Dec. 1, 2007:
Several weeks ago I was asked to speak at the
Trust Birth Conference! I hope to see many of you there!
August 19, 2007:
Unassisted Childbirth (freebirth) articles continue to appear in the news. I've
posted links to most of the articles on the left side of my main page.
July 18, 2007:
I'm pleased to say that a major TV station in the UK has
commissioned a documentary about unassisted childbirth! The producers are hoping to find three women or couples either in the US or the UK that are
planning unassisted births and are willing to be interviewed both before and after the birth. They may also be interested in speaking with women who have already had
unassisted births (but only in the UK). Those of you who are interested can email me and I'll put you in touch with the producers. In other UK news, I wrote about
my recent UK TV appearance in my blog. Check it out - UC on UK TV.
July 3, 2007:
I finally have a moment to breathe! The Guardian article
inspired a wave of publicity that is just now subsiding! I've done nine interviews in the past two weeks, including one for a TV
show in London! I'm hoping to be able to post the segment on my site. Speaking of
which, a lovely birth clip that I originally posted on Youtube is now on my site. Apparently they considered it obscene (as did Google). A search on "childbirth" on Youtube
produces numerous birth clips that are much more graphic than the one I posted. In one, a woman is lying on a table with her legs spread. She's surrounded by doctors and nurses, one of whom is giving her an episiotomy.
Seconds later a doctor aggressively pulls a baby from her body. THAT, to me, is offensive. But it looks like I have enough bandwidth to keep the clip on my site, so all is well.
May 13, 2007:
It's Mother's Day and life in "Unassisted Childbirth Land" is hopping! Two UC articles were published this week,
Going it alone
by Viv Groskop for the Guardian (UK) and
Baby's Day Out for Westword (Denver, CO) by Jared Jacang Maher. Overall I was pleased with the Guardian
article, although at the end there is a birth story that ends with a transfer to the hospital.
It would have been nice to end the article on a more positive note, but the birth story wasn’t
horrendous, and wouldn’t necessarily dissuade someone from having a UC. I felt the tone of the article
was positive, and I enjoyed my interactions with the reporter. I don’t agree with one of the
writers she quoted, Tina Cassidy, who said that "there is virtually no historical precedent
for this movement: 'Since the beginning of time women have turned to other women for help in
childbirth.'” As I wrote after the NY Times article was published, there actually is
historical
precedence for women giving birth alone. Some of the other comments made by Cassidy were actually somewhat supportive of UC.
The Westword article was more extensive, and also ends with a transfer to the hospital. As often happens, there are “quotes” from me that need correcting.
In describing Willie’s birth he wrote: “The baby, she realized, was traveling the birth canal upside down. 'And I said to my husband, "What do I do, do I call
an ambulance?"" I never said this. However, David did ask if he should call an ambulance and I said no. I have never asked anyone what I should do in labor, as I've always felt that essentially I should do nothing!
I spent quite a bit of time with Jared (the Westword reporter) - two in-person interviews, and several phone conversations.
And as he states in the article, he listened to the talk I gave at the ICAN meeting. I think his intentions were good,
but I can’t say he really grasped what I was talking about to the extent that I hoped he would. The dangers of medical intervention
weren’t really addressed in the article, and the fact that the article ends with a transfer no doubt will leave many people with the
impression that transferring with a UC is typical. The “professionals” interviewed for the article came across as
“the voices of reason.” In my talks, in my book, and on my web site I address the belief that throughout history, women and babies
have routinely died in childbirth (more often it is due to poor living conditions than lack of medical assistance). But Jared did not
choose to share my thoughts on that subject, or perhaps they were edited out of the article. The article contains two nice clips from
Judy Seaman’s UC documentary, A Clear Road to Birth.
In other news, last week our local paper ran a big article about my daughter Joy! A model of good health: Local model enjoys career as a size 12. Congratulations, Joy!
September 26, 2006:
After reading a post on my forums from someone who wondered if I was still
around, I decided I'd better check in! My life has been fairly uneventful this
past year. David and I survived our first year as empty nesters, and actually
enjoyed the peace and quiet! Michelle (19) just started her second year of
college, Joy (23) is still going to school and modeling (look for a curvaceous
mannequin made from a mold of her body at Talbot stores across the country this
fall!), Willie (26) is still writing for the Denver Post, and John (28) just
started a new job working for The Foundry in Boulder. In honor of Willie's
birthday (Aug. 17th), Willie and Joy went skydiving last month!
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