AP and Birthing

[harmonicker]

Attachment Parenting International (API) wants everyone to be sure to research your choices and options when it comes to birthing. This is very important to know that you have choices in child birthing and do not have to by railed into choices that do not feel right for your family.

Hospital or home birth API does not hold a specific view.

So yes- some may say AP and natural childbirth go hand in hand.
AP and breastfeeding go hand in hand. AP and co-sleeping go hand in hand.....Right?
Well.... not always..let's remember this...

Many Mothers are unable to go through natural birth or have a truly upsetting natural birth experience and may be turned away from a natural birth for consequential baby's.

This is important for us to recognize as a community of AP parents because we need to be able to embrace all AP Mothers, no matter where they are at on their birthing journey, so they do not feel a failure if they cannot have a natural child birth or feel pressure to have to hide they are having a hospital/medicated birth.

We also need to respect that some may have had a horrible natural childbirth experience (after having high expectations of having a totally beautiful birth experience) and cannot relate any happiness to it at all.

It can occur and has happened to the most dedicated AP Mothers.

Just a gentle reminder that AP is a frame of mind- not a reflection on which AP things you do the most to look "AP" in the eyes of people..

We as a community of AP Mothers/parents do not want to rail our own AP peers/or those seeking to learn more about AP, into feeling like if they do not have a natural/drug free childbirth they are less AP.

We need to rise above and use the "AP frame of mind" we use with our children, of responding sensitively, to other AP birthing mothers who have not taken the same road as we *think* they should just because they are *AP.*

[Bikil]

Very good point Traci. AP is not a checklist!!

[HeatherM]

I have always thought of a natural birth more of a Natural Family Living or Natural Parenting thing than an AP thing!! It is more about how you nuture the babe after birth than how you birth them!!