Despite what is known about the risk of routinely inducing the birth process simply for being pregnancy past 41 weeks, it is common practice in North America. Routine induction just for being past your “due date” of 40 weeks is not safe, necessary, or mandatory. Depending on who your medical provider is, induction may be presented to you as something… Read more →
Ah, the time of waiting. The time between when you are “due” and the time when your baby actually comes. The time when every other text message is something along the lines of “any news?”, “baby yet?”, “so…. anything exciting happening over there?”. The time when people say things like “you haven’t been induced yet?!” “I hope your baby doesn’t… Read more →
There are many herbs and essential oils that are commonly recommended for childbirth. I always encourage my clients to treat any herbal or plant preparations as medicine. I typically do not recommend using herbs for inducing birth, and encourage people to avoid thinking that herbal inductions are “natural inductions”. Herbal medicines can be powerful, and as such, need to be… Read more →
According to Perinatal Services of BC, induction rates vary widely across the province and have been risen substantially since the early 90’s. . In 1991, 12.9% of births were induced, and by 2000 the rates were up to 27.2%. Current estimates continue to sit at around 25%. This is a very high percentage! Induction of childbirth is often part of… Read more →
I’ve been doing a lot of reflecting lately on stimulating change in the birth world. I’m extremely involved in the birth community, and actively promote the creation of a more gentle and informed birth culture. With induction rates of up to 25% and cesarean rates of up to 35% here in British Columbia, it is clear that our interventions in… Read more →