Pandemic

This article was first published elsewhere in June 2023.

No matter how big or small, every business owner sometimes gets the urge to throw it all into the bin and get a “normal” job. While this happens only occasionally for me, I recently had the unsettling revelation that this option isn’t available to me right now. Not because of some virtuous reason of “serving families” or “doing my life’s work” but, depressingly, because my kids and I are sick too often for me to hold down a…

Imagine waddling up to the desk at the maternity ward, labour in full swing. The masked midwife offers you a choice of Room One or Two. They are identical rooms, staffed by the same care team, and you are allowed one support person regardless of which room you choose.

Choose Room Two, she tells you, and your labour will be on average 41 minutes shorter than in Room One. You’ll be 31% less likely to need drugs to speed up your labour and 28% less likely to deliver via caesarean. You’ll also be…

With case rates in Australia through the roof I figured this was something I might need to know about, and you might too.

****This blog provides general information only and does not replace medical advice or conversations with your care providers. All information is true and correct to the best of my knowledge as at 4/1/22 and all sources listed below were accessed on this date. Always seek medical care if you are concerned about your or your child’s health.****

Is it safe to keep feedi…

First detected in South Africa in November 2021, it’s quickly becoming the dominant strain of SARS-CoV-2 (aka coronavirus)  in the world. Here‘s a primer.

What’s different about Omicron?

Compared to the original strain of the virus, Omicron has around 50 mutations. Of these, 30 are on the spike protein. Ten are on a key protein called the ACE2 receptor which makes Omicron more likely to infect people. It also replicates itself in the body faster than previous versions, so we become infect…

Today Western Sydney University Professor of Midwifery Hannah Dahlen posed two questions of her social media audience in response to 2021 update of the “Australia’s Mothers and Babies” report, released by the Australian Institute of Health and Welfare last week.

The first question, “what the hell are we doing?”, comes on the back of the following 2019 statistics from the publication last week.

As of 2019, Australia’s caesarean birth rate is now 36% (and 37% for first time mothers and birth par…

Below is the transcript of the video and audio research update I recorded on 20th Sept 2021 on the topic of fertility, menstrual changes, COVID-19 and vaccination against COVID-19. This information is information only, and does not take the place of individualised advice and consultation with your medical team. I hope you find this useful, and please feel free to share this resource with anyone you think might be interested.

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Hello, my name is Anna Cusack, I am an author, a doula, Certified…