Dr Rachel Reed
midwife • author • educator • researcher
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A re-introduction for my new followers, where I blow my own trumpet again (same tune) 🧐😂Thanks for the feedback Charlotte 😊🙏Updated post: https://midwifethinking.com/2015/09/16/in-defence-of-the-amniotic-sac/#reclaimingchildbirth #ritesofpassage #bookstagram #midwifethinking #rachelreed #midwife #midwifery #doula #birthdoula #studentmidwife #childbirtheducation #childbirthThe cervical ‘os’ (opening) tucked at the back of the vagina in early labour and opens forward. At some point in labour almost every woman will have an anterior lip because this is the last part of the cervix to be pulled up over the baby’s head. Whether this lip is detected depends on whether/when a vaginal examination is done. A posterior lip is almost unheard of because this part of the cervix disappears first. Or rather it becomes difficult to reach with fingers first.Clitoracy is an important aspect of understanding birth physiology. I broke my clitoris when filming my online course. The real clitoris is well protected and anchored within the pelvis. Want to know more about this marvellous organ and get clitorate? Join my online course
Archived by the National Library of Australia and Partners
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Recent Posts
Top Posts
- Birth from the Baby's Perspective
- The Anterior Cervical Lip: how to ruin a perfectly good birth
- Big Babies: the risk of care provider fear
- The Curse of Meconium Stained Liquor
- Post-Dates Induction of Labour: balancing risks
- Amniotic Fluid Volume: too much, too little, or who knows?
- Shoulder Dystocia: the real story
- Nuchal Cords: the perfect scapegoat
- An actively managed placenta may be the best option for most women
- Gestational Diabetes: beyond the label
Category Archives: intervention
Cord Blood Collection: confessions of a vampire-midwife
Updated: February 2022 When I was a bright-eyed and bushy-tailed student midwife, I was awarded with a certificate and a box of chocolates. My achievement was collecting the most ‘cord’ blood in the hospital. At that time, the Local Health … Continue reading
Posted in baby, birth, intervention, law
Tagged baby, cord blood, ethics, information giving, law, placenta, stem cells
178 Comments
Shoulder Dystocia: the real story
Updated: August 2019 There is a lot of unwarranted fear about ‘big babies’ getting stuck. The media reflects the usual story – that women are creating a problem that doctors have to fix. The incidence of shoulder dystocia does increase … Continue reading
Posted in birth, intervention, midwifery practice
Tagged birth, complication, intervention, positions, risk, shoulder dystocia
196 Comments
Nuchal Cords: the perfect scapegoat
Updated: April 2022 To get this blog going I decided to write about a slight obsession of mine: The fear of, and routine ‘management’ of nuchal cords at birth (umbilical cord around the neck). I have written and presented about … Continue reading
Posted in baby, birth, intervention, midwifery practice
Tagged baby, birth, nuchal cord, umbilical cord
335 Comments
Induction: a step by step guide
Updated: August 2019 This post has been inspired by conversations I’ve had with women about their experiences of induction. Induction of labour is increasingly common, yet women often seem to be very mis-informed about what it involves, or what was … Continue reading
Posted in birth, intervention
Tagged amniotic fluid, birth, induction, information giving, intervention, oxytocin, syntocinon
169 Comments
An actively managed placenta may be the best option for most women
Updated: February 2022 The birth of the placenta is my least favourite part of the birth process. Hopefully writing this blog post will be therapeutic as well as informative. I am going to refrain from referring to the birth of … Continue reading
Posted in birth, intervention
Tagged intervention, oxytocin, pitocin, placenta, syntocinon
297 Comments
The Curse of Meconium Stained Liquor
When meconium is noticed in amniotic fluid during labour it often initiates a cascade of intervention. A CTG machine will often be strapped onto the woman reducing her ability to move, labour in water, and increasing her chance of having … Continue reading
Posted in baby, birth, intervention, midwifery practice
Tagged amniotic fluid, baby, heart rate, intervention, meconium
202 Comments
Pushing: leave it to the experts
Updated: July 2019 A birthing woman is the expert regarding when and how she pushes. Providing directions implies she needs our guidance and we are the experts. Of course each woman and birth situation is different and in some circumstances … Continue reading
Posted in birth, intervention, midwifery practice
Tagged birth, cervical lip, cervix, hypnobirthing, pushing
116 Comments
Early Labour and Mixed Messages
Updated: October 2019 This post is about early labour and the mixed messages women are given about this important part of the birthing process. Defining the indefinable The concept of ‘early’ or ‘latent’ labour emerged as a result of the birth … Continue reading
Posted in birth, intervention, midwifery practice, uncategorized
Tagged birth, intervention, labour pattern
133 Comments
Amniotic Fluid Volume: too much, too little, or who knows?
Updated: December 2017 This post is in response to readers asking me to cover the topic of induction for low amniotic fluid volume (AFV). Most of the content is available in textbooks, in particular Coad and Dunstall 2011 and Beall … Continue reading
Posted in birth, intervention, pregnancy
Tagged amniotic fluid, ARM, birth, induction, intervention, pregnancy, risk, syntocinon
157 Comments
Birth from the Baby’s Perspective
Picture this… A mother sits holding her newborn son on a postnatal ward during visiting time. One of her visitors reaches forward, grasps the baby by the head and pulls him out of his mothers arms leaving him dangling by … Continue reading
Posted in baby, birth, intervention, midwifery practice
Tagged baby, birth, intervention, pushing
99 Comments