Resources for Fathers to Be

“The transition to fatherhood is one of the most significant and challenging experiences a man will ever face. In order to have a satisfying and successful experience fathers must feel safe, supported and confident. To optimize the possibilities for our families, we need to provide appropriate educational, physical and emotional support for ‘father love’.
–Patrick M. [...]

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Recent Publications

This has been quite a month for me for publications!
My short article Centering for Birth was published in the International Journal of Childbirth Education (page 20)
My book review of Fathers at Birth was published in The CAPPA Quarterly (page 14).
My film review of Birth as We Know It was in The CAPPA Quarterly (page 15).
And, [...]

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The Daddy Brain

Two media items caught my eye today that relate to fathers. One was a short clip from “DadLabs: taking back paternity” called “Are birth classes worth it for dads?” The clip debates whether men belong in birth classes–as a birth educator who strives really hard to “reach” men in my birth classes, I was holding [...]

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Labor is like stairsteps…

I have a pile of things to blog about about and one of them was this quote from the book Fathers at Birth:
“Labor is like stairsteps. There is an incline, then a plateau. Another challenging incline, and another plateau. The inclines get steeper and more intense as labor progresses. The plateaus get shorter. However, in [...]

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Birth Affirmations for Fathers

In my classes, I suggest the use of affirmations. Affirmations are short, positive statements that inspire confidence and positive feelings. I have a handout that is printed on the front side with affirmations for mothers to read to themselves and the reverse has the same affirmations worded in such a way that they can be [...]

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Non-verbal Communication

Birthing women tend to enter “birth brain” while focusing during labor–this is a more primal, instinctive, intuitive, primitive part of their brain and it tends to be fairly nonverbal. I often remind fathers-to-be in my classes not to ask their partners too many questions while they focus on birthing, because questions pull women out of [...]

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For Labor Support Remember TLC or BLT

When supporting a woman in labor, remember to use “TLC”:
Touch–this can be massage, hand-holding, foot rubs, stroking her hair, and encouraging frequent position changes. It also includes the use of water (hydrotherapy).
Listen–this is half of the emotional support in labor. Listening builds trust and meets emotional needs. Use active(reflective) listening and lots of encouragement.
Communication–there are [...]

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Comfort Measures & Labor Support Strategies

From the book Special Women by Polly Perez. I thought this was a helpful, quick review of things to try when assisting a woman in labor:
“When assessing labor pain consider the following:
Remember ‘When in doubt check it out.’
Ask the mother the following questions.
What’s going through your mind
Is there something you are afraid of?
What do you [...]

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More About the Three P’s of Birth

Some time ago I wrote a post about the commonly used “three P’s” of birth. The P’s most often referred to are the Powers (contractions), the Passage (pelvis and soft tissues), and the Passenger (the baby). In my post The Three P’s I came up with some different P’s that could be used instead–both P’s [...]

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No Right Way + Fathers at Birth

A few weeks ago, I spoke to a mother from one of my most recent birth classes. She told me something that her husband said to her in labor that I found very profound. Staff at the hospital were becoming concerned that this mother’s labor was “not progressing” and “not normal.” She, in turn, became [...]

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