I am traveling to Cape Town, South Africa to check on doing a conference there. Before I go I wanted to introduce you to Mickey Sperlich who is one of the authors the new book Motherbaby Press is about to send to the printer. While I am gone she will do a few guest blogs about her book. You will also continue to hear from me.

Motherbaby Press is the name we have given the publishing arm of Midwifery Today. Mickey’s subject is an intense one, the effects of sexual abuse on childbearing. The title is “Survivor Moms: Women’s Stories of Birthing, Mothering, and Healing after Sexual Abuse.” Mickey wrote the book with Julia Seng; both are midwives. I think this subject is so very important because as midwives and doulas we are serving mothers who have these issues, possibly as many as one out of three and we need to know how to help them. Most especially we need to know how to keep from re-traumatizing them. (“First do no harm.”) Birth is an incredibly intimate life passage. In the same spirit of a quest for this knowledge Midwifery Today has organized a conference so we can learn more about this important subject. Please see midwiferytoday.com/conferences/HopeHealing2008/ Please check back here often to read our blog. We appreciate your interest in the amazing calling of helping women in childbirth.

LOVE, jan

Midwifery Today has started a book publishing section called Motherbaby Press. The first book we published is called Placenta: The Gift of Life by Cornelia Enning. The book covers placenta rituals from around the world and the history of placenta remedies used throughout the ages. It has 15 recipes for using the placenta in ointments, essences and other remedies. I was having lunch with a midwife friend and she told me that she has been using placenta tablets she makes from women's placentas, to fight postpartum depression (PPD) in women. She said her results have been amazing. She thinks it works every time. We need more research on this. The answer to PPD might be within the mother's own womb.

Placenta: The Gift of Life can be ordered here.