Wiregrass Doula Services, April Newsletter


WDS News	April 2008 / Issue 2
In this issue: • latest news • cesarean awareness • special offers • quote of the month • support groups • legal rights	LATEST NEWS Wiregrass Doula Services now has an office and meeting location for your convenience! We will be holding classes and support groups there soon! We are located inside the wellness center "a place to Renew" at 148 E. Main Street in Dothan.
APRIL IS CESAREAN AWARENESS MONTH What is Cesarean Awareness Month? An internationally recognized month of awareness about the impact of cesarean sections on mothers, babies, and families worldwide. It’s about educating yourself to the pros and cons of major abdominal surgery and the possibilities for healthy birth afterwards as well as educating yourself for prevention of cesarean section. Cesarean awareness is for mothers who are expecting or who might choose to be in the future. It’s for daughters who don’t realize what choices are being taken away from them. It’s for scientists studying the effects of cesareans and how birth impacts our lives. It’s for grandmothers who won’t be having more children but are questioning the abdominal pains and adhesions causing damage 30 years after their cesareans. CESAREANS are serious. There is no need for a ‘catchy phrase’ to tell us that this is a mainstream problem. It affects everyone. One in three American women every year have surgery to bring their babies into the world. These women have lifelong health effects, impacting the families that are helping them in their healing, impacting other families through healthcare costs and policies, and bringing back those same lifelong health effects to the children they bring into this world. Be aware. Read. Learn. Ask questions. Get informed consent. Be your own advocate for the information you need to know. SPECIAL OFFERS Spring Special! Need help creating a birth plan or knowing what your options really are? Schedule a Birth Plan Consultation and let me help you decide what is important to you for the birth of your baby. I can provide you with the pros and cons of common procedures and help you create a birth plan you can be happy with. Birth Plan Consultations are now only $30.00. That's $15.00 off the regular price!
BIRTH QUOTE OF THE MONTH “Birth is the sudden opening of a window, through which you look out upon a stupendous prospect. For what has happened? A miracle. You have exchanged nothing for the possibility of everything.” -William MacNeile Dixon SUPPORT GROUPS New and Expectant Parents Support Currently pregnant and new moms can join us for this support group. We'll talk about birth and babies and try to answer any questions everyone has about what to expect and offer advice from those who have done it. Refreshments will be provided! Wednesday, April 16th, 2008 6:00pm to 7:00pm Held at "a place to Renew", located at 148 E Main Street in Downtown Dothan (across from LaLe Restaurant). Parking available at Civic Center or on St. Andrews Street.		LEGAL RIGHTS OF THE PREGNANT WOMAN Women do not lose their constitutional or common law rights by becoming pregnant. The consent of a competent woman’s husband is never required for her treatment. Women have a right to have another woman present during a physical examination. Women can refuse to be examined or treated by anyone. Women have a right to have the father of the child, or another advocate, present during childbirth and delivery. Pregnant women have a right to refuse any medical treatment or drug, including a cesarean section, episiotomy, anesthesia, and pain medication. A woman has a right to change her mind about any decision made before or during labor or childbirth. A woman and her newborn have a right to remain in a hospital up to 48 hours after a vaginal birth and 96 hours after a cesarean section (your goal, however, should be to get mother and child out of the hospital as soon as it is safe for them to be discharged). Today, people who understand their rights as patients are more likely to successfully negotiate the health care system, use health insurance and managed care plans, and work with physicians and other health care professionals. Most important, a just health care system requires respect for the rights of patients. (Patient Rights Program, Health Law Department of the Boston University School of Public Health.) Reprinted with permission by George J. Annas J.D., M.P.H., Chairman, Department of Health Law at Boston University School of Public Health. From Reproductive Health in The Rights of Patients: The Basic ACLU Guide to Patients Rights.
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