THE BUDDHA BELLY BLOG
What Is HypnoBirthing?
What is HypnoBirthing? HypnoBirthing® (The Mongan Method) is based on a philosophy and technique that is thousands of years old. It resurfaced in the work of Dr. Grantly Dick-Read, a 1920’s English obstetrician who was a pioneer in natural birthing without fear and anxiety. The method teaches you how to achieve deep relaxation, fostering your…
5 Things a Women’s Health Physical Therapist Can Help With
We recently met with Christina Noonan, a local Tampa Physical Therapist who focuses on women’s health. We learned all about the services she provides and are happy to share more information here in our latest guest blog post: As we all know, having a baby is not an easy task. It is also not easy…
How A Peanut Ball is Used in Labor
Photo by Dear Little One Photography There are many important benefits to changing positions regularly in labor. We often suggest that women in labor change positions every 30 mins to an hour. When you are laboring with an epidural you are limited in the number of different positions you can try because you are mostly…
When Should I Start Pumping Breastmilk?
Unless you need to be separated from your baby early on or circumstances require you to start pumping immediately (such as having a preemie in the NICU), it is recommended to wait about 4-6 weeks before you begin pumping. During these first few weeks your body is acclimating to the needs of your baby. When…
Honoring Your Postpartum Body
We recently met with Brooke Tompkins of BirthFit South Tampa and learned all about their great programs. We asked Brooke to write a post for our readers regarding postpartum recovery and we are happy to share this with you now. – Christie You hear it all the time. “Get your pre-baby body back”… “Lose your…
Group Childbirth Classes
We are excited to announce that we will now be offering group Childbirth Classes! Our classes prepare you to have a smooth pregnancy, birth and postpartum experience. You will learn about the process of labor, birth and routine medical procedures. Our goal is to answer all of your questions and help you feel confident and…
Pregnancy Diabetes: What Is Gestational Diabetes?
What is Pregnancy Diabetes / Gestational Diabetes Mellitus (GDM)? According to Stanford Children’s Health, pregnancy diabetes, gestational diabetes mellitus or GDM, is “a condition in which a hormone made by the placenta prevents the body from using insulin effectively. Unlike type 1 diabetes, gestational diabetes is not caused by a lack of insulin, but by other hormones…
Doula Help in the Hospital
One of the different ways that families can use postpartum doula support from Buddha Belly is while still in the hospital, before discharge. Here are a couple of scenarios where we have provided help in the hospital as postpartum doulas. After a cesarean birth. Recovering from this major surgery can be very difficult, especially when caring…
Three Babies – Pregnancy Infant Loss Awareness Month
I’ve loved this song, Three Babies, by Sinéad O’Connor since I was a teenager. I know every word to the entire album if I’m being honest. In addition to her beautiful voice, the emotion in this song is unbelievably raw and captivating. Each person may find different meaning in the lyrics. Since October is Pregnancy…
Breastfeeding Support in Tampa Bay
Let’s just start this conversation by saying if you don’t want to breastfeed, that is OKAY. It is your body and you get to make the choice about everything that happens to it. If you want to breastfeed and then change your mind, that is OKAY too. You don’t need to validate that choice to…
What Is Vernix Caseosa?
No, your newborn isn’t dirty! That’s vernix caseosa, a powerfully protective, “water proof” coating that covers baby’s skin in utero and prevents heat loss after birth. Vernix can aid in the passage through the birth canal and act as a physical barrier against bacteria. It’s also theorized that vernix helps in the development of healthy…
Birth Plans Can Change
“When our birth plan changed and I needed a surgical birth, my doula held my hand in the operating room and helped us to stay calm.” – Haley, St. Pete Beach Birth plans can change, like Haley describes. Many people (mistakenly) think birth doula support is only for a “natural” birth or vaginal birth. What…