Knoxvilledoula's Blog

Doula Musings Today

Kimberly — Tue, 17 Jan 2012 20:35:50 +0000

A doula cannot guarantee a certain outcome, but we can and will support you, no matter what.

I CANNOT guarantee you will not have a primary or repeat cesarean.
I CANNOT guarantee you will have an unmedicated birth.
I CANNOT guarantee your baby will not have to go to the NICU or that your baby will be 100% healthy.
I CANNOT guarantee that your birth plan will go exactly according to your wishes.
I CANNOT guarantee that your birth experience will be 100% perfect, romantic, short, easy, no matter how much I want to give that to you.

I CAN guarantee I will support you through whatever happens and help you process feelings and listen.
I CAN guarantee I won’t dismiss your birth experience with words like, “At least you had a healthy baby.”
I CAN guarantee that if you need any local or other resources that I will provide helpful information.
I CAN guarantee that I believe you deserve the birth experience you desire and will do everything in my power to help you have it.
I CAN guarantee that I understand your birth plan and will advocate strongly for it.
I CAN guarantee that I will use everything in my knowledge base, skills, and tools to help you & your partner enjoy your birth as much as possible.
I CAN guarantee that I believe in you, your partner, & your baby.
I CAN guarantee you that I care deeply for you, for each of my clients, your partners, and your children and I think of you often, even years later.

November Events

Kimberly — Wed, 02 Nov 2011 16:44:19 +0000

It is short notice, but tonight is the ICAN of Knoxville November Meeting. We will be having Marty Lawson speak about Craniosacral Therapy for Newborns. The meeting is held at Earth Fare in Turkey Creek and will be from 6-7 p.m.

Due to the Thanksgiving Holidays, the normally scheduled Comfort Measures Class is moved to Saturday, Nov 19th from 11-2:30. Please pre-register at beautifulbirths2003@yahoo.com so I can have a head count and handouts prepared. The class is held at Cutie Tooties Cloth Diaper Store in Bearden. Cost is $50.00 per couple.

Knoxville Birth Network and ICAN of Knoxville are working on a screening of More of the Business of Being Born, tentatively scheduled for early December. Stay tuned for more details on this exciting event!

Welcome, September Babies

Kimberly — Tue, 20 Sep 2011 16:00:31 +0000

I apologize for not having posted in a while, but it’s been a rewarding and busy month. I was privileged to attend 4 births within a week and a half — 3 of the births being in 3 days, one right after another! Congratulations to all the families on their new babies coming into the world — 1 boy and 3 girls, ranging from 5lb 6 oz to 8lb 7 oz!

This week will be busy, too, as it’s time again for the Duck, Duck, Goose Consignment Event. I will be sharing a booth with Carry Me Close (handmade baby carriers), Knoxville HomeBirth Services, (Lisa Coomer, CPM), and East TN Placenta Medicine (placenta encapsulation services). We’ll have a lot of great information for you! As usual, I will have information about my doula services, childbirth classes, and ICAN of Knoxville information. Please stop by and say hello if you are planning on shopping.

Remember that I have scheduled regular monthly classes for my Comfort Measures Class. It’s a great course for first time parents or those who need a refresher course and it is held on the last Saturday of each month, from 11 am to 3 pm, at Cutie Tooties Cloth Diaper Store in Bearden. Please pre-register at beautifulbirths2003@yahoo.com so I know how many are attending and have the appropriate handouts and goody bags ready. Cost is $50 per couple for four hours of instruction.

Lastly, remember that you are strong and made to give birth — and there is a large and growing presence of support for you in Knoxville!

Birth in Knoxville and East Tennessee — Exciting!

Kimberly — Fri, 19 Aug 2011 14:04:13 +0000

I’m writing a quick blog out of the gratitude in my heart for all of the amazing things that have happened recently in Knoxville for birth and options involving pregnancy and birth. I say recently because I started professionally being a doula and childbirth educator in 2000 — and things were very different then. There were a handful of amazing doulas, some childbirth educators, Lisa Coomer, CPM, and of course the Lisa Ross Birth and Women’s Center. We were here, but sometimes our time and resources were limited.

What’s changed?

Now in Knoxville and East TN we have a lot more doulas and childbirth educators! There are placenta encapsulation services offered by East TN Placenta Medicine. There is a re-opening of Cutie Tooties Cloth Diaper store this weekend — and the owner, Emelie, is opening up her classroom to many birth professionals. Some of the offerings are regular Breastfeeding and Newborn Care Classes, Meet the Doula events, Comfort Measures Classes, a Breastfeeding Circle with regular meetings… just so many events so that any mother and family in the area can explore their options. Carry Me Close is a business by a mom and midwifery student — she offers hand made baby-wearing carriers and custom makes them and meets with you to show you how to wear them. Another mama sews cloth sanitary pads and much more. ICAN of Knoxville and Knoxville Birth Network are fairly recent (in the last 2 years) but more people are becoming aware of the regular meetings and support offered through these networks and local volunteers.

Some people have made remarks about how there is more “competition” for doulas. I do not ever feel that way — years ago if my schedule was too full or I was not available for a birth due to travel, it truly hurt me to turn someone down, and I worried about those who were not aware of the then available resources. Now I firmly believe that any woman who wants a doula has not only the option of having one, but finding the very best fit for her and her family. Now there are so many more options for classes! Today’s schedule is hectic enough without having to worry about taking time off for classes, or missing the only one offered in a month, or before a due date. It’s nice for me, too — getting to network with birth professionals, help one another, provide and receive support and bounce ideas off of one another.

Grateful is how I would sum it up. Go get the pregnancy and birth experience you want and deserve!

p.s. I apologize for not putting links in to the great resources I mentioned, but I’m out the door for an event — I will try to add these later, or simply search on Google or Facebook.

Denied VBAC

Kimberly — Fri, 05 Aug 2011 00:21:39 +0000

A friend told me a story today that has had me thinking ever since I heard it. Her friend was choosing a VBAC (Vaginal Birth after Cesarean) for her second birth. She had arranged with her OB/GYN to attempt a VBAC when labor began. She went into labor and after some time (I do not have all of the details) headed to the hospital in the middle of the night. Her doctor was not on call. The doctor on call refused to allow her to continue laboring, refused to attend a VBAC, refused to stay on the hospital floor in the middle of the night, refused medical liability, etc.

Off they went to surgery. For absolutely no medical reason.

This story makes me sad and angry and disappointed. I don’t want to point blame here at all; instead I want to offer encouragement and some possible options to avoid this type of situation. It would be very easy to start pointing fingers and put all of the blame on the OB/GYN, who may have never had any experience with VBAC, or who had multiple other obstetrical patients taking up their time. I don’t know, nor do I feel the need to defend him or her.

So what other suggestions or options can we come up with for this? Well, a lot of them would be preemptive, such as having a provider who will attend your birth no matter what, supports VBAC, has only a few back-up doctors/midwives that you have met and who also fully support VBAC. Hiring an experienced doula to help you labor at home and “walk in pushing” to the hospital also would have been of great benefit. For whatever reasons, though, this didn’t happen and the plan changed due to a provider not being available.

As for arriving at the hospital with some laboring to still happen, a few suggestions immediately came to mind:

1. Ask for a second opinion. See if there was another doctor working at the hospital who you could transfer your care to.
2. Refuse another surgery. Outright refuse to sign the papers. Hopefully the on call doctor would transfer your care — perhaps to someone more sympathetic and VBAC friendly.
3. Leave that hospital. Go to another hospital and see if a more VBAC friendly doctor is on call at the time. Go in through an emergency room and speak to whoever you need to speak to — head of OB/GYN department, on call doctors, etc.
3. Go home. Continue laboring at home and walk in pushing, or birth at home unassisted or with a 911 call to paramedics.

I know some of these will sound extreme to many, particularly if the thought of birthing in a hospital seemed the safest route. It may not sound pleasant while in labor to run around and find a provider who will support you the way you want, need, and deserve. Please know I am not dispensing medical advice or advocating one particular course of action or finding fault with personal choices. Obviously the preferable choice would have been for everything to line up, ducks in a row, planets aligned, for this mother to labor the way she chose — with an OB/GYN provider, in a hospital. Unfortunately, it didn’t. Too many women are finding similar “switch and bait” actions when they are going for a VBAC — a provider who changes tune in the last trimester, a provider on vacation who doesn’t have backup who provides similar care, a list of things that must happen exactly so in order for a “trial of labor” to happen for a woman wanting a VBAC.

Because of this, I do strongly encourage you to ask hard questions from your provider. Who will provide backup? Is your provider planning any vacations around your guess date? Can you meet the backup and ask the same questions? What other providers could you transfer to late in pregnancy or even last minute? What are the required protocols for a trial of labor for a VBAC? How does your hospital offer a second opinion or second provider in case the on call doctor cannot or will not support you in your birthing choices? If you have a midwife and are planning a home birth, ask where care would be transferred to in the event of further required intervention? Will she be able to go with you and help you navigate a change of birth plan?

Other suggestions: Hire a doula. Have a birth plan that is discussed, approved by, and signed off on by your provider. Know your rights.

This is not an exhaustive list, as this post was typed rather hurriedly. Any other suggestions?

ICAN can help you find VBAC friendly providers as well as scores of information to shape your idea of birth, including questions to ask providers.

Monthly Comfort Measures Classes Coming!

Kimberly — Tue, 02 Aug 2011 15:45:19 +0000

Thanks to Cutie Tooties Cloth Diaper Store offering their classroom, I will now be holding monthly Comfort Measures Classes at their store. Classes will be held the last Saturday of each month from 11-3 (tentative times).

What are Comfort Measures Classes? Well, mine focus on teaching the stages and phases of labor and birth, and how to stay as comfortable during labor. I cover breathing exercises, how partners can best assist, laboring positions, how to use a birth ball, discuss birth plan options, and the all-important comfort measures suggestions (think rice socks, showers, etc.). While the class is definitely intent on helping women achieve a drug-free labor, I will briefly cover certain common hospital interventions and pharmaceutical pain management options. We’ll watch a short DVD or two, practice exercises and positions, and generally learn a lot of important and useful information. The classes are also a great Refresher Course for anyone who has had some time in between births or who is choosing to go natural with subsequent births.

Cost is $50.00 per couple. For further questions and to confirm a date and time, please email me at: beautifulbirths2003@yahoo.com. Be sure to check out Cutie Tooties new store front and also their website for information about their Grand Opening Party and other events being offered. They have a Facebook page too.

Looking forward to seeing you in class!

All Rights Reserved, Kimberly Sebeck, CLD, CCCE, Knoxville Doula
Like me on Facebook

Breastfeeding Class for August

Kimberly — Sat, 30 Jul 2011 21:18:45 +0000

Date: Tuesday, August 23rd, 2011 at 5:30 p.m.

Location: Upper Cervical Health Centers of Knoxville — 1508 Coleman Rd, Knoxville, TN 37909

Topics: Basic physiology of breastfeeding, benefits and savings, partner support, getting started, overcoming obstacles. A currently breastfeeding mother will also come to share her experience and answer any real life questions.

Cost: $20 per couple, partners strongly encouraged to attend. Pre-registration is required, please email beautifulbirths2003@yahoo.com to register.

Class will last approximately two hours. Come learn about the benefits of breastfeeding, find support, ask questions– all for less than the price of one can of infant formula.

To keep current on events, please “like” my FB page

ABC Baby Products Giveaway at PBJ’s Consignment Sale

Kimberly — Thu, 28 Jul 2011 15:27:22 +0000

I will be giving away a set of ABC Baby Products by Arbonne at my Knoxville Doula booth at PBJ’s Consignment Sale in August! Come by the booth and register to win. The set is a 5 item set, valued at $82.00 before tax. The set includes:

ABC Baby Care Sunscreen
ABC Baby Care Hair and Body Wash
ABC Baby Care Body Lotion
ABC Baby Care Herbal Diaper Rash Cream
ABC Baby Care Body Oil

PBJ’s is a new consignment sale and their schedule for the public will be August 18-22 — special pre-sales are also available, such as first time moms, workers, etc. I encourage you to look up the schedule yourself and come see me at this event! Also, please share with your friends!

Memories, Sugar Cookies, and Love

Kimberly — Fri, 15 Jul 2011 16:30:28 +0000

I am reminiscing today. I close my eyes and transport myself back to a “cold” day in winter in Florida. I think I was about 5 years of age. My mom has spent a great deal of time preparing a day of fun with baking. Right this moment, I can smell the cookies. She made dozens of sugar cookies; I’m not sure when she spent the time mixing the dough and refrigerating it, but she has it all prepared. The counters are covered in cookies and wax paper, icing, new paintbrushes and decorating items. My brother and I are going to “paint” the cookies with edible icing she made.

There are star shapes, there are gingerbread men shapes, there are circles, and many other shapes of cookies. They all look and smell and feel perfect to me. Did some of them burn or crumble? I don’t know because everything seems perfect to me. Cookie after cookies is gleefully painted and decorated with candy buttons, or sprinkles, or other fun edible objects. There is no direction or fussing or oversight into how we paint our cookies. Free creativity at work. Giggles and oohs and ahhs and surreptitious sneaky tastes of icing and licking of fingers. Crumbs drop on the floor, I’m sure we smeared icing on our clothing and kitchen, but my usually cleanliness obsessed mother says nothing about the mess.

We eat the cookies afterwards and while they are delicious, the taste doesn’t mean anything compared to the time spent together. She doesn’t limit us on our sugar intake. She is the embodiment of fun, creativity, love, and patience For years, even thirty years later, I can remember this event and smell the cookies, and feel the warmth of the oven, feel the excitement and anticipation of looking at the decorating choices. I feel my mother’s love. No matter how many times I make sugar cookies, I can never quite recreate the smells, emotions, and sights of that day. Sometimes I wish I had a photograph of the day, but I have one in my mind.

My daughter loves to make cookies. I am a fast cook — having a little one helping sometimes made me feel impatient. Then I remember that day and how much it meant to me, and I remind myself to slow down and hope she will look back on one of our cooking sessions, or one of our times spent together, years from now and close her eyes and be able to re-live it.

What do you do to create lasting memories with your children?

Me Time: A Healthier Me, A Healthier Doula

Kimberly — Fri, 01 Jul 2011 15:47:59 +0000

This post is a little off-topic, but I’m doing it for fun, for accountability, and for myself. It’s time to get back in shape. I’m by no means what most people would consider “obese” but the years and weight and, uh, “body fluff” have crept up on me. Here is my list of reasons (or excuses, if you prefer):

1. A little over 3 years ago, I seriously injured my back. Very seriously. It meant immobility, over 6 months of rehab, and a permanent disability rating. I gained close to 30 lbs in a year, having previously been a very active person.

2. Miscarriages, female surgeries, and bursting ovarian cyst — without going into all the gory details, 3 surgeries in 3 years causes a lot of abdominal weakness. Add in the hormone fluctuations of pregnancy and miscarriage and it wasn’t pleasant for my body.

3. Marriage! Ha, I really can’t ignore the fact that sometimes being in love and comfortable leads to more snuggle couch time and more food, especially when you have a loving and helpful husband like mine who cooks for me.

4. An irregular schedule. Going to births sometimes means 24-48 hours of granola bars and a banana washed down with 4 cups of coffee, followed by a fat laden fast food stop on my way home. Not that I mind.. but not so great for the waistline.

Those are my biggies. I’ve been exercising quite regularly all along, using the Wii Fit, buying a used treadmill off of Craigslist, taking walks with my pets and family, but never really pushing myself. It’s time for a change! I recently started back up at Knoxville Get Foxy Boot Camp, earlier this week, in fact. I had begun back in the winter, but ended up pregnant and subsequently miscarrying, so my routine was interrupted. Becky Fox is going to whip me back in shape with her fun (ok, not always fun, but the results are fun) 45 minute boot camp routines. She even makes sure to show modifications for anyone with health issues, like back problems, and overall, I’m amazed at how quickly the time goes by and how great I feel afterwards.

We did my measurements and weight this week. My waist was approximately 34″ and my hips were 43″. Did you think I was going to tell you my weight? Well, you’re crazy — sometimes we gals have to keep some secrets to ourselves ;0). I am 5’8″ so I hold weight fairly well, but my goal is to lose 30 lbs and then re-evaluate new goals. I also have the goal to significantly reduce my tummy area and hips, as well as firm up the backs of my arms, regain flexibility, have me time, and look and feel better!

I’m going to go 3 times a week for the next few months, or until some of my clients get closer to baby arrival time! Maybe some of you will join me (I’ve already seen many familiar faces), or maybe you’ll just cheer me on. After all, a healthier me makes for a healthier and stronger doula. My work inspires me: every time I think about giving up on an exercise, or that sixty seconds is a long time, I remind myself that my amazing mamas in labor make it through one contraction at a time. Thanks for the inspiration, ladies!

I’ll update later when we do another measurement and weight check in. I’d love to have some encouraging comments on this blog! Tell me what you do for exercise or what goals you have reached or are trying to reach.