First Beat Midwives

Thought provoking 💕

“All the eggs a woman will ever carry form in her ovaries while she is a four-month-old fetus in the womb of her mother.

This means our cellular life as an egg begins in the womb of our grandmother.

Each of us spent five months in our grandmother's womb, and she in turn formed in the womb of her grandmother.

We vibrate to the rhythm of our mother's blood before she herself is born, and this pulse is the thread of blood that runs all the way back through the grandmothers to the first mother.

"A woman in birth is at once her most powerful, and her most vulnerable. But any woman who has birthed unhindered understands that we are stronger than we know."

- Marcie Macari

When your flight home gets cancelled and nowhere else is open because it’s Sunday and you are working remotely lol 😝

A Midwife is all of these and so much more!

My favourite weekend morning routine. Breakfast smoothie and sunshine. What’s yours?
Drop me a message ❤️

Is there a better place than this to be planning my 2023….um no!!

Fancy antenatal and postnatal care in the comfort of your own home from the same midwife?
No long waiting times sitting in an antenatal clinic.
Contact First Beat Midwives

It’s been a pleasure walking beside you supporting you both through your pregnancy to parenthood journey.
I wish you all the best for the future with your gorgeous little cherub ❤️❤️

I just want to thank all my clients, family and friends for all your support with my business in 2022. I couldn’t have done it without each and every one of you.
Here’s to a great 2023 for all of you xx

Our bodies are so amazing.

Yep. On average it’s about 5%, and it occurs with each pregnancy 🧠 It’s all thanks to the placenta’s marvellous hormones that a massive remodelling of the maternal brain occurs.

And although it sounds like it’s a ‘loss’ - it’s not. It’s more of an *upgrade* 🙌🏻

I refer to this ’neuro upgrade’ or ’neuro remodelling’ as similar to a iOS software update on your iPhone or Mac. There is tweaking, trimming, shuffling and reforming - but its all for the better!

These all happen in the deep brain structures and actually help set you up for motherhood! These changes are called ‘adaptive maternal behaviours’ i.e the ‘ability to be a mother’.

HOW and WHY… 👇🏻

Throughout pregnancy the placenta serves both the needs of the baby and the needs of the mother. It produces over 200 different types of hormones and its through this ‘endocrine tsunami’ throughout pregnancy that it essentially marinates the mother’s brain in these hormones! 🧠

It’s this very process that allows extra neutrons and receptors to start growing! So, so cool.

Within the brain, between the amygdala (where we process emotions) and the hypothalamus (the HQ for homeostasis control) there are MILLIONs of oxytocin receptors that are installed in a mother’s brain. These last for at least for a few years, and its hypothesised that you get more with each pregnancy! It’s pure priming for birth, bonding and loving! 💕🙌🏻🥰 (+ better or***ms)

These upgrades (neurogenesis) notably affect IQ (yes, we actually do get smarter!), EQ, smell and taste, social reasoning and facial recognition.

They are so profound that a radiologist who is trained in understanding these changes can tell from a MRI who has and who hasn’t been through a full pregnancy, based on these changes seen on a macroscopic level! 💥�
This pregnancy induced neurogenesis is just one part of the powerful transformation that is matrescence.

SECOND NIGHT SYNDROME

Many new parents are quite caught off guard by night number two with their new baby!

After the first 24 hours of sleepiness and even having to "wake baby to feed," baby seems to wake up and discover that they are ravenous!

All. Night. Long. Feeding, then crying, then feeding then crying! It's easy to become concerned that maybe you're just not producing enough milk and your new baby may very well starve. Cue deep feelings of failure (which are then exacerbated because you're exhausted from the birth process and now not sleeping all night!)

It makes sense if you think about all that baby has been through - the physical exertion of birth and their bodies recovering and adjusting can make them exceptionally tired the first day. But by day two, they wake up and bit and realize that things are SO MUCH DIFFERENT than what they are used to.

They are experiencing a rumbling in their tummy that is quite disturbing. They have new textures on their skin, new noises all around, and the brightness of the lights makes them want to keep their eyes closed. The only thing they recognize is mama. The warmth of her skin makes them feel like they are safe. Home.

Another good reason babies seem to have their "days and nights" mixed up that second day is biological: Prolactin (our milk hormone) is highest when melatonin (our sleep hormone) is highest. And our milk supply is a supply and demand system.

Thus: the more your baby nurses at night, the quicker your milk supply will come in!

So mama, just be prepared. Your little one will need some extra attention on night number two!

Hold them close, lots of skin to skin, nurse as often as they desire, and don't get discouraged! You are doing exactly what you were meant to do! You're doing a great job!

Love my job!!
midwife and postnatal care in your home

Contact us at First Beat Midwives for more information on antenatal and postnatal in-home appointments.
Email [email protected] 🌼

📢 Calling all soon-to-be-parents! We are looking for people who are up to 35 weeks pregnant to take part in our Mothers Adopting Midwifery Students Program.

🤰🏽 You will be allocated a midwifery student to support you in your personal journey from pregnancy to after childbirth: https://s.ecu.edu.au/31Y3fyh

Are you looking for a new NDIS registered service provider in WA? Or perhaps thinking of changing your job? Join Programmed Care this Friday and Saturday at the Perth Disability Connection Expo to find out what we have on offer. For more information go to https://hubs.la/Q01jyc5l0

Look what has just landed at First Beat Midwives.
Lactation and Colic Tea from The Breastfeeding Tea Co.

Just for your information.

Bupa and Ramsay Health Care have been unable to reach agreement on a new contract by the deadline of 2 August 2022.

Central to our negotiation has been the indexation rate, which enables private hospitals to cover increases in wages and supply costs. These expenses have risen substantially during the Covid-19 pandemic.

Since Bupa’s indexation rate offer is well below inflation and will not cover the cost of care for its members in Ramsay hospitals, additional out-of-pocket costs will soon apply to Bupa members.

Bupa-insured patients can avoid these additional out-of-pocket costs by changing to another health insurer. Ramsay has agreements with all other private health insurers in Australia, where these extra out-of-pocket costs will not apply.

For more information, please visit www.protectyourcover.com.au

Hi I’m Louise, owner of First Beat Midwives.
We provide in home antenatal and postnatal care to mamas wanting a hospital birth. Our aim is to guide, support and empower you and your family through the pregnancy to parenthood journey.

First Beat Midwives is hiring out Elle Tens 2 Machines.
Contact us at [email protected] or on 0414 414 334

Vitamin K and tongue tie division - Dr Sara Wickham What happens when parents want a tongue tie division but the baby hasn't had vitamin K? Can professionals decline to do this? What are the issues?

"This is one of many Spinning Babies® positions to help the baby down the pelvis. It’s called Walcher's Maneuver. I get so happy when I see midwives in hospitals using these techniques. Many tend to go straight to more drugs to get stronger contractions to “force” the baby out, but when it’s stuck the baby don’t need more pressure but a better position in the pelvis. After a long birth, the doctor came in and talked to the mum about the possibility of a cesarian. She really wanted a vaginal birth and asked the midwife if there was anything else they could try. She was fully dilated but the baby was too high. They first tried a Spinning Babies technique called Sidelying Release but it didn’t work so the midwife made her lay on the bed like this. Two contractions and suddenly we could hear a new sound from her moaning, and her belly changed its form. 5 minutes later a beautiful baby was born. After attending a Spinning Babies® Workshop with Birthsupport.NL, I saw the birthing process with new eyes. I’m hoping more midwives could get the chance to learn these positions!" - Fødselsfotografen

More on Walcher's: bit.ly/SpBWB

Chicken Pox is going round again. Check your immunity people !!

Chickenpox is going around again! Please remember NOT to give your children nurofen/ibuprofen if you think your child has it.

This type of medicine is an anti-inflammatory. It reacts with the chickenpox making them go deeper into the skin tissue, potentially causing a more severe secondary infection.

Better options:
👶Paracetamol for fever
👶Calamine Lotion for the itch
👶Keep your child hydrated

Always seek medical advice.

Love this ❤️

Thank you for standing by me
watching what I’ve gone through.
I forget sometimes through teary eyes
that you’ve had to go through it too.

The labor and the birth
while that pain was mine.
Your hand was never far away
Your eyes never so wide.

My fear of being a new mother.
The onset of baby blues.
All the while you stayed strong for me
while you were fearful too.

The early days of breastfeeding.
The trials and the tears.
You were always helping with the latch
while I was screaming in your ear.

See sometimes I forget,
as hard as it was on me
You had to watch me in this pain
As you sat there helplessly.

Trying to remember things from antenatal
Taking turns getting up in the night
Feeling the fog of the fourth trimester
In your own given right.

The daily battles I have at home
Which you feel as you walk in the door.
But always with a smile and open arms
Taking the weight off me once more.

You’ve seen me raw and at my limit.
You’ve seen me vulnerable and small.
All the while you’ve remained my rock
And loved me through it all.

You don’t sit on the sidelines
Instead you sit by my side
While we learn this all together
On this beautiful but bumpy ride.

Even though you say sometimes
You don’t know what you can do.
You’ve done it without even knowing
for being their father and just being you.

~

Words: ‘From One Mom to a Mother’ poetry book and words available on Etsy for print (in different versions)

https://linktr.ee/JESSURLICHS


Art: Amanda Oleander

Jess Urlichs, Writer

🍂🍁 For support in your gentle parenting journey, pick up a copy of our gorgeous autumn issue which is out now!. Grab your copy from supermarkets throughout NZ and newsagents throughout Australia! To find your local stockist, or to subscribe, visit https://linktr.ee/TheNaturalParentMagazine 🍂🍁

Career Day Interested in becoming a Support Worker? Join Programmed Care

Delayed Cord Clamping.
4 amazing reasons to delay the clamping of the cord for at least 90 seconds.