Making the Case for LIVE Education
I was in the checkout at the grocery store and while, as a rule, I never ask if someone is pregnant (unless I know them personally, they’ve already invited me to their shower, told me the baby’s name, and shown me the picture of their ultrasound — you get the idea…) it was pretty obvious […]
“Ikigai” — My Reason For Being
Have you ever heard the term “Ikigai”? While you might be tempted to think it’s pronounced, “ICKy guy” its actually pronounced, “I-kuh-guy” and it’s a Japanese concept that means “a reason for being.” I hadn’t heard this term before today. A friend posted on FB an image similar to the one I’ve created for this […]
Supporting Each Other, Supporting Families
“Another study found that only 11% of women attend a childbirth class while pregnant, and many of those take only the class offered by the hospital. Those classes tend to focus on how women should behave as patients, and less on the risks and benefits of various procedures they may encounter during labor.” And there […]
ICEA Conference 2016
I just got back from the annual ICEA (International Childbirth Educator’s Association) Conference in Denver, Colorado. I don’t get to go every year, but I’d like to! These educational conferences are invaluable in keeping me current. Plus I love networking with other passionate-about-all-things-pregnancy-birth-and-parenting professionals! And snagging a boatload of my required continuing education credits for […]
What About The Book, Barb???
“How’s the book coming?” Why does such an easy question inevitably lead to such a complicated answer? Yesterday morning, I told my visiting mother-in-law that I was going downstairs to try and write for “just a little bit.” Which prompted her to ask me about “the book” and “how it was going.” I felt compelled […]
So THIS happened today…
Member Spotlight: Barb Buckner Suárez Meet Lamaze member and 19-year childbirth educator veteran, Barb Buckner Suárez, BA, LCCE, FACCE, who teaches Lamaze series classes for two hospitals in Portland, Oregon. One of Barb’s goals as an educator is to help families “embrace vulnerability, as opposed to trying to run away from it, so that the […]
Self-Care & Why We’re So Bad At It…
Most of us have this relationship with self-care that goes something like this: “When I can find the time (and the money!) I’m going to make that appointment at the spa for a full-day treatment!” Or, “I’m going to start dropping hints now, so that my honey will set up a full-day spa treatment for […]
And The Oscar Goes To…
Just yesterday, I taught a “Comfort Measures for Labor” class. It’s a short and sweet intensive class that examines the mind/body connection and the power of relaxation, rhythm and ritual as coping tools for labor and delivery. We practice the #1 comfort measure – breathing. And the class ends with a labor boot camp circuit: a […]
The Birth Scale Part II
In part two of The Birth Scale, I share more ideas on how to feel positive and empowered – even when birth doesn’t go to plan.
The Birth Scale
Are we doing enough to prepare families for the realities of birth? I don’t think that we are…
