Labor Day Marks New Day for Moms

Before I gave birth to my daughter in 2010, I was flooded with information about my pregnancy. And then I was flooded with information about my newborn.

There was a missing link between the two: the flood of information regarding childbirth.

I was unaware of the choices I had as a pregnant woman, like so many others it seems. Luckily, Lexington is looking to change that.

Lexington is home to a chapter of Improving Birth, a national organization dedicated to educating and empowering women of their options for childbirth.

Improving Birth focuses on evidence-based maternity care, meaning the highest-quality, most current medical evidence is used in making decisions regarding your childbirth.

This past Labor Day, approximately 400 people filled Triangle Park in downtown Lexington to learn more about their childbirth options and to show support for evidence-based maternity care.

Families met midwives, doulas, diaper services, prenatal chiropractors and many more businesses in the two-hour event.

Baby Bump, Lexington Family Magazine’s maternity web site and annual maternity guide, had a booth at the rally, so I was able to meet plenty of parents, grandparents and professionals.

Some traveled from hours away to attend.

Many had a disappointing birth story to share, but just as many were unaware that they actually had a choice in their maternity care.

If you drove past Rupp Arena on Sept. 2, you might have seen a sign or two from rally participants.

The signs had messages like “I’m Improving Birth for my daughters,” and “I should be informed of my choices.”

My personal favorite sign (held by a dad): “I’m Improving Birth because I Like Making Babies.”

As a mother planning for more children one day, it is encouraging to see this culture shift in my city.

Moms are learning that they have control in their labor experience, and they have access to the evidence to support their birth wishes.

Whatever your reason for improving birth, Kentucky families now know, without a doubt, that they are not alone in their desire for better care.

Women are literally taking to the streets to demand change, and I look forward to witnessing and participating in that change.

Because if you’ve ever heard a real-live laboring woman, you should know that we can roar.

Watch Baby Bump Editor Katie Saltz on ABC36 News@Noon on the first Thursday of each month. She shares her favorite products and resources for parents and babies, and always has giveaway prizes for viewers!