Continuing Education Module: Persuasion: The Key to Changing Women's Ideas About Birth

Although standard maternity care is not evidence-based and, in many cases, increases risks for mothers and babies, few women make birth decisions that reflect this knowledge. This column discusses persuasion as a way to change women''s ideas about safe, healthy birth. The relationship between persuasion and choice is discussed, and the differences between presenting information and persuading women that natural birth is the safest and healthiest way to give birth are explored.     

Giving Birth: “We Just Don’t Talk About It”

In this column, Alyson Grauer, a young woman recently embarking on her postuniversity career, shares her experiences with friends who do not talk about childbirth. She contrasts their fear and their unwillingness to talk and learn about birth with her own experience being the daughter of a Lamaze Certified Childbirth Educator and doula. Grauer’s experiences provide a backdrop for a deeper understanding of young adults’ beliefs about childbirth. Judith Lothian provides insight related to when and why women and men stopped talking about birth and the implications for childbirth education.     

Safely Giving Birth

In this column, the editor of the Journal of Perinatal Education discusses the growing challenge of assuring a safe birth. The editor also describes the contents of this issue, which offer a broad range of resources, research, and inspiration for childbirth educators in their efforts to promote, support, and protect normal birth.     

Continuing Education Module Top 10: Tips on Teaching Lamaze Classes

Lamaze classes should help women think differently about birth, dispel myths, and ultimately make informed decisions that are right for them. In the current maternity care environment, this is a monumental task. In this column, the authors discuss 10 teaching tips that serve as a guide for teaching childbirth classes and ultimately facilitate learning.     

A Season for Birth

In this column, the editor of the Journal of Perinatal Education reflects on changing seasons and how birth remains a constant wonder. The editor also describes the contents of this issue, which offer a broad range of resources, research, and inspiration for childbirth educators in their efforts to promote normal birth.     

Continuing Education Module: How to Connect With Parents by Using Updated Lamaze Messages

Lamaze International partnered with Edelman, an international public relations firm, to re-brand the organization through its messaging to elevate its relevance among key stakeholders. Sound primary and secondary research revealed new ways to communicate the Lamaze message to women, their families, and their care providers. Various tips and tools are presented in this article to enable childbirth educators, care providers, and birth advocates to communicate these new messages more effectively to parents.     

Dayton William Dix's Birth Story

In this birth story, a young mother relates her experience of moving beyond fear of labor and birth and developing confidence in her ability to give birth without an epidural. Knowledge and support, including the support of a doula, during the last months of pregnancy helped this mother change her plans for the labor and birth. This story highlights the importance of continuous emotional and physical support and how knowledge and confidence set the stage for a satisfying, safe, and healthy birth.     

Where to Give Birth

In this column, the editor of The Journal of Perinatal Education discusses choices mothers make when deciding on where to give birth. The editor also describes the contents of this issue, which offer a broad range of resources, research, and inspiration for childbirth educators in their efforts to promote, support, and protect natural, safe, and healthy birth.     

Transitions: The Birth of Flora Arden

In this column, a young mother shares the story of her second home birth. Like the birth of her first baby, her daughter Flora’s birth was supported by the presence of a midwife and doula, the peace and quiet of her own home, and the love of her husband and family. Birth is described as transforming and a powerful transition for women. She describes the births of both her children as being “forever emblazoned on my heart as the sweetest and strongest days of my small life.” Paralleling this story of birth is the story of her mother-in-law as she faces brain cancer and seizes the power of that life transition.     

Legacies,Transitions, and Advancing Normal Birth

In this column, the new editor of The Journal of Perinatal Education discusses the significance of legacies, transitions, and advancing normal birth. The editor pays tribute to the legacies left behind by former editors Francine Nichols and Sharron Humenick and shares her vision for The Journal of Perinatal Education as it transitions into the next phase of advancing normal birth. The editor also describes the contents of this issue, which offer a broad range of resources, research, and inspiration for childbirth educators in their efforts to promote normal birth.     

Healthy Birth Practices Revisited

In this column, the editor of The Journal of Perinatal Education describes this special issue where distiguished authors provide updated evidence-based reviews of the Lamaze International Six Healthy Birth Practices that promote, support, and protect natural, safe, and healthy birth.This issue is dedicated to Elisabeth Bing on the occasion of her 100th birthday.     

In This Issue—The Impact of Birth Physiology on the Transition to Motherhood

In this column, the associate editor of The Journal of Perinatal Education discusses the impact of birth physiology on the transition to motherhood. The associate editor also describes the contents of this issue, which offer a broad range of resources, research, and inspiration for childbirth educators in their efforts to promote, support, and protect natural, safe, and healthy birth.     

Witnessing a Natural,Safe, and Healthy Birth

In this column, the editor of The Journal of Perinatal Education discusses her experience witnessing a natural, safe, and healthy home birth. The editor also describes the contents of this issue, which offer a broad range of resources, research, and inspiration for childbirth educators in their efforts to promote normal birth.     

They Said So on the News: Parsing Media Reports About Birth

In this column, the authors reprise recent selections from the Lamaze International research blog, Science & Sensibility. Each selection discusses shortcomings in the news media coverage of childbirth issues. The authors demonstrate how to identify misleading claims in the media and highlight how childbirth educators can apply a common-sense approach and careful fact checking to help women understand the whole story.     

Preparing for the First Birth: Mothers' Experiences at Home and in Hospital in Australia

The aim of this research was to explore the experiences of a group of first-time mothers who had given birth at home or in hospital in Australia. Data were generated from in-depth interviews with 19 women and analyzed using a grounded theory approach. One of the categories to emerge from the analysis, “Preparing for Birth,” is discussed in this article. Preparing for Birth consisted of two subcategories, “Finding a Childbirth Setting” and “Setting Up Birth Expectations,” which were mediated by beliefs, convenience, finances, reputation, imagination, education and knowledge, birth stories, and previous life experiences. Overall, the women who had planned home births felt more prepared for birth and were better supported by their midwives compared with women who had planned hospital births.     

In This Issue—Preparing for Birth During the COVID-19 Pandemic

In this column, the editor of The Journal of Perinatal Education discussed how the COVID-19 pandemic has altered many aspects of promoting normal pregnancy and birth practices. The editor also describes the contents of this issue, which offer a broad range of resources, research, and inspiration for childbirth educators in their efforts to promote, support, and protect natural, safe, and healthy birth.     

Continuing Education Module Transforming Maternity Care: Implementing the Blueprint for Action

In January 2010, Women’s Health Issues published two direction-setting reports from the Transforming Maternity Care (TMC) Project: “2020 Vision for a High-Quality, High-Value Maternity Care System” and “Blueprint for Action: Steps Toward a High-Quality, High-Value Maternity Care System.” This guest editorial summarizes highlights of the implementation phase of what is now known as the TMC Partnership. Major progress has been made in elevating maternity care quality to a national policy priority, increasing the availability and use of maternity care performance measures, and developing shared decision making tools for childbearing women.     

Celebrate Birth!—Amazing Grace: Remembering Pregnancy and Birth

Our daughter and son were born at the Maternity Center in NYC in 1986 and 1989, respectively. I am grateful to the exceptional care and freedom the nurse midwives were able to provide to our family. What follows is the expression of that deeply personal and profound experience, which will hopefully remind and inspire women of the truly individual and extraordinary gift of birth.