Dr Rachel Reed
midwife • author • educator
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Blog post: https://midwifethinking.com/2015/01/14/the-curse-of-meconium-stained-liquor/Observing this cycle over and over reinforces the underlying belief that women’s bodies and the process of birth is dangerous and medical intervention can save them.Similar sized hens = different sized eggs. Nature is full of normal variations. Just like childbirth.Rather than change (or eliminate) prescribed timeframes, women are subjected to unnecessary medical interventions. Blog post: https://midwifethinking.com/2015/05/02/vaginal-examinations-a-symptom-of-a-cervix-centric-birth-culture/Thanks for the feedback Melissa! 💜Certain books have helped me understand what is going on around me during particular phases of life. The Beauty Myth by Naomi Wolf provided insight into my experience as a teenage girl in a world that expected 'too much'. Today, I am navigating the perimenopause, and these two books have put the feelings and experiences of this phase of life into words. I am so grateful to the authors @sharonblackiemythmakings and Victoria Smith (not on IG).Top Posts
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Recent Posts
Archived by the National Library of Australia and Partners
Tag Archives: birth
Amniotic Fluid Volume: too much, too little, or who knows?
Updated: May 2023 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 and I have provided references/links for research where … Continue reading
Posted in birth, intervention, pregnancy
Tagged amniotic fluid, ARM, birth, induction, intervention, pregnancy, risk, syntocinon
157 Comments
Listening to Baby During Labour
Updated: October 2022 Listening to the baby’s heart rate during labour is considered to be an important aspect of routine midwifery care. There are two methods of listening—intermittent auscultation (IA) and continuous electronic monitoring (CEFM) via a cardiotocograph machine (CTG). … Continue reading
Posted in baby, birth, midwifery practice
Tagged auscultation, baby, birth, doppler, heart rate, pinnard, pushing
32 Comments
Feel the Fear and Birth Anyway
This is just a little post to ease me back into the blogging world (thesis finally submitted). As usual, the content is in response to a reoccurring issue and discussions with mothers and midwives. And I welcome your experiences and comments … Continue reading
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
The Assessment of Progress
Links updated: August 2019 This article was written for AIMS Journal (2011, vol. 23, no. 2) and expands on my previous post about my New Years resolution – which by the way I have kept. AIMS have kindly allowed me … Continue reading
Posted in birth, intervention, midwifery practice, publications
Tagged ARM, augmentation, birth, contractions, labour pattern, oxytocin, pushing, syntocinon
99 Comments
Guest post: when birth is trauma
Links update: August 2019 This is a guest post by Elizabeth Ford who is based in the UK so is writing from a UK perspective. Elizabeth explored birth trauma for her PhD and generously agreed to write a post for MidwifeThinking. … Continue reading
Posted in birth, guest post, intervention, law
Tagged birth, guest post, information giving, intervention, trauma
71 Comments
Judging Birth
This post is a little different to my usual posts (I apologise to those wanting some physiology and links to research). Instead, I have written about something that keeps cropping up in my conversations with mothers and birth workers. I … Continue reading
Stages of Labour and Collusion
My New Years resolution is to stop colluding in the myth of stages of labour. Will you join me? This may be a little difficult as a midwife and an educator but I’ll give it a go – will you? … Continue reading
Posted in birth, midwifery practice
Tagged birth, documentation, labour pattern, stages of labour
44 Comments