Wearing your baby

My introduction to baby wearing was in my early 20's when I meet a friend of a friend in a market. She was wearing her baby wrapped up in a sling. I could just glimpse his head tucked against her chest. I loved what I saw, it looked so right to me. Although I was far from needing to know all about it I wanted to know how she had tied him so snugly to her. Not long after this meeting the first of my friends had a baby. As a gift I made her one of the slings I had seen that day in the market. It became my standard gift as more of my friends had children. It wasn't until 8 or so years later when I was to have my child that I learnt the reasons why you wear your baby.

The Continuum Concept written by Jean Liedloff talks about our innate expectations at birth formed over a long evolutionary process of thousands of years. One of those innate expectations is close and constant contact with our primary caregiver initially, then any family members or friends from birth to crawling. This stage has been aptly named 'The In-Arms Phase' which happens from birth to 6-8months.

It has only been in the last 100 or so years that we have moved away from this evolutionary practice of carrying our babies to more 'convenient' separateness of placing a baby in a cot, car seat or the floor. This practice denies the baby it's expectation of closeness, warmth, smell, sounds of mum's breathing and heartbeat and constant movement that he/she has experienced for the last 9 months.

Wearing your baby is simply a continuation of the womb. In our evolutionary process we as humans have had to be born earlier and earlier due to the increased size of our brains. Our bodies have not had time to develop in the womb which is why we can't walk soon after being born as most other mammals can. For this reason carrying a baby constantly in a sling has only benefits for their physical development. Babies do not need to kick on the floor to grow strong enough or practice movements towards crawling. They know innately how to crawl they simply need time and strength (that can be gained through being worn) to do it.

Wearing your baby in a sling or other ergonomic device as constantly as possible during the in-arms phase of his/her life meets a baby's innate evolutionary expectations, therefore helping them to feel secure, develop their self esteem and become independent. Yes meeting a babies expectations of constant physical contact during the in-arms phase (among other innate expectations such as being breastfed on demand) actually helps little humans to become more independent. This makes sense when you understand that a secure, confident baby naturally seeks their independence as they grow. Meeting a babies needs in the present moment meets their expectations. It does not spoil them!

There are many more benefits to wearing your baby. These include:

The physical strength your baby (and you) gains from being carried in a safe, ergonomic way. A baby's legs are often straddled with the thighs or even whole legs fully supported by the sling. The support along with constant movement helps to strengthen the baby's joints.

Babies who are worn have less digestive problems and rarely experience colic or reflux. The upright position and constant jostling help the digestive system through an indirect stomach massage.

A baby in a sling is able to closely observe and be a part of the life of his/her carrier. This is how a baby learns about the world. They disperse their energy through their carrier and are stimulated by the everyday routines of this person.

There are also many benefits for the person wearing the baby, often the mother initially. In some cultures a woman who has recently given birth wraps her torso to support her internal organs in gently finding their correct place again (having been moved and squashed by the presence of the baby). Wearing your baby in a wrap around sling has this added benefit.

It also allows you the freedom to do chores and go where you wish knowing that your baby is happy and secure and can sleep when he/she wants to. Your baby has slept when he/she wants to for 9 months in your womb and does not need (or want) a quiet, still bed in which to sleep.

Fathers and other family members are able to experience the intimate closeness to their new love that wearing a baby offers.

Families who practice Elimination Communication find that wearing a baby makes it very easy to pick up on their need to pee or poo. They quickly learn that the sling is their little nest and do not wish to eliminate in it. They often squirm and do what ever else they can to be let out to eliminate in an appropriate place.

There are many types of babywearing devices available. Here are some of my favourites and more that I am not so familiar with. Please note that the popular 'front pack' (there are a number of brands) does not support your baby's thighs therefore the baby's legs hang and all the weight is on their spine. This is not ideal and I don't recommend a front pack for this reason. I also don't recommend wearing your baby in a outward facing direction. This goes against the natural curvature of their spine and again is not ideal.

Wrap around slings: There are a number of brands out there or you can make your own! You don't even need a sewing machine unless you want to get fancy. For a young baby you can use cotton lycra, 50cm wide and 4.2 metres long (longer if you are big). As your baby gets heavy this type of sling is not ideal. For the first couple of months it's great.

The other option that will also take you through to carrying your baby as a toddler is a tight knit cotton with 'give' but no stretch. Make this one 65cm wide (in order to be able to wear your baby on your back when they are strong enough) and 4.2 metres long (longer if necessary). Depending on the type of material you use it may need hemming or overlocking.

Otherwise there are heaps of wrap around slings on the market. My favourite is the Girasol. Contact Irma Jager at intune@clear.net.nz as she is the NZ importer of these beautiful slings and see http://www.peppermint.com/ for wearing instructions and more great information on baby wearing. This site has heaps of different types of slings that I won't talk about here.

Another good baby wearing device is the ERGO. For information and purchase within New Zealand is http://www.junglemama.co.nz/

As well as the website links in this post - one that will lead you to La Leche League International site! The following book on baby wearing looks interesting. Click on it to read a review. Babywearing: The benefits and beauty of this ancient tradition

Recently (early 2010) there has been talk in the media of the 'dangers' of slings. The hype was quite unsubstantiated but some good points about safe baby wearing has come out of it. www.slingbabies.co.nz a great New Zealand, not for profit educational website has an article on safe babywearing that is worth a read. It also has really good information on wearing, benefits, history, the philosophy of baby wearing and more article - one for Dads.

ENJOY THE WONDERFUL EXPERIENCE OF CARRYING YOUR BABY DURING HIS/HER IN-ARMS PHASE!

Sustainability and Midwifery

In response to Sarah's comments on my 'Raising a nappy free baby' post I just want to write down a few ideas on sustainability and the midwifery profession from my point of view.

I think the most sustainable thing the midwifery profession can do is to encourage women to birth at home. This way there are far fewer resources being used than in the hospital system, there is a greater chance of a natural birth free from interventions such as induction, epidurals, pain relief drugs that get through to the baby and cesarean sections, more chance of immediate and prolonged skin to skin contact and less stress created by being in a familiar environment.

This is coming from someone who had a prolapsed umbilical cord during the homebirth of my son! With no warning it was about to occur, I was grateful that I had just reached second stage and my son was born alive after an episiotomy without anesthetic and 12 minutes of the hardest most painful work I have done! I will have another homebirth as I am quite aware that this was a very rare event and I am scared to think what might have been attempted had I been in the hospital. No intervention could have happened as quickly as I birthed my son.

A bit side tracked there, but I did want to show that it still possible to have rare and very unwanted things happen during a homebirth and still have the ability to deal with it successfully. I could have had anesthetic for the episiotomy, but wasn't willing to waste the time with it!

In order for more women to have natural births with no intervention a midwife can be proactive in informing a pregnant woman on the ways to help their baby present in the best position, be healthy and strong through diet and appropriate exercise, decrease stress in their lives, prepare physically and psychologically themselves and with family members. Preparing a pregnant woman for a positive, intervention free labour and birth is the most sustainable thing a midwife can do. The hospital is always there as a back up. There are risks in labour and birth, but they are no higher than the risks we take going out into the world every day.

Post birth there are many things that a midwife can advise and encourage. I biggest barrier for midwives is the minimal 6 weeks post birth they have with mother, baby and family. Consistency of care for a longer period would enable midwives to support women to breastfeed for longer, make decisions about caring for and raising their babies. I would push for ongoing care for up to a year! This is an issue at the national health system level. At least until this happens (we can advocate for it and hope for the best) a midwife would improve the social sustainability of their profession with greater handover to a well-child network provider, make links for the family with a La Leche League (LLL) Leader and other open and holistic parents support groups such as the Dunedin Conscious Parenting group.

Aspects of raising a baby that I consider to be more sustainable (most are social, though there are definitely elements of environmental and economic sustainability):

- Wearing your baby in a sling, or another ergonomic device that holds the baby safely against mum or any other family member. Frontpacks do not support the baby's hips and spine. The baby must be supported under the full length of his/her thigh when being carried. Countries where babies are carried in this way do not have congenital hip problems.

- Raise your baby without the use of nappies (see my previous post), or use cloth nappies as a back up. Natural Infant Hygiene (nappy free) even part time with the use of cloth nappies as a back up is far more sustainable environmentally and has huge benefits socially.

- Co-sleep safely. More parents in the world sleep with their babies than those who don't. It can be done safely and has been shown to be most effective in the initiation and continuation of breastfeeding.

- Breastfeed. Breast is definitely best. For 2 years and beyond - World Health Organisation recommendation. Unfortunately the NZ health system recommend only 1! It is my opinion that midwives need more training in helping a mother to breastfeed and picking up on problems early. In reality a midwife needs to be a lactation consultant if NZ is to improve our breastfeeding rates. So often women stop breastfeeding before or shortly after 6 weeks (when their midwife no longer supports them). I don't think that one paper on lactation in a midwifery course is enough. Either that or midwives need to have a stronger connections to LLL or a lactation consultant.

-Let your baby lead the weaning process. Baby-lead weaning is a great way to introduce solids. This does not mean you wean your baby from your breast milk! (it's not a great term in that respect!).

-Families need to make informed decisions about vaccinations! Forget your own opinion and offer families information from both sides of the debate. Vitamin K is not a simple vitamin, it's a vaccine! It is possible that the rate of childhood cancer caused by the Vitamin K injection is as high if not higher than the risk of hemophilia that the vaccine is made to prevent!  I was never told this and presumed it was a simple vitamin.

-Encourage families to question the way they treat their babies and children. What messages are we sending our children through our language and actions? Exactly why are we praising them? How do we discipline them with love? Is discipline really necessary? There are some fantastic websites on alternative ways of parenting.

-Controlled crying is not a compassionate way to treat our babies. Babies wake often, they're meant to. It stimulates their growing brains, gives them the chance to breastfeed, be comforted and feel secure. Parents force their babies to sleep through the night for their own sake, not the babies. It would have been great to be blessed with a 'sleeper'. Alas I haven't been. We have tried many things to help our son to sleep through the night, but never have we left him alone to cry. Not even for a minute. That would just be teaching him that we are not going to respond to him when he needs it most. He will learn that we can't be trusted to meet his needs. No thanks! I'll continue my gentle attempts to help him to sleep through the night and endure the sleep deprivation! Some mothers claim that they will be better mothers if they could sleep through the night. I think they mean they'd be better housewives. What does your little baby care if you lie around with them all day and sleep when they do! This has been a great book for me: Gethin, Anni & Macgregor, Beth. (2007?) Helping your baby to sleep: Why gentle techniques work best. Finch Publishing.

I'm sure there are many more ways that midwives can operate and practice sustainably. Please feel free to add your suggestions in a comment. Now speaking of sleep! See ya.

Raising a Nappy Free Baby, Natural Infant Hygiene, Elimination Communication or Infant Potty Training

You can now find this article at http://wearingyourbaby.co.nz/elimination-communication/

My current tasks at EDC

Hi all

Things are pretty busy at the moment.  Here is a brief list of what I'm up to:

- Preparing Sustainable practice 1 for it's first class in Term 2

- Developing a workshop for the Staff Development conference on integrating sustainable practice into teaching

- Organising the panel discussion on sustainability in the Polytechnic for the same conference

- Collating a spread sheet of requests for help with Sustainable practice integration into programmes and planning how I (and others if necessary) can meet these requests.

- still chipping away at ideas on Maori and sustainability

Cheers.  anna :)

Otago Polytechnic Staff Development conference ideas

From the committee meeting on Wednesday we have agreed to a key note speech from Sam Mann and a panel discussion on sustainable practice issues.

One of the points of discussion was around including general/admin staff in the key note speech. Sam you may have a good idea what to include in your speech to ensure this. Mark Jackson maybe able to advise and as the Sustainable Management Group won't be meeting before this time input from others maybe helpful to Sam.

Following on from this the panel discussion must also include general/admin staff. Mark Jackson is probably best placed to do this. Barry (if he agrees) and I will speak together r.e. integrating sustainable practice into teaching. I have approached Maureen Howard (DCC Sustainable Living programme and Sustainable Dunedin City, Education person) to speak as an outside voice on the OP Sustainability objectives and how they fit into the sustainability in the Dunedin community or something like that. I'd also like to find a student who would talk about sustainability throughout the Polytechnic from their perspective.

Perhaps Sam could also sit on the panel to have input into the answers to any questions, though he would not speak on the panel as he would have just spoken for an hour?

Half day workshops:
- I have proposed to Barry that he and I run a half day workshop (2 1/2 hrs) for academic staff on integrating sustainable practice into teaching. I propose that this includes staff bringing their course outlines, ideas and any resources that already have for Barry and I to work with them individually as well as collectively to get them going on the right track.

- Another half day workshop could be run by Mark Jackson specifically for general/admin staff on operations, including supply chains, department events, admin resources, sourcing, induction etc.

I'd really appreciate feedback on these ideas, including what needs to be or could be covered by Sam in his key note and each panel presenter. If anyone can think of a student who would be suitable that would be helpful. Thanks. Anna :)

Eco-action Design and Build

I'm excited about finally making the time to post on Lawrence and Antje's Little Greenie at their Golden Bay Hideaway.

The red and green native grasses in this photo will eventually merge to create a lawn that only needs mowing once a year! Oh and you can see the website for better photos!!

This summer Lawrence and Antje finished building the Little Green and we were lucky enough to be there to prepare it for it's first visitors. Eco-action design and build is Lawrence's company. The name came about as Lawrence wanted to let people know that what he is doing in his design and building is considering the environment and actioning his considerations! He is not just talking about designing and building environmentally sensible dwellings, but he is actually doing - all of it himself, with the help of a few friends.

Some of Lawrence's philosophy includes a modest size and a simple design in order to focus on the important things, such as low energy requirements through excellent insulation and low energy lights and appliances powered by solar energy and a passive solar design. Other features of importance to Lawrence in creating dwellings for a sustainable now include long lasting materials, low maintenance, composting toilet, simple open plan, easy to clean.

Lawrence and Antje's website www.goldenbayhideaway.co.nz has huge amounts of information on the design and construction of the Little Greenie. Lawrence is happy to share more information in person when you come to stay in the Wee Greenie, which is very reasonably priced for luxury accommodation in an amazing environment. Specifically priced to be accessible to more people! In Lawrence and Antje's style!

Perhaps competitors in this years SHaC competition run by Otago Polytechnic could get some tips from Lawrence!

What I'm up to in the Educational Development Centre

Busy, busy. Hence why I haven't posted for a while. What I've got going on at the moment includes the following:
- Development of the Sustainable Practice 1 course for delivery to the Tourism and Travel Yr 2's in Term 2.
- Applying for academic approval of the Education for Sustainability staff development course.
- Development of a lecture and tutorial on sustainability issues for Ko Te Tai Ao - Natural World paper
- On going involvement in the Otago Polytechnic Sustainability Management Group.

When time allows I am attempting to
- develop something on Maori and sustainability
- work with Heather Day on integrating sustainability into the Graduation Certificate in Tertiary Teaching and Learning
- work with Barry Law in supporting departments in integrating sustainability into their curriculum and teaching. Possibly including a resource book for all staff to access resources for teaching sustainability.
- Supporting any lecturers who approach me for help on teaching sustainability.

Cheers, Anna :)