Today we’re talking about how to overcome, and avoid, traumatic childbirth experiences. My guest for this conversation, Rebecca, shared with me a statistic that blew my mind: 35-45% of people report having a traumatic birth… An absolutely enormous number! Throughout our conversation, Rebecca shares some key factors that play a role resulting in traumatic birth experiences, red flags to keep an eye out for when working with your care provider, and 3 top-tier tips for preparing for childbirth. Additionally, we go into her expert’s take on elective labor induction, how to advocate for yourself, and different birthing positions. We round out our wonderful conversation with how parents and those in the birth team can learn to advocate for themselves if they are feeling pressured or coerced by their care provider. The information in this conversation is so rich and I’m hoping that by the end of this conversation, you’re going to feel so much more ready to move into that experience and have the confidence of your team around you.
Today on Yoga | Birth | Babies, Rebecca Dekker, PhD, RN joins me for this special conversation. Rebecca Dekker, a nurse with her PhD, is the founder and CEO of Evidence Based Birth® and the author of Babies Are Not Pizzas: They’re Born, Not Delivered! Previously, Dr. Dekker was an Assistant Professor of Nursing at the University of Kentucky. In 2016, she shifted gears to focus full time on the mission of Evidence Based Birth.® Dr. Dekker is also host of the Evidence Based Birth® Podcast!
Rebecca would like to offer the advice to expectant parents to do the research in finding the right care provider for you and educate yourself in building a supportive birth team. It is never too late, and it may feel like a trap, but you can be creative and resourceful in finding a way to get people who you trust at your birth. If it’s not possible to switch, then make sure you have strong advocates in the room with you that are ready to speak on your behalf. Rebecca would like you to know that it’s not your fault if your care provider is abusing you and it’s not your job to find another doctor to replace them. Most the time, there’s somebody else who can step in, and most of the time they come in really willing to help and feeling bad that you’ve had a bad experience.
In this episode, you will learn:
- About Rebecca and what initially inspired her to be a nurse and researcher, and then later shifting gears to Evidence Based Birth
- How likely it is for someone to emerge from birth feeling they had a traumatic experience
- How Rebecca would define a traumatic birth
- Some of the biggest factors that play a role resulting in a traumatic experience
- The five red flags that are worth considering when making the decision to switch to a different provider for your birth
- Three top tips for preparing for childbirth (or reducing anxiety about childbirth)
- Rebecca’s expert’s take on what to know before you schedule an elective labor induction
- Alternative birthing positions and their benefits
- How to respond to a care provider who says they are not comfortable with alternative positions OR a care provider who is fine to have someone push in alternative positions, but when it comes time for the birth, they want the parent in a more traditional lithotomy position
- How parents can advocate for themselves and what they can do if they’re feeling pressured or coerced by their care provider
- One final tip or piece of advice Rebecca would like to offer new and expectant parents
- Where you can find Rebecca’s work
Get the most out of each episode by checking out the show notes with links, resources and other related podcasts at: prenatalyogacenter.com
About Rebecca:
Rebecca Dekker, a nurse with her PhD, is the founder and CEO of Evidence Based Birth® and the author of “Babies Are Not Pizzas: They’re Born, Not Delivered!” Previously, Dr. Dekker was an Assistant Professor of Nursing at the University of Kentucky. In 2016, she shifted gears to focus full time on the mission of Evidence Based Birth.® Dr. Dekker and Team EBB are committed to creating a world in which all families have access to safe, respectful, evidence based, and empowering care during pregnancy, birth, and postpartum. EBB does this by boldly making the research evidence on childbirth freely and publicly accessible. Dr. Dekker is also host of the Evidence Based Birth® Podcast, with more than 5.5 million downloads!
Connect with Rebecca:
https://evidencebasedbirth.com/
IG: https://www.instagram.com/ebbirth/
FB: https://www.facebook.com/EvidenceBasedBirth
Check out similar Yoga| Birth| Babies episodes:
- Birth Trauma with Kate McReynolds LMHC, PMH-C
- Healing from a Traumatic Birth with Kristin Lasseter, MD
- Birth Story: The Power of a Supportive Birth Team with Sydney Pollock LCSW, PMH-C
- Don’t forget to grab your FREE guide, 5 Simple Solutions to the Most Common Pregnancy Pains HERE
- If you love what you’ve been listening to, please leave a rating and review! Yoga| Birth|Babies (Apple) or on Spotify!
To connect with Deb and the PYC Community:
Instagram & Facebook: @prenatalyogacenter
Youtube: Prenatal Yoga Center
