- my iParenting
- quick clicks
- pregnancy today articles
- pregnancy today q&a
- message boards
- research baby names
- prepare a birth plan
- content channels
- ip channel rss feeds
- read birth stories
- read parenting stories
- recommended books
- e-newsletters
- safety recalls
- ip diaries
- ip store
- mom of the month
- dad of the month
- editor's letter
- letters to the editor
 |
- e-newsletters
- Sign up to receive our free weekly e-newsletters
- award-winning products
The iParenting Media Awards program helps parents find the best products for their families.
Easing Tensions
Fathers Play a Major Role in Helping Stressed-out Moms-to-be
By Laura Paul
Wendy remembers how the weather was hot just before her due date. Farber would get out a dishpan and put cold water in it so she could soak her feet while he figured out what to make for dinner. She had three hours of hard labor before giving birth underwater. "I'm very comfortable in water," she says. "Being in a tub of warm water, I think, helped me stay relaxed."
When it came to where to have the baby, Farber was leaning more toward a hospital birth and Wendy considered homebirth. They compromised by going to a freestanding birthing center. "There was not anything magical about the birthing center," Farber says. "What was magical was we had a team of people who really supported the natural process and understood it and created a wonderful space for us." He says their son is mellower than the average baby. "Because there were no drugs in the birth, when he came out he was so alert," he says.
The Farbers had a small ceremony a few weeks before birth. During that time, friends and family made their baby a keepsake necklace. "Everybody donated a little symbol to be hung on a necklace," Farber says. "We had a necklace made up of people's wishes. There was a little golf club on it from his grandfather, then a peace sign, seashells, what people wanted to wish for him and the birth."
Some people feel more secure in a hospital, while others take comfort in familiar surroundings such as the home. Susan Lang, a doula with Midwest Doula Services in Cedar Rapids, Iowa, says the key to a less stressful birth is to be prepared.
Want to see more?
Comments
There are no comments for this article yet.Be the first to 
|
Post As:
|
||
| Enter your comment below: | ||
| Title | ||
| Comment Text | ||
| CAPTCHA | ||
| Please note that any comments submitted become the property of Disney Family / iParenting and can be edited and posted at our discrection. | ||
