Cesarean Awareness Month - Belly Birth is Beautiful

Did you know that April is Cesarean Awareness Month? You do now! 

Although many people don't plan on having a cesarean birth as they approach their EDD *estimated due date (and of course, some do), it's important to have a plan just in case it comes up. Being educated on what Cesarean births entail (a major abdominal surgery), what a typical recovery is like, and what rights and options you have if birthing in, or transferring to, a hospital, can have a tremendous impact on your birth experience and health outcomes for you and your babe. 

The history of Cesarean birth is complicated, and you can read more about it at the International Cesarean Awareness Network website.

Know your rights, know what to expect JUST IN CASE, and learn how you and your support team can advocate for you!

In addition to prenatal support, postpartum care is something we are very passionate about here at Ready Set Grow, and something that is unfortunately, still grossly deficient in our healthcare system. We recently heard from a new parent-student who had a Cesarean, that their doctor cleared them for "normal activity" (in their case, running) at their six week check-up, VIA TELEHEALTH. 🤯 It blows my mind. I could go on for days on this subject as can every other teacher at RSG. In fact, I'm pretty sure some of you have experienced this ranting, at least from me. 

Sometimes a Cesarean birth is necessary and it can absolutely save lives. Feeling heard, supported, and respected throughout your birth experience can make a physically difficult, sometimes traumatic birth experience much better. I personally had a Cesarean with my last baby. Although I had planned a home water birth, with my two older children and partner helping and witnessing, due to some unforeseen complications, a Cesarean became the best choice for myself and our baby.  I feel grateful (and lucky) that I had such a wonderful birth team in the hospital, all of whom had never set eyes on me before, and during the height of the pandemic. The empowered, compassionate, and supportive environment I experienced during my own unplanned Cesarean, did wonders for my mental health, emotional and physical healing (they are ALWAYS linked), and my postpartum recovery overall.

OK. So, what if you've already had a Cesarean or belly birth? There is unfortunately very little guidance from healthcare providers on best practices to heal fully after giving birth in this way *see story about our student's recent experience above.

The old advice of "do nothing for 6-8 weeks, then return to normal activity" that many birthing people still receive, often without even an in-person check-up is harmful. In fact, it's bullshit. Thankfully there are exceptions, but they are too few and far between. 

Postpartum people need more guidance, more care from their healthcare providers, and more support. 

We have so many avenues of support available, whether it’s classes for Cesarean scar care, new parent support groups, workshops to help guide you in caring for your baby while ALSO supporting your own mental and physical health, and ways to feel more connected to yourself, to help prevent burnout now and into your parenting journey.

As always, if you need support, resources, research based information, an ear, a hug, WHATEVER, we're here and we'd love to hear from you.

You've got this and we've got you.

Love to you and your growing family,

Daniele & The Ready Set Grow Team

4 Major Benefits of PostPartum Yoga

What is Postpartum Yoga?

Postpartum or postnatal yoga is a movement practice created specifically for a postpartum birthing person and commonly consists of low-intensity stretches that focus on the areas most often tight while caring for a newborn, breathing exercises to help connect you to your breath, gentle core and pelvic floor engagement. and finding mind-body balance after birth, as well as community (a benefit often overlooked).

When Can I Safely Start?

There’s no one-size-fits-all answer to this question. The American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists (ACOG) says that resuming exercise can vary from person to person, depending on the nature of your birth experience. Was it an uncomplicated pelvic birth? A C-section? Ultimately, your timeline is yours, but please talk to your doctor before resuming any exercise after birth (regardless of the specifics). However, it is a common misconception that birthing people should do “nothing” for 6-8 weeks and then “return to normal activity”. This is not only untrue, but can lead to injury. Breathing exercises as well as gentle stretching of the extremities, shoulders, and neck can help with the early aches and pains associated with caring for a newborn, and with birth recovery. Short walks are also recommended (but please hold off on wearing baby especially if you had a cesarean birth until you’ve checked in with your doctor or midwife). When cleared to return to exercise, proceed slowly and ideally start with classes or activities that are specifically designed for the postpartum body.

The Benefits

1. Yoga is a total body strength training. And it’s fully customizable to your postpartum experience.

2. It can help combat postpartum depression. A small study in 2015 found that participants who attended yoga classes twice per week for 8 weeks saw a 78% decrease in depression and anxiety symptoms.

3. It may increase milk production. A 2017 study of 30 women suggests that the deep relaxation, calmness, and self-confidence gleaned from postpartum yoga helps facilitate a release of the hormones prolactin and oxytocin. These two hormones get the milk flowing!

4. It strengthens your pelvic floor. Worried about peeing when you sneeze after the baby’s born? Postnatal yoga has your back (and your pelvic floor). Yogic breathing and certain muscle group moves can help curb incontinence. Stop the sneeze-pee!

For more information about group postnatal yoga classes or individualized one-on-one classes, visit us at www.andreadysetgrow.com for the latest information.

The Yoga of Childbirth: Becoming an Expanded Version of Yourself by Kate Howell

You won’t see it written in the ancient texts, but there’s a powerful and palpable connection between yoga and childbirth.

I’m not referring to the many well-recognized benefits of prenatal yoga. Yoga builds strength and cultivates flexibility, eases pain and discomforts, encourages good circulation, enhances digestion, facilitates deeper breathing, soothes the nervous system, promotes restful sleep, and more. And this is not to mention the supportive community and the new friendships forged in a prenatal yoga class that are often sustained well into new parenthood.

There is something beyond even all of that, harder still to define and rarely articulated.

And it’s that… well… yoga prepares the whole person -- body, mind and spirit -- for the transformational process of childbirth.

In yoga philosophy (specifically the Taittiriya Upanishad), we are said to inhabit 5 bodies, or containers, called koshas. Like existential nesting dolls, nestled one inside the other yet paradoxically taking up the exact same space, the koshas are organized from the most gross to the most subtle like so:

1. Annamaya Kosha, the physical body or literally “food body”

2. Prananmaya Kosha, the energy body (prana usually translates as “life force,” carried on the breath)

3. Manamaya Kosha, the mind body or body of thought and emotion

4. Vijnanamaya Kosha, the wisdom body or the intuition body

5. Anandamaya Kosha, the bliss body

In the physical yoga practice, we start with the most gross layer, the annamaya kosha or physical body, shifting the orientation of the body, taking on different postures (asanas) and becoming very curious about physical sensation. Then we consciously manipulate the breath, affecting the pranamaya kosha, or energy body in these different positions. Through exploration and felt experience, we begin to understand how changing the shape of the body and deepening the breath can help us move sensation, move energy, often releasing held tension in the body. In this way, we train ourselves to move toward and stay with discomfort, expanding our window of tolerance around unpleasant sensations, and we practice deep connection to the breath, even when the going gets tough.

This experience alone makes yoga a fairly comprehensive lesson in laboring: move, breathe, stay with sensation, repeat.

And then yoga goes even further, taking us into the more subtle terrain of the manamaya kosha, or the mind body. As we move and breathe, we recognize a near constant stream of thoughts and emotions running through the landscape of the mind. Sometimes these thoughts are joyful. Sometimes they are random and distracting. Quite often they are critical (we are prone to compare and judge ourselves and others), self-defeating, self-destructive. In nearly the same way we allow all physical sensation to be a part of our experience, we allow thoughts and emotions to arise even when they are unpleasant We practice noticing without judging, pushing away, clinging to, or clenching around. When we notice we are identifying with the thought or engaging in that inner dialogue, we gently guide ourselves again into breath and sensation.

Holding all experience -- physical, energetic, mental and emotional -- without identifying, puts us in touch with still some deeper Self. We might even ask ourselves… if I’m not my body, breath or thoughts, who am I? Who is the person holding all of this experience?

That next deeper level is the vijnanamaya kosha, the intuition body. This is the aspect of the Self that we get close to during physical yoga practice and this is the aspect of the Self that we rely on during the life-changing journey of childbirth.

To have a relationship with one’s sense of intuition.…

To know the way there is through body and breath...

To know this experientially, to have practiced getting quiet and listening to that inner voice on the yoga mat many times before…

There is nothing more valuable to a laboring person than connecting with intuition.

While childbirth is a challenge of strength and stamina, it is also an outstanding mental and emotional journey, an opportunity to brush against and move beyond perceived limitations. More than a biological process, childbirth is a rite of passage, a sacred threshold. It is a ritual that connects us to the primal, awakens dormant stores of patience, courage, and strength we never knew we had, and transforms us into something we hadn’t been before.

The practice of yoga, too, draws us constantly outside of the familiar, into heightened awareness of sensation and rhythm, forging profound connection with subtler aspects of being. Yoga fortifies our powers of intuition, challenges us to listen, stay with, and lean in, in order to experience ourselves as capable of the extraordinary.

And above all, yoga is a plumb-line to the deepest Self, the anandamaya kosha, which the yogis defined as bliss.

If you move through the whole violent, holy upheaval of breathing a baby into the earth-side world...if you have courage to move through all the layers of being... there is bliss in the end. No matter how hard it has been, this birth journey, you arrive on the other side an expanded version of yourself.

I have a theory that thousands of years ago, the men who were developing the yoga practice, passing down stories (there was an oral tradition) and eventually recording the philosophy, were after that one experience they couldn’t have. That wholeness, that full arrival of giving birth.

In the long history of yoga (origins traced back nearly 5,000 years), it is only just recently that pregnant people have been practicing yoga. I’d be delighted to hear about your birth experiences and any connections you have made between yoga and childbirth. We can begin our own oral tradition that someone may study 5,000 years from now.

--

Resources referenced for this piece:

Ina May’s Guide to Childbirth by Ina May Gaskin

Mindful Birthing: Training the Mind, Body, and Heart for Childbirth and Beyond by Nancy Bardacke

The Upanishads, Introduced and Translated by Eknath Easwaran

The Experience of Breast/Chest Feeding as a Non-Binary Parent by Julia Tillinghast

For me, breastfeeding was a mixed experience. I had grown up in a very pro-breastfeeding environment and I believe the capacity of the body to make such exquisitely attuned nourishment for a newborn is borderline miraculous. ⁣⁣

As a non-binary person I also experienced body dysphoria during pregnancy, and breastfeeding felt like a continuation of that. As a person who experiences themselves more in a neutral gender space, and as a sexual being, having that part of my body maternalized felt odd. As a personality, sharing my body with someone else and subsuming my needs to theirs was hard for me. This balancing of ones own needs with one’s child’s, this grappling what it means to be interdependent in this kind of relationship of parent and child, is, of course, a central issue of parenting. ⁣

In both of my experiences of breastfeeding, it was extremely painful at first, and then my tissues adapted. I wish I had known more clearly at the time to expect the pain and that it wasn’t abnormal! ⁣⁣
⁣⁣
My first baby stopped nursing on his own, spontaneously, at age 2, which I thought was really quite cool. I smoked a joint the very next day. 🙃 ⁣⁣
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I decided to stop nursing my second child at around 11 months. It seemed like a difficult decision because many people I knew breastfed much longer than that, and I know how beneficial it can be. It was a relief, though, and I felt I had made the right decision for my body and my autonomy. I would say in these matters that should be one of the highest considerations. It’s a cliche, I know, but claiming our own autonomy is how we teach our children to do that for themselves. ⁣⁣
⁣⁣
My youngest child is now three. Every once in a while, we talk about how he used to drink milk from mama’s body. I think we both find it a kind of strange, almost magical idea. ❤️”⁣⁣

Alcohol and Breastfeeding by Krystal Key

When it comes down to it, there’s no need to reinvent the wheel. Alcohol consumption and breastfeeding has been proven to be generally compatible, safe, a-okay, whatever you want to call it.

So let’s really dig into the nuts and bolts of what that means as a new parent. How much alcohol is okay? Do you need to pump and dump? Are there any “rules” you should know about?

To be perfectly honest, how much alcohol can be safely consumed by a nursing parent has about five million variables to it:

• Is baby full term and healthy? 

• How old is baby now? 

  • How often do they nurse? 

• What is the nursing parent’s tolerance for alcohol? 

  • Can they drink my Uncles Kurt and Mark under the table normally? 

  • Do they weigh 110 pounds soaking wet? 

• Is this a parent that knows their limits? 

See what I mean by lots of variables? In the most basic of basics, assuming that everything health-wise is on the up and up for baby and parent, if you’re safe to drive you’re safe to nurse. The amount of alcohol that passes into human milk is the same as the parent’s blood alcohol level. The legal limit for driving is .08%, which means that for a parent that isn’t buzzed or intoxicated, baby is getting less than 1% alcohol via milk at its peak. Let’s say baby’s having a feeding at that time, they’re only getting .84-1.4 grams of alcohol in that 3-5 ounce feeding. That’s a pretty tiny amount that a healthy baby’s liver should be able to handle occasionally. 

Let’s say you’re still uncomfortable with it. That’s fair. It’s your body, and you spent a lot of time and energy growing your tiny human! You definitely get to call the shots over what feels reasonable or not as a parent. It’s worth knowing that pump and dump is not only outdated, it’s a major waste of time since the alcohol will leave your milk at the same rate that it leaves your bloodstream. The only reason to pump in a scenario related to alcohol is if you’re missing a feeding because you’d rather offer a bottle than a nursing session. Even then, you’re technically not pumping because of the alcohol, but because of the missed feeding. What you do with that milk is totally up to you, but for goodness sake, please don’t dump it! If you don’t want to feed it to baby you can still use it medicinally in their bathwater. It’s great for their skin!

So, if you’re feeling pretty confident about imbibing a glass of rosé or a shandy, know that there are a few things to keep in mind. First, if you haven’t had an adult beverage in nine or ten months your tolerance is not going to be what it once was, so pace yourself! Second, if you’re under the influence of anything (alcohol, sleep medication, whatever) you should not bedshare, so no falling asleep with baby until you’re totally sober. Third, alcohol impacts oxytocin which is the hormone that helps push the milk out of your body and into baby. In most people it’s not noticeable at all, in others the letdown may be delayed or non-existent until sober again. Last, but not least, not everyone is as knowledgeable about this stuff as they should be, so you may get some side-eye or questions. You’re not doing anything wrong if you’ve weighed all the pros and cons and determined that it’s a safe option, so don’t be afraid to speak up and advocate for yourself and your parenting. I wish I could say it’s the only time you’ll need to, but there will be many opportunities in your parenting journey where you’ll need to tell the Karens of the world that you got this. 

I always recommend to plan on a little day drinking (so you’re not exhausted and can have a nice big lunch with protein) to help offset the effects of your maiden voyage into this uncharted territory. You should also plan on having a sober adult around just in case it hits you in a way you weren’t expecting. The biggest risk is that you still need to be able to parent safely, so call in backup! The other thing that can come as a bit of a surprise to some is that the safest time to have your adult beverage is while baby is nursing. It’s not in your milk yet, and will be metabolized back out by the time baby wants to eat again. So, drink in one hand, baby in the other arm, and bottoms up!

Alcohol and breastfeeding resources:

https://kellymom.com/bf/can-i-breastfeed/lifestyle/alcohol/

https://www.cdc.gov/breastfeeding/breastfeeding-special-circumstances/vaccinations-medications-drugs/alcohol.html

https://www.infantrisk.com/content/alcohol-and-breastfeeding

About the author: Krystal has been an IBCLC (Internationally Board Certified Lactation Consultant) since 2015, and supports families in the Pacific Northwest via classes and home visits through her business Key Lactation: www.keylactation.com. Find other nuggets of interesting (and helpful) information on parenting and feeding babies on social media @keylactation on Instagram and Facebook. 

Reimagining Self-Care by Katherine Cota MacDonald

I’m so glad that the motto, “self care isn’t selfish” is floating around ubiquitously now, but there are still so many high-pressure connotations to what people think self care entails. It isn’t wrong to picture bubble baths, candles, and fancy scented lotions and potions, yet, more practical and accessible self care practices exist. These practices answer just one question – what do you need to return to a natural (healthy, harmonious) state? Arriving here is where you begin to be ready to take on the world and your mission. We can consider what it takes to replenish and access our existing internal toolbox. This is the internal reserve that can’t be touched by buying, building, and changing things externally. Naturally, the factors involved in finding and personalizing your best self care practice are endlessly numerous.

Spectrum of Care

Through varying life stages, I have found large and small ways to impact my wellbeing. Being a young adult in college vs. being a working professional vs. being a new mom – whoah, does anyone else feel like they’ve lived in more than one world? The tiny apartment (with fittingly tiny bathroom) that my husband and I shared for 7 years was not an oasis for relaxation. We had a stand-up shower and we had to sit on the toilet sideways to close the door. Self care for me during those days involved time well spent on my dancing and art, date nights to connect after busy work weeks, snuggling the cats, walks around the local green spaces, becoming more financially savvy, ensuring enough hours of sleep, and learning (via college, parents’ advice, experience, Google…). Oh, and candles. What a richly restoring time, no? For us, yes. We were on a fairly traditional track for young Americans. But the picture is very, very different for so many people. Socioeconomic status, age, family structure, geographic location, mental health – these are all HUGE factors in what it may look like for someone to return and to restart at their core. Most recently, I caught myself at the end of a long day with my 4-month-old daughter, an evening of cluster feeding and comfort nursing, and I craved a stretch. I didn’t think it would be “nice” to stretch – my body and my mind both needed to move in order to go any further. I rolled out my yoga blanket quickly and noticed the corners were curled. I eagerly began to hop on the blanket to get in as much time as I could in case the baby woke up again. Then, I paused. I stepped off of the blanket and decided to unfurl the corners and spread out the layers; to make this a sweet and tidy little rectangle. And there it was – my self care for the day (maybe the week?) was tidying these corners. It was so simple and I almost felt moved to tears. Almost. No one has time for tears about blankets with an infant! Just kidding. Maybe crying is part of your self care and that can be wonderfully clarifying and great for the body. Somewhere between almost crying about smoothing out a piece of fabric and flying on a private jet to dip your toes in the coast of Santorini lies the full spectrum of self care. (That blanket thing was basically free…just saying.)

Social Self Care

One of the largest contributors to that inner reserve is social connection. Balancing your world between your inner landscape and your social engagement is the goal of holistic self care. Our increasingly insular society leads us away from the understanding of how deeply impactful other people are to our wellbeing. I have grown to love everything about a coffee date. They’re quick pick-me-ups and get the endorphins of love and connection soaring. An hour or two of chatting, making eye contact, laughing, being seen and heard, maybe with a hug or two, can make a world of difference in your mood. The beverage or snack is just a perk! I feel so whole and alive when I can enjoy this lively setting in a sunny window, smelling the aroma of freshly brewed coffee and baked goods, and people-watching inches from the sidewalk. It may not be for everyone, but that’s just it. Find your go-to social niche with a pal, coworker, or new friend.

Be Uncool

Self care also isn’t trendy. I watched jade rollers “roll” right in and back out of the trends that “influencers” were peddling. I’m so behind the trends. (As in: I got super into Backstreet Boys in 2003 after denouncing them for my entire middle and high school careers. Hey, I just loved Oldies.) That being said, I love my jade roller! It’s beautiful, simple, versatile, and practical. It was also a birthday gift from my aunt and I think of her every time I look at it. These are great criteria for the “stuff” of self care, but the material items are not necessary. I love William Morris’ guideline, “Have nothing in your house that you do not know to be useful, or believe to be beautiful.”  What stands the test of time for you, for your heart, and what continues to move you? These are the things to surround yourself with. Who are the people who celebrate you, help you to breathe easily and laugh-cry, and who are always unconditionally there? They’re out there, and they’re not buried beneath borderline unethical palo santo and essential oils.

“The only true currency in this bankrupt world is what you share with someone else when you’re uncool.” – Lester Bangs, Almost Famous

In the end, sustainable and effective self care is uncool, unbranded, and unconditional love for your self and those close to you. I’m writing this in the time of the Covid-19 pandemic quarantining. At night, I sneak in yoga, writing, drawing, crochet, face masks, and manicures when I can. I find time at the end of the night to talk with my husband, to laugh, plan, worry, and dream together. I watch t.v. and chat with my Dad, reveling in the baby’s giggles, fuzzy little sandy-colored head, and her inherited strong will. We see each day how quickly she is growing – all in this beautiful little bubble that we wouldn’t have had if not for the pandemic. I go on walks with my father, daughter, and husband (some combo of or all together) and, even on the same streets, with the same dog that barks, and the same peach blossoms and magnolias, this is joy. Renewing, replenishing, joy.

Katherine Cota MacDonald (She/Her) is a teacher at Ready Set Grow and is the founder of Black Fox Yoga. Learn more about here here.