Birth with Grace Doula Care

How do you feed your babe?!

Let’s talk about the uterus. Normally, it’s the size of an orange, but during pregnancy this organ increases more than 500 times, to the size of a watermelon...! After birth, it takes around six weeks to contract back to the original size. It is also the only organ that can create another organ inside of it. (the placenta!) So how does the uterus work during labor? The uterus has two main layers of muscles, one layer running up and down the uterus, and second layer wrapped around the baby horizontally. During pregnancy, the layer of muscles wrapped around the baby keep the cervix closed. When labor begins, those horizontal muscles relax, while the muscles running up and down the uterus begin to contract upwards, pulling the cervix open. All muscles in our bodies are designed to contract (shorten), then return to the same size and shape they were when they relax. This is not true of the uterus. In the uterus, the muscles contract (shorten) and relax, but they don’t return to the same size. After each contraction the muscles are shorter and thicker. Towards the end of labor, the outer layer of muscles running up and down the uterus are bunched up at the top. When the cervix is fully dilated, this bunch of muscles pushes the baby down out of the uterus, through the cervix and out of the vagina.

Such a goddess!!!

I’m in a houseplant group and some woman just posted this! She waters her plants with a peri bottle! #usethatbottleforeverything