Hand in Hand Midwives

11/10/2025

The Birthing Pool Test by Michel Odent
When a woman enters the pool in hard labor, there is an immediate pain relief, and therefore an immediate reduction in the levels of stress hormones. Since stress hormones and oxytocin are antagonistic, the main short-term response is usually a peak of oxytocin and therefore a spectacular progress in the dilation.
https://f.mtr.cool/kmrqlywqli

23/09/2025

An incredible new study found that pregnant women who consume just 6 dates a day in the 4 weeks leading up to their due date were 74% more dilated upon their arrival to the hospital, had a 77% shorter first stage of labor and a 42% lower rate of caesarean sections.

Eating dates in the late stages of pregnancy lead to higher cervical dilation upon hospital admission because the fruit contains nutrients that influence oxytocin receptors, preparing the cervix and uterus for labor by increasing muscle response to oxytocin and other labor-supporting hormones. Dates are a rich source of energy from natural sugars and fats and also contain prostaglandins, which contribute to cervical ripening. Additionally, they provide serotonin, calcium, and tannins, which contribute to powerful uterine contractions.

Eating dates in the late stages of pregnancy shortens the first stage of labor due to their ability to stimulate the production of prostaglandins, which promote cervical ripening (softening and thinning of the cervix) and increase uterine contractions. Dates also contain tannins, which have a similar effect, and provide a natural sugar source for energy during labor. Some studies even suggest that dates can increase uterine sensitivity to oxytocin, leading to more effective contractions and a quicker and smoother labor process.

These actions are also the exact reason why women who eat dates in the late stages of pregnancy and far less likely to need a c-section!

The most common recommendation is for women to begin eating 6 dates a day starting in their 37th week of pregnancy.
PMID: 40322306, 21280989

SEE ALSO: https://www.pelvicphysio.co.nz/the-sweet-secret-to-a-smoother-labour-dates

27/08/2025

I am now officially on holidays and will be away without my phone for a month.
I have availability from April onwards.
Look forward to feeling rested and fresh on my return. ⭐️🌞

13/08/2025

NOT A GAS TANK
Your baby is not a car. The goal is not to put gas in the tank to see how far it can go between top ups. It’s to teach a tiny human to listen to their body and it’s caloric and hydration needs from an early age to help them grow and develop. This is FEEDING. How you feed is different than how I feed. How your family feeds is unique and not how my family feeds. From what we eat, to how often we eat, to when we eat it’s such an individual process!! Some adults are grazers. They like to snack on small meals all day. They sip water throughout the day and always have a water bottle handy. Some babies are like this, too. Some adults are bingers. They eat really big meals less often. They only drink water in big glasses around meal times. Some babies are like this, too. And there’s everything in between. The goal is not to reach some magic number of ounces in a limited number of feedings because an internet blog said baby needed x number or ounces in 4 feedings a day. That can cause undo stress for both parents and child. The goal is to learn your unique baby’s feeding habits and help them foster those habits within your family context as they grow and develop into a bigger and bigger human.

17/06/2025

This gave me a laugh 😂

09/06/2025

This definitely is much needed research. Women really need to be given all information and the actual statistics to enable an informed decision re routine induction for postdates.

Judith Gardiner https://doi.org/10.1111/aogs.15151

07/06/2025

08/05/2025

You’ve got the basics. A growing baby, a body literally built for birth, and the right people who’ve got your back.
But birth isn’t just about the physical. In my opinion,
That’s 5% of it.
The other 95%? That’s the mental game.
Birth is belief.
It’s unlearning everything the world told you about pain and chaos and danger and failure.
It’s dismantling fear, rewriting the story, and coming home to your power.
Birth is not something to endure or be rescued from, it’s something to rise into, to claim as your own.
It’s exhilarating.
It’s sacred.
It’s you meeting you in your rawest, most instinctual, most profound form. And navigating waves to bring your most longed for child into this earthly realm.
The work starts long before the contractions do.
It starts before you've even conceived, when you begin questioning.
When you start listening inward. When you *manifest* and create the birth you deserve
When you begin to remember that you were made for this.
This is the birth prep that no hospital bag can hold.
This is the magic that changes everything and the key to sacred, positive, dream births 🤍

DM me to connect and get my top tips on manifesting and planning your dream birth

05/05/2025

This says it all…..