our Birthing from Within childbirth education class you will… Explore the internal landscape for labor The internal landscape for labor relates to the emotional and mental journey – the internal experience. Regardless of how birth unfolds medically, the inner journey tends to have some common milestones. In addition to learning about anatomy, physical stages of labor, hormones and physiology, we go deep into the internal experience and also help parents prepare for and recognize some of those emotional guide posts …
10 Questions to Ask Your Provider about Pregnancy, Birth, & Postpartum from BBS Senior Doula Kerry Reynolds
Kerry Reynolds is a Balanced Birth Support Senior Doula serving Metro DC & Greater Maryland. She has been a birth doula for over a decade with tons of experience supporting all kinds of births including home birth, medicated and non–medicated hospital, cesarean birth, twin deliveries, LGBTQ families and VBAC deliveries. Learn more about Kerry by visiting her Balanced Birth Support profile. Getting to know your doctor or midwife is an important part of preparing for birth & postpartum. Its essential that …
How To Choose & Evaluate Reliable Sources As You Begin Your Parenting Journey
Ariel Rubin is a certified Lactation Counselor & Postpartum Doula. She is the mother of four children, including a set of twins! She is passionate about helping families during the postpartum period with a focus on feeding issues including breastfeeding, pumping, & bottle feeding. Contact her here! If I had to sum up all of the advice in the eight or so care of twins books I read, it would be easy: keep the babies on the same schedule. Feed …
Top Tips for Budget-Conscious Families To-Be
Based in Grandville MI, Jennifer McGregor is a pre-med student who enjoys writing about health and medical topics and providing health and medical resources. She co-created PublicHealthLibrary as a way to push reputable information on health topics to the forefront, making them easier and quicker to find Top Tips for Budget-Conscious FamiliesBringing a baby into the world is such a blessing, and the last thing you want to have on your mind is financial stress. A handful of clever spending …
Budget-Wise Building Blocks of Health to Keep You and Your Baby Healthy
Based in Grandville MI, Jennifer McGregor is a pre-med student who enjoys writing about health and medical topics and providing health and medical resources. She co-created PublicHealthLibrary as a way to push reputable information on health topics to the forefront, making them easier and quicker to find Budget-Wise Building Blocks of Health to Keep You and Your Baby Healthy Health and wellness are the foundations for a long and happy life. This is why taking care of yourself is so …
Important Questions to Ask Your OB-GYN at Every Stage of Life (Free Printables too!)
Christine Huegel is a health and wellness blogger who specializes in women’s health topics. She believes knowledge is power when it comes to the female body and hopes to not only educate women, but empower them to make every aspect of their health a priority. The female body is an extraordinary thing. It’s also complicated, and it can be difficult to understand what’s normal or what your body needs on your own. Like many women, you may be wondering what’s …