Enough

How do we change maternity care? Can it change? I've been thinking about this alot lately as BOLD performances have now been in full swing for 3 weeks this month. Many of these performances have had enormous impact in their community already. But, is it enough?

To answer this question I want to share with you some of the the feedback I'm getting from some our BOLD Organizers. In Seattle, BOLD Organizer Lynn Hughes recently received this email sent out to Seattle-area doulas after her cast did a performance of BIRTH:

I am trying to find a doula for a woman due in two weeks! This is a VBAC, she was planning to have a second cesarean, but went to the play, Birth, this past weekend and now is hoping for a VBAC (vaginal birth after cesarean).

And from BOLD's Organizer, Alyssa Colton, in Troy, New York who is part of an active Birth network out of Albany, New York called BirthNet dedicated to educating women about maternity care:

I wanted to share with you all a message from Betsy Mercogliano, who is one of the leading birth activists in our community; is an extra in the play & our birth coach & one of the producers/organizers of BOLD in Troy, New York and is just one of my inspirations. Anyway, here it is...

I wanted to share with all of you something that I shared at rehearsal tonight about the power of this play. I just did a six-week postpartum visit today with a young woman whom I worked with. She is in her early twenties, a survivor of numerous deep wounds from her childhood, including family suicide, sexual abuse and assault. She is now married to a man she loves and when we sat together, she said, " I had a wonderful birth, a home birth, and I am proud of myself!" It was absolutely true and she was holding her healthy, chubby, breastfed baby as she said it. She was sharing a profound life change for her. For me, I felt that all we have done with Birthnet over the 8? years we have been doing it was just validated because this young woman came to her decisions about her birth and her baby because, as a student about 5 or 6 years ago, she was in one of the classes at SUNY Albany where we came and talked about choices for women when they are birthing and showed a film about options and choices.. It galvanized her to arrive where she is today. Sooooo, I see this play in the same light. If you think about it, with a local surgical birth rate of over 33%, if 300 women see this play over the two shows, 100 or more of those women who have had children will have had surgery and this play may be speaking to them and helping them heal. And/or 100 of those women are headed towards a surgical birth or other intervention, possibly unnecessary, and they may learn something from this play that will help them make other choices. Think about the power of that! Even if we reach just one or two of those, and frankly, we already have with our actors, we are changing the future for these women and their families. So, I know everyone is busy and everything may be piling up in your life, but all the work for this production is so IMPORTANT and vital and you are making it happen for each of those women who need to celebrate or heal or learn new options, as well as yourselves, I hope. So, thank you for all you are doing and keep on keepin on until next week.


Is BOLD doing enough? If after a BOLD event one or two mothers or potential mothers are inspired to educate themselves about childbirth and make birth choices based on solid education and inner truth....this is what a social movement is all about.

This is enough.

Birth receives its first New York theatre "review"...sort of...

This is hilariously funny...I couldn't stop laughing! You never know when and why a theatre reviewer will show up at your play!

http://blog.myspace.com/index.cfm?fuseaction=blog.view&friendID=125305418&blogID=310801084

Happy Labor Day!!

Just wanted to wish everyone a HAPPY LABOR DAY!!! Attend a BOLD event this month and support mother-friendly maternity care!!

xo
Karen

37 locations, 75 performances

That's right! This month there will be 75 BOLD performances in 37 locations. Waa-hoo!

How are we going to change maternity care? People power. When more and more people stand up and say: we've had enough; mothers deserve better care. Maternity care IS a human rights issue that needs to be addressed now. How can the c-section rate in the US be so high (30 percent!) and we don't call this a human rights violation? I'm not saying all c-sections are unnecessary - of course there are high-risk mothers who need c-sections - but I am saying let's really shine the spotlight on why our rates are so high and whether c-sections on low-risk mothers are ethical. Let's find a model of care that allows mothers to walk into their care provider and feel everything she's being told is the truth and in only her best interest. I think most people want the truth about childbirth. That's all BOLD is asking. For the interest of mothers and babies - tell the truth. Nothing can improve until the truth is on the table.

Here's to you BOLD organizers!