Preggie Pals
Pregnancy Exercises: Babywearing and Strollers

Please be advised, this transcription was performed from a company independent of New Mommy Media, LLC. As such, translation was required which may alter the accuracy of the transcription.

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Lisa Druxman : We know exercising while pregnant is important, but working out when you got little ones already can practically seem impossible. So why not make it a family event? Wearing your baby while working out or pushing older children in a stroller provides fitness for mom, and fun for baby. I'm Lisa Druxman, Chief Founding Mom at Stroller Strides, and this is Preggie Pals, episode 43.

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Sunny Gault : Welcome to Preggie Pals, broadcasting from the Birth Education Center of San Diego. I'm your host, Sunny Gault. Thanks to all of our loyal listeners who have joined the Preggie Pals Club. Our members get access to all of our archived episodes, bonus content after each new show, plus special giveaways and discounts. You'll also receive a free subscription to Pregnancy Magazine. You can visit our website for more information and to sign up. And another way for you to stay connected is by downloading our free Preggie Pals app, available in the Android and iTunes marketplace. We'll be right back.

[Theme Music] [Featured Segment: Pregnancy Tips for the Clueless Chick]

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Sunny Gault : Before we begin today's episode, here's Jennifer Durbin, with some pregnancy tips for the clueless chick.

Jennifer Durbin : Hi! I'm Jennifer Durbin, the author of “Pregnancy Tips for the Clueless Chick”, and a mother of two wonderful little boys. I would love to give you all of the info you need to find the right pediatrician. Finding a pediatrician for your little one before he or she is born is an important and daunting task if you don't know where to start or what to ask. Like many of your pregnancy questions, you can benefit from asking for recommendations from friends, co-workers and neighbors; you may also find that your OB or midwife has a list of pediatricians. But first, get a list of pediatricians affiliated with the hospital or birth center where you plan to deliver. Simply check their website or give them a quick call.

It's important that you select a pediatrician prior to delivery, because most doctors would like to see the baby for the first checkup soon after you're discharged from the hospital, and you don't want to be scrambling to find a pediatrician 24 hours after you've delivered. When you're looking for a doctor for your baby, keep in mind that if she is not affiliated with the hospital which you're delivering, she will not be able to admit the baby to that hospital, should complications arrive. It's beneficial to meet with two or three pediatricians, to get a better idea of the different styles of care available. It's very important to find a pediatrician that you're comfortable with. While you can always change doctors, it's important in those first few weeks you feel very comfortable talking with your pediatrician, should anything come up.

Once you've compiled a list of two to three recommended doctors in your area, check their websites to see if they offer a meet the doctor evening, or schedule an individual appointment. Before you venture into their office, remember to think about the questions you want to ask, to ensure that their treatment methods are compatible with your family. When you finally settle on a pediatrician, don't forget to tell them your due day, so they'll be expecting a call from the hospital when the little one arrives. For even more great tips, visit cluelesschick.com.

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[00:03:33]

Sunny Gault : Today we are continuing our series on pregnancy exercises for those of you who already have children. You know how difficult it can be to have time to exercise, so why not work out with your kids? Lisa Druxman is our special expert today, she is the Chief Founding Mom at Stroller Strides, and she also has a special featured segment here on Preggi Pals, called Prenatal Fitness Tips. Lisa, welcome back to Preggie Pals!

Lisa Druxman : Thank you so much Sunny for having me.

Sunny Gault : I have you all to myself today, just you and me in the studio.

Lisa Druxman : I love it!

Sunny Gault : OK, so let's dive in to this. Let's first talk about baby wearing, we'll talk about strollers after the break. How can baby wearing help us in our exercise goals?

Lisa Druxman : It actually can do so much. First of all, it seems like every mom nowadays wears her baby at some point, which is so wonderful. If you've ever seen any of the research on people who wear an exercise vest, have you ever seen those? I always thought it seems kind of crazy, 'cause I've got enough weight carrying my body. But the interesting thing is that you burn significantly more calories when you have that extra weight, that's why people do it. So it's the same thing when you wear your baby. The extra weight will help you burn more calories. So it's really great to do some exercises while wearing the baby, because baby is pretty happy being so close to you, they like the movement, and it's a way for you to get a little bit of workout done.

Sunny Gault : Yeah, I really like the idea. I have to tell you though, I don't know, I might feel a little hesitant at first, just because it's not a weighted vest, it's a living thing. If women are struggling with that, mentally, how do you get over that?

Lisa Druxman : Baby safety has to be the first and most important thing. You have to make sure you're wearing an appropriate baby carrier, where your baby is truly secured. If your baby is not able to hold their head upright yet, there has got to be something where that baby is nice and snug. There are lots of different brands out there, and you want to make sure that you pick one that not only has the support for the baby, but support for you, so maybe some extra patting. Some of them are more sporty models; or, to be honest, I've seen a lot of women do amazing things with the moby wrap, 'cause they can get that baby completely secured against them.

One of the things that I don't like about baby wearing, in general, not just for fitness, is posture. Everything about life pulls us forward, and especially with motherhood, as we're pushing strollers and carrying the baby, and everything brings our body forward, which is poor posture. So whenever you're wearing your baby, button in that belly button, shoulders are retracted and back. If we're going to wear baby, whether it's for exercising or just to wear them around, let's really make sure that baby is secured and that you're posture is nice and strong, because otherwise it's weight on your spine, and weight pulling you forward, which isn't going to be so good for us.

Sunny Gault : OK, and that isn't necessarily dependent on the type of carrier, you're saying all carriers have that potential in there for you to have better posture?

Lisa Druxman : Anytime you're weighting your spine and putting weight in front of you, you have the potential for bad postures. So engage that core, which is what we want anyway, shoulder blades back, and think about being nice, tall and strong. That alone would be good for your body.

Sunny Gault : And what about the size of your baby? When my first born was born, he was over 9 pounds, and he remained in the 90%, probably still to day. Does the weight of your baby have anything to do with whether or not you should pursue baby wearing and exercising?

Lisa Druxman : One of the neath things about working out with your baby – and this actually goes for both the stroller pushing and wearing the baby – is that when your baby is smallest and you're kind of at your weakest, you can gradually increase in strength as they get bigger. So their weight gets heavier and that means the workload gets heavier, and you get stronger. If your baby feels to heavy to be able to do it successfully, than it might not work for you. I have a funny story, when I first started Stroller Strides, I though that a big part of Stroller Strides would also be the baby workout part, actually working out with baby. Until this one mom said, “Lisa, hold Wyeth and try to do an exercise with him!”, and Wyeth was like 25 pounds, and I said, “Alright, we're going to keep babies in the strollers”. So it's certainly baby dependent. But if you start when your baby is young, you should be able to build up the strength and be able to do it well.

Sunny Gault : So I know babies can fit in carriers in different ways, are there certain positions that you shouldn't have your baby in? In general, if you're doing baby wearing?

Lisa Druxman : It depends on the age of your baby and that head stability more than anything. So usually, with the younger babies, we usually keep them facing towards us nice and snug and secure; as they get older, in fact, if you go to our Stroller Strides website, and you go to the exercises, you can see some pictures of me doing some different exercises with the baby, and I'm pretty sure in all of them the baby is facing out, and he loved it, looking around and being able to see everything. So it depends on the age of the baby, and he was certainly a big enough baby that he was fully secure kind of interactive as I was doing the exercises, he thought I was hysterical when I would do a lunge or a squat.

Sunny Gault : My kids make fun of me to, they may be like, “Hey, mom can't even do that lunge”, that may be the funny part for them.

Lisa Druxman : So slow, start small.

Sunny Gault : What are some effective exercises that we could try?

Lisa Druxman : First thing, just walking, obviously, and engaging that core posture. But you can do some strength exercises as well. You can do a squat, again, careful of your positioning, in this one especially. Think about your upper body. You might henge just a little bit at the hips, but you don't want to bend down all the way because then the baby is going is to fall out, so just a slight angle, think about your hips going back in squat. A walking lunge with the baby in the carrier is great, and let me tell you, you will – I would feel that right now – on my lower body, such a great compound exercise, and my guess is you will get some cardio with the strength.

Sunny Gault : That's a good point. So we're talking about just cardio or strength training, or both?

Lisa Druxman : It really does both, if I'm walking or going up the stairs, just the stairs in your house, if you feel like you can't even go out of the house, go up the stairs in your house, just be careful not to trip. I guarantee you that that's going to be cardio, because of that extra weight. But by doing the squat, by doing the lunge, and again, safety first, go slow, make sure baby is secure, you probably need it slow if that's going to be a strength exercise. As long as you feel you can do it completely safely, you can do a wall sit with the baby in the baby carrier. And let me tell you , you will feel it. Again, being really cautious about all of your movements. And strangely enough, I have seen women just take stroller strides classes with one baby on a stroller and another baby in a baby carrier.

Sunny Gault : Wow, that's dedication!

Lisa Druxman : Yeah. Definitely.

Sunny Gault : Can you work on your abs while your baby is in a carrier?

Lisa Druxman : Yes, there are some exercises that I think will be better without the baby in a baby carrier, that we could just do as a baby weight exercise. But again, just by engaging the core while you're holding the baby, I think will be helpful. You can also get on your bottom, and again, as long as baby is secure, and just do almost like a little V-sit, leaning back, that would be great. But certainly you can't do so much as situps or plank, you definitely can't do a plank with a baby in a baby carrier. That would be difficult. But, again, on our website you can see some exercises you could do for core. Honestly, if your baby is that small, you can put your baby on your lap, not in a carrier, and do some crunches and some roll ups and involve that baby. I think that tummy time and playtime on a mat is a great time for a mom to get some core work.

Sunny Gault : That's a really good idea, 'cause you're down there with your baby anyway. I like that. You mentioned that there are some exercises that you can do while holding your baby, maybe not in a baby carrier. But let's talk about that, that's interesting.

Lisa Druxman : Again, depending on the size of the baby and head stability, if you're down on the ground, you can put your baby on your hips and do a hip bridge. So you're down on the ground, baby is on hips, raise your hips all the way up, and then drop down. Baby loves this one, and let me tell you, it gets right on that back side, somehow pregnancy doesn't just end up on my front, it ends up on my back. So a hip bridge is a great one. You can do a baby push up. You're holding the baby above your chest, press up, bring it down. You can do a baby bicep grow, while you are standing, you're holding your baby, bring your baby up, bring it down.

So many different exercises. You can plank over your baby – again, make sure you're safe, you don't want to drop over your baby 'cause you fatigue, that would be quite a failure. But your baby will just love watching you and you're still engaging with them and getting a little bit of a workout. I think as a new mom, sometimes we just throw in the towel, really, like we can't get our workout. It doesn't have to look like a traditional workout, you don't have to go to the gym, and it doesn't have to be 20 minutes, just to get a little something in here, a little something in there, and it will help bring your body back.

Sunny Gault : What about those of us – 'cause I include myself in this list, I actually have a nice piece of equipment in my house, and in my case it is an elliptical, a really nice elliptical, I have absolutely no reason to not use it.

Lisa Druxman : I won't suggest you wear the baby carrier...

Sunny Gault : It was going to be my next question, if we have a bike in our house, a stationary bike or something, can you use those pieces of equipment, or is that just a little too much? 'Cause I have to be honest, I tried it one day.

Lisa Druxman : OK, how did it work?

Sunny Gault : Bad, just 'cause I felt like my body – you know, with an elliptical, you're changing weight all the time, and I just felt like I had no sense of balance.

Lisa Druxman : I probably wouldn't recommend that, your sense of balance is going to be so off, I may be curious to get some comments from some of your listeners, if they've tried it. Honestly, I talk about baby carrying a lot, and I really haven't thought about doing it on a stationary bike. It's one of those things where I think you can, but I probably wouldn't suggest it. Your spine and your body is weighted differently, so I feel better about you doing exercises where it's just your own body weight, and your body can compensate. As soon as we bring in another piece of equipment it concerns me more.

Sunny Gault : That's how I felt when I was doing it, this just feels off, but it was the difference between being on an elliptical and walking, but you're right, it's like another factor, another piece of the equation.

Lisa Druxman : I'm sure there are women out there who have done it, probably done it successfully, but maybe it's not the best thing for your body.

Sunny Gault : I agree. OK, when we come back, we're going to switch gears and we'll talk about how to work out with your stroller. We'll be right back.

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[00:14:18]

Sunny Gault : Welcome back, today we are continuing our series on pregnancy exercises. Today we are talking about baby wearing and stroller workouts. Lisa Druxman is our special expert today, she's Chief Founding Mom of Stroller Strides. So let's talk about strollers, I feel like this is your main area of expertise here, since it relates so much to your business. So how can stroller workouts help us in our exercise course?

Lisa Druxman : I'm going to go back to my own personal story from 11 years ago. I was a new mom, wanted to get back in shape, I needed to get out of the house, and working out with my baby in a stroller was our best hour of the day, for Jacob and for me. I was getting fresh air, I was getting some exercise, and he thought it was hysterical to watch me outside, working out, and him getting some fresh air. I think there are so many benefits. I don't know a single mom who doesn't put her baby in a stroller, at some point, right? So it's a great way for you to get some time for your working out and starting to bring your body back to life. Same thing as we talked about with the baby carrying, as your baby gets bigger, the weight gets havier, the workload gets stronger, so you will burn more calories and you'll get stronger. So there's so many benefits in working out with a stroller, I just love it.

Sunny Gault : Another thing I really like about it too is that it gets you out of the house. We just did an episode for our sister show, Parent Savers, about new mommies feeling isolated. And that happens so much, and this is such a good opportunity to not feel like you have to be away from your baby, but to experience something, to get you out of the house, 'cause even 10-15 minutes walk around the block can do wonders.

Lisa Druxman : It was why I started Stroller Strides, because I was loving the stroller workout, but then I knew nothing about motherhood, and I needed to connect with other moms. So if you have any way to either go to a stroller strides class or just go meet some other moms with your strollers, it is the best way for everybody to get exercise, get out of the house, have some fun with your baby, and to get that support that you need.

Sunny Gault : What type of strollers, without mentioning any brand names, 'cause I know you have at least one in particular, you have some that you prefer. What types of strollers you think are best?

Lisa Druxman : I will say that I think so many baby products are disposable, and what I mean by that is that you have a baby on a swing or something like that, and you're done with it pretty soon. But my strollers lasted me for six years. Not that my six year-old necessarily went into it, but they really can last. First of all, I'm just going to say that when you choose to buy a stroller, make sure it is a product that you have tested out, don't just throw that on the baby list. I see some of these poor women trying to put them together in the parking lot at Stroller Strides, and it's just they need an engineering degree. So make sure it's quick, you can do it with one hand and then it's something durable. As far as types of strollers to work out with, I would definitely recommend a jogging stroller.

Nowadays the strollers are getting so grace, it's almost like you can buy one stroller that does everything for you. Your car seat can attach to it. For Jacob, I think I had three different strollers, for my daughter Rachel, she was a few years younger, we had one stroller. I won't say my brand. That was it, I used it for everything. So I do like the strollers with the revolving wheel, 'cause I think that it's easier to push, otherwise you get that thing where you kind of have to push on the back wheels to turn it. So I like the revolving wheel, but I also like one that locks strait, so if you're a runner and you only want to go for more of a straight run, it is better to be able to lock that wheel.

Sunny Gault : If you already have your stroller, and it's not a jogging stroller, can you still use that? What would be some of the issues you may encounter if you don't have a jogging stroller?

Lisa Druxman : It just depends, if we're talking about an umbrella stroller, I don't really recommend that. We have lots of moms who come to Stroller Strides without a jogging stroller, and it really is OK. It's going to be a little bit harder if you go on any kind of trails or anything that's bumpy, a little harder to turn, so again, it's all about posture, be careful of posture. Whether you are pushing a shopping cart at the market or pushing a stroller, every time you're going to turn or push, tummy first, engage that core, it will protect your spine and will wind up give the look you're looking for.

Sunny Gault : Similar to our conversation about baby wearing, do your kids need to be a certain age? I know they make strollers, but the one that I just got has an area where they can sit when they get to be 5 or 6, you could potentially put a lot of resistance on the stroller.

Lisa Druxman : You definitely could. We usually recommend that people wait until 6 weeks, and it's nothing magic about the baby at 6 weeks, but the doctor hopefully around then has given you your clearance to start a traditional exercise program. It doesn't mean you can't start walking with the stroller sooner than that. I can't give you an exact answer, 'cause it depends on the stroller. Every stroller manufacturer will tell you what their guidelines are.

Sunny Gault : But if you follow that, than you should be fine.

Lisa Druxman : If you follow that, you should be fine. I have those little snuggle head wraps, just to make sure. You just want them snug and secure, fully. Because if you are behind the stroller, you might not be able to see them very well, but you want to make sure that they're in there, comfortably, and that they're not popping around.

Sunny Gault : That's a really good point, are there other, again, without mentioning brand names, are there other accessories that you would recommend for strollers if you are going to be using them as an exercise?

Lisa Druxman : Not necessarily, I think some of them already have kind of a padded harness, to add some padding to the harness, just because you want them to be snug in, comfortable, it's important, you want them to like it, so that it goes well for you. And I think just a little thing that goes around the head to keep them snug in there. I like those fuzzy blankets, those are nice as well. And then the other thing I would recommend as your babies get older and turn into toddlers, it's – I've got lots of moms who say that they can't do a stroller workout because their babies fuss and don't like being in a stroller.

Sunny Gault : That would be my concern too.

Lisa Druxman : I have so many different tricks on that, we could do a whole episode just on that. But one suggestion is – get a little bag of toys that is a special stroller bag toys, you do not want your kids to play with those toys at any other time, and travel toys are great for that, any those little special drawing things, anything like that. It makes something that they actually want to do.

Sunny Gault : 'Cause it's special.

Lisa Druxman : It makes it special only when they're in the stroller.

Sunny Gault : That's nice, I like that. I may have to try that, maybe with more than one two, because one could be upset, the other one could be fine, and sometimes one triggers the other. They're both doing fine and then all of the sudden you've got two crying babies on your head.

Lisa Druxman : Yeah, somebody needs to invent a divider that goes between, for the kids to sit side by side.

Sunny Gault : Can you work out with a double stroller?

Lisa Druxman : Absolutely. I've seen moms push a tripple stroller, even I say, “Wow!”

Sunny Gault : I don't even know what a tripple stroller looks like. A limo version of a stroller?

Lisa Druxman : There's a limo version and then there's a side by side tripple, which you could never go through a doorway.

Sunny Gault : I was just going to say, how will they do that?

Lisa Druxman : It's pretty tough, but they do it. So I congratulate and admire those moms. Amazing moms who are so dedicated and committed.

Sunny Gault : So what areas of the body are utilized with stroller workouts? I think that we first think that it's got to be your legs, 'cause you're walking, right?

Lisa Druxman : It's total body. When you are pushing with good form, your core is engaged, your ties, everything, your arms. So you want to be careful when you are pushing a stroller, shoulders stay back, you don't want to lock up any of your joints, so keep your wrists in neutral alignment, feet and knees facing forward, boobies facing forward, not down. I mean of course you have gravity...

Sunny Gault : Sometimes we can't help that...

Lisa Druxman : Yes, but where we want nipples to be, picture them like headlights. Too much information. Again, engage the core, shoulders back. And thin about your head, there are so many times I want to pull over some mom that I see walking by and be like, “Improve your posture!”, they don't realize that they're completely henge over the stroller, and their head is jadded forward. Can I do a posture exercise with you really quick?

Sunny Gault : Yeah, of course. Because you see how horrible my posture is?

Lisa Druxman : No, me too, we're both doing it. So for all the listeners, you guys all have to do this, this is one of my favorite exercises. Sit up nice and tall – I'm not going to do it 'cause then I would block the microphone – put your hands directly in front of your face, so that your nose just touches it, now promise me you're not going to move that hand. Lock the hand in place. I want you to bring your head all the way back, using the back of your neck muscles, now move your head back without moving your hand. Move your head back, now come back to neutral position. Do you see that you are no longer touching your hand? That is because everybody gets forward head posture. And you think about, when you see little old ladies that are 90 years old, we want to prevent this, we want to prevent the degeneration, so just constantly taking an inventory of your body, from the top to the bottom, head back, shoulders back, abs back.

Sunny Gault : Right. So talking about pushing our stroller, are there other exercises that you do besides just walking with your stroller?

Lisa Druxman : Oh yeah. We get in a total body workout and you can too. As long as you don't care what other people think of you when you do it, which you shouldn't.

Sunny Gault : As a mom, you just need to get over that right away.

Lisa Druxman : A walking stroller lunge is amazing, a stroller squat is great. We have a whole new line of classes called Stroller Bar, because the bar of your stroller is very much like a ballet bar, so almost any exercise you do at a bar you can do with your stroller. You never want to lean on the stroller though, just out of precaution. But you can still do some really great exercises, amazing. And then the other thing is get an exercise tube which costs you 7 bucks.

Sunny Gault : What is that?

Lisa Druxman : An exercise tube? It literally looks like a tube, resistance tube, with handles. And you throw that into your stroller and then you can stand in front of your baby and to biceps or whatever. Literally, you can work any body part with your exercise tube. So what I would suggest is walk or run for a few minutes, and depending on where your territory is, go do some push ups at a table, walk and run for a minute, go do some triceps on a bench, walk or run for a few minutes, do some lunges. And I'm telling you, by the end, you will get an amazing workout. And certainly we've got plenty of workouts on our website that we can share with you guys that way too.

Sunny Gault : What are some of the benefits of exercising with a group and instructor? 'Cause we've been talking about things that I guess theoretically you could do on your own.

Lisa Druxman : Absolutely.

Sunny Gault : But, you know, we're getting out, might as well meet up with other moms and do this together, right?

Lisa Druxman : I think Stroller Strides is growing as fast as it has, and is the force that it is because of that group connection, because moms support each other. And you also don't feel silly doing your lunges by yourself, when you've got 30 women do it with you. But all of our instructors are nationally certified instructors too, specially trained in pre and post natal fitness, and to have someone who's guiding you, you don't realize that your posture is not right, but to have someone who is coaching you and finding out what your goals are and supporting you both in fitness and in motherhood, is pretty empowering. So I would just say that it's inspiring to have a great instructor and some great moms surrounding you.

Sunny Gault : We talked about precautions that you should take when you're wearing your baby, what are some of the precautions that we should take when pushing our babies in a stroller and exercising that way?

Lisa Druxman : We mentioned some of them already, making sure that baby is secure, I'm always going to say baby safety first, but certainly, moms, I think your safety is important too. I would say to wear a safety strap if your stroller has one, that way your stroller can never get away from you. If you're doing any exercises that are stepping away from the stroller like a push up at the table, I always want your stroller locked and I want you to have it just a hands away from you. And I certainly believe that you should never be doing it by a street or we have to worry about a stroller rolling.

As far as safety for stroller form, again, just making sure to lock your joints, not to bend you wrist, that's a really common one, you bend the wrist, like a flexed wrist, and that's where we're going to get some issues. So just making sure that your posture and form is great. I think if you do those things, make sure that you stay hydrated during your workout, make sure your baby's got sun block on, or shade.

Sunny Gault : That's a really good point. 'Cause you're not just protecting yourself, you have to protect your baby.

Lisa Druxman : Absolutely.

Sunny Gault : OK, well Lisa, thank you so much for joining us today.

Lisa Druxman : Thank you Sunny!

Sunny Gault : This conversation continues for members of our Preggie Pals Club. Did you know that one in four moms gets postpartum depression? And that we can help you beat the blues. Learn how exercises like wearing your baby and pushing your stroller can help you overcome that.

[Theme Music] [Featured Segments: Ask the Experts]

[00:27:37]

Sunny Gault : We have a question from one of our listeners, and this question for Dr. Daneshmand, and it's from Jenny, from Missouri. Jenny says, “I am currently pregnant with twins, this is our second pregnancy, I delivered the first child at our home, without any medication, and we'd like to do the same with this pregnancy. This pregnancy is progressing normally, without any problems to date. Is a home birth possible, and how should I approach this with my doctor?” What do you think, Dr. Daneshmand?

Sean Daneshmand : Obviously, discuss it with your doctor, there are many patients that come and see me that – I wouldn't say many, but at least I've had two in the last two years – they came in and said, “You know, we'd really like as much as a natural birth as possible, we're actually looking at midwifes”. Fantastic! I love midwifes. But I'm not a huge fan of home births – and remember, I'm also jaded, we see patients and we're looking for zebras. I think midwifes are just as good as obstetricians, if not better – I hope obstetricians are not listening to this, they're going to hate me. But because it's the experience you build with your health care provider, and also, again, if a patient is low risk, and twins, remember, 60% of twins end up with cesarean section, and 10 to 20% of twins end up with a C-section after the delivery of baby A. And you've got two babies now that you have to think about.

It also depends with the twins, if they are both head down, if baby B is breach, would I recommend that? In about 10 to 30% of the time, that baby may need to be delivered via cesarean section. So at a home birth, I'd be concerned about that, because by the time you get that mom to the hospital, let's say for example the hear rate is down because there is a cord prolapse after rupturing the membranes, because the baby is not head down, sometimes babies can be in transversed positions, than you are taking a risk. The question is how much of a risk are you willing to take? If you're going to have a midwife help you deliver, fantastic, but be at a setting where they can tend to the baby very quickly, either very close to the hospital, or you've got a couple of floors down or up where you've got an anesthesiologist and you can get that mom very quickly into the operating room if needed. Again, a discussion to have with the midwife, with the obstetrician. Personally, twin delivery, I would not recommend at home.

[Theme Music]

Sunny Gault : That wraps up today's show, we appreciate you listening to Preggie Pals. Don't forget to check out our sister show, Parent Savers for parents of newborn, infants and toddlers, and our show the Boob Group for moms who breastfeed their babies. Coming up next week, how do you deal with gender disappointment. This is Preggie Pals, your pregnancy, your way.

[Disclaimer]

This has been a New Mommy Media production. Information and material contained in this episode are presented for educational purposes only. Statements and opinions expressed in this episode are not necessarily those of New Mommy Media and should not be considered facts. Though information in which areas are related to be accurate, it is not intended to replace or substitute for professional, Medical or advisor care and should not be used for diagnosing or treating health care problem or disease or prescribing any medications. If you have questions or concerns regarding your physical or mental health or the health of your baby, please seek assistance from a qualified health care provider.

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