FRIDAY
DECEMBER 19, 2014
TRI-CITIES
Police investigation continues into bizarre Port Moody incident
7
HOME RUN HITTER Coquitlam’s Hayden Jaco will go to bat in Florida
33
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Serving COQUITLAM, PORT COQUITLAM, PORT MOODY, ANMORE and BELCARRA since 1984
IN THIS SPECIAL REPORT, PHOTOGRAPHER LISA KING AND REPORTER JEREMY DEUTSCH TRACE THE JOURNEY OF A COQUITLAM COUPLE WHO, LIKE A GROWING NUMBER OF B.C. RESIDENTS, USE A MIDWIFE TO HELP THEM THROUGH THE BIRTH OF A CHILD.
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onja Kennedy and her husband Marcus slowly pace the halls of the maternity ward at Royal Columbian Hospital. It’s the August long weekend, and the only respite from the heat is their air-conditioned
room. The Coquitlam couple arrived just before sundown with Sonja in labour, expecting their second child. Like a perfect plan, the baby is coming out on its due date, Aug. 3. Over the next two hours, Sonja, an athlete for most of her 36 years, goes through a fairly typical experience for a natural birth — a cycle of lying in bed, throwing up in the bathroom and wandering the halls to take her mind off the discomfort. At times there’s laughter, at times sighs of pain. Marcus stays by her side, holding her hand and giving her soft reassurance. But also helping her through her pregnancy is a trio of midwives from Beautiful Babies Midwifery.
A growing trend The Kennedys are part of a growing trend in B.C. of families turning to the age-old practice of midwifery to handle a pregnancy, from the lead up and delivery through to the aftercare. On this night, Tamara Nahhas will be at the helm of the birth, directing traffic in the room and ultimately, the delivering duties. Through the evening, Nahhas stays busy preparing the room for the big moment, checking the baby’s heartbeat and conversing with mom about how she’s feeling. She even joins in on the slow walk through the hallways with Sonja and Marcus. By 11 p.m., several hours have passed since the couple got to the hospital, but the situation hasn’t changed. To move the process along, the midwife decides to break Sonja’s water. It won’t be long now before a new life is welcomed into the world. Minutes later and only half an hour from a new day, in what appears to be one final contraction, Sonja is ready to deliver. Nahhas takes control of the situation, calls a nurse for backup and within a few minutes Jada is born. After a quick cleanup, Jada is handed to mom and held skin-to-skin for the first hour of her tiny life. Nahhas keeps a close eye on Sonja and then weighs the newborn. Jada is perfectly healthy and so is mom. CONTINUED ON PAGE 4
A modern midwives’ tale
Midwife Tamara Nahhas celebrates the birth of Baby Jada with parents Marcus and Sonja Kennedy of Coquitlam at Royal Columbian Hospital. More and more B.C. families are using midwives, and the profession is experiencing a shortage.