Wild Roots Birth + Body

03/26/2023

It makes me want to hurt someone.

02/15/2022

I’m just gonna call these my “did you know” posts 🤷🏼‍♀️

Did you know, when you’re pushing your baby out on your back, with your legs drawn up, it actually makes your pelvic outlet (where the baby is trying to exit) smaller?

Upright birthing positions, such as hands and knees, leaning over the bed or squatting, take the weight off of your sacrum and allow your pelvic outlet to open more, making it easier for your baby to come through ✌🏻naturally there are some instances where doing these things may not help, like your baby’s positioning, but more often than not these positions can help immensely! Try it next time you have a baby 😜

📸: Rachel Riley
🤰🏻: Meagan Witt

02/11/2022

These are the number of spots I still have left for the months of 2022. I can’t wait to meet the moms and babies that are to come 💛

Jan - 0
Feb - 0
March - 0
April - 1
May - 2
June - 2
July - 0
Aug - 0
Sept - 2
Oct - 3
Nov - 3
Dec - 3

12/03/2021

As of today, my first ebook is finished! This is 36 pages, detailing from start to finish, what your birth could look like if you simply leave it alone and let it happen as it’s meant to. This is meant for anyone, even if you’re not planning a natural birth. You’ll still finish with an understanding of how the birthing process works; more than just pushing out your baby.

In this guide, I’ll walk you through the phases of labor (all 6 of them!), the symptoms you’ll experience and how your contractions will change from phase to phase. I’ll also give you and your partner tips and tricks on how to help you cope and make this experience one that you don’t have to fear or dread.

I wanted to have a resource for the families that aren’t able to have a doula, whether that be for financial reasons or because of the visitor policy at their local hospital. Having the education and not walking into this experience blindly is so important. If you are pregnant or thinking about it in the future, consider taking a little bit of time to read what I’ve laid out for you so that you can lay the best foundation for this experience! This is a day you’ll remember for the rest of your life 💛 make sure it’s a day that you don’t have to heal from.

Payhip.com/flowercitybirth or click the link in my bio on Instagram terra.blanchard

10/16/2021

Takeaways from this post:

Water in labor = good
Keeping stress hormones low = good
-Stress hormones can slow the labor process so we want to keep those down by relaxing as much as possible
Oxytocin production = good
-oxytocin is what causes your uterus to contract and keep labor moving

Be advised that water can speed labor along, sooo you should probably wait for your midwife to get there before you take a shower or get in the birth pool✌🏻😊 speaking from experience

09/18/2021

Did you know that dilation is not the only way to measure labor? Your body has to go through a number of events to prepare for birth, and dilation isn’t even first on the list. Or second. Which is funny since that’s what so many people focus on when the end is near (myself included).
Swipe through for the steps —->

03/29/2021

Pregnancy is not just the making of a baby, it’s also the making of a mother ❤️ A mother’s body and soul grow and adjust to parent each unique child she carries. During pregnancy, a mother’s and child’s bodies, rhythms, abilities and cues develop together, for example:
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Your baby’s heart is growing into the heart of the child you will raise; meanwhile, your heart is growing into the heart of the mother who will love this unique human being.
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Your baby’s eyes, which are protected by eyelids eight weeks after conception, are becoming eyes that will behold the world as no other eyes have. Meanwhile, your eyes are becoming those of a mother who will see what no other eyes see in this person.
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Your baby’s ears, which can hear your voice perhaps as early as nineteen weeks after conception, will enter the world listening for familiar sounds. Meanwhile, your ears are developing into those of a mother attuned to the unique voice of this child.
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Studying for my childbirth education class and came across this, which I thought was written beautifully ❤️ the body is so cool.

11/09/2020

Sometimes I forget that a lot of people don’t know what a doula is, or if they do, they don’t understand exactly what the role entails. So I’m here to tell you!
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A DOULA DURING PREGNANCY IS
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There to help you create your birth plan and remind you that you have options. Help you understand the birth process so you know what to expect. Teach relaxation and pain management to help you prepare for labor.
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DURING LABOR
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We use a variety of techniques to help with pain, suggest different positions to help guide your baby out and remind you that you have a voice. We do not replace your partner, we help your partner help you!
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DURING POSTPARTUM
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We provide light household duties so you can focus on your new baby. Answer the loads of questions you probably have. Provide breastfeeding support if you need or want it. And lend an ear so you can just talk and process your feelings, because there will be so many! Everyone prepares for the birth, but so many overlook the postpartum process and it’s so important to the beginning of motherhood.
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Virtual services are also available if you’re having a hospital birth with restrictions during COVID.
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Please start this conversation and mention doulas the next time you talk to one of your pregnant friends. Every mama deserves to be taken care of 💛

11/05/2020

Just a little something for you to remember. When it’s getting rough and you feel like you can’t do it. Remind yourself of this. You’re going to look back and be in awe of yourself and your baby. You were made for this.

10/26/2020

If you’ve just had a baby or are about to pop, something I didn’t know until I experienced it myself was that women often feel more emotion between days 3-5 postpartum when their milk comes in. I went to her office for our check up and when she asked how I was I just started to sob. It didn’t make sense; I was SO happy. But man I had so much to process. I felt so raw and just needed to be seen and heard.
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So, just know that you’re not alone in this. Your emotions aren’t wrong. You don’t have to wait until you’re in the shower to cry. And just because you cry doesn’t mean that somethings not right. Sometimes we just need someone to sit and process the experience and cry with us 💛 please let me know if you need this, I would love to be that for you.

Photo cred: on Instagram

10/14/2020

💛

This is the world’s first ever magnetic resonance image showing a mother and child’s bond, thanks to NH Neuro Training. The image is of neuroscientist Rebecca Saxe kissing her two month old son.⁣ Her kiss has caused a chemical reaction in her son's brain which generates a burst of oxytocin - a hormone that generates feelings of attachment and affection - amazing or what?

Touch illuminates the brain! Hold them, kiss them, respond to their needs, massage them, love them, just as your instincts suggest!

10/13/2020

And it all goes back to the key factors that aid in labor progress...
❤️ Feeling loved
❤️ Safe
❤️ Unobserved
❤️ Trusting in the process
・・・
“Sometimes time is all labor needs. The comfort of warm water, the touch of your partner and privacy can do wonders to move you through labor. Her birth team sat in the living room, drank coffee and chatted giving the couple uninterrupted privacy. What seemed like a short time later, dad came into the living room with shock in his eyes “she’s feeling pressure!”. We all smiled and rejoined the couple in welcoming their daughter (surprise gender) roughly 20 minutes later.

📸

10/10/2020

“Never trust you’re fears, they don’t know your strength”. Athena Singh
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Ever since I was a little girl I’ve had a calling. I’ve always known that pregnancy and birth were something that interested me on a different level than anything else. After having my daughter I started my training to become a birth doula so that I could finally step into the community and do what I was called to do.
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I took the training. Two, actually. I researched and studied and met with couples who wanted to hire me. I read books and took notes and watched videos. But when it came down to it, I froze. I let my fear of not being good enough get in my way. So I pushed all of this knowledge to the side, put the books away, stopped learning and shoved the calling I’ve always had back into the closet.
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What I didn’t see coming was a global pandemic during my second pregnancy. One that would risk my partner potentially being with me during the delivery of our baby. One that would cause me to make decisions that I’d always had in the back of my mind but never believed I could do. Other women, yes. Me? No way.
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At 8 months pregnant I switched from a hospital birth to a home birth. That passion I had shoved away for 7 years came back full force. I was nervous but I was ready to see what I could do.
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That experience changed my life from the inside out. I’ve never followed through with anything, but I did what I never thought I could do. I gave birth on the bathroom floor of the home I grew up in. (Supposed to be in a birth pool, oops lol).
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I proved to myself that I could do hard things. I could follow through. I was good enough. I healed the birth trauma that I had with my daughter. I had the birth that I wanted all along. I needed that birth to show me that I could help others do the same.
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7 years later I’m finally ready to step into the birth community again. I’ve taken yet another training. I’ve picked the books back up, started watching the videos again, and I’m ready to work through the fear of not being good enough. I can do hard things and I can help you do hard things, too.
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If you could help me out and pass my name along I would appreciate the love. I have a lot to do behind the scenes still but I’m ready to put myself out there. No tagging necessary, just mentioning me to expecting families that you know would mean more than anything. We can do this together 💛
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Flower City Birth on Facebook
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Flowercitybirth on Instagram

10/09/2020

Welcome 🌻 my name is Terra and I’m a doula 🤰🏼.
Ever since I was a little girl I’ve had a calling to be a part of this world. Birth is something that I feel in my bones, so it is my honor to serve you and be a part of your village as you bring new life into the world.
I realized that being a part of the birth community was something that I HAD to do after I had my daughter in 2011. After experiencing birth trauma I knew I wanted to make sure other families knew that this was not the way their birth story had to end. My goal is to nurture, educate, and empower families so that they can have a birth to remember 💛