Mamahhh... | Birth

Nashville Baby Fair: April 20th

April 19, 2013 By Jenni Leave a Comment

Nashville moms-to-be & new mamas, join me Saturday April 20, 2013, for the Baptist Baby Fair. Sponsored by Nashville Parent magazine at Baptist Hospital, the Baby Fair will feature tons of prize giveaways! I'll be there to answer your questions about prenatal yoga and mama-baby yoga in Nashville. My friend Kari Jenkins, prenatal massage therapist & doula, will be there, too. Stop by our table for a chance to win the Target giftcards we're giving away! Saturday April 20, 2013 10am - 3pm Baptist Hospital, Nashville … [Read more...]

Filed Under: Birth, Pregnancy Tagged With: Baby Fair, Baptist Hospital, Nashville Parent Magazine, prenatal yoga

Inspired: Doula Alisa Blackwood

February 15, 2013 By Jenni Leave a Comment

Upgrade your daily routine with a dash of inspiration! Here’s a quick look at why women do the work they do! Meet the Woman: Alisa Blackwood, 36, mother of two, doula (works privately and as a volunteer doula), birth photographer, journalist, yoga teacher. Lives in Minneapolis. Birth advocate since 2007. Alisa, what inspired you to become a doula? I'm lucky to have a mother who ADORED being pregnant. I grew up hearing about how beautiful she felt while pregnant—and in pictures she positively glowed—so I never thought of pregnancy as a time to feel fat or yucky. (Though I … [Read more...]

Filed Under: Birth Tagged With: Alisa Blackwood, birth, blooma, doula, inspiration

New Birth Choices for Moms and Doulas

February 15, 2013 By Jenni Leave a Comment

Pregnant moms and doulas in Nashville have a new option for birth support: Hospital-based doula programs are springing up at a couple hospitals around town. Free doulas?! Whether or not you love the idea, there are a wealth of considerations to be made beyond the price tag. Doula rates span quite a range, from about $300 to over $1000. To learn more about free-for-families hospital-based doulas, and volunteer doula programs in particular, I checked in with my friend and colleague Alisa Blackwood, a, volunteer in the Woodwinds Health Campus doula program in Minneapolis since 2007. A … [Read more...]

Filed Under: Birth, Featured Tagged With: affordable doulas, birth, free doula care, Nashville, volunteer doula program

Birth in Nashville: ICAN’s Lindsey Seger

January 16, 2013 By Jenni 1 Comment

Nashville Childbirth Classes Lindsey Seger

Lindsey Seger, leader of Nashville’s International Cesarean Awareness Network (ICAN) chapter, is deeply sympathetic to the anxiety many a woman has felt about childbirth. “The intimidation she feels from both the typical obstetrical model and the fervent natural birthers—my heart goes out to her!” says Lindsey, 33. That empathy stems from Lindsey’s own story, which spans both experiences. Her first birth was a scheduled Cesarean; her second was a drug-free, all-natural VBAC—vaginal birth after Cesarean. And as meaningful as that natural, vaginal birth was for the Hendersonville, … [Read more...]

Filed Under: Birth, Pregnancy Tagged With: Bradley Method, C-section, ICAN, Lindsey Seger, Nashville childbirth classes

On Labor Day, A Birth Rally

September 4, 2012 By Jenni Leave a Comment

On Labor Day, women and families in more than 100 cities around the country rallied for what ought to be a given: evidence-based maternity care. In my hometown, Nashville TN, more than a hundred people gathered along West End in Centennial Park for our Rally for Change —organized by local doula Holly Heveron-Smith. The solid show of support speaks to the vibrant and dedicated community of birth doulas, midwives, educators, and advocates who dedicate themselves to making birth better for women and their babies. The demands of evidence-based maternity care aren't extreme: No inductions … [Read more...]