Conscious Choice Seattle: Champion of Childbirth

January 2005 | Whole Health

Champion of Childbirth

by Andrew Mulholland

It’s not her nature to be negative or pessimistic. But Penny Simkin nonetheless finds it “very depressing” many of today’s expectant mothers are “more passive about turning over care during childbirth to medical providers” who are not hesitant to use epidurals or even cesarean sections as elective procedures.

“Midwifes and natural childbirth [were] embraced more in the 1970s and 1980s,” says Simkin, who has been teaching natural childbirth classes since 1968. “Now the emphasis seems to have veered away from unmedicated births. It’s really strange.”

What bothers Simkin are not strictly the choices women make about having their babies, but the lack of informed decision-making that is part of the process. She is a trained physical therapist dedicated to spreading awareness about the benefits of natural childbirth (check out www.pennysimkin.com). Here are some details of her background and views about one of life’s most intimate acts:

STUDENT BODY: Simkin estimates she has prepared over 8,000 local women, couples, and siblings for childbirth. She has assisted hundreds of women or couples through childbirth as a doula.

PRODUCTIVE: She calls her latest products for birth educators and doulas “The Road Map of Labor.” These include a birth video, “Relaxation, Rhythm, Ritual: The 3 Rs of Childbirth,” and a Birth Sling, an aid to the “dangle” position for second-stage labor. Currently, Simkin sits on several consulting and editorial boards, serving the journal “Birth: Issues in Perinatal Care,” the International Childbirth Education Association, and the Seattle Midwifery School.

THREE Rs: Simkin has created what she calls the “3 Rs” approach to childbirth preparation. She modeled it on real-life experiences of women in labor. Some were overwhelmed by natural childbirth (quickly opting for more conventional methods and accompanying drugs), while other women loved the experience. Simkin says women who flourish in natural childbirth share the “3 Rs” characteristics:

1. These expectant mothers are able to relax during and/or between contractions.

In early labor, relaxation during contractions is a realistic and desirable goal; later in labor, however, many women cope much better if they don’t try to relax during contractions. They feel better if they move or vocalize during the contractions, or even tense parts of their bodies. It is vital, however, that they relax or be calm between contractions.

2. These mothers-to-be use rhythm that characterizes their coping style.

3. They find and use rituals, that is, the repeated use of personally meaningful rhythmic activities with every contraction. While women draw heavily on the coping measures they learned in childbirth class, those who cope well usually do more than that; they discover their own rituals spontaneously in active labor. If disturbed in their ritual or prevented from doing the things they have found to be helpful, laboring women may become upset and stressed.

SAFE TO SOUND: “Women are most likely to find their own coping style when they feel safe and supported, and are free from restrictions on their mobility and their vocal sounds,” says Simkin. She adds it is also positive if the mother is free from disturbances to concentration, such as other people talking to them or doing procedures on them during contractions.

REAL-LIFE RITUALS: Following are some examples of unplanned spontaneous rituals discovered by laboring women:

* One woman felt safe and cared for when her mother brushed her long, straight hair rhythmically during the contractions.

* Another wanted her partner to rub her lower leg lightly up and down in time with her breathing.

* Another, who had rowed crew in high school, used a visualization in conjunction with her breathing pattern: Each breath represented a stroke of her oar, helping her to “glide smoothly” through the contraction.

Andrew Mulholland is a regular contributor to Evergreen Monthly.

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