While teaching preschool children in Nieu Bethesda - a small village in the eastern cape of South Africa - the local teachers gave me the nickname of Thembeka. In the South African dialect, Xhosa, Thembeka (tem-bek-uh) means "trust on you." I hold the name and the meaning close, in my work as a doula and throughout my life...

Check out my website for upcoming Healthy Childbirth Classes through BellyWise.

Friday, January 21, 2011

postpartum hemorrhage

Two weeks after my son was born, I suffered a severe hemorrhage that was unexpected and incredibly scary. Thankfully we went to the hospital where I received the necessary treatment to fix the problem. Every year, more than 500,000 women around the world die from pregnancy-related complications - many of them due to postpartum hemmorhage. These lifewraps work to stabilize a woman until she can receive whatever treatment she needs. What a difference they can make, especially in the developing world. I love them and hope to learn how to use them in the near future.