Our First Cesarean/VBAC Support Group meeting is tomorrow! Please check out the Support Group page for pertinent info.
I am so excited about this group and what its going to mean for the women and families in this area. We will be focusing most of our time on sharing and listening, this will be a safe space where women and their family members or spouses can work through traumatic birth experiences together, or maybe just rethink confusing events and ask others for their opinions or advice on your unique situation if you wish. I think it is invaluable to share your birth story and hear stories from other mothers and fathers, whether you are expecting your first or seventh! I read a quote today that sums up well how I hope to be supportive from one mom to another:
"We need to take care with every message we deliver to women about birth, and ensure that each message honors the fact that every woman at every moment is making the best decisions she can for herself and her child, with the information she has. And the truth is...that can take a mountain of strength." - Melissa Bruij...n and Debby Gould (in Pathways to Family Wellness Magazine
I plan to carry that quote into this group with me to try to prevent further wounding of moms that might already be vulnerable, and to be as supportive as I can.
We also plan to spend a moment or two discussing ways to prevent a first time cesarean or a repeat cesarean, and how to get the support you need to have a VBAC or HBAC.This week we will be less thorough on this topic because we will be connecting for the first time and I am sure we will discuss what ICAN of Grand Rapids hopes to be and how people can get involved.
There will usually be one or two birth professionals attending and they will be open to answering questions before or after the meeting. I look forward to meeting some new friends and working on changing the current birth climate in Grand Rapids together!
Stephanie Mayne
ICAN of Grand Rapids Chapter Co-leader
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