A bit about what Mary does (along with the law requiring women to give birth in a hospital)

We woke up this morning to Mary (our host) pulling freshly baked bread out of the oven. Who knew that an American turned Bahamian Doula would make such remarkable food? Today she ventures off to help with a delivery of a baby. In the Bahamas, it is mandated that all women give birth in a hospital. This creates such difficulties for the women here because there are so many small islands all around and only two islands that have delivery supportive hospitals. This means that at 34 weeks gestation, women are required to come to either New Providence or Grand Bahama in order to get ready to give birth. Mary is not allowed to facilitate births as a Midwife (though she is certified) because the Bahamian government refuses to recognize her degree here. She therefore practices as a doula to help women with the birthing experience overall. Mary really comes in handy when a woman does start to go in to labor. Pitocin, a drug used to induce labor, is given to almost every woman going into labor at the hospital to "speed things up" so they are more convenient for the doctors. Mary helps women labor at home so that by the time they get to the hospital, they do not need Pitocin and are ready to give birth. So with all of this experience in labor in delivery, she naturally wants to teach us as much as she can while we're here. I'm not quite sure what you all did before 8 am this morning, but I was getting a lesson on how to check a cervix for dilation using a plastic model. I'll spare you more details about this exam we learned and let you know that the baby is well on his way today and should be delivered sometime this evening!