Thursday, February 20, 2003

February 2003
"Vitamin C Reduces Labor Pain By Half!" by Jenny Silliman jennysilliman@juno.com

(Please feel free to forward this e-mail!)

VITAMIN C REDUCES LABOR PAIN!
Excerpt taken from the book:
"Prescription for Nutritional Healing"
1933, 1990 by Dr. Balch, Page 269:
"Nutritional Health in Pregnancy
Vitamin C, suggested dosage 1,000 to 4,000 mg
each hour before delivery [during labor]
Comments: Large doses of Vitamin C
taken before delivery may help
reduce labor pain by 50 percent."

I wanted to share about this wonderful "home remedy." You might want to consider taking Vitamin C for your next baby's birth--or pass on this remarkable help for someone you know who is expecting. Vitamin C is
harmless as it is water soluable and any extra, that your system doesn't need, simply comes out in your urine. I bought a big bottle of Vitamin C at Costco and took 3,000 mg every hour on the hour when labor began. It was so terrific for me and my friend that we both felt we wanted to tell the world!!!

MY FRIEND'S VITAMIN C STORY!
A few weeks before I was due with Luke (who is 3 years old now) I had Vitamin C recommended to me by my friend, Kathie Niclas. She told me her story in her lovely New Zealand accent: "Vitamin C actually made labor quite bearable. When I was in labor with our 6th child I took Vitamin C every hour and I didn't think I was really in active labor yet. My husband and I walked the halls of the hospital and I felt I could walk a mile. My husband finally insisted I get to the hospital bed. About ten minutes later I delivered Katie Clair!"

RECOMMENDED BY MIDWIFE!
I checked it out with a very experienced midwife of about 25 years in central CA that is also an herbalist. She gave her recommendation for Vitamin C during labor and explained why it worked. Apparently the Vitamin C inhibits the release of prostaglandins--though this does not have any adverse effects on labor, baby or mother. It is nice to understand WHY it works! Also was good to know there was only the one side effect of possibly loosening the bowels. (This may be beneficial and enhance labor anyway.) Her name is Terri Snyder if you want to e-mail her: termar@sierratel.com She is a Christian full of faith and trust in the Lord Jesus for the natural birth process. She writes for Shonda Parker's health magazine.

JENNY'S VITAMIN C IN LABOR STORY!
When I was due with Luke in 1999 our friend, Kathie Niclas, shared about the wonderful effects of Vitamin C in labor. We read the information for ourselves in the book "Prescription for Nutritional Healing." My husband
and I prayed about it and talked to our midwife, and felt peaceful about it, so we decided I would go ahead and use Vitamin C. When I started labor mid-day on October 25th, every hour on the hour I swallowed 3,000
mg of Vitamin C.

During early labor I puttered around the house and took an afternoon nap with our 2 year old. I woke up with steady contractions, but they were still the kind you could talk through so I thought things weren't
progressing very fast. At about 6 o'clock I made some phone calls to share the exciting news that I was in labor and to ask for prayer. I was on the phone for about an hour and was not very uncomfortable, though the
contractions were steady and sometimes I would pause and take a deep breath.

Our daughter called me to the table when dinner was served at 7 p.m. I sat at the supper table with my family (5 sons and 1 daughter) and I even ate a little bit. The labor pains were then hard enough I would have to
ask for quiet and stop for a minute and close my eyes and concentrate on relaxing. As I labored right there at the table our boys were full of questions. In between contractions I explained how labor is like squeezing a sock to push out a cantaloupe. (Sometimes it feels more like a basketball!) I remember telling my family how labor wasn't progressing very fast and I though I would labor into the night. I said: "I'll probably have this baby after midnight so the birthdate will be tomorrow's date." I had had six home births and from my experience that's how it seemed to me!

The boys did the dishes and Cliff and Valerie went into the bedroom to get things ready with a woman friend who was helping us. I got up from the table to use the restroom to have a bowel movement and I almost didn't make it out of the bathroom as I discovered I was in transition! At eight o'clock the boys heard a baby cry and looked at one another in amazement and disbelief.

We praised God for His gracious provision of Vitamin C and such a beautiful home birth. I WAS SO AMAZED AT HOW THE PAINS WERE LITERALLY CUT IN HALF! Our baby weighed over 11 pounds, I was 41 years old and he's our seventh child, but hands down, believe it or not--this birth was the EASIEST of all. Vitamin C also eased the afterbirth pains (which are sometimes SO painful.) Terrific!

PASS IT ON!
Cliff and I have shared our story with anyone who would listen--the pregnant woman at the bank, women at church and friends far and near and they all say the same thing. "Wonderful!" or "It worked!" "We should tell
everyone about this!" So that's exactly what I'm doing. Pass this info on to anyone you know who is expecting a baby. If you try it, e-mail me your experience, ok? By the way, we would consider it an honor if you would let Cliff and I pray for your birth. E-mail me with your due date. Feel free to call us any time of day or night, ok?

Love in Jesus,
Jenny

Wednesday, February 19, 2003

Today is my 45th birthday! I am looking forward to celebrating with family and friends. Fresh strawberries for breakfast!

One of our sons commented: "Wow! Mama, you have lived a long, long time! I can't imagine living 45 years!" LOL

For special birthday gifts our boys are helping me do some gardening and some household "fix its" and Valerie is going to help me sew up two new blouses so I have something new to wear after Baby Darlin' Dumplin' is born in March and the weather gets warmer. Also on my wish list is a new calendar and a new diaper bag. Oh it will be so fun to get some teeny tiny diapers and white baby booties to go inside of it!

Baby is due in less than five weeks. I can see the finish line! Everything is going great and Baby is quite active. We covet your prayers
for another beautiful homebirth. After seven terrific home birth (yes, I am SO blessed!) we don't anticipate any problems, but we always prepare for them and hope for the best at the same time. I plan to take vitamin C every hour during labor again, which actually cuts labor pain in half. Write me if you haven't gotten that wonderful information from me yet and want to try it.

I have had low iron this pregnancy for the first time, but I've been taking Rainbow Light Iron Supplements and it is coming back up in the normal range. No wonder I've been feeling so tired this winter. Instead of rising early and writing in the mornings--I've been snooozing. Many of you have asked if I was o.k. because I'm just not writing much these days. I think my creativity energy must be going to Baby.

Cliff figured out how long I've been pregnant, including this pregnancy, seven other pregnancies and the months pregnant before miscarriages. Out of 45 years of life I've been pregnant for eight years!

I am happy to say that out of the seven mothers I know that miscarried in the year 2002, of which I am one, all of us are pregnant again and are doing great! We thank God for the gift of new lives!

"He has made me...a joyful mother of children. Praise ye the Lord." Ps 113:9