Dragonfly Birth Services

24/12/2019

Hey everyone! 👋🏻 a quick update on what’s happened in the last few months.

My family and I moved to Colorado in August and Birch Family Birth Services (in Thousand Oaks) is under a new owner. Please continue to use them as a resource for all things birth/baby/family.

For mamas in Colorado: I will resume my placenta encapsulation services after the New Year. I am not able to take doula clients at this time since I am starting nursing school in the spring. I’m happy to answer any questions and make referrals. I’ll soon resume posting resources on this page.

Thanks everyone for your support!

17/12/2018

Yessssssssss

Every mother everywhere in the world has these needs. We should take care of them. From my book: The Fourth Trimester.

5 UNIVERSAL POSTPARTUM NEEDS 🌞

1. EXTENDED REST PERIOD
Also known as confinement, sitting in the month, the golden month, the sacred window, the first 40 days where the mother-baby unit need to be sequestered. The mothers nervous system needs to be protected. Mom is to be attended to. People + the community come to her.

2. NOURISHMENT
Warming + nourishing foods. An abundance of collagen rich, nutrient dense + high fat foods. Hydration.

3. CONTACT WITH WISE WOMEN
Extended family, Midwives, doulas, friends + community. Women must not be left alone. Just like you would never leave a new baby, never leave a new mom.

4. LOVING TOUCH
A therapeutic medicinal modality like massage will assists in flushing the body’s tissue. This is especially important if medication was used in labour. Hydrate postpartum to assist in flushing the tissues. Massage should be the first “exercise” for the postpartum mother. Contact + receiving is needed. Since the mother is giving SO much, she needs to receive. Touch is a way of coming back into material reality.

5. CONTACT WITH NATURE
Coming into contact with the larger forces in life. Grounding.
How different would our world be if all postpartum people were cared for and nurtured in this way?! It’s up to us to support one another. Spread the word. Also, I highly recommend the book ‘The Fourth Trimester’ by Kimberly Johnson | photo by

12/12/2018

"Hospitals are delaying cutting premature babies' umbilical cords by a minute after a study found it improved their chance of survival by 30 per cent." http://ow.ly/NYlC30mUkDF

A change in birth practice could save premature Kiwi babies.

07/12/2018

Trail closures meant logging some road miles today. And the perfect opportunity to try out my new headphones. I scooped up a BOGO deal on Black Friday for the Mr. and myself. Gotta say... I’m a big fan. I love that I can hear my music while keeping my ears open to traffic and people around me.

05/12/2018

Where one thing is destroyed, another thing grows. True in nature and in life. @ Wildwood Regional Park

02/12/2018

Interesting facts about December babies

30/11/2018

Did you know.....
A combination of capsules and tincture can help a woman for a lifetime. Capsules help balance hormones immediately after birth. Tincture is made from the same powder as the capsules. It’s fermented in alcohol, making it shelf-stable. Many women use it for their postpartum menstruation, teething babies, or even menopause!

24/11/2018

Took a little run today with and saw some of the burn areas. @ Oak Park, California

21/11/2018

A beautiful, early morning with some good trail buddies.

20/11/2018

Great tips for weaning!

What weaning strategies worked well for your family?
Gentle weaning allows you to gradually substitute other kinds of nutrition, affection and attention to compensate for the loss of nursing. Weaning is also not an all-or-nothing process. Many parents keep one (or more) feedings per day or at night and eliminate the rest.

[Image: Photo of a toddler playing with toys. Text: Gentle Toddler Weaning. Don't Offer, Don't Refuse. Often the first step to weaning. Change routines. Get up promptly for breakfast, change bedtime routine, or avoid sitting in nursing spots. Offer Alternatives. A snack, drink, book, or fun activity can distract a child from nursing. Postpone. "Wait until we go home." "We can in a few minutes." "Let's nurse after lunch." Shorten Sessions. Limit the length of nursing sessions by counting, singing, or using a timer. Out of Sight. If breasts are covered and harder to access, they may seem less tempting.Talk it out. Depending on age, a conversation may be the best route.]

17/11/2018

Hazy skies and Boarderline memorial. Reminders that life hasn’t completely returned to normal yet.

15/11/2018

Crowd sourcing! I'm writing a page of frequently asked questions. What questions do/did you have regarding hiring a doula?

13/11/2018

Would you like to help support those displaced by the Woolsey Fire? I’m going to pick up items later today to take to a donation center. People desperately need basic items like shampoo, deodorant, and tampons. Send me a message if you’d like to contribute and I’ll send you my Venmo or PayPal information. Every little bit helps!

07/11/2018

06/11/2018

Exercise your right. Vote.

03/11/2018

Inspirational!

After being told her body would never go into labor on its own - it did. After being told most, young, first time moms don’t make it without pain meds - she did. After being told baby may be too big to birth vaginally - she did. Her body is not broken and she is strong.

“I love you so much.” She told him over and over again once he was finally in her arms.

Photo by Dannielle Hale Photography

30/10/2018

So much pressure and expectation can be built around the baby's "due date". What if we called it a "guess date" or a "maybe date" instead. Sometimes just shifting the way we are talking about things by a word or two can change our whole perspective. This is just one way we can help change the conversation about birth in our culture. What are some other ideas?

29/10/2018

The cervix is not the only factor in birth. Babies need to descend and rotate, too. 10 cm doesn’t always mean it’s time to push. And guess what? Babies will come out whether mama is told to push or not!

A childbirth educator considers “the place of change” in labor that transcends stages and what she sees as the overemphasis on pushing.

23/10/2018

Think race isn't an issue in birth?

"Black women are three to four times as likely to die from pregnancy-related causes as their white counterparts, according to the C.D.C. — a disproportionate rate that is higher than that of Mexico, where nearly half the population lives in poverty — and as with infants, the high numbers for black women drive the national numbers."

If that doesn't open your eyes enough, listen to her husband talk about this tragic loss, and the deplorable sentence that was given to the severely negligent doctor: https://www.facebook.com/4kira4moms/videos/2276177272661909/UzpfSTI1NTY1NzUyNzg0MTA3NjoyMzMwNzk3MjczNjYwNDE0/

THIS IS NOT OKAY! We should all be rallying against this.

22/10/2018

Working on something REALLY exciting!! But I can’t share it yet! 🤫

17/10/2018

Not at all surprising

Another study finds that labor lasts longer than is traditionally taught — an insight that could mean fewer unnecessary cesarean deliveries.

17/10/2018

One of my favorite birth quotes.

17/10/2018

Great deal going on at Birch right now!

14/10/2018

This needs to be shared with every new mama. Newborns don’t nurse on a schedule. And yes, sometimes nursing is for comfort. It’s okay.

I really wish that all new mothers were told that the majority of newborns want to breastfeed much more frequently than every few hours. And many even want to stay latched on, suckling for extended periods of time. This can understandably shake a new mother’s confidence and make her second guess if she’s producing enough milk to keep her nursling satisfied. Women are usually just told that their baby should nurse ‘every 2-3 hours’, but frequent (and lengthy) nursing is a totally normal thing for newborns to do! It helps keep them close to mama while regulating her milk supply.
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Often babies won’t have these longer stretches between feeds until they’re a little older. Even then, there are several things that could make them want to nurse more, including (but not limited to) teething, sickness, unfamiliar surroundings, or feeling tired. I can’t imagine how miserable it would be to have a fussy baby in your arms but feel like you shouldn’t breastfeed again because it’s “not time yet”.
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This isn’t discussed often enough and new mothers need to be reassured. If baby is gaining weight, then there’s absolutely nothing wrong with breastfeeding more often than what you’ve been told is ‘normal’. The postpartum period is all about surrendering, so cozy up with your babe and forget the clock.

Photo x

08/10/2018

Did you know....

I provide a collapsible cooler for each encapsulation client? It makes it SO simple for a mama to throw it in her birth bag and not have to worry about remembering one more thing to take with her. These two packages are going out to some mamas today!