The Purple Line and Dilation

Avoiding interventions, such as vaginal checks can help decrease your chances of getting a c-section. Being hands-off can help a women in labor. However, many doctors want to know how far a woman has dilated. There are other things that are important too, the cervix moves forward, the cervix effaces (thins), the cervix softens, the baby rotates, and the baby descends (moves down the stations).

Check the Purple Line
Vaginal checks aren't without error and they can inhibit labor. Midwives have found that the purple or red line can also accurately predict how far a woman has dilated. Here is some more information about checking dilation via the purple line.

• Birth Without Fear  (contains NSFW images)
• Melbourne Doula
• Science and Sensibility (contains NSFW images)

Measure the Space Between the Fundus and Zyphoid Bone 

• Birth Unplugged

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Tender Embrace Birthing offers childbirth, breastfeeding, and newborn care classes and support.

Recommended C-Section and VBAC Books

There are so many books out there that it's easy to get overwhelmed. Here are some books that consistently get good reviews. The Book Depository has free shipping to Korea. What the Book in Itaewon can get most books for you. Amazon might be a good option if you have someone coming to visit or can buy the Kindle version of the book. The descriptions are based off of Amazon's descriptions.

If you're trying to have a VBAC in Korea, you should read this post for more information. 


The Caesarean
Written by Michel Odent

A leader among the birthing community, Michel Odent has written an eye-opening book about c-sections. Once used in real life-or-death situations, c-sections are now the most common surgery performed in the USA. Odent discusses issues such as why forceps are still used, microbes during a c-section, how to breastfeed, and if mother and baby miss out by not having a vaginal birth.  You can buy it off Amazon or the Book Depository.



Cut, Stapled, and Mended: When One Woman Reclaimed Her Body and Gave Birth on Her Own Terms After a Cesarean
Written by Roxanna Rosewood

"It doesn't matter how the baby is born as long as you're both healthy," is what many woman are told. This memoir is a must-read for any woman who has had a c-section. You can buy it from Amazon or the Book Depository.



Ina May's Guide to Childbirth
Written by Ina May Gaskin

Ina May is the nation's leading midwife. Known for her work on The Farm, a natural birthing community, Ina May tells you everything you need to know about birthing, such as what happens during labor, how to induce labor, episiotomies, anesthesia, c-sections, postpartum depression, how to choose a place to birth, and more. This book was written to empower women and allow them to birth easily with less pain and little interventions. You can buy it off Amazon or the Book Depository.



Silent Knife: Cesarean Prevention and Vaginal Birth after Cesarean (VBAC)
Written by Lois J. Estner and Nancy Wainer Cohen

Referred to as the bible of cesarean prevention by the Wall Street Journal, this book will help parents make an informed decision if they are weighing the pros and cons of a VBAC. You can buy it off Amazon or the Book Depository.



The VBAC Companion: The Expectant Mother's Guide to a Vaginal Birth After Cesarean. 
Written by Diane Korte

Although the c-section rate is dropping in the USA, it's still high. About 1 in 3 women will end up with a c-section and more often than not it's not necessary. This book details the risks and benefits of a VBAC and helps you go about finding a VBAC-friendly doctor to help you get the birth you want. You can buy it off Amazon or the Book Depository.



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Tender Embrace Birthing offers childbirth, breastfeeding, and newborn care classes and support.

Visual Guide to Cervical Dilation

Most people know that at 10 cm a woman is usually told to start pushing. You can actually push before that, whenever you feel like it. Most people don't know exactly how big 10 cm is. Here are two charts I found showing you what dilation looks like.  

From Facebook

From Baby Center

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Tender Embrace Birthing offers childbirth, breastfeeding, and newborn care classes and support.

Recommended Fertility and Infertility Books

There are so many books out there that it's easy to get overwhelmed. Here are some books that consistently get good reviews. The Book Depository has free shipping to Korea. What the Book in Itaewon can get most books for you. Amazon might be a good option if you have someone coming to visit or can buy the Kindle version of the book. The descriptions are based off of Amazon's descriptions.


It Starts with the Egg: How the Science of Egg Quality Can Help You Get Pregnant Naturally, Prevent Miscarriage, and Improve Your Odds in IVF
Written by Rebecca Fett

Research has shown that age-related infertility, recurrent miscarriage, infertility in PCOS, and failed IVF cycles all come back to the egg. This book contains information on how to improve the quality of your eggs. It tells you how to minimize your exposure to toxins, eat healthy, and which supplements you should be taking. You can buy it on Amazon and the Book Depository.



The Impatient Woman's Guide to Getting Pregnant
Written by Jean M. Twenge Ph.D.

This book is a complete guide to getting pregnant. There's a lot less to worry about that we though. The author shares information about how to prepare for getting pregnant and how to deal with a miscarriage. She also covers how to know when you're ovulating, maximizing your chances of getting pregnant, and how to increase the odds of having a boy or girl. You can buy it from Amazon or the Book Depository.




The Infertility Cure: The Ancient Chinese Wellness Program for Getting Pregnant and Having Healthy Babies
Written by Randine Lewis

Instead of new technology, this book tells us to look bad at tradition ways of getting pregnant. There are Chinese medicines that can help overcome fertility. You can buy it on Amazon or the Book Depository.



Making Babies: A Proven 3-Month Program for Maximum Fertility
Written by Sami S. David and Jill Blakeway


Lifestyle choices rather than surgical, chemical, and technological intervention is what this book proposes. From taking cough medicine, to getting acupuncture, and decreasing doses of fertility drugs, this book helps you learn how to get pregnant. You can buy it at Amazon or the Book Depository.




Taking Charge of Your Fertility, 10th Anniversary Edition: The Definitive Guide to Natural Birth Control, Pregnancy Achievement, and Reproductive Health
Written by Toni Weschler

This book has helped hundreds of thousands of women. It contains information about fertility technologies and natural approaches to conception. There are answers to questions that women have about not being able to get pregnant. The author uses the Fertility Awareness Method that will allow you to take charge of your own fertility. It's a #1 Best Seller in Fertility on Amazon. You can also buy it from the Book Depository.



Unsung Lullabies: Understanding and Coping with Infertility
Written by Dr. Martha Diamond, Dr. Janet Jaffe, and Dr. David Diamond

This book focuses on getting over their sense of helplessness and isolation that comes with infertility. It helps them mourn their loses of infertility and move on. You can buy it on Amazon or the Book Depository.


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Tender Embrace Birthing offers childbirth, breastfeeding, and newborn care classes and support.

Seeding a Baby's Microbiome

Midwife Thinking has an interesting article about human microbiomes and they discuss the differences between vaginal births vs. C-sections and breastfeeding vs. formula feeding.  The comments are definitely worth reading as well. The New York Times has a much shorter article about how microbiomes can be seeded before birth.


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Tender Embrace Birthing offers childbirth, breastfeeding, and newborn care classes and support.