Set Apart Birth

06/22/2019

Here's a bit of birthy inspiration for your day. ❤️ Moments like this give me goosebumps. All the joy after all the pain.

10/06/2018

Mornings are for coffee and snuggling babies. 😍

07/26/2018

What have you read about GBS? Have you tested for it? Were you positive?

You can literally test positive one day and negative the next. The test is also only 87% accurate, so it can be wrong. From what I've read, if the mom is in fact GBS+ then there is a 50% chance the baby will get colonized, but of those colonized only 1-2% of babies will get sick. Most babies can fight it off. I wonder if breastfeeding affects this. Breastmilk is amazing! Also factors include things like long labor, premature baby, fever during labor, etc.

I didn't want antibiotics or my baby to get them. Especially since you can change status so often ya know? There was a study and about 16% of women got antibiotics when they were unneeded because they no longer we positive when they actually birthed the baby.

"Some studies have shown a decrease in GBS infection in newborns whose mothers accepted IV antibiotics during labor, but no decrease in the incidence of death. Still other research has found that preventive use of antibiotics is not always effective. In fact, one study found no decrease in GBS infection or deaths among newborns whose mothers were given IV antibiotics during labor." ( http://www.drmomma.org/2009/09/treating-gbs-group-b-strep-are.html?m=1 )

"A study of 43 newborns with blood infections caused by GBS and other bacteria found that, when the mothers of the ill newborns had been given antibiotics during labor, 88 to 91 percent of the infants' infections were resistant to antibiotics. It is unlikely to be a coincidence that the drugs to which the bacteria showed resistance were the same antibiotics that had been administered during labor. For the newborns who had developed blood infections without exposure to antibiotics during labor and delivery, only 18 to 20 percent of their infections were resistant to antibiotics." (Same article as above)

There are also other signs they can look for, like premature labor, fever during labor, etc that can contribute to the baby getting it if you happen to have it.

All in all, I decline the test. GBS can be a big deal if your kid gets it but I don't think the antibiotics during labor is the best course of action.

What do you think?

07/16/2018

https://tunemyheartblog.com/2016/01/20/questions-ask-health-insurance-provider-pregnancy/

07/14/2018

August in GBS Awareness Month//

What is the evidence for antibiotics for group B strep during labor? Are there any alternatives? Can hibiclens, garlic, or probiotics treat GBS?

07/11/2018

http://www.setapartbirth.com/blog/thestoryofmydoulabag

It’s the Mary Poppins bag of tricks (though we doulas would argue that unlike Mary Poppins, our resources are limited). The catch-all bag. The bag that lives in our cars and has seen countless labor and delivery rooms and varied birth settings…

06/06/2018

SOOO COOL!!!

05/29/2018

05/24/2018

Just a mid-week bit of birthy inspiration. :)

05/01/2018

May is International Doula Month! 😁

04/24/2018

When the going gets tough...