Be educated

There are few things in life that annoy me. Ok, I'm lying. There are a lot of things, but nothing annoys me more than someone who doesn't educate themselves. Perhaps I learned early on the importance of educating yourself on a particular subject, be it medical or otherwise, due to my situation with Endometriosis. I remember reading an article on the disease before I had been officially diagnosed and one sentence said it all, "Educate yourself. Doctors don't know everything." And from that moment on I vowed to make sure I knew what I wanted out of situations and to make sure I was knowledgeable and versed in everything that I felt strongly about.

When I found out I was pregnant I immediately started reading and researching breastfeeding. I knew that I wanted to to breastfeed and I was determined to learn everything about it. Thankfully I also have a very close friend who is a BFing guru. She was - still is - an amazing resource, as are the lactation consultants I've spoken with. I try to make educated decisions based on what I've learned, such as no pacifier or bottle before three months to prevent nipple confusion. I also started to research what I wanted out of my birth, which was mostly to avoid a c-section at all costs. That was *my* personal decision, to each his own. BUT, I research HOW to avoid a c-section, so that I knew if I had to have one I had explored and gone down every avenue to keep from having one. I also discovered it was very possible to have an unmedicated birth (even though I didn't) in the hospital with a midwife AND request to have skin to skin contact, for the baby to nurse ASAP & for delayed umbilical cord cutting - all of which we did have!

Recently I discovered a documentary film by Ricki Lake called the Business of Being Born. It opens the eyes of women to the reality of birth and what exactly doctors are after and what, as a mother, YOU should be after. This is what being educated is all about.

Business of Being Born