Category — Health

Leave it to those coffee loving, fault line dwelling northwesterners to come up with a brilliant new twist on lowering incentives for unneccessary c-sections.

Beginning this month, the state of Washington will pay hospitals the same amount for an uncomplicated C-section as for a complicated vaginal birth when it reimburses them through Medicaid. Almost half of all births in Washington are paid by Medicaid, so this measure will have a significant effect on the economics of birth in the state.

Take away the incentives for too many c-sections By Carolyn McConnell

This is a great example of ways we can reform healthcare be envisioning a system that rewards lower interventions, lower costs, and better outcomes. Check out the MAMA Campaign (Midwives and Mothers in Action) to find out how to get involved in ensuring that midwifery care is on track to be a part of the health care reform train.

Click on the rainbow to watch a short slideshow from my trip

Though you might not know it from my  previous post about squeezing lemons in our Capital this week, I have actually just returned from the jungles of Belize feeling somewhat transformed and completely inspired by my Professional Training in the Arvigo Techniques for Maya Abdominal Massage (MAM).  It wasn’t just the breathtaking views from Rosita Arvigo’s mountain top home where the class was held.  It wasn’t only jungle walks to said mountaintop from the camp along the Macal River where I slept at night to the sound of Howler monkeys in the trees overhead.  And finally, it wasn’t just the fact that I spent 7 entire days without making a single meal for myself or others.  What actually facilitated this feeling of deep satisfaction and well-being were the healing techniques themselves.  [Read more →]

More and more women are asking us about the benefits of ingesting their own placentas after their birth.  The practice is becoming more well known, CBS just did a story on it.  The benefits are considered worth the yuck factor; better milk supply, reduced postpartum depression and more balanced hormones in the weeks following birth. 
There are some intriguing recipes that you can try- the simplist is to just dehydrate it and put it in capsules.  Many of our clients bury their placenta and plant a tree or shrub to commemorate their baby’s birth. 

What did you do with your placenta?

This image by Susan Tibbles accompanied Jennifer Block’s Op-Ed about midwives.

On Christmas Eve, Pushed author Jennifer Block opined in the LA Times that homebirth and Certified Professional Midwives must be key elements of Obama’s healthcare reform strategy.  Read the article or more cool stuff on Jennifer’s blog, PushedBirth.

She highlights some pretty startling facts: Not only is childbirth the most common reason for a hospital stay — more than 4 million American women give birth each year — it costs the country far more than any other health condition. Six of the 15 most frequent hospital procedures billed to private insurers and Medicaid are maternity-related. The nation’s maternity bill totaled $86 billion in 2006, nearly half of which was picked up by taxpayers. 

Anyone know the average cost of a birth in Charlottesville?

I am very excited to be attending Rosita Arvigo’s Maya Abdominal Massage Practitioner Training in Belize in in January of 2009! I have taken the level one (self care) course and can’t wait to be able to offer this simple and profound technique to the women of Charlottesville.  The basic concept is that your uterus moves, both in it’s monthly cycles and in response to injury, body changes, and childbirth.  For centuries, mayan healers have used specific techniques to gently massage the uterus into a balanced alignment.  The benefits are numerous and modern practitioners are finding amazing results in treating a multitude of health problems with this simple process.  More later….  I’d love to hear from other folks who have practiced or received this technique.