Dr Rachel Reed
midwife • academic • writer • presenter
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Me circa 1973... and my life in general 😆New Cochrane Review on Membrane Sweeping. I wish we could think more deeply and critically about this. We are carrying out interventions to make a woman's body fit externally prescribed timeframes. The intention is to save her from further intervention ie. induction. But, we are transmitting and reinforcing the same old message... women's malfunctioning bodies are the problem rather than the timeframes. Time to start thinking about the box rather than 'outside the box'. If you want to read the full findings google the review. #midwifethinking #rachelreed #midwife #midwifery #doula #birthdoula #studentmidwife #childbirtheducation #childbirth #researchIf you’re a childbirth professional of any modality, join me in Melbourne this March to help weave a tapestry of Human Rights, Informed Choices, Sustainability and more. Standard ticket pricing ends on 29th February. Don't miss out! Also stay tuned for some tempting incentives. Link in BIO #midwifethinking #rachelreed #midwife #midwifery #doula #birthdoula #studentmidwife #childbirtheducation #childbirthGot this beauty framed 😊 ‘Expectant’ by @carmeljenkinChapter 1: Herstory: "We can only understand what happens to women during the childbirth rite of passage by understanding birth culture and its historical roots." For more information about the book - link in my bio #reclaimingchildbirth #ritesofpassage #midwifethinking #rachelreed #midwife #midwifery #doula #birthdoula #studentmidwife #childbirtheducation #childbirthThis is what happened when a midwife pinned my ‘big babies’ post on a hospital notice board 😆😆😐 #blamewomen #fuckingitupfromtheinside #ignoranceondisplay #midwife
Archived by the National Library of Australia and Partners
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Recent Posts
Top Posts
- The Curse of Meconium Stained Liquor
- The Anterior Cervical Lip: how to ruin a perfectly good birth
- Supporting women's instinctive pushing behaviour during birth
- Amniotic Fluid Volume: too much, too little, or who knows?
- Nuchal Cords: the perfect scapegoat
- An actively managed placental birth might be the best option for most women
- Induction: a step by step guide
- Vaginal examinations: a symptom of a cervical-centric birth culture
- Gestational Diabetes: beyond the label
- Shoulder Dystocia: the real story
Tag Archives: baby
Big Babies: the risk of care provider fear
Big babies are normal in well resourced countries. Over 10% of babies born in the UK and Australia weigh 4kg (8lb 13oz) or more. Healthy well nourished women grow healthy well nourished babies. Genetic factors also influence the size of … Continue reading
Posted in birth, intervention, midwifery practice, pregnancy, uncategorized
Tagged baby, caesarean, fear, induction, shoulder dystocia, ultrasound
10 Comments
Pre-labour Rupture of Membranes: impatience and risk
Updated: July 2019 Amniotic sac and fluid play an important role in the labour process and usually remain intact until the end of labour. However, around 10% of women will experience their waters breaking before labour begins. The standard approach to this situation is to induce labour … Continue reading
Posted in baby, birth, intervention, midwifery practice, pregnancy
Tagged amniotic fluid, amniotic sac, augmentation, baby, birth, contractions, induction, nuchal cord, oxytocin, prelabour rupture of membrances, risk, syntocinon, waterbirth
225 Comments
The Placenta: essential resuscitation equipment
Updated: September 2019 The common practice of premature cord clamping has been challenged in recent years due to a greater understanding of how this intervention disrupts the physiology of placental transfusion (Mercer & Skovgaard 2002). Premature cord clamping results in … Continue reading
Posted in baby, birth, intervention, midwifery practice
Tagged ARM, baby, birth, heart rate, intervention, nuchal cord, placenta, resuscitation, syntocinon, umbilical cord
114 Comments
Cord Blood Collection: confessions of a vampire-midwife
Updated: September 2019 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
177 Comments
Nuchal Cords: the perfect scapegoat
Updated: January 2020 To get this blog going I decided to write about a slight obsession of mine: The fear of, and routine midwifery management of nuchal cords at birth (umbilical cord around the neck). I have written and presented … Continue reading
Posted in baby, birth, intervention, midwifery practice
Tagged baby, birth, nuchal cord, umbilical cord
334 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
201 Comments
Listening to Baby During Labour
Updated: January 2018 Intermittent auscultation (IA) is considered to be an important aspect of midwifery care for women during a ‘low risk’ labour. The expectation of surveillance of the baby is reflected in guidelines and hospital policies. The recommended frequency of … Continue reading
Posted in baby, birth, midwifery practice
Tagged auscultation, baby, birth, doppler, heart rate, pinnard, pushing
25 Comments
