C. Andrews Midwifery

09/14/2025

The placenta does more than scientists once thought.

A new Yale study shows that it helps regulate serotonin delivery to the fetus during pregnancy — offering new insight into how this “happiness hormone” may shape early brain development: bit.ly/41Ctv0F

09/04/2025

09/02/2025

09/02/2025

.
💠 THE RHOMBUS OF MICHAELIS 💠
◇
This area of the pelvis is formed by the lower lumbar vertebrae, the sacrum, and a ligament that extends from the skull to the sacrum. It’s often described as taking the shape of a kite.
◇
When the cervix is fully dilated in an undisturbed, physiological birth, the body often shows signs that the baby is moving down:
❤️ Reaching up to hold on.
❤️ The back arching.
❤️ The head tipping back.
❤️ Hands pressing against the back of the pelvis.
◇
These movements happen as the “kite” shifts backward, widening the pelvis and allowing the muscles to open. This adjustment creates crucial extra space for the baby’s shoulders to rotate and descend.
◇
Experienced traditional midwives may not feel compelled to check the cervix at this stage. They recognize these behaviors as natural signs of descent and know birth is close when the mother begins to “open her back.”
◇
Recognizing these instinctive patterns means we can trust the process, protect the mother’s space, and avoid unnecessary interventions.
◇
Sometimes, simply seeing is more powerful than touching. Unwanted hands can interrupt, intrude, and slow the flow of labor.
◇
-Love,
Flor Cruz

08/27/2025

08/23/2025

Imagine…

08/22/2025

08/19/2025

✨Breathing support ✨

In the uterus your baby is completely dependent on the placenta to provide oxygenation through the umbilical cord.

Your baby is swimming in amniotic fluid and needs to clear that fluid to make room for air once born.

Most babies born vaginally will have no issues in doing this, they will let out a big cry and the pressure from that inhalation forces fluid in the lungs to move out into the tissues and let air in.

As the placenta stops pulsating to your baby and inhalation begins the reduced pressure will cause 3 shunts in the heart to close. These were alternate paths for blood flow while your baby is in the uterus and they are not needed after birth.

At times this transition can be delayed and that can be due to many things such as maternal medications, poor placental function etc.

So what do we do as midwives?

First we stimulate give bub a nice rub, ask mum to blow on the face to try and initiate a cry if these aren't
working we go straight to a bag and mask.

If you think of the lungs as 2 flat balloons.
We all know how hard it is to get that first breath into a flat balloon and once there is a little air in there the balloon inflates a lot easier.

Putting it simply that is what the bag and mask does, it pushes air into your baby’s lungs to inflate the “balloons” (lungs) and makes it a whole lot easier to take that first breath.

Keeping the CORD INTACT is a resuscitation technique on its own, research has shown babies with delayed cord clamping started to breathe and establish regular breathing earlier then babies who had early cord clamping.

In Australia it's rare at the moment for resuscitation to take place by the bedside in a hospital setting. At home births this can easily be achieved as you can see in the above photo.

Midwives : 👏
📷 : Emma-Jean Photography ♥️
✨ Words and informative Repost by Peace with birth ✨

10/01/2023

We love the dilation station!

DILATION STATION! 💯

Aka the "Get it done position." 💪🏽

Most of my clients know that I love using the toilet for labor. It's the best way to release a pelvic floor and help a baby descend into the pelvis. The contractions are super intense on the potty, but that's because they are super productive! Trust me when I tell you, this is one of the all time best labor positions!

🚽you are naturally prone to relaxing your pelvic floor and perineum while sitting on the toilet.
🚽the bathroom is a place of privacy and solitude and you are used to relaxing in this room.
🚽you are using gravity
🚽you are opening your pelvis.
🚽you are allowing your baby lots of room to rotate and navigate the birth canal.
🚽you can also turn around and straddle the toilet with a pillow in front of you for comfort.

We call it the “dilation station” for a reason. I’ve encouraged many mommies to spend some time laboring on the toilet. It’s not uncommon for baby to come rather quickly after that 🤗
*******

Are you on Instagram?? Let's connect!
www.instagram.com/Doulaviewllc

10/01/2023

♥️〰️♥️THE UMBILICAL CORD♥️〰️♥️

The umbilical cord is a conduit between the developing baby and the placenta. During prenatal development, the umbilical cord is physiologically and genetically part of the baby.

The umbilical contains 2️⃣ arteries(umbilical arteries), and 1️⃣ vein(umbilical vein), which are buried within Wharton's jelly that all beautifully form the umbilical cord.

The umbilical cord develops from the yolk sac🍳and allantois. It forms by the 5️⃣th week of pregnancy, replacing the yolk sac as the source of nutrients for the baby. The cord is not directly connected to the mother's circulatory system, but instead joins the placenta, which transfers materials to and from the maternal blood without allowing direct mixing🔀

The umbilical cord in a full term baby is usually about 20 inches long and about 0.75 inches in diameter📏

The blood flow through the umbilical cord is approximately 35 ml / min at 20 weeks, and 240 ml / min at 40 weeks of gestation. Adapted to the weight of the baby, this corresponds to 115 ml / min / kg at 20 weeks and 64 ml / min / kg at 40 weeks📚

The umbilical cord enters the baby via the abdomen, at the point which (after separation) will become the baby’s belly button🤗 Within the baby, the umbilical vein continues towards the transverse fissure of the liver, where it splits into two. One of these branches joins with the hepatic portal vein (connecting to its left branch), which carries blood into the liver. The second branch (known as the ductus venosus) bypasses the liver and flows into the inferior vena cava, which carries blood towards the heart. The two umbilical arteries branch from the internal iliac arteries, and pass on either side of the urinary bladder into the umbilical cord, completing the circuit back to the placenta😍

The umbilical vein supplies the baby with oxygenated, nutrient-rich blood from the placenta. The baby’s heart pumps deoxygenated, nutrient-depleted blood through the umbilical arteries and back to the placenta. 👈🏽THE UMBILICAL CORD IS PERFECTLY DESIGNED TO MAKE A GORGEOUS EXCHANGE OF GOOD THINGS COMING IN AND BAD THINGS GOING OUT🙌🏾

In absence of external interventions, the umbilical cord stops/closes up physiologically shortly after birth, explained both by a swelling and collapse of Wharton's jelly in response to a reduction in temperature and by vasoconstriction of the blood vessels by smooth muscle contraction. In effect, a natural clamp is created, halting the flow of blood. 👈🏽THE UMBILICAL CORD COLLAPSES ON ITS OWN AFTER BIRTH, ALLOWING YOUR BABY TO SURVIVE ON ITS OWN. THIS IS WHY WAITING TILL THE CORD IS COMPLETELY WHITE AND LIMP IS CRUCIAL FOR A SMOOTH TRANSITION AND RECEIVING ALL PLACENTAL BLOOD🙌🏾

Instagram:
www.instagram.com/TheBirthImpact

PhotoCred: The Nurturing Root

10/01/2023

Mom math. ✖️➗➕➖

It’s complicated 😬