Birth Chairs Midwives And Medicine

There was a time when birth was treated as a natural process rather than a medical condition. Before 1800, women gave birth seated in birth chairs or on stools and were helped along by midwives. Then societal changes in attitudes toward women and the practice of medicine made birthing a province of the male-dominated medical profession. In Birth Chairs, Midwives, and Medicine, Amanda Carson Banks examines the history of the birth chair and tells how this birthing device changed over time. Through photographs, artists' renditions of births, interviews, and texts from midwives and early obstetricians, she creates an evolutionary picture of birthing practices and highlights the radical redefinition of birth that has occurred in the last two centuries. During the 1800s the change from a natural philosophy of birth to a medical one was partly a result of heightened understandings of anatomy and physiology. The medical profession was growing, and with it grew the awareness of the economic rewards of making delivery a specialized practice. In the background of the medical profession's rise was the prevailing perception of women as fragile invalids. Gradually, midwives and birth chairs were relegated to rural and isolated settings. The popularity of birth chairs has seen a revival in the late twentieth century as the struggle between medical obstetrics and the alternative birth movement has grown. As Banks shows through her careful examination of the chairs themselves, these questions have been answered and reconsidered many times in human history. Using the artifacts from the home and medical office, Banks traces sweeping societal changes in the philosophy of how to bring life into the world.

Most women give birth in hospitals, institutions modelled around the needs of the people who work there. The delivery room is designed around the obstetric bed which was designed for the benefit of the obstetrician rather than the woman giving birth. Despite research showing the benefit of upright positions in labour and birth, most women in the UK still give birth in the semi-reclined position, pushing their baby out against the forces of gravity. The author argues that unnatural positions make labour and birth more painful and difficult for modern women than it was for their ancestors. How did we come to put the needs of care givers above those of the labouring woman? Is there anything that can be done? Starting with a short history of birth furniture, Dynamic Positions in Birth goes on to explore the anatomy and physiology of labour from an evolutionary perspective and explores how rethinking positions for labour and birth could benefit mothers and their babies. Equally important is the need to change attitudes to birth so that women are encouraged to play a more active part in the birth of their babies instead of being subjected to clinical interventions designed to mitigate the adverse effects of labouring in a starkly unnatural environment. Margaret Jowitt argues that it is possible to give women labouring in hospital a better chance of giving birth naturally. The book concludes by calling for a fresh look at the environment for birth. Delivery rooms can be made more user friendly by introducing furniture designed around women’s need for physical support during labour as well as for the birth, and by hiding away the more alarming technology unless it is needed. Women need a less forbidding environment and more encouragement to move freely and adopt positions which will enhance their chance of achieving a normal birth.

From the stone age to the cyber age, women and men have experienced the world differently. Out of a cosmos of goddesses and she-devils, earth mothers and madonnas, witches and queens, saints and whores, a vast body of women's folklore has come into bloom. International in scope and drawing on more than 130 expert contributors, this encyclopedia reviews the myths, traditions, and beliefs central to women's daily lives. More than 260 alphabetically arranged entries cover the lore of women across time, space, and life. Students of history, religion and spirituality, healing and traditional medicine, literature, and world cultures will value this encyclopedia as an indispensable guide to women's folklore. In addition, there are entries on women's folklore and folklife in 15 regions of the world, such as the Caribbean, Central Asia, the Middle East, and Western Europe. Entries provide cross-references and cite works for further reading, and the encyclopedia closes with a selected bibliography of print and electronic resources. Students learning about history, world cultures, religion and spirituality, healing and traditional medicine, and literature will welcome this companion to the daily life of women across time and continents.

A social history of childbearing and motherhood focused on black and white women in slave-owning households in the antebellum and Civil War South. In Born Southern, V. Lynn Kennedy addresses the pivotal roles of birth and motherhood in slaveholding families and communities in the Old South. She assesses the power structures of race, gender, and class—both in the household and in the public sphere—and how they functioned to construct a distinct antebellum southern society. Kennedy’s unique approach links the experiences of black and white women, examining how childbirth and motherhood created strong ties to family, community, and region for both. She also moves beyond a simple exploration of birth as a physiological event, examining the social and cultural circumstances surrounding it: family and community support networks, the beliefs and practices of local midwives, and the roles of men as fathers and professionals. The southern household—and the relationships among its members—is the focus of the first part of the book. Integrating the experiences of all women, black and white, rich and poor, free and enslaved, these narratives suggest the complexities of shared experiences that united women in a common purpose but also divided them according to status. The second part moves the discussion from the private household into the public sphere, exploring how southerners used birth and motherhood to negotiate public, professional, and political identities. Kennedy’s systematic and thoughtful study distinguishes southern approaches to childbirth and motherhood from northern ones, showing how slavery and rural living contributed to a particularly southern experience.

Midwives are encountering more and more women whose pregnancies are complicated by medical conditions. The number of women with cardiac disease becoming pregnant is growing each year, obesity, older age and the complex health problems of women born outside the United Kingdom have also been identified as key factors, and women with serious medical c

Praise for the 1st edition: "This book is a must have for any midwife, particularly those working in the community, clinics and in high-risk areas.... This book is an extremely useful reference tool." (MIDIRS Midwifery Digest) "The important facts are laid out concisely, primarily focusing on management, using evidence based guidelines for best midwifery practice." (RCGP Journal) Medical Disorders in Pregnancy: A Guide for Midwives, 2nd edition clearly outlines existing and pre-existing conditions which women can experience during pregnancy. This comprehensive and practical handbook identifies issues for pre-conception care, defines the condition, explores possible complications, outlines recommended treatment and emphasizes specific midwifery care. This fully revised and updated edition of Medical Disorders in Pregnancy: A Guide for Midwives builds on the success of the first edition by covering more subjects. It includes physiology, more illustrations and algorithms and its accessible reference-style text enables information to be quickly and easily found. Special Features A practical guide on medical disorders written specifically for midwives Jointly written by medical and midwifery experts in the field Accessible reference style format makes information easy and quick to find Emphasis on inter-professional working

Praise for the previous edition: “…An outstanding handbook. It will be a familiar volume on most midwifery bookshelves, providing an excellent guide to midwifery focused care of both woman and child in the birthing setting.” - Nursing Times Online Providing a practical and comprehensive guide to midwifery care, The Midwife’s Labour and Birth Handbook continues to promote best practice and a safe, satisfying birthing experience with a focus on women-centred care. Covering all aspects of care during labour and birth, from obstetric emergencies to the practicalities of perineal repair (including left-hand suturing), the fourth edition has been fully revised and updated to include: Full colour photographs of kneeling extended breech and footling breech births New water birth and breech water birth photographs Female genital mutilation Sepsis Group B streptococcus Care of the woman with diabetes /Neonatal hypoglycaemia Mental health Seeding/microbirthing It also addresses important issues such as: Why are the numbers of UK women giving birth in stirrups RISING rather than falling? Why are so few preterm babies given bedside resuscitation with the cord intact? Would the creation of midwife breech practitioners/specialists enable more women to choose vaginal breech birth and is breech water birth safe? What is the legal position for women who choose to free birth – and their birth partners? Why are midwives challenging the OASI care bundle? Incorporating research, evidence and anecdotal observations, The Midwife’s Labour and Birth Handbook remains an essential resource for both student midwives and experienced practising midwives.