So I went.
May
04
I was undecided as to whether or not I would go see Ina May Gaskin speak until this morning. I decided to go for it since I would have more regret over not seeing her than if I stayed home and faked like I was studying all day. I am so happy I went. I ran into one of my friends who was walking in alone so we sat together at a table with a few other students/interns and a couple of doulas. We had such a good time at our table early on catching up since I have missed the last few peer review meetings. Our table was buzzing with people stopping by to say hello and giggle with us. A woman who aspires to be a doula (this was her first event in the field) remarked that she felt like she was sitting with all the cool people. My quick witted friend told, “Nah, you’re sitting with everyone likely to get you in trouble!”
Ina May had a Power Point prepared but used it mostly to remind herself of what she wanted to talk about, rather than as something to follow. As she started her first lecture (“the sphincter law”*), at my table we were intently following but would get lost because she has a circular way of making her points. Once we figured it that she has a point to everything and we weren’t there to be tested at the end of it, we really just sat back and enjoyed her stories and ideas. A lot of what she had to say was based on what would seem like common sense. She wondered to us all: Why do we need a scientific study to use our common sense? Good question. She also talked about breastfeeding and told this story of a nurse in California who was tired of the low breastfeeding rates of her hospital at discharge. She linked the low rate to the “necessary” separation of mothers and babies for “assessments” in the nursery. Being clever and knowing the hospital machine rolls by the mechanics of intervention and you can’t just propose a new protocol based on good sense, she devised a new intervention: mandatory attachment assessment. Now following births, the baby had to remain skin to skin with their mothers for at least 30 minutes following birth so they could be observed for “bonding” before the nursery was allowed to take them. Thirty minutes turned into a lot longer once the babies started nursing. One thing led to another and now the hospital has a sky-high breastfeeding rate. (Get that? An intervention invented to intervene on the original intervention… it’s like ALGEBRA!)
I would love to be there tomorrow to listen to the story of how she became a midwife and the early days of The Farm. I would love to go again just to be around all of these women. What a great treat for myself. I am going to miss all of these women so much!
* The sphincter law is referenced in her book, Ina May’s Guide to Childbirth and talks about the “choke” effect of not being able to give birth on demand any easier than we can shit on demand (she said s-h-i-t!).
May 4th, 2007 at 7:20
That attachment assessment is brilliant! That nurse deserves a Nobel Prize! I’m glad you went too – sounds like an incredible day.
May 4th, 2007 at 7:29
Sigh.
I wish I’d breastfed my children. They
all turned out so stupid and unhealthy.
Mother Mary Mom
May 4th, 2007 at 7:40
THANK GOD WE’RE CUTE!
May 5th, 2007 at 4:19
I’m so glad you went. You needed that break – you’ve been doing so much that I’m surprised you haven’t cracked (well, any more than usual). Hopefully this will get you through that last little bit until life gets back to normal (whatever that may be!)
May 7th, 2007 at 8:49
just doing a search for all things related to ina may and sphincter law and came across your site. i enjoyed reading your account from the conference.
i got to hear her talk friday night at the evening talk for parents, etc. she is such an amazing woman.