Preparing for what to expect during childbirth can help ease anxiety, and Santa Barbara Cottage Hospital offers resources to support expectant parents every step of the way. Getting Familiar with the ...

As you're preparing for the arrival of your future sidekick, you're probably anticipating labor and delivery with a mixture of excitement and anxiety. It's a good time to become familiar with vaginal ...

Near the end of the third trimester, the cervix will soften in order to begin the process of effacing (thinning and stretching) and dilating (opening up) in preparation for your baby's birth. An open ...

Pregnancy is one phase where a woman’s body goes through constant change, physically, mentally, and emotionally. The right ...

AND WE ARE BACK WITH THE HEALTH ALERT. WELL, YOU WOULDN’T SHOW UP TO A MARATHON WITHOUT TRAINING. AND EXPERTS SAY THE SAME GOES FOR MOTHERS WHO ARE BRINGING A NEW LIFE INTO THE WORLD. JOINING ME NOW ...

Pregnancy often changes the way women think about health. Questions that may have once seemed distant suddenly feel immediate. What should I avoid eating? Am I walking too much or too little? These ...

Early in pregnancy, Molly Ercole already had an idea of what she wanted for her childbirth. “I didn’t want to see a different doctor at every appointment,” says Ercole, a non-profit communications ...

If you're having a baby, you may opt to have an epidural to help manage pain, but you might also plan on a "natural birth" — one without pain medication. The general definition of "natural childbirth" ...

During pregnancy, you’ll face many decisions, one of them being whether to use pain medication in childbirth. While it’s not right for everyone, choosing to go without medication during labor can have ...