Connecticut Childbirth & Women's Center

In-person Lactation Support Group tomorrow, Wednesday 8/14 10:00am-11:30am at 94 Locust Ave, Danbury CT
Open to everyone, pregnant and postpartum.
Registration not required but helpful.
Cristinabierce.com

In-person Lactation Support Group tomorrow, Wednesday 6/5 10:00am-11:30am at 94 Locust Ave, Danbury CT
Open to everyone, pregnant and postpartum.
Registration not required but helpful.
Cristinabierce.com

Our former colleague and midwife friend, Cathy Gallagher, has passed away. Our hearts go out to her family. She will be missed by all whose lives she has touched.

Happy International Day of the Midwife!

We have had the privilege of working with some wonderful midwives over the years here at the CT Childbirth Center. One of them is very ill right now and could use your prayers and caring thoughts. Cathy Gallagher is in hospice care and has given us permission to let her former patients know of her illness. If you care to contact her the family is asking that you do so through cards and Caring.com; the link I will attach below. We are so very sad and are keeping her close to our hearts.

https://l.facebook.com/l.php?u=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.caringbridge.org%2Fvisit%2Fcathygallagher&h=AT2FBYCW-ltwaEeHt_95KhSsCqfFjgiiljSJYVLdlinIGLd9E7E7fAyL60qMVCJudERJRm1rhx1sD-aGJ1ppLN1Vqv7wbct7Ac_8U8GPWKUte6HRahCqyVvjsJm2PtQKK2LXAWEduSie&s=1

Cathy | CaringBridge Welcome to our CaringBridge website. We are using it to keep family and friends updated in one place. We appreciate your support and words of hope and encouragement. We are creating a LOVE WALL for mom of beautiful images, drawings, words ...

We have a patient looking for a pediatrician in the Kent area who will allow no vaccines or alternative schedule. Any advice?

February Classes offerings:

Also offering NRP for providers Sat 2/17 at 10:00am. Please email [email protected] to register.

I'm so excited to start 2024 with a full set of class offerings as well as our Lactation Support Group.

As a previous nurse at the birth center for many years, I can help you navigate the tools and resources for labor and immediate postpartum period expectations.

I am also an IBCLC and strongly encourage new families to take an intro to breastfeeding with me or anyone they are comfortable with.

Finally, the Lactation Support Group is offered every other Wednesday at 10:00am in the birth center. It is open to anyone not just those breastfeeding. If you are pregnant and want to talk and ask questions, if you are bottle feeding, if you are in the postpartum period an just want to get out of the house, feel free to join.

Any questions please email [email protected]
Cristina Bierce RN, IBCLC

Great information!

Sign-up at the link below for the Connecticut Early Detection and Prevention Program - a free, easy program that helps women access early detection, screening and other essential health services.

The Connecticut Early Detection and Prevention Program (CEDPP) serves 4,400 women every year. So far this program has helped 70,000 women visit doctors, get mammograms, pap tests, HPV tests, cardiovascular screenings and more.

https://portal.ct.gov/dph/Comprehensive-Cancer/Comprehensive-Cancer/The-Connecticut-Early-Detection-and-Prevention-Program-CEDPP

Governor Lamont has signed into law new regulations for the licensing of birth centers in CT. For 26 years we have been licensed as a Maternity Hospital. This new law will open the path for MORE birth centers throughout Connecticut.

Free-standing birth centers to offer alternative to hospitals in Connecticut New legislation signed into law by Gov. Ned Lamont sets up licensing and certification procedures for free-standing, independent birth centers. Joe Torres has the details.

I'm very exited to offer childbirth education and coping techniques specific to out of hospital and more specifically to the birth center.

As a nurse of 5 years at the birth center, I have firsthand knowledge of the options and tools available while at the birth center both during labor and postpartum.

Sign up at cristinabierce.com

What a great meeting! So happy for the support of our state leaders.

To submit written testimony about bill SB 986 that includes regulation of birth centers, doulas and community midwives please follow the link to provide that opinion:

To submit written testimony use this link https://www.cga.ct.gov/aspx/CGATestimonySub/CGAtestimonysubmission.aspx?comm_code=ph

The testimony must be provided today....sorry for the short notice. Regulations help ensure that more birth centers may be able to open providing midwifery and out of hospital care to more women and their families.

www.cga.ct.gov

In person Newborn Care and Infant CPR classes Saturday Jan 21 at 9:00am & 11:00am in Danbury.
Please register at CristinaBierce.com

Families, please be aware of this

: Fisher Price is re-announcing its recall of Rock 'n Play sleepers after 8 more children died while using it.

https://www.wfsb.com/2023/01/09/fisher-price-again-announces-recall-rock-n-play-sleepers-after-least-8-more-deaths/

Periods are normal. They are a healthy step in our menstrual cycle. They serve a physiological purpose. The entire menstrual cycle (not just your period, but also your follicular, ovulatory, and luteal phases as well!) is an indication of your overall health. If your cycle is problematic, it may be because it is trying to tell you something about your overall health. Listen. ⁠

With so many people talking about new year's resolutions, we want to spotlight one of our favorite healthy lifestyle topics; probiotics. ⁠
⁠
🔎Did you know that we need probiotics in our gut, on our skin, and in our ge***al tract?⁠
⁠
🔎More cells in/on our body are microbiota than human cells⁠
⁠
🔎 The collective bacterial cells, fungal cells, and other micro organisms are referred to as the microbiome⁠
⁠
🔎Our microbiome affects our immune system, hormone balance, mental health, vaginal health, blood sugar, blood pressure, and so much more! It literally has an effect on every aspect of our health⁠
⁠
🔎Most people in modern cultures now have a seriously depleted microbiome (especially with frequent antibiotic use and environmental toxins)⁠
⁠
How can you support and build your microbiome?⁠
⁠
Eat cultured and fermented foods;⁠
👍🏽sauerkraut⁠
👍🏽kimchi⁠
👍🏽tempeh⁠
👍🏽yogurt⁠
👍🏽kefir⁠
👍🏽natto⁠
👍🏽kvass ⁠
(there are more!)⁠
⁠
🌟Managing stress, regular exercise, and purposeful nutrition are the daily habits that have tremendous affect on your microbiome. ⁠
⁠
Avoid:⁠
👎🏽alcohol⁠
👎🏽excess meat and dairy (especially processed meats and uncultured dairy)⁠
👎🏽unnecessary antibiotics ⁠
⁠
Take a daily probiotic.⁠
💊Look for diverse strains of live active cultures, including strains of lactobacillus & bifidobacteria⁠
💊Aim for 15-100 billion CFU daily⁠
💊 freeze dried is better than refrigerated⁠
💊with prebiotics

Are you interested in mother/baby nursing? Labor and delivery? Postpartum care? Breastfeeding? Do you want to get involved in the birth world?

We are seeking a per diem RN to be the "second pair of hands" at our state licensed, accredited freestanding birth center. We use the Registered Nurse to come in for a labor, attend the birth and then stay for the postpartum care. Families coming to our birth center are expecting a non medicated, natural birth; with support from the midwives and RNs who work here. Birth center care and delivery are very much like a homebirth; queen sized beds, large birthing tubs, showers and plenty of room to move around. We offer our families the experience of having a baby their way....without cumbersome monitors or IVs; low lights, music, family, etc.

You do not need to have mother/baby experience; in fact most of the nurses who work here do not have L&D or maternity as a background. What they have, and what we need from our newest candidate, is the desire to provide families with true nursing and midwifery care. Hands on and support as the family adds another member. The nurse stays with the family providing ongoing care for about 4 to 6 hours after the birth at which time the family goes home.

Only low risk women may deliver at our center. Our higher risk women, or those women who desire a longer stay or want an epidural are cared for at Danbury Hospital.

If this sounds intriguing to you please send along your resume and letter of interest. Happy to respond to everyone and offer a tour of the center and a discussion about the care you may provide.

Salary: $Competitive!

The Danbury Midwifery Group, in Connecticut, are looking for a new midwifery partner for our well established practice. We have a 25 year history, providing full scope midwifery care and offering natural, unmedicated birth inside of the only free-standing birth center in Connecticut. The Connecticut Childbirth & Women’s Center is CABC accredited and located directly across the street is our transfer hospital; Danbury Hospital, a community teaching hospital with a Level IIb NICU. We serve clients with private third party insurance, Medicaid or cash pay.

Women and their families come to us from both near and far. A second generation of birth center delivered babies are now coming to us with their own pregnancies!

Our ideal candidate will be a Certified Nurse Midwife who is committed to providing care that is evidence based and yet personalized to the needs and desires of our clients.

We share call equally and have an excellent schedule that allows a very favorable work/life balance.

The practice offers a competitive salary and benefits package that includes generous time off for vacation and conference along with a conference stipend. Health and dental benefits are included as well. A 401K program is available and malpractice along with all fees and dues for licensing and ACNM membership are also part of the package.
Please email letters of interest along with the CV to Catherine Parisi, CNM, Clinical Director at: [email protected]

What a wonderful bit of our anatomy! Maybe we are biased, but we are just smitten with the wonders of the breast. What an example of beauty and function! Breasts are much more dynamic than we tend to give credit. No matter where you are in your reproductive life cycle, we think you should give honor and appreciation to yours.
October is breast cancer awareness month, so it seems like a great time to get in touch with your breasts, literally.
Look at them, touch them, listen to what they have to say. They are yours after all. As healthcare providers, we are happy to help check in on the health of your breasts too.
***s

Many clients end up transferring to our care at some point during their pregnancy. It is concerning how often we hear things like "I wasn't allowed to..." regarding aspects of their care. As a provider, it is within my role to provide information, evidence, recommendations, and support, but never to "allow" or "not allow" anyone to do anything. It is not my body or my baby! Please listen to the way your provider talks to you. You should be working in a partnership, not a dictatorship. Also know that you do not need to stay with a provider that does not respect your autonomy.

Good afternoon!! Connecticut Childbirth & Women's Center in Danbury is searching for two per diem RN birth workers. The opportunity to work with laboring, birthing and newly birthed families is available! The RNs need to be CT licensed and have a desire and willingness to attend families here in Danbury at our freestanding, accredited birth center. Families are admitted in active labor and stay for about 4-6 hours after birth. Discharge is done by the RN and the family returns at 24-48 hours for a midwife visit and all newborn testing.

Pay is very competitive and we encourage any RN, regardless of maternity or labor/delivery background, to apply. Please send letters of interest and/or a resume to: [email protected]. We will respond to any and all inquiries.

Please help spread the word about these positions. Thank you all!!

Thank you to Cynthia Overgard and Trisha Ludwig for featuring the Connecticut Childbirth & Women's Center on their most recent podcast. Listen in as Catherine Jennings Parisi, midwifery director details our fight with hospital administrators.

‎Down to Birth: Bonus Episode | Midwives Under Assault by Hospital Administrators on Apple Podcasts ‎Show Down to Birth, Ep Bonus Episode | Midwives Under Assault by Hospital Administrators - Jun 20, 2022

Upcoming in person classes this Saturday, 6/25 in Danbury:
Newborn Basics class at 9:00am
Infant/Child CPR at 11:00am.
Registration is required. Discount available for those that sign up for both classes.
Cristinabierce.com

https://www.gofundme.com/f/defend-our-midwives?utm_campaign=p_cp+share-sheet&utm_medium=copy_link_all&utm_source=customer&fs=e&s=cl

Defend our Midwives! , organized by Larissa Vreeland Hi, My name is Larissa and I’m 8 months pregnant. Like all women, I want to feel in control of… Larissa Vreeland needs your support for Defend our Midwives!

Ok all!! Less than 1 hour. The rain and stopped and we are gearing up for the march. Please bring your kids (strollers, baby carriers, and hand holding encouraged- it’s a busy road) and your signs. Remember, we are raising our voices to the administration, not those who support us in the clinical setting.
“Nothing strengthens authority so much as silence.” - Leonardo da Vinci