I’m not sure how time passes so quickly: here we find ourselves at the close of yet another year. It’s always good to take a bit of time to reflect over some of the highlights and challenges, and I’m once again grateful for those of you who have invited me to be part of your family’s story in such a special way.
The past year was intentionally a slower one when it comes to the number of babies I was privileged to welcome. I continue to find that life has various seasons, and trying to navigate how to focus more on my own children versus putting more energy into midwifery is a real part of life right now. As my children grow, the need for mom’s focus and presence seems to be more intense (in a different way than during the years when they were all tiny!), which in turn has caused me to pull back from too busy of a midwifery schedule. We also took some time this year for some out-of-the ordinary events such as Joel and I celebrating our 15th wedding anniversary, spending several days at a missions conference in Pittsburgh, a week-long trip to Mexico (visiting missionaries who are part of the ministry Joel works for), several camping/family trips, and then our most recent opportunity: spending 5 weeks in Thailand while Joel attended an international Bible Translation conference and then spent several weeks teaching at a missions training school for young people. This trip was such a rich opportunity and we have returned home with many amazing memories!
When it comes to babies in 2025, there were many sweet little footprints added to the board in the office. While some years include mostly repeat clients, this year I worked with quite a few families for the first time. The smallest baby weighed in at 6#15oz and the largest at 8#15oz, and these newborns ranged from being the first baby in the family to the fifth.
Births weren’t the only aspect of my midwifery work this past year: I also spent time working on renewing my Certified Professional Midwife credential for the 5th time, making this 16 years since I became certified. I was also involved in editing & looking over an exam that another group of midwives is putting together for a certifying agency. This was a great opportunity to brush up on fine details and give input on what is important for newly graduated midwives to be familiar with. I also ended up doing quite a bit of long-distance communication with women who are serving on the mission field or are in areas without midwifery care, so all of these opportunities keep me continually studying and learning so that I can pass on help to others!
As I think about all it takes to provide midwifery care, I want to give a shout-out to the amazing assistants who drop everything at a moment’s notice to come assist me at births! These ladies do so much to make your birth experiences good ones, and I’m thankful to have Lanna, Emily, Janine and others willing to help out. One highlight of this year was when my own daughter Yoanna was invited to join me at a birth. She’s dreamed of training to be an assistant for years, and this was such a delightful experience for her. As we head into the next year, I plan to involve her more, as she has had the opportunity this fall to take a basic Neonatal resuscitation class as well as doing quite a bit of specific study in the field of midwifery. I’ve always hoped that one of my daughter’s might want to join me, and I’m excited about involving her more when it works out.
In closing, just a reminder that you can find quite a few helpful articles and links listed on the Gentle Delivery website, so be sure to check it out. Use the search bar function to look for topics you might need information about, and please feel free to pass these links on to friends! Our summer play date was a huge success, so stay tuned for more of those to happen in 2026 as I hope to get these on a more regular schedule again. If you want to be added to the email list for playgroup invites, send me a message and ask to be added to the list: gentlemidwife@gmail.com. Be sure to add the addresses of any friends who may want to join, as these are not limited to Gentle Delivery clients but are intended to build up the local homebirth community. May each of you have a blessed Christmas season!
Whether you are pregnant with your first or postpartum with your fifth, taking care of your pelvic floor/core muscles is such an important goal! Over the years there have been many new studies done and more insights shown on the importance of a strong pelvic floor and solid core for women during their childbearing years. Taking the time to focus on this part of your body can help to make pregnancy more comfortable, reduce lower back pain, help eliminate the “mummy tummy” that can be so frustrating after growing a baby, prepare your body for future pregnancies, and guard against future challenges such as prolapse & urinary incontinence. When you think about all that your body goes through to grow, nourish, carry and push out a baby, it’s no wonder that these muscles and areas might need some extra focus to help everything function at it’s optimal potential!
It can be confusing to figure out what is right and wrong when it comes to pregnancy and postpartum exercise, and you want to make sure you are helping your body and not causing further trauma or muscle separation. The purpose of this list of resources is to help you get started in finding a program or plan that will work for you and your current situation. I would love to encourage you to try to fit in at least 10 minutes of purposeful exercise in 5 days a week, both during pregnancy and then once you are 8-10 weeks postpartum (you can start slow beginning at 6 weeks, but give your body grace to build up strength!).
And a clarification: these resources are specifically for helping to rebuild core muscle and pelvic floor strength. We’ll focus on other general exercise in another post, but the purpose of this list is to help you wade through some options that specifically focus on rehabilitation of your muscles after pregnancy and birth (or helping to prevent strain to these muscles if you’re currently pregnant!).
If you prefer reading books and having pictures to reference, here are a few helpful titles:
Postpartum Exercise Essentials is a great guide to have ready and available before you give birth. With suggestions on movement and gentle stretches, it helps you to begin rehabilitation during the first 8 weeks following delivery, building a foundation for the rest of the postpartum season.
Training for Two by Gina Conley is a handbook for prenatal exercises, with good info on how the body works and how to make adaptations and care for your body while exercising during pregnancy so as not to cause any harm. While this book focuses more on general pregnancy fitness, the last section focuses specifically on how to rest and then gently build up your body during the postpartum period, with great illustrations and photos.
Mom’s Guide to Diastasis Recti is an easy-to-read short book with photos illustrating about 50 exercises to help rebuild postpartum.
The Core Program this is an older book (easy to find cheap online!) written and complied specifically for women of any age who need to strengthen their core. Best to wait until after 6-8 weeks postpartum to begin this one!
DVD or online options:
Spinning Babies Daily Essentials Here’s a blog post with excellent exercise suggestions and other recommendations for maximizing positioning and alignment during pregnancy.
Trim Healthy Mama Workins You can find DVD’s on eBay, but this exercise program is now available online with subscription. Good foundational 20 minute exercise sessions with modifications for pregnancy and postpartum with excellent focus on pelvic floor and diastasis health.
Down There for Women by Katy Bowman (DVD, can sometimes find used copies for cheap!) Produced specifically to help women experiencing pelvic floor issues such as prolapse, incontinence, postpartum rehab, etc.
Finally, here are some suggestions that come by recommendation from other midwives-but I haven’t personally used or watched these. So I would love to hear about your experience if you if you choose to try one or more of these options!
As we approach the end of 2024, I’m grateful for the chance to reflect over the opportunities that presented themselves throughout this past year. I count it a privilege to work with so many sweet families, and to be present during such a special life event as when a new life enters the world.
2024 began bright and early with the arrival of a baby girl on January 1st, who decided to come fast enough to beat my arrival by a few minutes! Interestingly, my last baby due in 2024 arrived the same way on Christmas Eve, so I guess fast births were the theme of this year. It’s fun to consider the stats: most of the families I worked with this year were new to Gentle Delivery, and many were having their first homebirth. About half of the babies were born in water, most came close to or after their due dates (a few made us wait an EXTRA long time), and the majority weighed around 7#14oz. The largest was 9#3oz, and the smallest was 6#14oz: it’s so interesting what variety there is in the realm of “normal”. There were a few “first experiences” this year, as well: a flat tire on the way to a birth (yes, I drove on it and yes, I made it to the birth!) and parking tickets at 6am. There’s never a dull moment when doing birthwork!
I’m always grateful for the assistants who help me out at any time day or night, and there were many different ladies fulfilling this role this year. Many of you met Natasha, a midwifery student from VA who spent several months this winter helping me. She is still in midwifery school, and hopes to be finished before too much longer! Lanna, Maria, Lynelle and Janine have also pitched in depending on schedules, and these women do so much to make your experience that much better. I couldn’t do what I do without their help, and appreciate them sacrificing their time & plans when I need help.
Having a nursing baby who needed to be with me added another need for flexibility during the early months of the year, and I was so grateful for the help my oldest daughter Yoanna provided as she cheerfully got up any time day or night to come along and babysit. While I’m happy to be past the stage of needing to have Shekinah with me, Yoanna is eagerly looking forward to the day when she can graduate from babysitter to birth assistant, and that can’t come soon enough for her!
Our family’s move to Philipsburg was another big change. While that has shifted the radius that I’m able to serve, it’s also opened some new doors in an area that doesn’t have as many midwifery options. The midwifery office suite that we were able to finish out has made appointments and midwifery work SO much more sustainable for our family life, which has also been a tremendous blessing.
As my children grow and family life shifts into new stages once again, we find ourselves taking time to reevaluate our schedule and commitments as I move forward with midwifery responsibilities. I love the opportunity to serve families in this way, yet the constant demand and on-call schedule does make things challenging at times. My dream would be to be able to team with another midwife someday, thus being able to provide home birth options while at the same time having the opportunity to take off when needed for family time and other commitments. At this time, keeping midwifery sustainable for our family means limiting service radius at times, and taking off various months when we have other plans pending. It can be very hard to say no to former clients, but I’m thankful to have a number of other options that I can pass on when this happens. I couldn’t do midwifery without my family’s support, yet the only way to keep that support is to keep them priority whenever I can!
In closing, please note that there is a new office and mailing address for Gentle Delivery (if you need it, please email or message me and I’ll happily send it your way!). I would LOVE to get your family pictures & updates, and want to make sure they get to my new location! I’m hoping to get back into a schedule of doing Mommy Meetups again in 2025, so email me if you want to be on the list for those updates! gentlemidwife@gmail.com
Blessings to each one of you in 2025! ~Kelsey Martin/Gentle Delivery Midwifery
As the end of 2023 approaches, it’s once again time to remember the blessings and challenges of another year, and give you all a little update on the work of Gentle Delivery Midwifery. I’m always grateful to look back and remember the families I was privileged to work with and the babies I was able to meet. Thank you for allowing me to be part of your lives in such a special way!
I know many of you find it interesting to hear some of the stats from the year, so here’s a few for those of you who enjoy such things. I’m anticipating at least one more baby for 2023, but as of now the smallest baby was 6# 8oz, and the largest was 10#12oz. Quite a variation of normal, isn’t it?!? Around 60% of these babies were born in water, and ranged from arriving around a week and a half early to 13 days late. Most of the families I worked with this year were new to Gentle Delivery, though I served three families for the 3rd time and one family for the 4th, which is extra special! I was also happy to help a number of families with questions, consults, and involvement during pregnancy and birth both in person and virtually…assisting families in networking with other providers, supporting previous client families that have relocated and providing consult help to families with specific questions or concerns has been an additional focus of my midwifery work this year.
I had a variety of assistants at births depending on location, availability and circumstances. Between Christine, Lanna, Emily and Denae, I was thankful for great addition to the birth teams, and all the help these ladies give. For those delivering in early months of the New Year, I’m excited to introduce you to Natasha Yoder, a midwifery student/assistant who plans to come help me for a few weeks as Christine is expecting a baby of her own in January.
Besides staying busy helping with babies arriving in other families, we were grateful to welcome another baby of our own. Shekinah Glory joined our family on March 24, after a short but intense labor. She was also born in the water, and her sisters were present along with our midwife and birth team. Nursing was quite the journey once again, and we ended up making the drive to Albany, NY to have Dr. Kotlow revise her tongue & lip ties with laser. After a few intense weeks of monitoring weight gain, pumping/feeding, and all the stress this adds to the initial adjustments, we were SO thankful to have the procedure work effectively. She has since gained weight quickly, absolutely loves nursing, and refuses to take either a pacifier or bottle! Thankfully she has plenty of older siblings who are always happy to have a turn helping with baby sister, and now that she is 8 months old it feels like we are finally figuring out a rhythm to family life once again. I think we learn more with each new baby, and this time we purposefully booked a long break from births in order to have the much-needed time to recover, adjust and enjoy the newborn stage without extra pressure or demands.
Continuing education classes were another focus for this year: attending the GOLD midwifery conference virtually was helpful, and I was especially happy to once again take the Breech Without Borders intensive class. This includes online lectures as well as over 8 hours of in-person instruction and training, and is so valuable in enabling families to have more options when it comes to safe breech birth. Though I’m still happy if babies want to come head first instead of making me put these skills into practice too often.
I can’t finish without once again expressing my thanks to my own husband and children who truly make my midwifery involvement a family ministry. Whether it’s changing plans at a moment’s notice, babysitting, holding schedules loosely, taking care of supper prep or all the other factors, it has been a blessing to have their support and encouragement. It can sometimes feel like a constant juggling act to balance midwifery with the family, church and ministry responsibilities that our family is involved in! My oldest daughter has been an amazing help this fall, coming along to babysit Shekinah during births so baby could nurse as needed while I could continue to focus on providing care.
As we head into 2024, it looks like there may be some changes on the horizon. While none of our plans have been finalized, it’s possible that our family may relocate to the Philipsburg area sometime this next summer. This has the potential of changing some of my availability, though at this point I would still consider State College to be within my care radius. Keep tabs on the website or Facebook page, as I’ll make sure to post updates if this happens! I’m hoping to see more of you this next year, too, as my goal is to resume seasonal playdates beginning this winter, so stay tuned for an announcement.
Blessings to each of you in the New Year! ~Kelsey Martin @ Gentle Delivery Midwifery
It’s hard to believe another year is almost completed! As we head towards the New Year, I wanted to take a few minutes to update you all on happenings here at Gentle Delivery, as well as thank each of you for your continued support. Whether it’s returning clients, new clients, supportive local services (lactation consultants, medical teams, ultrasound technicians, etc.), back-up midwives, students or assistants, I am blessed to be part of the local midwifery community, and I’ve been grateful to see the way this community works together!
So far in 2022 I’ve been privileged to assist in welcoming 15 babies, most of whom were little girls. Several of these were born to first-time mamas, and once again I was amazed, humbled and stretched throughout the experiences of assisting these families with the unique challenges and victories that accompany the unknown journey of becoming parents for the first time. Besides the first time babies, the rest ranged from being sibling #2 to sibling #8 for their families, and I had the special privilege of attending 3 moms for the 3rd time. Seeing children that I remember catching as tiny babies become big siblings is a fun perk that comes from providing ongoing care for client families! The smallest baby this year was 6# 4oz, and so far 8# 14oz was the biggest, with one more baby pending who could change these statistics!
Lanna and Christine, my usual assistants during 2022
The teamwork of our community stood out to me in greater ways throughout the pregnancies and births this past year. Over and over again I have been thankful for good working relationships both with other midwives and the medical community—which is such a key factor for providing sustainable, safe midwifery care options. There were times this year where additional medical help was needed in order to provide us with the ultimate goal of having a healthy mom & baby, which made me especially grateful for several MFM’s and CNM’s willing to provide consultations, input & care for clients as well as for a welcoming hospital environment when complications necessitated a transfer of care. Along the lines of providing good care options, it was exciting to add the services of a diagnostic ultrasound tech who has been able to regularly perform scans right in my office!
Birth teams have varied this year depending on availability of different assistants & midwives, but each one of these ladies have added to the birth experiences and help me in so many different ways, bringing their own special support and care to births. There are many behind-the-scenes details that these women take care of, besides their willingness to drop whatever they have going on to come help me in any way they can at any hour of the day or night, and I couldn’t continue to provide midwifery services without them! Due to a family emergency for one local midwife, I ended up covering at various times for her over the year, and catching several babies while she needed to be out-of-state. While I know it can be disappointing to not have your expected team for your birth, it was also a blessing for these families to still be able to continue with their homebirth plans despite the need for the original midwife to attend to important family needs. Along similar lines, I was very thankful for midwives willing to cover for me so that I could spend a few weekends away with my family, both for vacation and a family wedding. The strain of on-call life is challenging (especially with young children!), and being able to rest knowing that your clients are in competent hands while you take a break is a huge factor in maintaining a sustainable midwifery practice!
Denae, a midwife in Philipsburg who assisted and covered for meEmily, a local birth assistant who helped me out a number of times when I was in a pinchHannah, a midwife who covered for me and assisted with births & appointments…and Christine, my faithful assistant this past year
In closing, I also wish to express my thankfulness to my supportive family. The way they pray for me when I’m at births, pick up the slack when mama needs to rest or is away, and adjust their lives and schedule is such a vital part of midwifery work, and it really is a family effort. Also, I realize that none of this could happen without God’s continued blessing, provision and care. As we head into 2023, my children are very excited about the addition of a baby sister arriving in early spring, Lord-willing. I’ll be taking a few months off for maternity leave, and trying to put into practice the things I tell all of you about rest and recovery postpartum! Blessings to each of you in the New Year!
The photo we sent to our families, to let them know baby #6 was on the way!
Please note: I am NOT affiliated with any of the mentioned companies, and I do not receive any sort of reimbursement from sharing their products other than occasional free samples that are sent to my office (which is how I was introduced to several of them!). Some of these companies have offered discount codes for my readers, and I’m passing those on when available, at no benefit to myself!
As a mom who has struggled with severe morning sickness with most of my pregnancies, I know from experience how incredibly difficult and challenging those first months can be when you feel so miserable! In fact, the mere thought of going through those early weeks and months of sickness makes me desperate to find some type of relief to try. Because of this, I’ve spent quite a bit of time reading any new research, thoughts and suggestions that I can get my hands on regarding combating morning sickness over the past couple of years. My hope with this post is to help you understand what might be going on under the surface, and to provide you with a number of suggestions and resources so that you can hopefully find something that works for you! I know each mom (and each pregnancy!) can respond differently, and that there is NO cure-all that works for everyone. But sometimes you find out about something that can make a difference, so my hope is that you might discover something new that can bring some relief to you as you nourish and carry that tiny baby that is already requiring so much from mama!
For the foundation, it’s important to be caring for your body BEFORE pregnancy whenever possible. If you haven’t done so, I would highly recommend that you take the time to read Real Food For Pregnancy by Lily Nichols. Having a high quality diet in place that is low in simple carbs and refined sugar and high in quality protein has made a big difference for many moms, but this provides the most help for morning sickness if this has been a way of life long before pregnancy. Along these same lines, taking the time to do a liver cleanse and possibly a candida cleanse have made a big difference in pregnancy health for moms.
Talking about the liver brings me to the first important suggestion for morning sickness relief, and that is LIVER HEALTH. As you know, a mom’s body works hard to support the massive amount of growth that is happening for baby during the first weeks after conception, and one of the organs under a lot of stress is the liver. It is fascinating to study into this more, and realize how gentle support of the liver can help alleviate the severity of morning sickness (you can read more about this here). A great way to provide liver support is through taking Milk Thistle twice a day (and if you are planning a pregnancy, start taking this a couple of months before pregnancy for even better success!). Some good Milk Thistle options are: Jarrow Milk Thistle & Natural Hope Herbals Milk Thistle Tincture. If you want more support (and possibly more success), consider taking a liver support complex such as the pregnancy-safe tincture from Mountain Meadow Herbs Liver Glow II. This product from Earthly Wellness includes dandelion which is another herb that provides liver support, along with some additional herbs to aid in reducing nausea: Mama’s Tummy Relief (use code “gentlemidwife” for 10% off your first order from them!). Another form of liver support comes through the addition of lemons to your diet, which is most easily done by squeezing fresh lemon juice into your water that you sip on throughout the day (add some honey for a bit of a natural sugar boost!).
Another factor that can make morning sickness worse, and be especially problematic when a mama is vomiting often, is maintaining good hydration and electrolyte balance. Staying on top of this before it gets to the point of needing IV treatment is key, and one of the ways to help with this is having some high-quality electrolyte drinks available (that are not full of artificial flavors & dyes like Gatorade!). A few good choices that I’ve personally tasted an tested are: GoodOnYa Organic (this one tastes like delicious lemonade, yet it has only healthy ingredients: use the code “gentlemidwife” for 10% off + free shipping on your order!), Nectar (another organic, sugar-free option with multiple flavors), LMNT (available in several different flavors-you can purchase a sample mix on Amazon to get you started), and DripDrop. You can even make popsicles out of these electrolyte drinks in order to sip on them…just make it a priority to stay hydrated and prevent your electrolytes from orbiting out of order…we want to prevent the need for an IV or other intervention whenever possible!
A “newer” remedy that I am finding quite fascinating is that of additional magnesium supplementation for morning sickness relief. Here’s a couple of articles that go into more detail: Magnesium for Morning Sickness Relief, & Magnesium for Morning Sickness: My Story. If I have another baby, I’m definitely planning to try this idea! Besides swallowing pills or drinking magnesium-containing drinks (which many sick moms can’t handle), a few ways to supplement with magnesium that might be easier on your stomach are creams and sprays. Pink Stork carries this Magnesium Spray for Morning Sickness, and a local company that I highly recommend carries this cream: Shade Mt. Naturals Magnesium Cream . Another magnesium cream I have used personally is this one: 8 Sheep Organics Magnesium Cream
If you’ve read other posts on my blog or talked with me long, you probably have heard how strongly I feel about incorporating high quality probiotics into your life for pregnancy, nursing and newborn health…and now I’m finding proof that probiotics can also help with morning sickness! These two articles show how: Study: Probiotics Reduce Nausea & Vomiting and Study Finds Probiotics Significantly Improve Nausea and Vomiting in Pregnancy. Based on this research, as well as knowing how beneficial probiotics are to your overall health, it seems like it can’t hurt anything to increase or start your probiotic intake during the early weeks/months of pregnancy. If you’re looking for some good quality options, here are a few that have been recommended by other midwives and clients that I trust: Klaire Labs Therbiotic Complete, This Is Needed: Prenatal Probiotic, and Entegro:Flourish. Another way to increase your probiotic consumption is through fermented foods, such as raw sauerkraut and drinks like Kefir. Some moms have found the “sparkling” aspect of water kefir to be especially appealing while feeling sick, and many stores carry options such as Kevita in the cold drink section. You can also learn How to Make Water Kefir at Home or purchase something like this: Coco-Biotic Coconut Water Kefir
Some moms can obtain relief by supplementing with some specific vitamins & nutrients. Adding a few drops of this Liquid PhosFood by Standard Process to your drinking water (it tastes similar to lemon) has been beneficial to a few clients. Other times your body really needs some additional B vitamins, both for the B6 that specifically helps with nausea, and for the energy that is so lacking during the first trimester! My favorite B complex for those early weeks is the Max BnD Fermented B complex that helped me SO much with my last pregnancy. Whatever type of B vitamin you find, make sure that is contains bio-available forms, such as folate and methylated Bs, in order to obtain the most benefit. Jarrow and Seeking Health are two good brands to purchase.
Now we’ll move on to some random suggestions and options that have helped other moms (thanks to so many who shared in response to my question on what has helped!):
Ginger: many people find ginger helps to settle the stomach, and you can try it in the form of Ginger Ale, Ginger supplements, or even through chews & candies such as these: Gin-Gins Ginger People Candy & Chews
Pink Stork offers a product called Total Morning Sickness Relief that contains needed vitamins & minerals for nausea.
Frequent snacking (don’t let your stomach get empty!), and eating something light before you get out of bed in the morning. Make sure you’re getting protein in whenever possible, even adding it to smoothies if needed!
Some moms find that they need to quit taking daily prenatal vitamins during this time, as they can be too hard on the already sensitive stomach. Don’t stress if you need to do this-you & baby will both do better overall if you can keep food down, and this is more important than the vitamins during these weeks! Remember, baby needed the vitamins the most during the first few weeks, so by the time morning sickness hits with a vengeance this key foundation is over, so the goal is keeping mom hydrated and healthy! An alternative is to find a different vitamin and see if it might be gentler on your stomach. There are gummies, powders and pills, so another form may work during these initial weeks, especially if it does not contain iron which can be particularly hard on a queasy stomach.
IF you really are struggling to keep anything down, and need to move past the natural supplement stage, don’t hesitate to reach out to your care provider for additional support. Some moms MUST have prescription meds to survive these months, and that is totally warranted depending on the situation. Other moms need to have an occasional IV in order to restore hydration, and we are thankful for these interventions when they are desperately needed. Some over-the-counter yet more medically-based solutions are:
I would love to hear from you readers: what did you find helpful?? Any suggestions that aren’t on this list? Did anything listed here benefit you? What did you find helped from one pregnancy to another? Thanks so much for sharing so that we can all learn and hopefully be better able to handle these early weeks and months of pregnancy!
As I think back over this past year, it is with a sense of gratefulness for the ways that God has led, protected and provided. 2021 has included more complications, challenges and adrenaline rushes than I’ve ever had in one year’s time since I began practicing as a midwife 12 years ago! The additional gray hairs accumulated over the months prove this, and I am ending the year feeling like I’ve gained a level of experience that I honestly wouldn’t have minded doing without. However, I’ve also been reminded that this is WHY a midwife takes training seriously, and I’m more committed than ever to doing my best to assist families in safe births, even when at times this requires a different birth location than what we had hoped for, or more invasive assistance than what I prefer to provide.
Besides being the most intense year complication-wise and the most stressful year when it comes to constant changes & research due to the ever-changing Covid landscape, it was also my busiest year baby-wise! I had the honor of helping to welcome 6 girls and 11 boys by the time the last December babies arrived. Weight ranges were fairly average: smallest was 6#8oz and the biggest was 9#9oz. While a couple of little ones came a week or two early, most typically went on the later side with two babies waiting until 13 days past their due date. Three babies made child #6 for their families, and two boys were the first ones for their families. While there were several long labors and many hours spent with a family before the birth, one little guy was in a big enough hurry that he made his appearance in his home before I did! As usual, birth always has an element of surprise that keeps us all on our toes.
Lynelle, Myself & Lanna
I was blessed to work with several great assistants this year! These ladies really help to lift my load, and add a lot to our team. After assisting with births throughout the past 6 years, Lynelle is sensing a need to step back for a time, so she won’t be seen as frequently in the next year. Lanna began helping this spring at the height of our busy season, and has been such a blessing! She will continue to assist as her schedule allows, and there’s the potential of another assistant joining the team in the near future. I’ve also been grateful for the continued help of the midwifery community here in central PA: other assistants and midwives have been willing to fill in as needed, and I’m thankful to have had help available whenever I’ve needed an extra set of hands or someone to cover for a trip or emergency. I was especially thankful for RoseMarie’s willingness to cover for me this fall when our family had COVID, and I was thankful for the baby who so beautifully cooperated in waiting to arrive until I was recovered and my family was past quarantine!
Guerrero, Mexico Summer 2021
On the home front, my little family is growing and doing well! In spite of lots of babies and the craziness this adds to our calendar, we were thankful to get to spend some time camping over the summer, as well as taking a family trip to Mexico to visit missionaries serving with the organization my husband works for. I couldn’t serve as a midwife without the amazing support of my husband Joel, who graciously steps in to care for everyone when mama disappears at a moment’s notice. With children ranging in age from almost 2 to 10, life at home is always exciting and active, and my girls can’t wait until THEY are old enough to “help mama at births”.
A big thank you to each one of you who have trusted me to support you as you navigated your pregnancies and deliveries—it is something I count a privilege and honor! I love to hear from families, so please feel free to send an update and picture when you have a chance!
Many blessings as you head into the New Year,
Kelsey Martin & Gentle Delivery Midwifery Services
Be sure to check out the blog and Facebook page to stay updated on current news, helpful information, health suggestions, birth stories, and announcement of special events such as playdates!
As we enter into the Christmas season again, I have to think about the year we were anticipating our own Christmas baby, and what a delightful time of year it was to cozy up inside with a newborn! Our little Tirzah had quite the dramatic entrance into the world, and it almost makes me laugh every time I recount it…
By the time I was expecting my fifth baby, I knew to expect lots of contractions and discomfort, and this pregnancy was no exception. Thankfully my blood pressure was staying within normal limits, and everything else was proceeding smoothly. But after several nights with contractions and signs that labor could be imminent, I was getting TIRED. Once you loose that much sleep and feel heavy and uncomfortable all the time, you start to wonder how on earth you are going to make it through labor yet! One night I was pretty sure it was the “real deal”, after being up for hours with regular contractions, only to find everything stopped once the birth team was here and the pool was filled! Funny that it took the fifth child to experience that “false run”, but after not calling the midwife soon enough last time, we were trying to not repeat that scenario—only to send everyone home after a couple of hours!
My previous baby had come after an extremely intense labor, and I was trying hard to not allow fear to overcome my anticipation of this birth. Lynelle, my good friend and birth assistant, had told me that I really should try the birth pool this time around, and even offered to take care of all the set up and prep to make that happen. So we had set up the pool in the office, and had everything ready to go, and I was really hopeful that it would make a difference in the intensity, especially at the end.
Everything set up and ready go for round #1!
Fast forward a couple of days: after getting a good night’s sleep, I woke up on Saturday feeling like this baby needed to be encouraged to come. I’ve taken Castor Oil before, but every time I thought about that option it made me want to puke. So I figured there had to be an alternative: enter the Midwives Brew! I had read about this recipe (used often by European Midwives), but had always figured that the small amount of castor oil combined with the other strange ingredients wouldn’t actually be effective. But by this point I was willing to at least TRY it and see! My husband was on board (he was ready to see me up at night nursing a baby instead of up at night with contractions!), but I warned him that I really didn’t think it would work.
Mid-morning, I took my youngest for a little “mommy date”, and we headed to Wegman’s for a few groceries and the ingredients for the brew (see this post to find out what those are!). I had fun picking out a few things that I thought would sound good to eat or drink IF I was in labor later on, and we had a pleasant little outing. Once I returned home it was about lunch time, so while Joel fixed lunch, I blended up the brew, and sipped it down before eating a little lunch. While not the best flavor I’ve ever tasted, it wasn’t nearly as bad as downing large amounts of castor oil in juice!! My stomach felt a little funny, but eating some food and then chewing some gum seemed to settle things.
strange blend of ingredients!
This was the weekend that one of our little local Victorian towns always holds an event called “A Victorian Christmas”. That event combined with the opening of an exhibit of an Underground Railroad station in one of the museums there had made me want to take the children out for awhile if we were still waiting on a baby over that time. Since Joel had a Bible Study planned at our house for the afternoon, it felt like a great opportunity to take out the older children for some educational distraction and let me get a chance to think about something other than baby waiting! Since all I had been experiencing for two hours was some minor stomach discomfort, I decided to head out around 2:30pm, despite my husband’s slight misgivings. Laughingly I joked with him that if I called him he’d better answer the phone, as it might mean I needed him to come pick me up!
Bellefonte is about 10 min from our house, and we parked and went through the historical museum, only to find out that it did not contain the Underground Railroad Exhibit like I had thought. The curator pointed us up the road about half a block to the right museum, and the children and I headed that direction. Right as we hit the steps (around 3:30pm), I felt a slight “pop” and had a thought that perhaps my water had broken. But I wasn’t sure, and decided since we were RIGHT THERE we might as well go in. I felt a bit of dismay when the museum volunteer cheerily told us that the exhibit was on the top floor…UP THREE FLIGHTS OF STAIRS!! We started up the stairs when I felt my first real contraction, and I immediately thought that we’d better not stay long. The children were oblivious, of course, and thoroughly enjoyed exploring, while I tried to act like nothing was amiss as the contractions quickly started getting stronger and harder. I hurried them through the exhibit and back down the stairs, stopping briefly in the bathroom where I confirmed that indeed my water had broken. As we headed outside, my children excitedly discussed the next place we would go…and I seriously informed them that we needed to get home NOW. They looked at me puzzled, and I told them I thought baby sister was going to be coming, to which my 6 year old son replied “how do you know? Your water hasn’t broken yet, has it?”. That made me laugh in spite of the situation, and when I told him it HAD, they all got really serious!
The half-block walk back to the car seemed to take forever, as the contractions were definitely picking up in speed and intensity. Once we pulled out and started on the road, I called Joel. The first time he didn’t answer, but then when the phone rang the second time he figured he’d better pick up! I told him that labor had begun, and to please have all the Bible study men out of the house by the time I got home and figure out where the boys were supposed to go…and to pray I could drive home safely! Next I called my friend Lynelle, as I knew that she would need to get a babysitter for her children, and I really wanted her free to get the pool started if things continued. Once I was finished with this phone call I knew I couldn’t make any more calls and drive, as things were just too intense. It was all I could do to stay focused on driving! I kept praying a policeman wouldn’t pull me over, as I had no bandwidth to explain why I was headed home instead of to the hospital!
I reached home, and our friend Daniel had his van running so he could pull out with the boys as soon as I arrived with Matthias. I pulled in the garage around 4:20, and had a massive contraction that made me unable to even get out of the vehicle. I heard Joel on the phone—he had called our midwife to see if I had called her yet (I hadn’t!! She was next, but I couldn’t make another call after I talked with Lynelle!), and she said she’d be on her way. I still remember running inside to the bathroom, trying to focus on relaxing, and coming to grips with the fact that at this rate I would not be having a water birth, then Joel calling through the door “the pool is warm and half way filled if you want to get in!!” He had so sweetly started filling the pool, turning on the music, and getting things ready the minute I called home! I told him he’d better call Lynelle and Priscilla (our friend who was going to come help with our girls and take pictures), and they’d better hurry, and I still remember the relief of settling into the warm pool.
Just a minute or so old! Pink all over except for her slightly bruised face which was caused by her speedy birth!
Once I got in the water, the intensity and closeness of the contractions subsided, and I had a chance in between to catch up Joel on all that had transpired. Lynelle and Priscilla don’t live far, and arrived within a few minutes, and I still remember us all laughing in between contractions as the craziness of how fast things were happening! It wasn’t long before I felt the pressure of Tirzah’s head descending, and Lynelle was ready to help in anyway she could. Priscilla called our girls in, and they all clustered around the pool, quiet with excitement and anticipation. This time around I didn’t want anyone to touch me (other than squeezing Joel’s hand!), and I have never experienced the awareness during pushing as I did with this birth. It was an incredible experience to actually breathe her out and catch her myself—something I don’t think I could have done without the help of the water! I pulled her up to my chest, she cried right away, and we settled back in the warm water, both amazed at all that had happened. It was 4:42pm, only 20 minutes after I had arrived home!!
Sisters!
My girls were so delighted to help welcome their little sister, and their eyes shown as they stroked her head, and I thoroughly enjoyed the chance to sit back and relax and catch my breath. Being in the warm water seemed to decrease my usual after-birth shakes, and we had a long chance to connect and rest. Rose Marie arrived about 20 min later, and since I hadn’t delivered the placenta yet, daddy and the girls took baby sister to the other room while I transitioned to the birth stool where the placenta came easily. I was feeling good enough (and minimal blood loss!) that I showered quickly, and then cozied up on the couch while our midwife and friends did all the baby checks, and Joel popped a pizza into the oven. Eventually Priscilla went to bring the boys home to meet their sister, and we had a lovely evening rejoicing in our new gift. I had never had a daytime baby, and I couldn’t believe how good I felt and how I was hardly even tired! After everyone had some supper and everything was cleaned up and taken care of, I took our new baby upstairs, and we cuddled up together for the night-so thankful for the amazing experience, and still in a bit of unbelief!
For clients of Gentle Delivery, you know that routine Group B Strep testing is offered to every expectant mom in accordance with the ACOG standards of care. While the pros and cons of testing and subsequent treatment plans are discussed in detail elsewhere, the purpose of this post is to help you to minimize your risk of developing Group B Strep colonization during pregnancy, thus promoting better health for you and baby (and increasing your chances of obtaining a negative test result!).
If you are interested in researching Group B Strep info, I’d strongly encourage you to read Aviva Romm’s article: Group B Strep in Pregnancy: What’s a Mom to do? You’ll find clear explanations of GBS, risks and benefits of antibiotic treatment, and tips on promoting health. This post by Wellness Mama also includes further links for study along with Katie’s suggestions for avoiding GBS colonization with natural methods: How I Avoided GBS Naturally And finally, this article provides a few other options to consider while making decisions on prevention and treatment: Decrease Your Chances of GBS
As a practicing CPM in a state that does not offer licensure, I am currently unable to offer IV antibiotic treatment to GBS+ clients. This increases my desire to do all I can to help support a mom’s immune system and decrease the possibility of a GBS+ test result, as it greatly simplifies the care protocols and necessary decision making for clients and their families!
So here are the primary suggestions for making your vaginal flora inhospitable to Group B Strep:
High Quality Probiotics (if not started early on in pregnancy, then beginning at 28-32 weeks orally, adding vaginal support at 32-34 weeks)
“Many species of Lactobacillus have been shown to be beneficial to the vaginal flora; Lactobacillus reuteri and Lactobacillus rhamnosis are species known to be especially helpful for supporting healthy vaginal (and bladder) flora, while these and others, including L crispatus and L. salivarius strains, have been shown to to inhibit the growth of vaginal pathogens including Gardnerella vaginalis and Candida albicans, and also reducing the frequency of bladder infections in addition to vaginal infection.
In one study, 110 pregnant women at 35-37 weeks of gestation who were diagnosed by GBS culture as being GBS positive for both vaginal and rectal GBS colonization were randomly assigned to be orally treated with two placebo capsules or two probiotic capsules (containing L. rhamnosus and L. reuteri ) before bedtime until delivery. All women were tested for vaginal and rectal GBS colonization again by GBS culture on admission for delivery. Of the 99 who completed the study (49 in the probiotic group and 50 in the placebo group), the GBS colonization results changed from positive to negative in 21 women in the probiotic group (42.9%) and in nine women in the placebo group (18.0%) during this period. The researchers concluded that an oral probiotic containing L. rhamnosus and L. reuteri could reduce the vaginal and rectal GBS colonization rate in pregnant women.
In another study involving 57 healthy pregnant women, L. salivarus was taken daily by the 25 GBS positive women in the group from weeks 26 to 38 of pregnancy. At the end of the trial (week 38), 72% and 68% of the women were GBS-negative in the rectal and vaginal samples, respectively. The researchers concluded that this seemed to be an efficient method to reduce the number of GBS-positive women during pregnancy, decreasing the number of women receiving antibiotic treatment during labor and birth.” (copied from Aviva Romm’s article here)
In light of these studies, and knowing that probiotics are vitally important to the health of both mom and infant for a variety of reasons, supplementing regularly with probiotics during pregnancy can be beneficial in more ways than one. For GBS specific support, it’s recommended that you begin supplementing orally at 28-32 weeks (though earlier is even better!), and then increasing your oral dosage and consider using a probiotic vaginally for at least 2-4 weeks before your Group B Strep test (and then continue the oral support through the rest of your pregnancy).
As you shop for probiotics, pay attention to the different strains it includes, as not all probiotics are created equal, and they will be most effective against GBS strains if it includes L. Rhamnosus, L. Reuteri and L. Salivarus.
Some brand suggestions that other midwives have given me are:
Eating a diet high in fermented foods/drinks (kefir, sauerkraut, kombucha, yogurt, etc.) help to promote a healthy gut flora.
Eliminating sugar and simple carbs are also effective in promoting beneficial gut flora.
Add 1-2 tbl of coconut oil into your daily diet for it’s antibiotic properties, specifically in the few weeks prior to testing.
Apple Cider Vinegar consumed daily or in capsule form may be helpful.
Vitamin C
Consuming 1000-2000mg of high quality vitamin C daily (in divided does) can help to increase your body’s immune response, which makes it more difficult for unhealthy microorganisms to grow. You can begin this regimen around 30 weeks.
Garlic/Allicin (active component of garlic)
Garlic has been used as an antimicrobial agent for generations, and for good reason. However, high doses of garlic can cause blood thinning, so I don’t recommend staying on high doses of garlic or allicin after obtaining your GBS test. But it is a treatment to consider to reduce the possibility of GBS colonization before getting tested. Currently there is a midwife practice conducting a study where participants are instructed to use Allicin Gel 2x daily for 12-14 days along with ingesting 180mg of Allicin capsules 2x daily for 12-14 days prior to testing. The basis for this study is from a preliminary study done in 2009 where Allicin was shown to reduce the possibility of early rupture of membranes and chorioamnionitis, both of which can be complications of GBS infection. Other methods of using garlic include: taking garlic capsules daily, consume raw garlic daily, and/or insert a raw garlic clove vaginally at night before going to bed.
While we still have a lot to learn about Group B Strep (how exactly it is transmitted, best ways to treat it, and how to prevent it from the beginning), and while there still seem to be a few moms who naturally carry Group B Strep bacteria in their vaginal tract no matter what they try to do about it (antibiotic or otherwise!), one of the benefits of utilizing these suggestions is that they promote health for mom and baby regardless of the GBS presence (or lack thereof). While obtaining a negative Group B Strep test does eliminate a certain amount of worry, risk and decisions, the benefit to your body of increasing the good bacteria and gut flora through healthy foods, probiotic supplementation and other factors may provide long-term benefits that you will see later on. I’d highly encourage every pregnant mom to consider these suggestions, and wish each of you a healthy and safe pregnancy and birth!
I’d also love to hear: did you try any of these prevention methods? How did it affect you and your GBS status? Did you test positive in one pregnancy and then negative in another? What was most beneficial for you?
The first few hours, days and weeks after having a baby are special times to treasure as you recover from birth, transition to mothering baby from the outside, and spend time bonding and adjusting. Being adequately prepared ahead of time can make a key difference in helping postpartum to flow smoothly and successfully. Here are a few tips to consider as you prepare and plan for AFTER baby arrives. Remember that adequate rest, low stress, nourishing food, good support and planning ahead will help you to heal and promote a better overall experience for baby’s first few weeks. It’s important for your physical & mental health to take recovery seriously, and provide your body with the things it needs to continue nourishing a baby while recovering from the demands of pregnancy & birth. You won’t regret being adequately prepared!
Before the Birth:
Consider your support system. Do you have a close friend or family member that would be willing to be a resource to answer questions, let you talk with when you’re feeling low emotionally, or just need a listening ear? Is there someone you can trust and feel comfortable with who could come into your home to help care for the household (especially if there are other children) for a few days or weeks so that you can adequately rest and recover? Is Daddy able to take some extended time off of work? How does support look to you? Do you have some babysitting options?
Meal Planning: consider having some wholesome family favorites stocked in the freezer so you don’t need to think about cooking. Does your church or support group have a plan for after-baby meals? Do you need to reach out to someone to coordinate this? Would you have a friend willing to start a “meal train” after your birth? And just a note to Gentle Delivery clients: if an online “meal train” is something that would bless you, your midwife is very glad to start this after your baby arrives!
Consider stocking up on disposable plates, cups, silverware, etc. in order to simplify clean up and household chores.
Shopping (consider the below suggestions, and try to have these things together before your baby is due):
Immediate Postpartum (first hours after birth)– have these things handy in a basket or box for immediately after delivery.
Newborn Diapers & Baby Wipes
Preferred first outfit for baby, along with a swaddle blanket, socks and hat.
“Adult Diapers” or Depends (or whatever type of pad you prefer for heavier postpartum bleeding).
Comfortable Nightgown or Pajamas that are nursing accessible and easily work for skin-to-skin contact with baby.
Pre-made “padsicles” or perineal ice-packs and/or an herbal healing spray such as this one from MotherLove.
Heating pad or rice sock to help with sore muscles and after-pains.
Rhoid Balm, Tucks or other soothing support for hemorrhoids.
Large Water bottle that is easy to use, to remind & encourage you to drink lots of fluids!
Nourishing foods, drinks and snacks (think bone broth, energy bites, juice, etc.).
First Few Days–since you’ll be resting and nursing and taking it easy the first few days, you’ll want to consider having some of these items purchased ahead of time, and ready to be used during the initial few days after baby arrives, in addition to the items above (which you’ll continue using throughout the first few days/weeks).
Comfortable nursing-accessible clothes and nursing bras (remember that you may go through multiple changes of clothes due to leaking milk, bleeding and/or baby messes!). Comfort is key, since you will be resting and sleeping whenever possible.
Belly Support Binder (can use a Rebozo or scarf, or you can purchase something like Belly Bandit or MamaStrut).
If you have experienced challenges with milk supply, have supplements such as MaxiMilk or Legendairy products available to start once your milk begins to come in.
Stool Softener or Magnesium to help the first stools pass easier.
Pads/period underwear for a lighter flow (be sure to check out non-toxic options such as these JewelPads).
A journal or baby book to jot down thoughts and memories.
Something to read or do as you spend hours nursing your baby!
And finally, feel free to print/download and post this list of visitor guidelines to aid you in navigating the stress and joy of baby visits during those first days!
Gentle Delivery Midwifery Services (Centre Co. PA) 