Pregnancy & Childbirth Secrets

Pregnancy & Childbirth Secrets E-Newsletter - Quick Tips
Award Winning National Bestselling Author, Gail J. Dahl “Pregnancy & Childbirth Secrets”

Pregnancy & Childbirth Secrets - Quick Tips
To help prevent birth defects and for a healthy mom and baby, take a high quality prenatal vitamin and mineral six months before pregnancy, during pregnancy and for six to twelve months after childbirth.

Pregnancy & Childbirth Secrets - Quick Tips
To help prevent premature birth, take a high quality prenatal vitamin and mineral, eat plenty of extra protein, always have water at your side, and rest more frequently during pregnancy.

Pregnancy & Childbirth Secrets - Quick Tips
To reduce or eliminate morning sickness, reach for a glass of water and a protein snack as soon as you feel nausea coming on. A protein snack and water before bed will help to reduce or eliminate morning nausea.

Pregnancy & Childbirth Secrets - Quick Tips
To assemble your health team contact the midwife or doula association in your area for referrals to childbirth health care professionals in your city.

Pregnancy & Childbirth Secrets - Quick Tips
Hiring a childbirth professional like a midwife or doula can help to reduce birth interventions giving you a higher level of satisfaction, fewer complications, a healthier baby and mom, and a quicker recovery.

Pregnancy & Childbirth Secrets - Quick Tips
To reduce pain in early labor or prelabor at home, drink plenty of fluids and eat high protein snacks to keep your strength up and remain active. You can change your position every twenty minutes, walk, climb stairs, have a bath or shower, rock on your hands and knees, lay down on your left side for a rest, walk some more, wash the kitchen floor, vacuum, or throw in a load of laundry. It is activity, gravity and motion that helps the baby move into optimal positioning during pre-labor making your labor and delivery more efficient and effective for you both. By remaining active during pre-labor you will feel less pain, your contractions will become more efficient and constant and you will feel in control of your body and confident in your ability to give birth. Keep in contact with your health team at this time to advise them of your progress and receive any instructions.

Pregnancy & Childbirth Secrets - Quick Tips
Avoid all induction and pain drugs and allow your body to start labor naturally for a birth with less complications. This will help you to have a shorter and less painful labor. To help relieve pain during labor, hire a childbirth professional to be at your side during labor and childbirth, use deep, slow belly breathing during contractions, eat high protein snacks, consume plenty of water, remain active during labor, labor and birth in water if available and deliver in an upright supported position. Ask your childbirth health professional how they can help you to experience a drug-free birth.

Pregnancy & Childbirth Secrets - Quick Tips
Eating high protein snacks and consuming plenty of water during labor will help to reduce labor pain naturally.

Pregnancy & Childbirth Secrets - Quick Tips
Walking, rocking, climbing stairs, sitting, standing, squatting and using water during labor will assist in the rotation and alignment of your baby during labor and will automatically improve the efficiency of your contractions thereby shortening your labor and decreasing your labor pain.

Pregnancy & Childbirth Secrets - Quick Tips
For a faster and easier labor change positions every twenty minutes to help your baby to turn and rotate into place.

Pregnancy & Childbirth Secrets - Quick Tips
For an easier delivery and to reduce any chance of tearing, give birth in an upright position. An upright position, like supported standing, supported squatting, or hands and knees will help to open your pelvis while it activates your automatic fetal ejection urge. Only a few pushes will be needed when the fetal ejection urge is activated by your upright positioning and the weight of your baby.

Pregnancy & Childbirth Secrets - Quick Tips
Wait to cut the cord until it stops beating, while it is pulsating it is still delivering important building materials to your baby. This essential cord blood is important to your baby's health. There is no need to rush this step. Beginning to breastfeed immediately after birth will help your body to release the hormones that assist in allowing your placenta to detach and to be delivered more easily.

Pregnancy & Childbirth Secrets - Quick Tips
Breastfeeding immediately after childbirth helps your baby to use their instinctual abilities to breastfeed which are strongest in the first hours and days after birth. Keep your baby continually at your side for at least the first three days so that your mothering hormones are fully released and your bond deepens with your baby.

Pregnancy & Childbirth Secrets - Quick Tips
Breastfeeding your baby for a year or more provides extra immune support for your baby and will help to reduce your risk of breast cancer.
Pregnancy & Childbirth Secrets - Quick Tips
After each feeding, express your breastmilk onto your nipple and let your nipple air dry to reduce soreness. Make sure your nipple is placed far back into your baby's mouth so that the feeding is comfortable for both of you.

Pregnancy & Childbirth Secrets - Quick Tips
When breastfeeding, empty each breast completely before moving on to the next breast. To increase milk supply you can feed on breast one, then breast two, and then back to breast one.

Pregnancy & Childbirth Secrets - Quick Tips
Continue to take your high quality prenatal vitamins and minerals after childbirth for six months to a year to help prevent post-natal depression and to restore your mineral supplies utilized during pregnancy.

Pregnancy & Childbirth Secrets - Quick Tips
To help soothe a crying baby, turn down the lights, turn down the sound and slow down movement and activity. Place your baby's hands close to their face so that they can focus on or suck on their hands, fingers and thumbs. Your baby will then begin to use their natural instincts for self-calming like focusing, sucking and moving into a favorite body position. Recreating a womb-like environment by reducing over-stimulation in the first few months will help your baby to use these natural calming abilities throughout their life.

Pregnancy & Childbirth Secrets - Quick Tips
It takes many women to raise a child. If you do not have a natural support network of women, create one. Join mom social networks and build a community network that will support both you and baby throughout your many stages of life as a woman and mother. You are meant to do this. Your body will support you in creating this new life. Motherhood is part of your destiny as a woman and you are well equipped to be the best that you can be with your new role in life.

Secrets Newsletter 2008, Award Winning National Bestselling Author, Gail J. Dahl “Pregnancy & Childbirth Secrets”
This article may be reprinted or posted for the purpose of childbirth education when references are included. The information contained in or provided through this publication is intended for general consumer understanding and education only and is not intended to be, and is not provided as, a substitute for professional medical advice, diagnosis or treatment. Always seek the advice of your midwife, physician, nurse or other qualified health care provider before you undergo any treatment or for answers to any questions you may have regarding any medical condition during pregnancy. "Pregnancy & Childbirth Secrets" is available through all major bookstores throughout North American and the UK. http://web.mac.com/pregnancysecrets