30 June 2008

Mylene: that white bikini and feeling fat

So Mylene Klass has appeared three times in that white bikini everyone knows:

1) In 2006 when she was standing under the waterfall in I'm A Celebrity, Get Me Out of Here

2) In 2007 when she was pregnant, appearing in an ad for Marks and Spencer

3) A third time, 3 months after she gave birth last year (in photo at left), again for Marks and Spencer.

Mylene recently revealed she was pretty traumatised by having to wear that bikini postpartum seeing as she was surrounded by uber-thin models. She says:

“I’m only 5ft 5ins and I had a bit of a tummy. I felt small and podgy.”

She said: “I said to them ‘You do realize I just had a baby three months ago?’

“It was really difficult for me to overcome my issues so soon after giving birth.”

Source: http://www.dailymail.co.uk/tvshowbiz/article-1030268/Myleene-confesses-I-felt-fat-THAT-bikini.html

29 June 2008

Jodie Sweetin on losing baby weight

We haven't heard much from ex-Full House darling Jodie Sweetin since she gave birth a few months back. Turns out she's blogging for Ok! about losing weight and trying to make a career for herself again since her crystal meth addiction. Apparently she's doing the Nutrisystem thing which as you might remember, helped Tori Spelling lose a ridiculous amount of weight after baby #1 (oh, Tori is also on the cover of Ok! this week with her new 'miracle baby' daughter *yawn*)

Anyway, Jodie's blog is strangely addictive: http://www.okmagazine.com/jodiesweetin

28 June 2008

Beijing baby mamma badges

So it seems the Chinese government is concerned about pregnant women. These badges which say 'Thank you for helping my mother' are being distributed to women "so that their rights and safety can be better guaranteed in public."

Now, I'm not quite sure what that means. Is walking down the street now dangerous if you're pregnant? Are people supposed to treat you better if you're pregnant? Is this a way for you to get a seat on the train?

Or is this badge just an invitation for other people to tell Chinese pregnant women what to do? Perhaps we can read this badge as a foetus saying, 'Thanks for helping my mother, her womb is a dangerous place" especially when it comes to maternal behaviour. If mum is eating the wrong thing, having a drink or smoking are do strangers now have the right to intervene if you are wearing this badge?

The word "help" suggests that pregnant women are inept, need looking after, and that foetuses are the more important citizens.

Should pregnant women in other countries get badges announcing the presence of their foetuses?

Source: http://www.cctv.com/program/cultureexpress/20080627/104818.shtml

27 June 2008

Preserve that perineum.

According to the sensitive journos over at Psychology Today, apparently "childbirth can wreak havoc on a couple's intimate relations". So great is the toll on a couple's sex life, an entire article has been devoted to encouraged pregnant women to consider their postnatal sex lives when choosing a childbirth method. Considering my last post about caesars in Canada, interestingly this article cites a 2005 Canadian study noting that women who have caesars report less sexual dissatisfaction three months postpartum in comparison to women who have vaginal births. It looks like the difference comes down to episiotomy; women who have them report more painful sexual experiences. The tables turn, however, if women have unscathed perineums. In that case, women who give birth vaginally report less pain than women who have caesars.

What do you think? Were you worried about post-baby sex following a vaginal or caesarean birth?

Source: http://www.psychologytoday.com/rss/pto-20080604-000001.html

Caesars high in Canada

Turns out the caesar rate is not just high here in Australia where almost one-third of mothers have their children via caesarean section. Caesarean rates have risen in Oz from 18 per cent in 1991, to 30 per cent in 2005.

Canadian women are jumping on the caesar train as rates of obesity and 'older' motherhood are increasing. According to new reports, 1 in 4 Canadian women are having caesars. From 1993 to2006, Canada's caesarean rate increased from 17.6 percent to 26.3 percent. For Canada - one of the safest places in the world to givebirth - this rising rate is alarming. According to The Society of Obstetricians and Gynaecologists of Canada, more caesars puts more pressure on a maternity system that is already over-stretched.

We are seeing the future and it is not good.

Source: www.sogc.org

26 June 2008

More bikinis: J.Lo post-baby




The interwebs is abuzz with new photos of Jennifer Lopez in a bikini 4 months post-babies. Aside from the issue of her body (very much 'bounced back'), I am totally creeped out by the fact that some websites have more than 30 photos of Jennifer and Marc Anthony spending time with their babies in Spain. Neither of them were aware of the photos being taken and it's all a bit too voyeuristic for me. I feel like a perv looking at these photos.

See for yourself: http://popsugar.com/1736125

25 June 2008

White bikinis and what not



Welcome to my 400th post.

Moving right along. So it seems I've lost someof my loyal readers...I know, I know. As I keep telling you, I have this PhD thesis (blah blah blah) which is due so soon I'm already feeling Braxton-Hicks with every edit. My posting is not what it used to be but in some ways I haven't found much that I have wanted to write about lately. Like you, I get sick of reading about celebrities constantly so I've been having a mini-holiday from reading or thinking about Nicole Kidman. Things have been moving very rapidly on this end with plans to take this old Baby Bump Project to the next level. There is a book in the works and plans for an exhibition here in Melbourne.

Anyway, for those of you that are still listening. It seems Minnie Driver has come out into the sunshine at 7 months pregnant and of course, she is being slagged by the media for apparently being 'too pasty'. Most of the British tabs are saying she looks ENORMOUS however I laughed when I saw that the Sun was praising Driver for looking like a 'real woman' in comparison to other celebs:

"These snaps of MINNIE DRIVER show real girl power, as the mum-to-be bares her bod on the beach while heavily pregnant."

If you actually look at Minnie, she's bloody thin. Not in a scary thin kind of way but seriously, her belly is not ENORMOUS and she certainly doesn't look like a baby mammoth like everyone says. Unfortunately, the snap that's being sent around is of her in a white bikini and for my Brit readers, you will know straight away that Mylene Klass made the white bikini famous both in pregnancy and out of pregnancy for Marks & Spencer. Sure, Mylene is all made up and looking fabulous but if you read Mylene's book (which I have written about) she says pregnancy looked alot easier for her than it actually was. Why is it that 'real' women are 'fat'?

23 June 2008

Jamie Lynn says no to caesar

You might be pleased to know that Jamie Lynn Spears had a natural birth, contrary to the rumours swirling around that she had a caesar. In fact, Spears sent a special message from her iPhone to her MySpace account confirming this and with a picture (surely Ok! will be happy about this given their exclusive deal with her for the first baby photos):

Date: Jun 20, 2008 8:28 PMSubject: hey guys its Jamie… im on my iPhoneBody: lol thank you all guys for the comments and messages…i love you all guys some of u are surprised about the name… but casey didnt actually like the other names. Maddie Briann OMG now i really understand my mom lol… sometimes she was overprotective but now i understand why. now Maddie is sleeping like an angel and im still in hospital… i had a natural birth and yeah thank u guys for the pic comment… it really means alot to me!!!

Source: http://www.thehollywoodgossip.com/2008/06/jamie-lynn-spears-baby-pictures-maddy-briann-myspace/

18 June 2008

Nicole Kidman for Vogue

Well, here it is..the long awaited Nicole Kidman pregnancy cover for the July edition of American Vogue. I wonder when she took the photo because she does not look very pregnant!

Here is a tidbit from the interview:

“When I first saw the baby on the ultrasound, I started crying. I didn’t think I’d get to experience that in my lifetime. I like the unpredictable nature of it. To feel life growing with you is something very, very special, and I’m going to embrace that completely. I don’t believe in flittering around the edges of things. You’re either going to walk through life and experience it fully or you’re going to be a voyeur. And I’m not a voyeur.”

You can read the full article here:
http://www.style.com/vogue/feature/061708/page2.html



Source: http://justjared.buzznet.com/2008/06/17/nicole-kidman-vogue-july-2008/

17 June 2008

Breast is best in public?

Headline: Mothers win the right to breastfeed in all public places

It's a pretty sad day when a 'victory' for mothers in the UK is that they can breastfeed in public without being charged with public indecency. The move comes in response to data showing Britain has the lowest rate of breastfeeding in Europe.

Interesting that this happy development comes at exactly the same time as UK mother, Stella Onions is castigated for breastfeeding her 5 and 3 yr old children. Stella has been making the news around the world for advocating extended breastfeeding but responses, especially in Australia, tend to be that this poor woman is a 'freak' and her kids are going to have identity issues for the rest of their lives.

Sources: http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-1026604/Mothers-win-right-breastfeed-public-places.html
http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/2110506/Mother-defends-breastfeeding-her-five-year-old.html

The end of homebirth in America?

Well, it seems despite all of the momentum for homebirth generated by Ricki Lake is on the out in the US. The American Medical Association (AMA) adopted a resolution last weekend at their annual meeting to OUTLAW homebirth. In effect, the resolution would force American women to give birth in hospitals, again suggesting that midwives just aren't good enough compared to doctors. It's not yet clear how women would be penalised (or how anyone would find out?) if they have homebirths, however, this aggressive move is a sign of clear and present danger for the maternity system in America. As one of the largest profit generating sectors of American hospitals, ob/gyns are not willing to give up any of their cash. Similarly, the AMA is pushing for midwives to only be able to practice in hospitals under direct supervision of a doctor.

So much for constitutional rights.

Source: http://www.rhrealitycheck.org/blog/2008/06/16/bad-medicine-ama-seeks-to-outlaw-home-births

10 June 2008

Another pregnant cover


More rumours abound.. Nicole Kidman set to appear on the cover of Vogue preggers in July?

Insurance companies are evil

Again, sorry. I'm not normally this slack with my blogging. I do feel like I'm heavily pregnant with this damn thesis. I'm about 7 weeks from my due date and it's getting pretty hard to do anything these days without thinking about the birth. My head, hands and feet are swollen with visions of edited chapters, all of the typos still to correct and the insane amount of formatting still left to do.

Anyway, I've been wanting to write about this for awhile but couldn't find the time until now.

Apparently, the push (to not push) for caesarean births has finally come to a head. As impatient obstetricians continue to corral pregnant women into operating theatres, it seems that some American insurance companies are actually refusing to cover women with a history of caesarean births. As we all know, insurance companies will not come near anyone with anything remotely recognisable as a 'preexisting condition', it seems that given the impressive list of health risks associated with caesareans, insurance companies are keeping their hands off.

Women who had had caesars are being charged higher premiums or being denied insurance altogther. This covers both elective and emergency caesars. Given that the caesar rate is at an all time high--31% (eek!)---it is women who are suffering now. That doctors overuse the surgery and often do not allow women who have had previous caesareans to deliver vaginally (VBAC), women are now being labelled as undesirable insurance candidates by no fault of their own.

Some insurance companies have not excluded the procedure from coverage completely: One insurance company, Golden Rule, said they would pay for a caesar only if they would not have to cover another one for at least three years. Similarly, Blue Cross Blue Shield said they would cover caesars but only at the cost of a 25% increase in premiums for the next 5 years.

Nevertheless, in being denied medical insurance women and their babies are being placed at enormous danger. After all, it is only recently that the rates of maternal and infant mortality have increased since 2005 and the US has the second worst rate for newborn deaths of industrialised nations.

Does anyone have any experience with this? Have you been denied insurance?

Sources: http://www.msmagazine.com/news/uswirestory.asp?ID=11061

03 June 2008

Welcome to the baby bidding war

And so we have it. The hotly anticipated photos of the Angie/Brad twin spawn is rumoured to be at $15 million and rising. According to TMZ, People and Ok! are the only mags left standing.

Seriously.

Source: http://www.tmz.com/2008/06/02/brangy-baby-pics-will-fetch-fortune/
 
Creative Commons License
The Baby Bump Project by Meredith Nash is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-Noncommercial-No Derivative Works 3.0 United States License.