Of Options

One of the selling points for taking advantage of the world of midwifery is the ability to birth the way one wants.  Truthfully, this tagline has done little to pique my interest as I never particularly felt there was a way I "wanted" to birth, other than painlessly and successfully with no complications on either end.  It wasn't until I noticed a comment regarding hypnobirthing on yesterday's post that I remembered . . . there IS a way I've always wanted to do this process.

Ever since watching a John Stossel segment on 20/20 a decade or two ago depicting women wandering the halls of the their maternity ward calmly breathing as the body prepares to push out a human being, I have been fascinated with the concept of mentally "escaping" the pain of childbirth by little more than the use of visualization and the concept of mind over matter. 

Granted, it all sounds a bit hippie-ish, but as previously established, apparently that's where I live these days.  The only thought in recent years that has put me off of the idea of hypnobirthing is the concept of looking inwardly for the power to overcome the pain, whereas I feel it is healthier for my spiritual well-being to look to Christ as my source of strength.  Now, if I can find a way to combine the two, life would be great.

Enter the midwives.  Our midwives are the only "supporting physicians" of the practice of hypnobirthing in the state of Oklahoma - a fact I discovered only this morning after a little research.  On top of which, they appear to be wonderful, God-following women.  So if these guides in the childbirth world can aid me in bringing my child into the world while also helping me to focus my mind in a manner that will allow me to rise above the pain, I'll be a happy birther.

And on an entirely un-related note, I have always been interested in public cord blood banking - donating my child's cord blood in the hopes that another child, in dire health, can make use of what would otherwise be thrown out.  I had never known how to go about doing so and it never even occurred to me to ask my OB.  I suppose when I enter the doctor's office, I expect to be told what to do and how and don't question it (stupid, I realize, but it's how the process has always felt).

With home-birthing and the use of midwives, however, the concept is always that the mother is in control of her own birth experience.  And according to some of the paperwork, cord blood banking is an option. 

In fact, there are a ton of options in the world of childbirth.  And I just never knew it.

Honestly, I'm getting a little giddy (and maybe power hungry) at the idea that I really can make my "dream birth" a reality.  Of course, my dream birth never happened on my living room floor and, at the same time, I know we can never completely control how this new little person will come into the world - but that doesn't mean I have to completely surrender my will to that of a hospital or the nurses on duty.

And that knowledge is a little freeing.