Turning Babies, Preparing the Nixtamal and Riding in Trucks

We have visited pregnant women in four different pueblos this week. Sometimes by foot, chicken bus or in the back of a pick-up. I have to say that I look forward to the later mode of transportation the most.
The landscape is beautiful and never gets old and sometimes if we turn a corner you can see smoke and steam blowing out of Volcan de Fuego. I've heard that Fuego is the volcano you see in the opening to Paramount pictures, but I am not sure if this is true or not.

In the last two days I have seen Dona Eulalia turn two transverse babies. These babies were both 35+ weeks and hadn't turned head down. We visited the first mother in her home and after determining how the baby was positioned, Dona Eulalia had the mother lie down on her back, while rocking her back and forth by the ankles. Jostling the baby little by little and then manually rotating the baby an inch or two at a time before resuming the rocking. Within five minutes the baby was turned and in a great position to be born.

The second transverse baby we saw was in the same postion as the last, with the head under the mothers left ribcage, back curved just under the mother's belly button, and knees under the right ribcage. We were visited at the house by a woman, who didn't know Dona Eulalia, but after having an ultrasound and learning that her baby was transverse, had gotten the name of Eulalia and traveled with her husband and toddler to see if she could help. Turning the baby was uncomfortable for the mother, but she did start laughing each time Dona Eulalia had her by the ankles, bouncing up and down on the bed--It's hard not to crack a smile at that. After a few moments the baby was turned and the mother and her husband gave us each big hugs and thanks.

I had never seen this done before and it was pretty spectacular. Done with such expertise, ease and confidence-- Dona Eulalia is a very talented women.

Most health care practitioners in the US do not know how to preform inversions (how to turn a baby in malpresentation.) So when a baby is past 30+ or so weeks and is not head down, they will insist on a c-section. But, clearly this is not necessary and in recent years there has been more resistance to this idea, so hopefully in the future midwives and doctors will begin to relearn this lost art. Check out Spinning Babies, a great resource that also offers lots of tips and exercises that moms can do at home to help flip a baby into a better postion.

Dona Eulalia weighing the corn for the nixtamal, tortilla masa.

Abraham on the way to market to buy a pig. He just turned six, but knows how to do lots of things; how to clean the pig stuy, wash dishes and help take care of his baby sister. Seeing him standing in the back of the truck, holding on with just one hand terrifies me, so he humored me by crouching down in the truck. 

Dona Eulalia turning a baby from a transverse lie position.