Sammy Griffin Birth Support | Local service

Sammy Griffin Birth Support

Phone: +61 413 000 350

Add/Update information

Reviews

Tags

• Businesses
• Local service

25.01.2022 Wow! What a great day for birth choices! Congratulations to this family

23.01.2022 Someone to hold space for you. . Someone who has sat with you, as you created your birth maps. They know the expected pathways your birth will take, but also know the contingency pathways you have created if your labour takes some twists and turns. ... . Someone who can recognise a crisis of confidence and give you the extra emotional and physical support you need in that moment. . Someone who has seen birth, that can look at your other support people reassuringly. Even though it may be overwhelming for them to see you roaring in all of your birthing power. . Someone who is only there for you. Not for their studies, not bound by hospital policy (if birthing in a hospital), not worried about losing their job. . #doula #birthdoula #birthsupport

22.01.2022 Interesting read on the link between labour pain medications and breastfeeding.

20.01.2022 I’m getting rounder Those little doula babies are getting quite snug in the ring sling as I give them a contact nap while Mum- naps, eats with 2 hands, does her nails, has a shower/bath, or does whatever she wants to do in that precious time she has carved out for herself. . I love this work so much. ... . I am very much looking forward to having my own postpartum planning session in a few weeks with my postpartum doula, and setting up all the things I need for my own first forty days. . Did you create a postpartum plan? What were/are the essential things on your list?

19.01.2022 Did you know that rates of mastitis go up around holiday periods? Why? Well, loads of reasons to be honest. Let's picture it shall we? It's your first christ...mas with your baby. You're mega excited and so is everyone else to have this gorgeous bundle in their lives. Christmas is going to be AWESOME. Lots of travelling around in the car visiting friends and family, making the most of maternity leave to see everyone and proudly show off this little person, taking up offers to go over and be cooked for! And that is genuinely fabulous. But all that travelling leads to lots of time in the car seat, and for most babies the car seat sends them to sleep. And long sleeps mean long gaps between feeds, which leads to full breasts with potential for blockages... Then the parties, the gatherings, celebrations! Lovely right?! Yes! Except everyone wants a hold of little baby Rupert and once again he has longer stretches between feeds. And when he does come back to you he's over stimulated and over tired and only takes two minutes on the breast before he falls asleep leaving you with, you guessed it, full breasts.... Or the guests seem to think they know better than you do about baby Josie's feeding cues and tell you she doesn't need feeding, they can settle her for you. They talk about how 'when they had babies you only fed every four hours and it didn't do them any harm'. You're then stuck between a rock and a hard place, because you would like to feed your baby, but you don't want to upset family or the way they did things, and maybe they're right? Feeds are often cut short around celebrations, because you have lots of people offering to help and hold the baby so your dinner doesn't go cold, or guests arrive, or you're due somewhere, or you'reupstairs feeding and want to get back down to the party...the list goes on. So your breasts don't get 'emptied' like usual and can you guess what happens next? Yep.... Maybe you don't feel comfortable feeding around Auntie Ethel and Uncle Bernard, so you don't quite expose your breast as much as you might normally, and your clothes/bra are digging in a little and restricting milk flow and cause a blockage... Maybe you're sleeping somewhere different, the bed is different, you can't quite get the angle of the feed right on this squishy mattress and the latch goes a bit dodgy, but you put up with it because you don't want the baby to cry and wake everyone. Dodgy latch leads to breast not emptying efficiently...and you know the rest. Christmas is lovely, but for a huge amount of people it's also very stressful. Stress hormones can impact on oxytocin, which is the hormone needed to let your milk flow. So stress can temporarily inhibit milk flow leading to those full/blocked breasts again. I might be coming across as a bit Bah, Humbug! but I've been around enough mothers with mastitis to know its REALLY not what you want to be dealing with at any point. It is not to be messed with, it is a serious condition and you can potentially end up very poorly. What I'm saying is, take it EASY. Plan ahead now to make sure this holiday season is one where you can feed whenever and wherever you need to. Be led by your baby. Don't stretch out or cut short feeds. Listen to your body, not Auntie Denise.

17.01.2022 We need to move away from the concept of ‘selection criteria,’ which are used by professionals to make decisions for women, and towards an understanding of what is ‘normal for breech.’

15.01.2022 Labour pain? Pressure in labour? Labour sensations? Tightenings? Our language is powerful and important! . In the majority of first time labours there is significant pain. But pain is subjective so I guess this is where it gets tricky. There is a real movement to think of labour pain as ‘pressure’ or a ‘sensation’ and I think it is unkind to tell that to someone who has never experienced labour before. Yes, maybe a second or third time birther will feel more of a pressure ra...ther than pain. But first time round; expect pain- hear me out! . Our attitude towards labour pain is really important. We are conditioned to think of pain as danger and of being unwell but that is not the same as labour pain. . Labour pain is a functional pain. Your cervix is opening, you may be familiar with this pain when your cervix opens slightly when your have your period. For some it’s like a dull ache (in labour, maybe multiply this by 10? 100? 1000? It’s too subjective to say with any certainty.) . Your uterus is contracting, think of going for a long run and your leg muscles contract and become fatigued. You expect them to hurt, it’s not a pain like a cut or a broken bone, it is your muscles working very hard. And just like doing a gruelling workout expect your breathing to get heavy, you’ll sweat, your heart rate will go up, your body is working hard! . The physiological pain of labour is a catalyst for releasing birthing hormones. -Rhea Dempsey. It truely is pain with a purpose, we need that pain in order for our natural hormones to release and labour to progress. . In most cases it is not enough to say things like ‘embrace the pain’ and ‘surrender to the pain’, because that is not our society. Australia has one of the highest usage rates of analgesics in the world. The allure of the pain relief is too strong in most cases. We are not giving women the tools and support they need to work with their labour hormones and comfort measures to work with the pain. . If you are a someone who would like a physiological birth I can suggest a few resources to get you started: - Birth with confidence, Rhea Dempsey - Birth Skills, Ju Ju Sundin - Comfort Measures episode 120, @birthkweens . I also think the key is to birth where you feel safest and have care providers and/or support people who take the time to get to know you, who are 100% on your team. They will have a big job in transition and through your moments of crisis-of-confidence to truely listen, encourage, love and support you. . #painwithapurpose #itsagoodpain #mightnotfeellikeitatthetime

11.01.2022 Labour stalling? The care providers edition. . When there is a stall in labour assess your individual circumstances, is there a way you could boost your natural oxytocin? Do you feel comfortable with every person in the room? Might be time to change something or someone in your space. Your care provider can be the difference between your labour flowing or stalling. ... . You are wise, listen to your body, what is she trying to tell you?

07.01.2022 Birth Support Restrictions!! With Queensland cases being really low we are still allowed to dine in a restaurant with all our friends and family, we are allow...ed to go shopping, have picnics, go to IKEA and Bunnings and yet at the Royal Brisbane Women’s hospital where you have the only Birthing Centre in Brisbane which prides itself on women centred care they will NOT grant an exemption for women to have their chosen support through labour. I have women that have contacted me as early as 5 weeks in their pregnancy, women that have experienced previous birth trauma to now being told tough luck you’ll have to choose between your partner or your Doula. Women that have a Doula at their birth are more likely to have a vaginal birth, less likely to have intervention, cesareans and negative feelings about their birth. My clients have contacted the hospital not asking for an overall policy change but rather an exemption to the rule and yet they insist their hands are tied. I approached QLD health and they advised that this is just a guidance but Any deviation from Hospital and Health Services to determine and provide exemptions to. So they can grant an exemption but they REFUSE to!! Mater are granting exemptions seeing the value of a Doula and even some private hospitals in the Brisbane area and yet the ONLY birthing centre in Brisbane is not!! To say this is frustrating is an understatement. Women need support, Doulas are an essential part of the healthcare team and it is time we are regarded as such and women are not getting substandard care and maternity services wake up to themselves and take women’s overall health into consideration. #enough #Repost @lisa.phillips.photo This moment. You will never regret having a picture of it. The moment when your heart expands tenfold. The first moment after hours (sometimes days) of labor where you can think clearly and are told to reach down and grab your baby. The moment you think you will remember this vividly forever, but it becomes hazier as time goes on. Don’t get me wrong, you will always remember the time they were born or what they weighed and measured, but I want

05.01.2022 I’ll tell you what, ‘natural’ has got very little to do with the information in these two articles () . By definition a natural birth is one without any medical intervention. That includes epidural, episiotomies, forceps, vacuum, syntocinon, AROM (a doctor or midwife breaking your waters)...... . NO MEDICAL INTERVENTION . There is an alarmingly high number of women walking out of the Australian hospital system either physically or emotionally traumatised because of unnecessary medical intervention during their births. . And yes, while it may be true more women are wanting natural births, these same women are (mostly) birthing in a system that simply does not support that. . If we really supported women to have a natural birth we would: - Give every woman the choice of a known midwife (not obstetric nurse). It is almost impossible for some women to get into an MGP program and hiring a private midwife is not a financial option for many families. - Funding for homebirth. Homebirth is again financially out of reach for many. Better education around homebirth as many see it as dangerous, when statistically speaking it is actually safer for some women to birth at home. - Better free antenatal education for women. Most antenatal classes in hospitals normalise medical intervention rather than giving families who wish to avoid that route the tools to do so. - Stop the mainstream media writing inaccurate, fear inducing headlines, that are perpetuating the cycle of women being terrified of giving birth and not listening to their instincts. . Of course there is a time and a place for some medical intervention, but the problem is these interventions are routine, they are the current standard. No, I don’t believe every woman should be forced to have an unmedicated birth, that’s not what I am about. I am about supporting women in their choices, so if more women are wanting a natural birth, then at least give them an environment that can facilitate that. No one can deny, the rising rates of birth trauma, PTSD, PND and PNA. The natural hormonal process of birth is being completely disrupted. This is far bigger than a ‘lovely philosophy’ Dr Mark Beale, these interventions have known lasting effects on breastfeeding and bonding with our babies and of course physical injuries that some women have to live with for the rest of their lives. . The more accurate headline here would be, Birth intervention rates skyrocket, leaving women physically and emotionally traumatised.

04.01.2022 The witching hour. Have you heard this term? My mother told me about this when I had my firstborn and I'm so glad she did. When my baby started to get really un...settled and on and off the boob constantly in the later afternoon to evening hours I knew something was not wrong, he was just having his witching hours! If you have questions about cluster feeding and whether it's normal or not for your baby, head to my article on this topic here: https://themilkmeg.com/cluster-feeding-normal-not/

03.01.2022 https://spinningbabies.com/what-causes-asynclitism/

03.01.2022 Caitlin is a wealth of knowledge around birth and postpartum! Love this!

02.01.2022 Think close to term is near enough? A baby’s brain at 35 weeks only weighs two-thirds of what it will weigh at 40 weeks. New research has shown a trend towards ...PLANNED births occurring earlier than 40 weeks’ is associated with short, medium and long-term risks for the baby. View the article by leading maternal fetal medicine specialist, Prof Jonathan Morris, in the 2020 edition of The Whole Nine Months Magazine here: https://tinyurl.com/y8yxbqoq #pretermbirth #thewholeninemonths #premmie #everyweekcounts #pretermbirthalliance #APBPA

02.01.2022 Do you know how many more people would be successful in their breastfeeding journeys if they just had the proper support and education? . #Pregnancy #Newborn #...NewBaby #4thTrimester #Breastfeeding #Lactation #BreastfeedingSupport #LactationSupport #Education #HolisticDoula #Doula #LactationPeerCounselor #Midwife #StudentMidwife #Love See more