Birth matters

Amanda Rayment introduces her new online training to us and answers the question 'Does birth matter?'

What a great title Eva has offered me as a guest blog. Some people would say 'yes Birth Matters!' Others may say 'no not for me'. As always we could gather evidence for both sides of the coin. As one of the tutors of an Antenatal Teachers Training programme, “Bringing Antenatal Teaching Home”, it would appear Birth does matter in my life. I am happy to have this opportunity to share how birth can be an opportunity to dive deeper into love.

The parent and child relationship offers us the potential to discover true freedom. Imagine for a moment being accepted and welcomed simply for the beauty of who you are. Imagine for a moment offering this gift of love to your child. This is the opportunity or the blessing that is available in every parent and child relationship.

The birth of a child could be called an involuntary action, by this I mean that birth is going to take place. We may not know how or when, or we may know how and when, either way it will occur. I often say life provides. The mother need do nothing, birth will occur. Many times there is a tendency to busy ourselves attending to the details or solving problems. In this busyness and doing it is easy to miss the blessing that is being offered. Our full attention often becomes distracted with the many details.

When parents make contact with this so called involuntary action it is often a very direct experience. I have heard parents say it is a ”very profound experience,” "it opened our hearts”, “it was full on”. It can be as if the mother has to draw upon a wisdom deep within her. Then rest in this existence while a huge physiological process occurs. This can be as profound for the father witnessing the process as the mother directly encountering the process. Sometimes through this experience a yearning arises to discover more of what demands our full attention, more contact with what I am calling 'life provides', more of our true nature.

I have discovered that birth doesn’t need defending or used as a grandiose symbol in our life. Of course we are all free to play in this way and this is neither right nor wrong. To leave birth alone is to loosen the chains, if you like of this enormous symbol in the story of the parent and child relationship. So why do I choose to train women as antenatal teachers?

*Birth can be a sign post to dive deeper in to love.

* Birth can be the catalyst in discovering that all the answers to your questions of responsibility as a parent are resting in your heart and the heart of your child. They share the same source.

*Birth asks of us our full attention, not in the sense of attending to external details. Our full attention is required in trusting our self, in trusting our child .If external circumstances need to be attended to let your heart guide you.

*Birth offers us the opportunity to discover our true nature is not dependent on external circumstances. By this I mean that the way in which we birth either “natural” or “medical” is neither right nor wrong. It is just the form, yes of course we may have preferences. If I go back to my words earlier, imagine being welcomed and accepted simply for the beauty of who we are. Why not let birth just be and focus our full attention on extending and receiving love. Love can both be expressed through a so called “natural birth” and a so called “medical birth”.

So in answer to the title of the blog, Birth matters, yes it matters not in the form that it appears. Birth matters in the sense that it is such a beautiful sign post to dive ever deeper into love. The opportunity for both parent and child to discover together the love that they both are.  How wonderful is that? I would also like to offer the thought, that the birth of a baby offers the opportunity to awaken tenderness and love within ourselves. And that those who offer themselves as assistance in this experience have exactly the same opportunity. If these thoughts call to you in some way we offer a training programme where you will be supported to offer antenatal, birth and postpartum work from your heart to the heart of the parents and babies who knock on your workroom door.

Thank you Eva for reminding us all that Birth matters and as always to express my gratitude for all your great work in this arena, there is so much information and assistance offered through this company Born, let’s all use it!

~ Love Amanda

Birth Trust Conference featuring Ina May Gaskin & Dr Yehudi Gordon

Join us for the screening and discussion of the Holistic Birth Trust Conference on May 23rd a 7pm in Bristol.

Several years ago now, a small group of pregnancy and birth practitioners and educators gathered together to form The Holistic Birth Trust Foundation. The focus of the organisation was to promote the potential offered by the parent and child relationship within the arena of birth. A training programme was developed for antenatal teachers, which also in time incorporated doula training. These programmes trained many child birth educators and doulas over many years. The Holistic Birth Trust Foundation has since closed and been incorporated into two other organisations. Those being: ‘Relaxed Birth and Parenting’ formed by Dominique Sakoilsky and Louise Bennett and ‘Welcome World’ owned by Amanda Rayment. Both these organisations jointly run an Antenatal Teachers Training course together called ‘Bringing Antenatal Teaching Home’.

One of The Holistic Birth Trusts projects was to organise a conference in Bristol for childbirth educators, midwives, doulas and practitioners. The conference was given the title ‘Is it possible for the medical and holistic models of birth to join?’ At the time this was a very thought provoking question as the appearance was the two models were functioning separately a lot of the time. Also it was clear to a lot of people that if dialogue could be encouraged there would be many benefits for practitioners in all roles, within both models and of course for parents and babies. As always the resistance seemed to be how could this occur?

Our question that was asked several years ago feels equally as relevant today. So maybe this could be a good opportunity to review the first question “Is it possible for the holistic and medicals models of birth to join?” and then we may discover a deepening into this question.

The stars of the movie are the shining light in midwifery; Ina May Gaskin, who has inspired and led the way for so many of us who work in this wonderful arena of pregnancy and birth. With the obstetrician Dr Yehudi Gordon who is the founder of the UKs first models of integrated care within birthing units. Accompanying these speakers are Dominique and Amanda from the Holistic Birth Trust Foundation. There are local guest panellists who you may know: Louise Bennett, Suzanne Yates and Bristol’s first independent midwife Sue learner.

In a joint venture with Eva from Born we are offering a film viewing and discussion evening. If you work in this arena or are interested in training to become an antenatal teacher or doula this film is an inspiring and engaging documentary.

We hope to see you at the film, please click here for ticket information.

~ Love Amanda

 

 

The Home Herbalist Apprentice with Amanda Rayment

Amanda Rayment makes Welcome World teas which we have stocked for many years in our stores and online.  Her knowledge of herbs is extensive and I've called upon her expertise many times in the years I've known her.  In this wonderful course Amanda will share her years of working as Herbalist with you. I spoke to her about the course, what it offers, how it works and who should consider doing it.

 

Eva in conversation with Amanda Rayment (Audio file will open in new tab or browser).

 

To find out more about the Home Herbalist Apprentice course take a look at the course outline on Amanda's website.

 

Top Tips to Prepare for Breastfeeding

Just as you would prepare for birth, there are things that you can do to prepare for a smooth breastfeeding journey.

Relax. Listen to some relaxation recordings before the birth; this will also help with labour, and will help you when you have your baby as well. Listen to our free Hypnosis for Childbirth recordings from Tracy Holloway, from our site.

Relaxed Birth and Parenting also have a lovely CD, Arrival,  to help you relax and connect with your baby.

Consider a relaxing massage or Shiatsu (Acupressure) from a practitioner specially trained to work with pregnancy and post-natally.  Most practitioners on the Well Mother Register offer home visits for the first month, something I found really useful because I knew my baby was close by. They can also teach self massage of the breast, a useful thing to know to help prevent milk duct blockages.

Trust. Trust your body, trust your baby - when the two are put together frequently, comfortably and effectively, breastfeeding happens. Any form of bodywork, like yoga, Shiatsu, massage, meditation will support you to trust in your body and give you the mental space to just 'Be' with your baby.

Learn. Attend a class with a Lactation consultant or breastfeeding counsellor before your baby arrives. Breastfeeding is a new skill to learn, and because we don't see it in our culture every day, it is worth investing is a training session with your partner too. Supported mum = happy baby. Relaxed Birth and Parenting offer wonderfull weekly mother-to-be classes and couples workshops to help you prepare for your baby's arrival.

Buy a copy of 'The Womanly Art of Breastfeeding',  'Ina May's Guide to Breastfeeding' or 'The Food of Love'

Understand.  Your breasts will change when your baby is born; if you know what to expect, you won't be caught off-guard. See the PDF and videos on our  Bravado Designs page whose nursing bras we sell.

Nurture yourself. Buy a comfortable nursing bra. I've yet to find a range that beats Bravado. Get measured around the 36th week of pregnancy.

Drink pregnancy well-being tea and have a packet of Mama's Nursing Support Tea in your cupboard. It's not just that these teas contains fantastic vitamins and minerals, the very act of making loose leaf tea will help you to relax, and drinking it will calm you. Think of it as your 'calm down for feeding' ritual, where nothing else matters but giving your body and your baby some TLC. Amanda, the Herbalist from Welcome World who makes these teas, also makes a tincture that may help to boost milk production.

Find Breastfeeding Buddies. Speak to other mums who have breastfeed. Find out if there is a breastfeeding support group close to you that you can go to before your baby comes so you can meet other breastfeeding mums. These groups LOVE having pregnant mums visit.

Attend a Baby Calm or Relaxed Birth and Parenting ante-natal class where you can  meet other mums to be to share your journey

Make it comfortable. Try a good nursing support pillow, if it works for you, buy it, it will end up having lots of other support uses too! In the first few days of breastfeeding, getting the positioning correct is important to prevent baby latching oncorrectly. Sitting upright and with your feet and back supported makes this easier.  After you have mastered the art of getting your baby attached, you may not need it, but for those first few days or weeks it may be your best friend.

Buy a tube of Gold Cream, you may never need it but having it there just in case will give you peace of mind.

Keep help at hand. Know where to get help if things don't feel right, or go wrong. There is a lot of support out there. Better to ask a silly question than suffer in silence. Visit www.lcgb.org for skilled local help, keep your local contacts handy so if you need to contact them you can do that straight away. Pain and/or slow weight gain is an indicator that attachment needs experienced and speedy attention.

Set yourself up for success. Read about how to  have a 'Baby Moon', and why it's important to keep unnecessary people away during this special bonding time.

Your baby will need to feed at night, and it's recommend by Unicef/Baby Friendly that baby is in your room for at least the first 6 months. This can be in your bed or in a crib, cradle. cot or Moses basket next to your bed.

Find an Osteopath or Chiropractor you can take your baby to after birth for a check over. Regardless of what kind of birth you have, it's a good idea to do this to make sure there are no issues that could impede good attachment or can cause discomfort to baby or you. We are happy to give you names of trusted practitioners, or see Born Together.

Read positive articles about breastfeeding, read websites that support breastfeeding mums such as www.normalfed.com.

Print these Positive affirmations for breastfeeding and read them every day in the last month of pregnancy, and after your baby arrives:

~Eva, with help from April, Amanda, Becky, Dominique, Juliana, and Suzanne

Milk alternatives

In the news recently I read about the high bidding that has been going on with formula milks.  As someone interested in the food I feed my children I know that there are alternatives to formula milk in a can when babies are old enough to be on solid foods.  I remember talking to Herbalist Amanda Rayment about this when Maya was about 9 months old and I was going through a rough patch with breastfeeding. I felt like I wasn't producing enough milk. One of the thingswe talked about was using Almond Milk as a drink and to mix with foods.  However I never needed to in the end as the tincture I got from her worked amazingly well to boost my supply.

This recent news story made me realise that most people don't realise that there are alternatives to canned formula milk so I asked Amanda to share her knowledge. She has written a useful Blog about Almond Milk and how to make it.  I would add to this that the almond meal makes great cookies! There are loads of recipes online for these.  I've also used the milk myself and it makes a great milk for cereals and smoothies. Just tip in some fruit (bananas, berries) blend and drink.

I'm not a vegetarian but do question our dependence on cows milk for protein and calcium. So often we are told you need to eat cheese or drink milk to produce breastmilk and for healthy teeth and bones. But cows don't drink another mammals milk to get their calcium to produce milk, they eat calcium and protein rich grass. Green vegetables and nuts and seeds are rich in minerals, vitamins and proteins and are also absorbed better, and don't have side effects such as increased mucous production.  So perhaps we could do with re-educating and empowering ourselves about alternatives to dairy and get ourselves and our children eating our own formulas rather than those of multinational companies.

Here is the link to Amanda's Blog, look out for more Blogs about this subject soon. Subscribe via the box on the right so you don't miss out.  Amanda also offers telephone and in-person consultations from Clifton, Bristol.

~ Eva

[caption id="attachment_2453" align="alignright" width="481"] Cow with her calf surrounded by protein and calcium rich grass.[/caption]

Herbs for Relaxation and Sleep by Amanda Rayment Master Herbalist

I was delighted to receive Eva’s invitation to write for Born’s blog, one because I love to sing the praises of how herbal teas are a mothers ally and equally important to say yes to Eva. Born has developed into a service and resource that offers huge support to parents and in my opinion can be trusted by parents. Love Amanda



Question: Can herbal teas and baths be of assistance when we are experiencing our baby or toddler having restless, inconsistent sleep patterns?

 

Drinking Herbal Teas During Pregnancy by Amanda Rayment

The  grandmother of herbalists today, Juliette de Bairacli Levy, is often quoted as saying  “Motherhood. What maturity there is in that word; all those “Os”.  I couldn’t agree with her more! For most women stepping into such maturity, be that with our first child or our 4^th   we welcome some assistance along the way. All the nurturing and nourishment we offer the child in our womb can be the opportunity to welcome and receive nurturing and nourishment for us as well. A lot of us find it easier to give to others rather than receive, in truth they are the same. Mothering is a wondrous opportunity to teach our selves that in the giving we receive. How great is that thought!

Herbs have a long tradition of supporting women in pregnancy whether attending to minor discomforts, affirming wellbeing or healing diagnosed symptoms. A cup of herbal tea can offer a pregnant woman such gifts in terms of nourishment, sustaining well being and lifting the spirits. At Welcome World Herbal Teas we draw on this traditional knowledge and my herbal training. But most of all it is the experience of working with so many pregnant women in my private herbal practice. The herbs used in our formulas are all friendly, familiar herbs which have grown in many back yards in Europe and North America for generations. I like to call them friendly, family kitchen cupboard herbs. The herbs I am going to share with you are all in the Pregnancy Joy tea this is one of our most popular formulas. All four of these herbs could be called mild, gentle, tonic herbs, nurturing and nourishing plants and yet what I have learnt in using and prescribing these herbs is that there is also a rock like strength and sustained nourishment.

As a herbalist I have the good fortune to assist pregnant women through my herbal practice, so which herbs go into Welcome Worlds Pregnancy Joy Tea and why? Let’s start with Nettle leaf. A herb that nourishes in so many different ways, such a beautiful no nonsense plant. Strength is offered in every cup of nettle tea. I would describe nettle as getting the job done. So whenever there is job to be done, extra strength needed or a change of direction in our life, nettle certainly assists us to be less fragile and has a very building and sustaining quality. It is also a great every day herb to brew up as a cuppa assisting us to be full of energy throughout the day. Nettle is often described as a uterine tonic herb. So as you can hear nettle would always be in any pregnancy tea I choose to formulate. Each cup packed with vitamins and minerals.

The next herb I am going to speak of is Oat Straw, this is one of my favourite and most used herbs as a single use herb. Oatstraw is also a very friendly herb and will fit beautifully in to any tea formula. To me oat straw oozes life force energy of saying 'yes' to life. But what it whispers to me more than anything is reminding me to be kind to be tender with myself and of course others. This herb feeds and nourishes the nervous system of which is so needed in pregnancy where most of us are meeting change in our life with the discovery of pregnancy. It has a normalizing effect on the whole physiology of the body when under any level of stress. Oatstraw is known to support conception and nourishes and soothes pregnancy. If these effects are not blessings enough there is more this great plant gives to us freely. Praises are sung regularly for oats ability to support the heart and increase energy levels; can you hear what I mean when I say "... it oozes life force energy?" I believe as we support the nervous system and encourage the body to rest back our immune systems are enhanced. All of which supports the joy of pregnancy. Again a herb rich in vitamins and minerals.

Lemon Balm, this is a herb I enjoy and can be added to most pregnancy cuppas. Lemon Balm supports the nervous system and the digestive system at the same time. As pregnancy moves through the trimesters there is a feeling of less space understandably for the mother and baby. This can be perceived in many different ways. Sometimes digestive systems issues arise as a result of less space and this is where lemon balm offers assistance. This herb is great to combine with nettle if you do not want to use an allopathic remedy while you are pregnant. Lemon balm is known for lifting our spirits and adds a delightful taste to any tea formula. Again relax into the joy of pregnancy.

So the last plant I am going to speak of in the Pregnancy Joy Tea but certainly not the least is Alfalfa. Wow! this herb pushes its roots so far down into the earth and draws up all the goodness the earth has to offer. Alfalfa is so rich in vitamins and minerals especially vitamin k. I would use it as a herb on its own for assisting with a programme to lower cholesterol and also have used it successfully when extra weight or growth is needed. In pregnancy I use alfalfa as part of a formula tea to enhance general wellbeing. This plant is full of vitality and of course can be eaten sprouted as well as in herbal tea.

In the last trimester of pregnancy I suggest bringing raspberry leaf into your kitchen cupboard. This herb I call a woman’s best friend. Raspberry leaf has supported and restored generations of women’s uteruses. A good tonic herb that supports women in preparing for birth, widely known as women’s birthing ally. Herbalist also call raspberry leaf an astringent herb as it assists in lessening the flow of discharge.  Raspberry leaf is often defined as a strengthening, tonic and supportive herb. Carry on having raspberry leaf in the kitchen cupboard after your baby is born; it’s a great family herb that can be combined with nettle very easily for most family ailments and well being. Raspberry leaf provides very easily assimilated calcium and iron for all the family. Only drink in the last trimester of pregnancy. Also make a large pot or flask to sip in early labour. Midwives and doulas enjoy a brew of Raspberry leaf as well not forgetting partners of course.

I hope this has encouraged you to believe that herbal teas are not only of benefit and an alternative to caffeine drinks during pregnancy but also are a delight and a blessing. So relax make a brew and enjoy.

Amanda Rayment is a Master herbalist and owner of Welcome World Herbal Teas.