And the Winners of the Giveaway are...

Krista Arriagada (Earth Mama Angel Baby eGift certificate), Carrie Lee Farris (Laboring Under an Illusion DVD) and Ginnie Jester (Earth Mama Angel Baby eGift certificate)

Congratulations to you and thank you to all who entered. Winners please contact us to receive your prize!

November Giveaway: 3 Lucky People Will Win!

We're excited to offer another Giveaway this month! Enter to win one of 3 prizes.  Multiple entries per person accepted all month long (see How to Win for full details).

The Prizes

2 lucky winners will each receive a $20 e-gift certificate to Earth Mama Angel Baby, the online source for all natural organic, clinically tested, zero toxin, hospital-recommended products to support mothers and babies through pregnancy, birth, breastfeeding and baby care.  Every Earth Mama Angel Baby product is made with only pure, plant-based, worry-free ingredients.

1 lucky winner will receive a DVD of the documentary film, Laboring Under an Illusion: Mass Media Childbirth vs. The Real Thing, by Vicki Elson, MA, CCE.

This film is a wonderful resource for expectant families, childbirth educators, doulas or birth junkies in general. Challenge your childbirth preconceptions as you watch videos of real births interspersed between mass media's cliched portrayals.

How to Win

Here’s how to win:

Leave a comment on this post or in our Facebook Discussion thread, answering the question: What is/was your #1 reason for choosing natural childbirth?

You may also earn up to 1 extra entry each day for the month of November by doing any of the following:

• Add a photo from your homebirth, a belly shot, or a photo of your NCB baby to our Facebook Fan page (1 additional entry earned per photo per day).
• Post a link to our main site, GivingBirthNaturally.com, on your blog or website (post on our FB page to show us the link or leave a comment here with a link to it)
• Follow us on Twitter

Contest Rules

• The giveaway ends Friday, December 3rd.
• There are no geographical restrictions. This giveaway is open to all.
• The winners will be randomly chosen via Random.org
• The winners will be contacted via email. If any of the winners do not respond within 3 days, a new winner will be selected and notified until all prizes have been awarded.

The winners will be announced on Monday, December 6th both here on the blog and via Facebook. Please bookmark our blog, Like us on Facebook or Follow us on Twitter so you can see if you've won.

Good luck!

Film Review - Laboring Under an Illusion: Mass Media Childbirth vs. The Real Thing

Laboring Under an Illusion: Mass Media Childbirth vs. The Real Thing
Filmmaker: Vicki Elson
50 minutes, $19.95 (orders of 5 of more are $13.95 each) for any use except broadcast
www.birth-media.com


Laboring under an Illusion explores the way in which birth attitudes and expectations are shaped largely through exposure to mainstream media depictions of childbirth. Filmmaker Vicki Elson, anthropologist and childbirth educator, has created a striking documentary contrasting media portrayals of childbirth with real clips and commentary on actual births.


As an educator, I frequently reference how preconceived ideas and birth beliefs subconsciously help or hinder how a birth will progress. The film eloquently provides 50 minutes of supporting material to illustrate that exact point.


I previewed the film alone and then watched it again with my two daughters, ages 7 and 5. As each set of clips were shown, my daughters would shout "fake" at each media-generated depiction of birth, clearly rejecting the concept that birth must progress like it does in the movies. Because of some strong language in the media clips, I recommend previewing it first before deciding to share it with your children.


The film contrasts media-generated portrayals of childbirth from well-known sitcoms such as I Love Lucy, Murphy Brown, Mad About You, Northern Exposure, and Friends, movie clips such as Juno, Coneheads, Knocked Up and Nine Months, as well as more "reality-based" clips from Discovery Health to actual clips of births from films such as Birth as We Know It, The Business of Being Born, and Orgasmic Birth.


At some points in the film, the filmmaker highlights issues raised in the film, such as the fact that some media portrayals are so far-removed from birth reality that babies are born minus umbilical cords. It also contains brief narration from mothers about birth. For the birth-junkie viewer, this additional explanation isn't critical, but it's quite useful for less birth-savvy viewers or use in childbirth education classes.


Laboring Under an Illusion strikes the perfect balance between entertainment and education. It is appropriate for consumers as well as childbirth educators, doulas, midwives and other birth professionals. Invest in a copy available at www.birth-media.com

Guest Post: Popular Drugs Pose Serious Risks When Taken During Pregnancy

My thanks to DrugWatch.com, a comprehensive website database that includes up-to-date information about prescription and over-the-counter medications and potential side effects to aid in the protection of patients and consumers, for this week's guest post:

Popular Drugs Pose Serious Risks When Taken During Pregnancy

According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, approximately one in every 33 babies is born with a birth defect. A disturbing number of these are caused by the use of dangerous medications during pregnancy, and many can be prevented through greater awareness and safer practices.


Throughout the history of modern medicine, a number of popular medications have been linked to serious birth defects and fetal death after they have been on the market for quite some time. Some of the most widely prescribed include thalidomide, a medication used during the mid 1900s as a sedative and antiemetic agent, and Accutane, a medication used since the 1980s to treat severe acne. Clinical studies have shown that even a single dose of these medications taken during pregnancy can result in birth defects.


Many women who have suffered because of these medications have sought legal recourse against drug manufacturers through the use of a Thalidomide or Accutane lawyer. Consumer advocates have argued that in a number of instances, negligent drug companies have hidden or downplayed serious risks posed to pregnant women by their medications.


Even as efforts to protect pregnant women against such dangerous medications have grown, many measures taken by drug companies and the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) have fallen short. In the case of Accutane, even after the FDA required women taking the medication to use two forms of birth control and enroll in a mandatory registry, approximately 120 enrolled women reported pregnancies every year.


Experts around the nation continue to express astonishment and concern over the amount of dangerous drugs used by many pregnant women today. In today's environment of ubiquitous medication use, health care professionals are instructing women to speak with their doctor before taking any new medication, regardless of whether it is available by prescription or over-the-counter. Because even common pain medications such as Aleve and Aspirin can cause harm to a developing baby, patient advocates are warning women to air on the side of caution for their own safety and the safety of their baby.


For more information on drugs that can cause harmful effects during pregnancy, visit DrugWatch.com.

And the Winner of the Spring Giveaway is....

Heather Hannah!

Congratulations Heather, I hope CJ's BUTTer comes in handy once your little one arrives in June.

Thank you to all who entered.  If you didn't win this time around, don't worry, more giveways are coming!

Enter Our Spring Giveaway: Win a Free Assortment of CJ's Natural BUTTer, a Cloth-Friendly Diaper Rash Ointment

We're excited to sponsor another free Spring Giveaway this month! You can even earn extra entries (see How to Enter for full details).


1 lucky winner will receive a free assortment of CJ's BUTTer, a homemade amazing, natural, cloth-friendly diaper rash ointment: a 4 oz jar and 6 additional sampler scents.


CJ's BUTTer can be used to treat:

• ezema
• rashes
• windburn
• dry/chapped skin
• rug burns
• for postpartum relief (dissolve some in the bath for a soothing soak)
• hang nails
• and even as a treatment for smoothing ethnic hair

I cannot recommend this product highly enough!~ My newborn hates (let me reiterate - HATES) diaper changes, but his crying immediately stops when I put on his BUTTer. It is also available in a wide variety of scents - some smell good enough to eat.  It's also available in unscented if your child has super-sensitive skin.


To learn more about CJ's All Natural BUTTer, visit http://www.cjsewingroom.com



HOW TO ENTER:

• Leave a comment here on the blog or on our Facebook Fan page.
• You can earn an extra entry by submitting your natural birth story to our collection.
• You must include some method to contact you should you win: a link to your Facebook page, website, blog, Blogger profile, email, etc. (Email addresses can be removed from your comments for privacy - only I will have access to them in the event you win - just ask for your email to remain private).
• The giveaway ends Friday, April 9th.
• There are no geographical restrictions. This giveaway is open to all.
• The winner will be randomly chosen via randomnumber.org
• The winner will be contacted via email. If the winner does not respond within 3 days, a new winner will be selected and notified.

The winner will be announced on Friday, April 9th both here on the blog and via Facebook. Please bookmark our blog or Fan us on Facebook so you can see if you've won.


Good luck!

It's a BOY~

I'm thrilled to announce the arrival of our first son, Oryn Oliver, via unassisted homebirth, on 3-9-10 at 8:23am after about an hour and a half labor.

He weighed in at a whopping 9lbs 3oz (at 38 weeks exactly!) and was 20 inches long. Daddy, big sisters and I are completely in love - he's very, very precious.

Check back for more pictures and the full birth story. I'd have to put him down to type it all out and I'm not willing to do that just yet ;-)

And the iPhone App Winners Are...

Congratulations to:

Eugenia (Entry #1)
Alexis (Entry #8)
Jenna (Entry #10)

You've each won a free copy of the new iPhone App, Baby's Here to send out birth announcements via your iPhone. Keep an eye out for an email with further details on redeeming your app.

If you didn't win, there will be more giveaways coming up next month, so check back soon.


Thanks to all those who entered.

Giveaway: Win a Free Baby's Here iPhone Birth Announcement App

We're excited to sponsor a free giveaway this month. 3 lucky winners will be chosen to receive a free copy of the Baby's Here iPhone App:


The Baby's Here iPhone app gives you the power to send share your birth announcements through email, Facebook updates, and even Twitter updates with the click of a single button!

HOW TO ENTER:

• Leave a comment here on the blog or on our Facebook Fan page.
• You must include some method to contact you should you win: a link to your Facebook page, website, blog, Blogger profile, email, etc. (Email addresses can be removed from your comments for privacy - only I will have access to them in the event you win).
• Only 1 entry per person.
• The giveaway ends Friday, February 26th.
• There are no geographical restrictions. This giveaway is open to all.
• Winners will be randomly chosen via randomnumber.org
• The winners will be contacted via email within instructions on redeeming their free copy of the iPhone App. If the winner does not respond within 3 days, a new winner will be selected and notified.

The 3 winners will be announced on Friday, February 26th both here on the blog and via Facebook. Please bookmark our blog or Fan us on Facebook so you can return to check for the winners.


Good luck!