You missed your period and now your home pregnancy test shows “2 lines” (either 2 pink or a pink and a blue). A zillion things may start running through your mind: “What do I do now?” “Who do I call?” “Is everything going to be okay?” “Should I be doing something different?” “I don’t even know what questions to ask or how to get started”.

The unique stresses of an early pregnancy overwhelm most women. The mental fog caused by the natural hormone changes can complicate your ability to stay focused on the most necessary details and responsibilities. Read the rest here.

Camilla

Camilla is the co-author of the Pregnancy Power Workbook.

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Initiative designed to empower woman during their pregnancy…through social media

Colorado Springs, Colo. June 29, 2012- During the summer of 2012 when many thousands of women in America will become pregnant, The Pregnancy Power Workbook authors and new teammate Jill Arnold want to encourage woman to engage their peers and The Pregnancy Power Workbook team in order to become empowered pregnancy experts. To make it fun and encourage people to take part the team is happy to announce a workbook giveaway and the only way to participate is through social media!

The contest lasts from July 2 – July 6, 2012.

The rules are simple! Tell the Pregnancy Power Workbook team and their 1500+ friends on Facebook the best piece of advice they ever received before, during or after pregnancy and win a free autographed workbook. Ten comment entries will be selected at random on The Pregnancy Power Workbook Facebook page. Here is the link to enter: http://www.facebook.com/PregnancyPower

The Pregnancy Power Workbook, authored by prenatal and gynecology experts Dr. Jim Betoni, DO and Camilla Bicknell, RNC, WHNP, helps women better understand and prepare for their own unique pregnancies. It translates information into useable knowledge. Instead of inundating a woman with facts, figures, and statistics, the workbook provides basic questions and easy-to-digest answers.

Earlier this summer, Dr. Jim and Camilla announced a partnership with Jill Arnold. Through August the newly assembled team want to assist women as shared decision-making is becoming the next wave in maternity care reform.  The team is planning an exciting series of insightful blog posts, Facebook meet-ups, articles, Twitter parties, and live chat forums to ensure that women have access to the team and up-to-date information and perspectives. The content will be delivered through The Pregnancy Power Workbook’s blog, Facebook, Twitter accounts and Jill’s website, The Unnecesarean.

“Social media is now a trusted way for people to gain access and discuss information that interests them most,” said Camilla Bicknell “We want to leverage this medium to encourage woman to discuss their pregnancies so, together, they are able to lift one another ‘up’ and all become knowledgeable pregnancy experts. This contest, we hope, is one more step to creating a generation of empowered pregnant woman!”

The Pregnancy Power Workbook is available now at www.pregnancypower.org or through Amazon!

About the Dr. Jim & Camilla

Dr. James Betoni and Nurse Practitioner Camilla Bicknell have called upon their combined 30-years of experience caring for women who are pregnant to construct The Pregnancy Power Workbook. In his 17 years as an OB/GYN physician and 2010 fellowship graduate in Maternal Fetal Medicine, Dr. Betoni’s experience includes providing high-risk obstetrical care in private practice, community health clinics, and university settings. Ms. Bicknell focused her practice and became a women’s health nurse practitioner in 1995. Dedicated to the most underserved, she continues to provide prenatal and gynecology care at a large community health center in Colorado Springs.

About Jill Arnold

Jill Arnold is a consumer advocate and founder of The Unnecesarean, a blog and large online community which focuses on patient autonomy, informed consent, data transparency and other issues related to the U.S. maternity care system and beyond. Jill also researched and published all publicly available hospital-level cesarean rate data on her site, CesareanRates.com, which was launched in 2012 and illuminates the need for improving public reporting of rates of procedure utilization.

Jim & Camilla

Team dedicated to inform and empower pregnant woman with the latest in maternity care information

Colorado Springs, Colo. (June 13, 2012) – For the thousands of women in America that will become pregnant this summer, a new team, comprised of The Pregnancy Power Workbook authors and acclaimed blogger Jill Arnold, promises to convert the overwhelming amount of pregnancy information available into practical knowledge that empowers each woman to meet her own, individual pregnancy needs.

“Dr. Jim and I are so proud to make this announcement with Jill,” said Camilla Bicknell. “Together  this Summer we will be able to inform thousands of women many pregnancy topics. Our approach will be very timely, personal and easy to digest for all that take part in our series of informative exercises.”

The Pregnancy Power Workbook, authored by prenatal and gynecology experts Dr. Jim Betoni, DO and Camilla Bicknell, RNC, WHNP, helps women better understand and prepare for their own unique pregnancies. It translates information into useable knowledge. Instead of inundating a woman with facts, figures, and statistics, the workbook provides basic questions and easy-to-digest answers.

As shared decision-making is becoming the next wave in maternity care reform, the team is planning an exciting series of insightful blog posts, Facebook meet-ups, articles, Twitter parties, and live chat forums for the summer  to ensure that women have access to the team and up-to-date information and perspectives. The content will be delivered through The Pregnancy Power Workbook’s blog, Facebook, Twitter accounts and Jill’s website, The Unnesesarean, with the schedule to be announced soon on those platforms:

http://www.pregnancypower.org/

https://twitter.com/#!/Pregnancy_Power

http://www.facebook.com/PregnancyPower

“I am very excited to be working with Dr. Jim & Camilla on sharing The Pregnancy Power Workbook with the online childbirth community and beyond. They gave me a copy and, after reading it, I approached them about wanting to work with them. It is so apparent that they wrote the workbook to empower their patients in the spirit of breaking down barriers between patient and provider at a time when medical prenatal appointments are shorter than ever. “

The Pregnancy Power Workbook is available now  at www.pregnancypower.org  or through www.amazon.com.

About the Dr. Jim & Camilla

Dr. James Betoni and Nurse Practitioner Camilla Bicknell have called upon their combined 30-years of experience caring for women who are pregnant to construct The Pregnancy Power Workbook. In his 17 years as an OB/GYN physician and 2010 fellowship graduate in Maternal Fetal Medicine, Dr. Betoni’s experience includes providing high-risk obstetrical care in private practice, community health clinics, and university settings. Ms. Bicknell focused her practice and became a women’s health nurse practitioner in 1995. Dedicated to the most underserved, she continues to provide prenatal and gynecology care at a large community health center in Colorado Springs.

About Jill Arnold

Jill Arnold is a consumer advocate who founded The Unnecesarean in August 2008 as a collection of big baby birth stories, as well as women’s accounts of their cesareans and VBACs (vaginal births after cesarean).  After refusing a planned cesarean for suspected macrosomia based on a 38 week ultrasound estimate of fetal weight, she gave birth vaginally to a healthy baby and later found that the midwives model of care better met her needs as a pregnant woman.

Jim & Camilla

You may have heard recently that there’s a change in how often women need to get their Pap smears. These changes have confused many women leaving them wondering when they need their first or their next one. All the things we’ve heard from our moms or friends are probably a bit different now.

For years most of us (at any age) have gone for our “yearly exam” and have traditionally gotten a “Pap smear”. These new Pap smear guidelines are mostly based on your age and are quite simple to understand. It is important to realize that these guidelines are for those women who have “normal” Pap smear results. If your Pap smear comes back “abnormal” your provider will adjust the frequency based on how serious the abnormal results are.

Younger than age 21:

Women in this age group do not need a Pap smear. They should not be screened.

Age 21-29:

These aged women need a Pap smear every three years (with no HPV testing).

 Age 30-65:

These aged women have two choices:

1)   A Pap smear every three years or

2)   A Pap smear with HPV testing every five years

 Over age 65 – These women no longer need Pap smears if:

1)   They have not had a high-grade precancerous condition for at least 20 years

2)   They have had their Pap smears done every 3-5 years during the past 20 years they were all normal

After hysterectomy with their cervix surgically removed:

These women (at any age) do not need a Pap smear if the reason for their hysterectomy was for a non-cancerous condition and they have never had a “high-grade” (severe dysplasia) precancerous Pap smear result.

The next question many women ask, “Does this mean I don’t have to have my yearly exam anymore”?

No…these new recommendations do not end your annual exam. What it does do is free up time for you to discuss other things with your provider. For example:

 Adolescents and young women:

Talk about healthy diets, risky behaviors, contraception (if sexually active), testing for sexually transmitted diseases, and immunizations.

Women of reproductive age:

Counseling on preconception care and support for contraception if desired, and breast health.

Women who are having menopause symptoms:

Counseling on the transition to menopause, osteoporosis prevention, breast exams mammogram referrals, colorectal cancer screening, and pelvic concerns.

Now you know…so when is your next Pap smear due? When are you due to talk about other female health issues with your provider?

Camilla

Camilla is the co-author of the Pregnancy Power Workbook.

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by Heidi Smith Leudke

Dialogue with your healthcare provider forges a valuable relationship. But after vital signs and basic measurements, you may have little time to talk. Under pressure, you’re likely to freeze and forget about many of the things you’ve been meaning to bring up. To help you out, we polled the experts and gleaned 20 questions worth remembering.

[Read the full article]

Jim & Camilla

Colorado Springs, Colo. (May 2, 2012) — Retired Navy nurse captain and co-author of The Pregnancy Power Workbook, Camilla Bicknell was recently honored by the Navy Nurse Corps Association (NNCA) with its 2012 Professional Nursing Award.

The Professional Nursing Award was established to recognize significant contributions to nursing service, nursing practice, history, or research that brings honor or recognition to the Navy Nurse Corps or the Navy Nurse Corps Association.  It was first awarded in 1996.  It is a biennial awards cycle and Camilla Bicknell is the ninth NNCA member to receive the honor.

“The Navy Nurse Corps Association (NNCA) Professional Nursing Award recognizes significant contributions to nursing that bring honor to the Navy Nurse Corps,” said Mary Anne Gardner, Chair of the NNCA Awards Committee.  Camilla Bicknell’s career, both in the Navy and in the civilian world, has been full of professionalism, integrity, inspiration, and success.  She is the ideal candidate to receive the Professional Nursing Award for 2012.”

After serving on active duty at four duty stations from 1976-1986, Ms. Bicknell continued her military career for 22 additional years as the Commanding Officer and Training Officer for several medical reserve units. Now, for nearly 18 years, the award recipient has worked as a Women’s Health Nurse Practitioner at Peak Vista Community Health Centers in Colorado Springs, Colo. There, she is committed to improving lives by providing care for pregnant woman.

Among Ms. Bicknell’s contributions to her craft and accomplishments is The Pregnancy Power Workbook: Featuring 200 most important questions to ask about your pregnancy.  She co-authored the book with Dr. Jim Betoni with the mission of answering important questions in a straightforward, step-by-step manner that empowers the pregnant woman and prepares her for the best pregnancy possible.

“I want to thank The Navy Nurse Corps Association for this wonderful honor,” said Camilla “Empowering women during their pregnancies has been my professional mission since I began my nursing career over 35-years ago and this recognition is a wonderful tribute. I will cherish this award and work very hard to be a positive representative of NNCA and the Navy nursing community.”

Jim & Camilla

First of all, there are several different types of miscarriages. They are not single events, and “boom” they are over and done with. Rather, a miscarriage is a series of events than can last from several hours, days, or even weeks. They aren’t fair and they are usually unpredictable.

The word MISCARRIAGE means a non-living embryo or fetus has been squeezed out, or will soon be squeezed out, of the uterus before it is able to survive on its own. You may have heard some of terms that specifically describe what is actually happening inside a woman’s body.

These include:

Threatened Miscarriage: This is the term used when a woman, very early in her pregnancy, has some slight vaginal bleeding, cramping, and lower backache. Her pregnancy may be so early that her ultrasound can’t tell if the baby is alive or not. Her cervix is not dilated. Most often this bleeding is caused from the embryo implanting itself into the uterus. This type of miscarriage does not necessarily progress to an actual loss. Sometimes it does, sometimes it doesn’t.

Inevitable or Incomplete Miscarriage: These terms are used when a woman has lower belly cramps or low back pain along with an increase in vaginal bleeding. Her cervix is usually slightly dilated. With an Inevitable miscarriage, her cervix has opened up and the tiny bag of water may have broken. She usually has not yet passed any tissue. Until that happens, her bleeding and cramping usually continues, and the miscarriage is called Incomplete.

Complete Miscarriage: This is the term used when all the baby parts that formed from the egg and sperm union, squeeze out of the uterus. Sometimes this happens quickly, even before the woman gets to an emergency room or clinic. The woman may have had severe pain, cramps, and bleeding up until everything came out. Then, once out, the pain, cramps, and bleeding usually get better.

Missed Miscarriage: Some women have a very early fetal death and don’t know it. Usually these happen very early after conception in the embryo stage. They are unique because they don’t cause cramping and bleeding. The woman just stops feeling like she’s pregnant because the hormones stop being made. When an ultrasound is done, no fetal heartbeat is seen.

Recurrent Miscarriage: This term refers to women who have 3 or more miscarriages in a row. Usually these miscarriages happen before the 12^th week. This condition affects about 1% of couples.

There are three other terms used for conditions that also result in a miscarriage, although they don’t use that term.

They include:

Blighted Ovum: This is when the joined egg and sperm unit makes it to the uterus and implants like it’s supposed to. Then something goes wrong, and it never starts to grow. The technical term for this is an anembryonic pregnancy.

Ectopic Pregnancy: This is when the joined egg and sperm unit takes a wrong turn. Rather than ending up and implanting in the uterus, it finds a place outside the uterus. Most commonly it lodges in a fallopian tube. This pregnancy will never become a baby. As it grows, it makes the tube swell. If not found and treated immediately, the tube may rupture. This causes severe bleeding in the mother and could end in serious complications, even death. This scary complication happens in almost 2% of all pregnancies.

Molar Pregnancy: This type of pregnancy is something that happens very early during fertilization. Rather than forming an embryo, the pregnancy grows as abnormal tissue. It implants in the uterus and causes all the normal symptoms of pregnancy, even though it isn’t normal at all. A woman having a molar pregnancy will miss her period, get a positive pregnancy test, and have severe nausea. The abnormality is usually found on an early ultrasound.

Jim & Camilla

Interactive format helps pregnant woman meet the unique needs of their own, individual pregnancies 

Colorado Springs, Colo. (March 6, 2012) – For the nearly 5 million women that will become pregnant this year in America, a new tool promises to convert the overwhelming amount of information available into practical knowledge that empowers each woman to meet her own, individual pregnancy needs.

The Pregnancy Power Workbook ,authored by prenatal and gynecology experts Dr. Jim Betoni, DO and Camilla Bicknell, RNC, WHNP, helps women better understand and prepare for their own unique pregnancies.

“What we’ve done is compile the most important pregnancy questions and answers and assemble them into a workbook that’s readable, interactive, and practical,” explained Bicknell.

Complemented by The Pregnancy Power Blog and the Pregnancy Power Community on Facebook, the Pregnancy Power Workbook is the first and only workbook-format pregnancy guide.

This distinctive format enables a woman to:

• Translate information into useable knowledge. Instead of inundating a woman with facts, figures, and statistics, this workbook provides basic questions and easy to digest answers.

• Speak the same language as her medical team. The step-by-step guide to prenatal care prepares the pregnant woman to ask the right questions during her doctor’s office visits.

• Avoid unnecessary details that aren’t applicable to her pregnancy. The book’s question section allows the woman to choose relevant questions and then gives her space to record her and her doctor’s answers.

• Stay on top of her prenatal care. In addition to questions and answers, the workbook helps a woman stay informed and up-to-date with features like a personal pregnancy timeline, pregnancy and lab flow sheets, and ultrasound awareness sheets .

“Many women are unaware of what they need to know or what questions they need to ask their busy doctors during the ‘typical’ 4-minute office visit,” Dr. Betoni added. “With our current medical system not allowing enough time to ensure that each woman has an adequate understanding of her unique needs, this workbook empowers the woman to take charge at her doctor’s office visits.”

The Pregnancy Power Workbook is available now through The Pregnancy Power Blog website or through www.amazon.com.

About the Authors

Dr. James Betoni and Nurse Practitioner Camilla Bicknell have called upon their combined 30-years of experience caring for women who are pregnant to construct The Pregnancy Power Workbook. In his 17 years as an OB/GYN physician and 2010 fellowship graduate in Maternal Fetal Medicine, Dr. Betoni’s experience includes providing high-risk obstetrical care in private practice, community health clinics, and university settings. Ms. Bicknell focused her practice and became a women’s health nurse practitioner in 1995. Dedicated to the most underserved, she continues to provide prenatal and gynecology care at a large community health center in Colorado Springs.

Jim & Camilla

Being logical about nutrition doesn’t always help when you’re pregnant. You know you should stick to your gluten-free diet, but you really want a _________________(fill in the blank….. “blueberry muffin”, a “normal pizza”, a “burrito from Taco Bell”.) There’s no magic answer for you.

Perhaps reviewing how eating gluten affects your ability to get proper nutrition to your growing baby may help (review the first Gluten blog). It may be just the time to get back online and explore new gluten-free recipes. Find gluten-free alternatives to all your cravings….distract yourself….make this your new hobby and motivator.

Here are several pregnancy food cravings and their gluten-free dilemmas and solutions.

Pizza

1)   Google “Gluten-free pizza” and you may find local pizza shops that have the gluten-free alternative. Godfather’s makes several varieties.

2)   Purchase gluten-free pizza dough flour and make healthy homemade pizza. Huge advantage as you can make it extra healthy by adding fresher ingredients.

3)   In a restaurant that advertises “gluten-free” alternative, always ask how they keep their prep and cooking areas separate. Just because they say have this option, it must be pure.

Mexican food

1)   Wow how many patients we have had that have the 10pm Taco Bell cravings? What’s up with that? Most everything on their menu has gluten. The meat has gluten fillers, the corn tortillas have traces of wheat in them….but you can eat the pinto beans with cheese.

2)   Although natural corn does not contain gluten, many corn tortillas are made on the same press as wheat based tortillas.

3)   Purchase “certified” gluten-free tortillas and create homemade Mexican meals. There are many tasty recipes available on-line.

Pastry

1)   Is it a blueberry muffin, a bagel, pancakes, doughnuts, bread, or a piecrust? These all sound especially tasty when you can’t have their gluten-infested traditional ingredients.

2)   For most women (especially when pregnant) avoiding these types of comfort foods really make us feel deprived.

3)   Challenge yourselves with learning how to bake fresh and yummy alternatives.

Fruit Juices

1)   You would be amazed at the “fillers” that are put in fruit juices. If a juice does not say “100%” fruit juice, there is a good chance there is gluten in it. Gluten gives these juice alternatives more texture and bulks it up.

2)   For years, women with celiac disease thought that it was the acid in some juices that gave them stomach aches….alas….it was the gluten.

Junk Food or Fast food

1)   French Fries, Onion Rings, and all other comfort foods of substance. When you eat at a fast food establishment, be aware that there probably are some gluten-free items available for you. Be aware that the servers may not be attentive to possible cross contamination. Keep your orders simple.

2)   Check out this great link for fast food.

http://celiacdisease.about.com/od/eatinginrestaurants/tp/More-Fast-Food-Restaurant-Chains-Offering-Gluten-Free-Menu-Items.htm

Candy

1)   Many candies and candy bars are made in factories that use many types of “fillers”. Remember gluten is a common filler found in many candies.

2)   Here’s another great link that addresses this issue with many candy varieties.

http://www.celiaccentral.org/SiteData/docs/NFCAGluten/b722688930c37dce/NFCA_Gluten-Free%20Candy%20List%202011.pdf

Miscellaneous

1)   Hot chocolate, pickles, ice cream, and salad croutons …. I could go on and on.

2)   Lots of things we eat, we don’t know yes or no if they have gluten. As you read the labels of packaged foods, if you see any of these words….beware. They probably do contain gluten

1. Starch, Stabilizer 2. Artificial Flavorings 3. Emulsifier 4. Hydrolyzed Plant Protein

Jim & Camilla

The key point of this latest research tells us that treating depression during pregnancy poses two unique challenges wrapped into one. They tell us it didn’t matter if the mother was treated or not treated (took medication or didn’t take medication) for depression. Both situations posed potential problems for the developing fetus and newborn.

This challenge may frustrate a woman suffering with depression and still trying to enjoy her pregnancy. However, these enlightening research results will help guide her and her healthcare team to the best treatments possible during her pregnancy. There are so many other things to worry about, it’s reassuring that depression can be treated with medication (or not) based on every woman’s unique set of symptoms and situations.

Read the article here.

Jim & Camilla