Homeopathy and hippies

It's no joke that up here in the Sierra foothills there are more pot growers and commune-living, yoga-practicing, hemp-wearing, dread-locked hippies than some parts of San Francisco. In fact, I think they all migrated here when they had kids because it was cheaper and they could "live off the land". I have no great mistrust or dislike for this group seeing as I have crossed the dark side after almost 3 years of living here. I now visit their chiropractors, acupuncture specialists, homeopaths, and holistic food and medicine shops. Don't ask about my borderline obsessive eco-habit of stopping in at the bamboo stores and my love of all organic bedding. My credit card tells the tale, monthly.

I just never thought it would happen to me. I'm fairly liberal politically and socially but when it comes to health and lifestyle I was a pretty mainstream consumer before I moved here. And yet, in just 3 short years, I have managed to conquer my fear of chiropractors and eastern medicine so much so that I no longer wish to see an M.D. for any reason. My primary care physician is an osteopath, which suits me perfectly since I am not someone with myriad complaints, just a few aches and pains of the joints on occasion and lo and behold, osteopaths get special training in bones and muscles!

As it turns out, I'm also a big fan of prenatal chiropractors and the wonders my new doctor has worked on this aching, tired body over the past 40 weeks. I was the biggest skeptic ever when it came to chiropractors and had heard all the horror stories of injuries being made worse and how they get you with the return visits but when I found myself on the floor writhing in pain with no relief in sight I desperately put those concerns aside. 5 visits and two weeks later I was pain-free! I kept going in order to keep my pelvis balanced for birth and we'll see how that worked out in hopefully just a few more days.

You may say, what's the big deal about chiropractors and osteopaths? They're still fairly mainstream. And that's true. Plenty of non-hippies utilize their services too. But here's where I break with the center, I am now a convert to homeopathy--that much maligned offshoot of herbal medicine that most people associate with backwoods midwifery and shamans or worse. (By the way, I'm a convert to the midwifery model of care as well but I just don't have access to that with my particular pregnancy health concerns.) So, when Gi got sick last week and I picked it up too I thought it was going to be a minor inconvenience. When it took a turn for the worse and I'm now a sneezy, snotty, congested mess I took matters to the homeopath. Funny enough there's a safe-in-pregnancy herb called Pulsatilla known for doing everything from turning breech babies to ending runny noses. I'm also using Herb Lore's (a local homeopath) Pregnancy Tea Plus Tincture--a concoction of herbs like nettle and raspberry leaf to tone the uterus and prepare for birth as well as to prevent blood loss. The word tincture alone would have had my eyebrows raising and my head shaking 3 years ago had you told me you were using one personally and not just buying one in some dungeons and dragons game online.

It's unlikely, had we not moved here 3 years ago that I would have ever known about these remedies in the first place, so entrenched were we in our belief that physicians cure everything and pharmaceuticals are always safe and more effective. Today, I feel like I have done an about face on the medical community thanks to my hippie friends. I have never enjoyed a greater sense of knowing and power over my own health and body than I do today and for that I thank the hemp gods! Go ahead and call me a hippie. It's not such a weird label to me anymore.

A Blessingway

What it is: A few close friends and family gathered to celebrate a woman's journey into motherhood, a few hours of shared stories, poems, scriptures and rituals meant to help suffuse the mom-to-be with their support, confidence and love, a time to be reflective about the labor and delivery process as well as to calm a mother's fears.

What it is not: A "shower" where the emphasis is on gifts for the mom-to-be and baby, a time for silly and embarrassing baby games, a large gathering of close and not-so close friends and family, typically thrown for first-time moms.

My two aunts, Chrissie and Karen, were the magical hostesses of this event last weekend. They knew I really didn't want a traditional shower again--both because I have all the baby paraphernalia I could ever need and because this time I am facing a more intense labor and delivery experience as I attempt a VBAC (vaginal birth after cesarean) and was hoping for a more meaningful gathering of friends and family. We did our research together and found the idea of a blessingway fit our goals best.

Chrissie hosted the day at her house and 9 of us made a circle of friendship on her living room floor. We began by each lighting a candle and invoking the names of our maternal ancestors as far back as we could remember, to remind us all that birth has been happening for aeons and we are part of a very long lineage of strong women giving birth to their babies.

Then, we each read a poem, quote or passage that held some significance or spoke to some aspect of motherhood, sisterhood or birth which we felt compelled to bring. The very wise words I heard in that room transcended our varied personal backgrounds and ages and they each impacted me in unexpected ways. I have kept those papers and will bind them to bring with me to the hospital for inspiration! 

Next, Chrissie did a lovely job of selecting stones for my labor bracelet, wrapping them in tissue with an inspirational word on each one which was then used by everyone present to "bless" me with. I love that the package of stones I chose was labeled "HOPE", perfect for a gift to myself in this sometimes scary, uncontrollable and mysterious process of birth. We strung the stones together on some silk and tied it off to make a bracelet, another item I am packing in my hospital bag!

And to top it all off, we ended with food and cake and a little belly painting! The girls were more artistic than I could have imagined and my belly looked so beautiful after I didn't want to have to wash it off.

I am so thankful to my aunts for creating this special day for me and to my friends for joining us and bringing their heartfelt words of wisdom and support. I know I will need it all in the upcoming days and during those trying times of labor and I feel so blessed to have such an empowering group of women around me. Thank you all!