Beehive Birth Care

Utah Doula Services & Childbirth Classes

  • Doula Services
    • Doula Services
    • What is a Doula?
    • A Letter to Birthing Families
    • FAQ
    • Resources
      • Salt Lake City Birth Resources
      • Midvale Birth Resources
      • West Valley City Birth Resources
      • Murray Birth Resources
  • Meet the Doula
    • Our Doula Team
    • Testimonials
    • Blog
  • Childbirth Classes
  • Contact

Mindfulness in the OR: Birthing in Awareness During a Cesarean Birth

April 19, 2016

doula raven

Preparing to support a birthing mother in the OR.

What comes to your mind when you think of the term “had a C-section”? Words like “fear” and “disappointment” might come up for you. You might feel a response in your body, some tension or a furrowed brow. As an experiment, let’s change our language a bit. What comes to your mind when you think of the term “birth by Cesarean” or even just “Cesarean birth”? Does that produce a different result? Perhaps it highlights the idea that this is a birth, the making of a family. It might even make room for the birthing woman to be viewed as a more active participant. As a birth worker, I acknowledge the power of words and semantics and have made a conscious effort to change the way I talk about Cesarean births.

The fact of the matter is, Cesarean births happen. Instead of discussing rates and statistics in this post, our focus will be on how we can bring awareness and love into the operating room. The Birthing from Within® model of childbirth preparation places an emphasis on birth as a rite of passage. Through creative exercises, journaling, and class discussions, parents explore their views of birth and the stories they carry about what makes a “good” birth, what our culture teaches about birth, and how they will know what to do when their birthing hours arrive. This thorough examination would be incomplete if we didn’t talk about Cesarean births. We never want you to whisper to your partner, “but I didn’t read this part in the book!” when a Cesarean becomes a part of your birth. Better to have a plan, to have thought things through a bit so that you can rest easier knowing that should a Cesarean become part of your birth, you have something you can bring into that space and ways to maintain your mindfulness mindset.

5 Ways to Bring Mindfulness to a Cesarean Birth

1. Music

Have a chat with your provider about the possibility of playing music in the room during a Cesarean birth. They might request that it be kept low so that your birth team can talk and communicate easily during the birth, but think of how lovely it would be to set the tone in the room with music of your choice. This is a concrete way to say, “I am involved. I am choosing to add a bit of warmth and presence to this room where I will meet my little one.”

2. Affirmations

Words carry so much power and this doesn’t change with a Cesarean birth. Talk to your birth partner about words you would like to hear during this time so they feel prepared to support you. “I focus on my breathing as I prepare to meet my baby.” “I make loving and mindful choices for me and my baby.” “Each inhale brings peace and each exhale sends love down to my baby.” What would be meaningful to you during that time?

3. Rainbow of Love

This is a beautiful concept that I first learned about during my Birthing from Within training. As you lie on the table with a drape between you and your sweet baby, imagine a beautiful rainbow of rich colors, saturated with all of the love you have for your child. Imagine that rainbow reaching from your heart, over the drape, and touching down on your belly, right above your baby. Imagine this rainbow acting as a conduit for all of your love, connection, and good intentions. You and your baby are a team and you can shower them with your love.

4. Eye Contact

An operating room can be a busy and distracting place, both for birthing women and their partners. It can be easy for a mother to suddenly feel very alone or removed from what is happening. Talk to your birth partner ahead of time and remind them to maintain eye contact with you when they come in the room. Let that eye contact communicate love, security, and connection. Let them show you that you are seen and heard and that you are still very much birthing this baby.

5. Stay Involved

This is another important point for birth partners to remember. When a mother can’t see what is happening with her baby, it can be easy for her to become worried and wonder what might be wrong. When baby is born, it’s time for partners to keep mothers updated. “Oh, he has so much hair!” “They are taking baby to the warmer right now, but I’ll remind them that you want to hold her as soon as possible.” “She has your nose for sure, Sweetheart!” Fill her cup with details about her child and let her know that baby will be with her as soon as possible. Help maintain that connection and let her know that she has not been forgotten and that baby wants to be with her. Take pictures of baby and bring the camera over to show the birthing mother.

The ideas are simple, but they can make such a big difference. What ideas have you come up with as you consider the possibility of a Cesarean birth?

«
»

Filed Under: Doula Work 1 Comment

Trackbacks

  1. Wednesday Wrap Up May 4 | Andrea Lythgoe Doula Salt Lake City Utah says:
    May 4, 2016 at 9:24 am

    […] I loved these tips from one of my favorite local doulas on Birthing With Awareness in the OR. […]

    Reply

Leave a Reply Cancel reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.

Hello and Welcome!

My name is Raven and I operate Beehive Birth Care, your one-stop shop for doula services and childbirth classes in the Salt Lake area. Whether you're looking to hire a doula for your upcoming birth or researching childbirth classes, you've come to the right place! Thanks for stopping by. I look forward to hearing from you.

  • Email
  • Facebook
  • Pinterest

Serving Salt Lake City & Area

Birth Doula Care

Childbirth Class

Featured Posts

From Doula to PhD and Back Again

doula raven

Mindfulness in the OR: Birthing in Awareness During a Cesarean Birth

Stay up to date!

Subscribe to blog posts to get updates

Latest from the Blog

doula raven
raven and ashlie doulas
birth preparation
doula review
Providing compassionate and professional doula services and childbirth preparation classes to families in the Salt Lake City area, including Salt Lake City, West Valley City, Murray, Sandy, South Jordan, West Jordan, Riverton, Draper, Lehi, American Fork, and Midvale.

Copyright © 2023 · Adorn theme by Restored 316

Copyright © 2023 · Adorn Theme on Genesis Framework · WordPress · Log in