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A Note From JamillahNeeairah "Mama J" of Woman's Work

Pregnancy is a magical time for families!

I absolutely love meeting new families and helping them navigate the vast territory that unfolds during pregnancy, and I feel a deep sense of gratitude every time I'm invited into the room of the just born. It's a true miracle to watch women as they are laboring and bringing life forward, and it gives me a great sense of satisfaction to be present when they bring their new baby into their home lives. In my work with families over the years, I've discovered that no matter how long a family has been established, welcoming a newborn is an adventure for the entire family--one that adds a different dimension to what your home life looks like forever.

As the second oldest of eight siblings, I remember distinctly when each of my brothers and sisters were brought home from the hospital. I remember my mother gathering us all around and individually introduced each of us to our new sibling. She would allow each of us to hold our new family member for awhile. She would show us how to cradle the baby gently and encouraged us to speak to the baby in a loving way, to introduce ourselves and share the dreams we had for "our" new baby. She was also careful to make sure we each had a responsibility to help with our brother or sister and take care of Mommy--assigning each of us a different role. Someone was assigned to bring Mommy a snack while she nursed, someone was to bring all of the diapering stuff, someone was to read a story while Mommy nursed, etc...jobs were running out as our family grew, but someone was always "willing" to relinquish their job so the youngers would get a chance. My parents were proud to say they raised eight wonderful children who love one another very much.

Those memories are still so very important to me, and I realize that my parents set forth a wonderful legacy of ensuring that each member of our family felt they had a role in the successful running of our family's household. Even when they assigned chores, it was very deliberate, and they were careful to make sure that each of us knew how valuable we were to the family structure overall. The overarching message was that each of us were responsible for one another and if one family member didn't do their job, it had an adverse affect on how the household ran.

Pregnancy can be a wonderful time for families to discover the unique talents of each member and allow them to use their skills to enhance and invigorate the family by showing up more fully and intentionally. Allow the siblings to introduce themselves to and interact with the new baby in a meaningful way; after all, this is someone who will be a part of their forever too, from the day you bring them home. As new parents, I invite you to remember that every time you introduce a new baby into your family, it's an opportunity to redefine what your family looks like and how it functions. Even though you've already created a baseline of what your home life is like, it's helpful to use the new addition to the family as a reason to tweak your lifestyle so that it works best for everyone concerned. If your children don't like to do their current chores, you can also use this opportunity to switch it up without the need to explain or justify the why. Whatever you do, enjoy the journey, and remember to find ways to share your pregnancy with every member of your family and your greater community!

Best Blessings,

Mama J

Is A Midwife Right For My Family?

Reprinted from FitPregnancy.com

What advantages do midwives offer?
The Midwives Model of Care views pregnancy and birth as normal events; as a result, midwives suggest and perform fewer interventions than are typical with most obstetric care. “Midwives focus more on nutrition and education,” says Judi Tinkelenberg, C.N.M., R.N., clinical director of Sage Femme Midwifery Service and Birth Center in San Francisco. “We do fewer routine, often unnecessary tests—for example, we don’t automatically do ultrasounds if they’re not needed. We make decisions with patients based on informed consent.” Midwives also spend more time with patients than most OBs do, which means they often offer more personalized care.

What exactly does “midwife” mean?
All midwives provide prenatal and postpartum care, attend labors and deliver babies. Some provide additional services, such as routine gynecologic exams and contraception care. But do your homework; anyone can call herself a midwife. Here are the distinctions:
• Certified midwives (C.M.) meet American College of Nurse-Midwives (midwife.org) requirements, but they do not need to be nurses.
• Certified nurse-midwives (C.N.M.) are nurse- practitioners who are certified by the American College of Nurse-Midwives.
• Certified professional midwives (C.P.M.) meet North American Registry of Midwives (narm.org) certification standards.
• Direct entry midwives (D.E.M.) are educated through self-study, apprenticeship, midwifery school or college- or university-based programs that don’t include nursing. They include certified midwives and certified professional midwives.
• Lay midwives are sometimes called traditional, unlicensed or “granny” midwives. These women are educated through self-study and apprenticeships, and while they may be highly experienced and skilled, they aren’t certified or licensed.
• Licensed midwives (L.M.) can practice in a particular jurisdiction, usually a state or province.
For more information on the different types of midwives, go to mana.org.

What’s the best kind of midwife?
That depends on whether you want a hospital or out-of-hospital birth, a low-intervention or medicated one. The most important thing is to make sure anyone you’re considering is qualified and experienced. “Direct entry midwives and certified nurse-midwives have different educational pathways, but they’re all well-trained and competent,” says Geradine Simkins, D.E.M., C.N.M., M.S.N., president of the Midwives Alliance of North America. Most C.N.M.s deliver in hospitals, while C.P.M.s have specific training and expertise in out-of-hospital births. The Institute of Medicine and the National Commission to Prevent Infant Mortality praise the contributions of certified nurse-midwives in reducing the incidence of low-birth-weight infants and call for their increased utilization, and the new federal Health Care Reform Act strengthens the legitimacy of certified direct entry midwives.

Is it safe to go with a midwife?
Yes, as long as you have no pregnancy complications or risk factors for birth complications. For 60 to 80 percent of low-risk pregnancies, it may be even safer to go with a C.M. or a C.N.M. than with an obstetrician. That’s because midwives use less fetal monitoring and over-diagnose fetal distress less often, which means fewer interventions, such as C-sections and forceps- or vacuum-assisted deliveries. Studies show that C.N.M.-attended births are associated with 31 percent fewer low-birth-weight babies and 33 percent less neonatal mortality.
If you have certain health risks, including obesity, diabetes or hypertension or are carrying multiples, you might still qualify for midwife care, but only if it’s coordinated with an OB. If you want to give birth at home, make sure your midwife has protocols for a quick transfer to a hospital in case of an emergency.

How do costs and care compare with those of obstetricians?
Midwifery care can cost less overall, but C.N.M.s are sometimes paid similar rates as OBs. Insurance companies currently pay for most C.N.M. services, and under the new federal health care legislation, certified D.E.M.s will also be covered.
As for whether the midwife you see for prenatal visits will deliver your baby, it’s the same as if you were seeing an OB. “Many private practice midwives make a special effort to be at their own patients’ births, even when they share call with partners,” says Karen Parker Linn, a C.N.M. in Portland, Ore. In shared practices, several midwives work together. Patients see different ones during pregnancy and deliver with whomever is on call, though midwives sometimes come in for patients with whom they’ve formed a special bond, Linn adds.

Do doctors respect midwives?
Most hospital-based midwives are well-respected by OBs. Out-of-hospital midwives? Not as much. Most out-of-hospital births are safe, but when trouble arises and patients are transferred to hospitals, doctors sometimes feel like the clean-up crew for high-risk deliveries.
“Midwives are fantastic options for low-risk women,” says Kathleen Harney, M.D., chief of obstetrics for Cambridge Health Alliance and the C.N.M-managed Cambridge Birth Center in Massachusetts. “Their philosophy and training are more focused on birth as a healthy, natural process. Doctors are trained to think something adverse may happen,” she explains. “The truth is somewhere in between. Working in concert with midwives reminds OBs not to be overly interventionalist.” .

5 questions to ask a midwife

1. What is your training, experience and certification, and do you have references?
2. Where do you deliver—at home, in a birth center and/or in the hospital?
3. What percentage of your prenatal patients do you actually deliver yourself?
4. For an out-of-hospital birth, what’s your emergency backup plan?
5. Do you take medical insurance?

This Week's Herb of Honor - Squawvine

Squawvine's name refers to its use by Native American women as a remedy for a range of conditions. Squawvine is also referred to as "partridge berry" because some people consider the other name to be insulting to Native American women.
Native Americans ate the berries and made them into a jelly, which was eaten in case of fevers.

The plant was used to ease menstrual cramps, strengthen the uterus for childbirth, and prevent miscarriage. During the final 2 to 4 weeks of a Native American woman's pregnancy, she drank tea made from squawvine leaves so that childbirth was less painful.

In folk medicine, squawvine continued to be a remedy for women's disorders. In addition to conditions related to childbirth, the herb was used to treat postpartum depression, irregular menstruation, and bleeding. In addition to treating internal ailments, a squawvine wash was said to provide relief to sore eyes. Squawvine is still used in folk medicine to treat conditions including anxiety, hemorrhoids, insomnia, muscle spasms, edema, and inflammation.

Squawvine is an evergreen herb that is native to North America, growing in the forests and woodlands of the Eastern United States and Canada. Usually found at the base of trees and stumps and growing year round, herbalists recommend collecting the herb when the plant flowers during the months of April through June.

Squawvine is available in various forms. Commercial preparations include tinctures, extracts and powdered herb.

Why it is Recommended
Squawvine is most beneficial in childbirth. It strengthens the uterus, tones the uterine lining, helps prevent miscarriage, and relieves congestion of the uterus and ovaries. Its antiseptic properties make it valuable for treating vaginal infections, and is a natural nerve sedative.
Squawvine is among the best remedies for preparing the uterus (and whole body) for child birth. For this purpose this herb has been traditionally taken for several weeks before the child is due. Squawvine may also be used for the relief of painful menstrual periods. As an astringent, it has been used in the treatment of colitis.

The herb is taken for painful menstruation and to tone the prostate. It is also said to help promote fertility and to increase the flow of mother's milk.

Furthermore, squawvine is recognized by practitioners of alternative medicine for its effectiveness as a diuretic. It is used to treat such urinary conditions as suppression of urine. Squawvine is also a remedy for diarrhea, shrinking tissues, muscle spasms, and nerves.

Squawvine is still used as an eye wash. It is also used as a skin wash and to treat colitis.

Instructions
Squawvine tea, which is also known as an infusion, is made by pouring 1 cup (240ml) of boiling water over 1 tsp (1.5gm) of the dried herb. The mixture is steeped for 10 to 15 minutes and then strained. Squawvine tea may be taken up to three times a day. Women seeking relief for difficult or painful menstruation can combine squawvine with cramp bark and pasque flower.
Squawvine tincture can be used in an infusion. The dosage is 1-2ml in 1 cup (240ml) of boiling water. The tincture dosage can be taken three times a day.

Squawvine is often used in combination with Raspberry.

Side-Effects; Counter-Indicators and Warnings
There are no known side-effects from using squawvine. Little research has been done, however, on its safety.
Pregnant women should not take squawvine during the first two trimesters of pregnancy.

Should I Exercise During Pregnancy?

There are usually many questions that come to mind when planning how to exercise during pregnancy. Physical exercise is bodily activity that improves or maintains physical fitness and overall health and wellness. This type of exercise during pregnancy is important and can help with some common discomforts of pregnancy and even help prepare your body for labor and delivery.

Overall and in most cases, exercise is safe during pregnancy. You will usually find that it is even recommended. Usually the first rule of thumb is this. If you were physically active before you were pregnant, it is likely safe to remain active during pregnancy. More than likely your healthcare provider will tell you that you can remain active as long as it is comfortable and there are no other health conditions suggesting otherwise.

Is Exercise During Pregnancy Safe?
Now is not the time to exercise for weight loss, however proper exercise during pregnancy will likely help with weight loss after delivery of your baby. Exercise does not put you at risk for miscarriage in a normal pregnancy. You should consult with your health care provider before starting any new exercise routine. We have more information at exercise warning signs.

What Are The Benefits Of Exercise During Pregnancy?

Being active with 30 minutes of exercise on most or all days can benefit your health during pregnancy. Exercise of just 20 minutes 3 or 4 days a week is still beneficial. The important note is that you want to seek to be active and get your blood flowing.

Here are some of the benefits from exercise during pregnancy that you may experience:

Helps reduce backaches, constipation, bloating, and swelling
May help prevent or treat gestational diabetes
Increases your energy
Improves your mood
Improves your posture
Promotes muscle tone, strength, and endurance
Helps you sleep better
Regular activity also helps keep you fit during pregnancy and may improve your ability to cope with labor. This will make it easier for you to get back in shape after your baby is born.

You may want to include these basic guidelines in your planning exercise during pregnancy:

Be sure to wear loose fitting, comfortable clothes as well as a good supportive bra.
Choose shoes that are designed for the type of exercise you do and that fit properly.
Exercise on a flat, level surface to prevent injury.
Eat enough healthy calories to meet the needs of your pregnancy as well as your exercise program.
Finish eating at least one hour before exercising, see also pregnancy nutrition.
Drink plenty of water before, during and after your workout.
After doing floor exercises, get up slowly and gradually to prevent dizziness.

U.S. Birth Rates Still Declining

Reprinted from Parents Magazine

With the recession and the economic downturn, which began in 2008, U.S. birth rates declined to an all-time low in 2013. Millennial women wondered if they could afford raising kids, with some choosing either to give birth later…or not at all.
The Centers for Disease Control recently confirmed the continued decrease in births, noting that birth rates in 2013 dropped 1 percent from 2012, with the number also at an all-time low for Millennial women.
“Birth rates for women in their 20s declined to record lows in 2013, but rose for women in their 30s and late 40s. The rate for women in their early 40s was unchanged,” reports HealthDay. And the average age of mothers increased, as women continued to wait longer to get pregnant and have a baby.
Even teen pregnancy hit an all-time low (which may or may not have been the result of teen girls watching “16 and Pregnant”). Fertility rates also reached an all-time low between 2012 and 2013, decreasing by 1 percent as well. In addition, C-section delivery rate declined along with pre-term birth rates.
Despite all this, some experts still believe birth rates may start trending upward as the economy starts to improve, notes HealthDay.

New Study Shows Premature Babies Often Catch Up With Their Peers By Their Teen Years

Reprinted from Parents Magazine

Babies who are born prematurely are monitored closely to track their development, especially their cognitive development, as they grow. A new study published in The Journal of Pediatrics has found that most of these babies, by the time they are teens, are able to perform in cognitive tests as well as teens who were born at full term. The study found that the family and social environment a child is raised in is far more predictive than their gestational age at birth.
More from ScienceDaily on the study, which was conducted by Australian researchers:
“Every year, 10% of Australian babies are born preterm, and many studies have shown that these children often have cognitive difficulties in childhood,” says one of the lead authors of the study, Dr Julia Pitcher from the University of Adelaide’s Robinson Research Institute.
“This new study has some positive news. We looked at the factors that determine cognitive abilities in early adolescence, and found that whether or not you were born preterm appears to play a relatively minor role. Of significantly more importance is the degree of social disadvantage you experienced in your early life after birth, although genetics is important,” Dr Pitcher says.
The study, conducted by Research Officer Dr Luke Schneider, assessed the cognitive abilities of 145 preterm and term-born young people now aged over 12. He also assessed data on social disadvantage at the time of birth and at the time of the cognitive assessment.
“The results of our study provide further proof that those born at term tend to have better cognitive abilities — such as working memory, brain processing efficiency and general intellectual ability. But the postnatal environment seems to be playing an important role in whether or not a preterm child is able to overcome that initial risk of reduced brain development,” Dr Schneider says.

Mama J's Healthful Hint

Homemade Black Bean Burgers

Recipe courtesy of AllRecipes.com

INGREDIENTS:
1 (16 ounce) can black beans, drained
and rinsed
1/2 green bell pepper, cut into 2 inch
pieces
1/2 onion, cut into wedges
3 cloves garlic, peeled
1 egg
1 tablespoon chili powder
1 tablespoon cumin
1 teaspoon Thai chili sauce or hot sauce
1/2 cup bread crumbs
DIRECTIONS:
1. If grilling, preheat an outdoor grill for high heat, and lightly oil a sheet of aluminum foil. If baking, preheat oven to 375 degrees F (190 degrees C), and lightly oil a baking sheet.
2. In a medium bowl, mash black beans with a fork until thick and pasty.
3. In a food processor, finely chop bell pepper, onion, and garlic. Then stir into mashed beans.
4. In a small bowl, stir together egg, chili powder, cumin, and chili sauce.
5. Stir the egg mixture into the mashed beans. Mix in bread crumbs until the mixture is sticky and holds together. Divide mixture into four patties.
6. If grilling, place patties on foil, and grill about 8 minutes on each side. If baking, place patties on baking sheet, and bake about 10 minutes on each side.

THERE'S STILL TIME TO REGISTER FOR OUR BREASTFEEDING PEER COUNSELOR TRAINING AND CERTIFICATION

THURSDAY, FEBRUARY 12, 2015
& FRIDAY, FEBRUARY 13, 2015
8AM - 5PM DAILY

If you've ever wondered how to best frame your conversations about breastfeeding with clients, and you are interested in becoming more culturally sensitive when serving breastfeeding women of color, this two day training is for you. It is also for:
• ANYONE who works with women of childbearing age;
• ANYONE interested in addressing the health disparities that particularly affect African American mothers;
• ANYONE interested in addressing breastfeeding disparities and the lack of applicable breastfeeding education among women of color;
• ANYONE who wishes to increase awareness about the benefits and value of mother's milk when interacting with communities, families , and the agencies that serve them;
• ANYONE interested in de-normalizing the use of formula among all mothers;
• ANYONE whose mission it is to promote breastfeeding as the natural and best way to provide optimal nourishment to babies and young children.
ss of the benefits of mother's milk, build community allies and de-normalize formula use. Our mission is to promote breastfeeding as the natural and best way to provide optimal nourishment to babies and young children.

Trainer:
Kathi Barber,
Author The Black Woman’s Guide to Breastfeeding (2005)
Lactation Management (2013)

Where:

Deep Roots Market

600 N EUGENE ST, GREENSBORO, NC 27401