Your Body, Your INFORMED Choice
We lovingly called him Dr. Always Wrong. On our first ultrasound visit, he saw that my placenta was covering my cervix, which, had it stayed that way would have ensured a C-section, something that I was simply unavailable for. He told me I had a 50/50 chance of it moving.
I SAID, “GREAT, I’M ALREADY HALFWAY THERE!”
Meanwhile, my midwives had no qualm about the placenta moving. And it did. And I had my son exactly as I wanted to have him - naturally, in a tub, like a merman. (You can see the final result on Chicken Soup for the Soul’s Netflix show, “Being Dad”)
AS A HIGH PERFORMANCE COACH, I SEE DAY IN AND DAY OUT HOW WE ARE SHAPED BY OUR BELIEFS.
Everyone has the ability to shift our perceptions of what’s possible, given the information they choose to share with us. And, the information we choose to accept shapes and sometimes creates our beliefs about what is possible.
The people who raised you, be it your mother or father shaped your perception of the world from infancy. Perhaps they taught you to never question authority, so when someone in a position of perceived importance delivers some information, perhaps you take that information as law.
But that information doesn’t have to be law.
THAT IS A POSSIBILITY, NOT NECESSARILY AN OUTCOME. IT DEPENDS ON HOW YOU PERCEIVE THE INFORMATION.
In my past, I would have taken 50/50 odds as failure. After all, for a straight A student, receiving a 50% percent chance would have already meant failure. I mean, that’s an “F,” right? Yet, what if that “F” is only because had the wrong information?
INFORMATION FORMS OUR BELIEFS. AND OUR BELIEFS FORM OUR CHOICES, MOMENT-BY-MOMENT.
What if instead, you questioned the information before accepting it as the outcome? What if you questioned the source? What if you questioned the source’s beliefs? Because everyone comes with their perceptions and beliefs of what is possible.
It’s your choice to decide what is going to be possible for you and what information you will allow to shape your life. By automatically accepting one opinion, that’s one piece of information. Why not seek more? Especially if you feel like that one piece of information doesn’t align with who you want to be or what you want to do and create in this world?
That’s why I respect the midwives model of care so much, which is why I chose to go with midwives for delivering Declan. In my experience, they give you so much more information to digest than traditional doctors.
AND THE POWER IS IN YOUR HANDS TO DECIDE WHAT IS TRUE AND BEST FOR YOU.
Because they gave me more information throughout my nine months of care, it made me trust my midwives more in the hours of labor. When my midwife recommended breaking my water, it was MY choice. When they recommend I be put on an IV, it was MY choice. When they recommended an episiotomy, it was MY choice.
MY BODY, MY CHOICE, RIGHT?
That’s why I was so honored to have as my guest inside my high performance group coaching program, The Queens Way, my feminine health care provider, former Pilates client, and dear friend, Abigail Reagan.
ABIGAIL IS A LICENSED MIDWIFE, WHO HAS BEEN SUPPORTING WOMEN AND FAMILIES THROUGH THE CHILDBEARING YEAR SINCE 1993.
Her holistic approach to women’s health has led her to additional studies in nutrition, homeopathy, herbology, prenatal exercise, energy medicine, craniosacral therapy, visceral manipulation, the Arvigo Techniques of Maya Abdominal Therapy® and Holistic Pelvic Care™. She is a Certified Arvigo® Practitioner and works with women at all stages in their lives to support healthy menses, fertility, digestion, pregnancy, postpartum, menopause, and beyond. In addition, Abigail is a Certified Arvigo® Self Care Teacher and Doula Trainer. She is currently enrolled in Dr. Aviva Romm’s Herbal Medicine for Women training and studying shamanism with Don Oscar Miro-Quesada.
Abigail is a member of the California Association of Midwives, the Midwives Alliance of North America, the Association of Pre and Perinatal Psychology and Health and the Maya Arvigo International Association.
She is the founder of Rebirth Holistic Women’s Wellness in Pasadena, CA, where she uses an integrated approach of nutrition and lifestyle guidance, manual therapy and personalized care, working with women at all stages in their lives to support healthy menses, fertility, digestion, pregnancy, sexuality, menopause, and beyond.
In our interview we discuss everything from the difference between a doctor and a midwife, natural childbirth tips, periods, pregnancy, IVF, and pretty much everything in between.
Abigail worked with me personally to prepare my body for the birth of my son, offering nutritional guidance, supplement support, and the best salve ever for Braxton hicks and back pain. In my own life she is a godsend to my lady-health and a wealth of information. I am proud to have her as an integral member of my family’s holistic care team, and more so, as a friend.
If you’re looking to get pregnant, starting with the IVF journey, questioning birth control, or are looking for support from a holistic point of view, or know someone who is, then share this video with a women who could use some more information about her feminine health.