Birth, The American Way

My doctor decided to perform a c-secion after only 8hours of labor. Neither I or the baby was in danger, they just didn't like that I was moving along quickly. My family thinks its because the doctors wanted to be home before 10:00 that evening. I was fine with the c-section, but I don't know if they did it for medical reasons or because of just plane old time management. They eanted to go home. The doctor never saw me before the c-section. They only talked to my nurse via phone.

the 30 percent is also from women who have their second child by cesarean because their first was born that way. Also, an elective and planned cesarean section is much safer than an emergency one. So many women go into labor and 24 hours later, the baby still isn't coming out. If your body avoids this trauma all together than the recovery is shorter and risks are lessened.

And having a baby in a bathtub seems like a really dumb idea. women need to think first about the health of their child. that is very reckless.

I am ashamed and distressed to read this article and many of these comments regarding a woman's choice for birth. I myself am a well-educated woman and I have done my research. I do not see a reason to condemn a mother for her choice - if they want to schedule it out, fine. If they like the unpredictability of it, fine. If they want to deliver at home, fine. For me personally, I would never dream of giving birth at home and without a doctor present ??? but I would also never, NEVER, tell a mom that her decision is wrong. Yes, perhaps C-section rates are too high and the risks are different than a vaginal birth - but really aren't we missing the point! - THE BABY IS WHAT MATTERS!

I will also say that I am due in April and this is my first child ??? I plan on trying vaginally and having an epidural. (I will also stipulate that I have an underlying condition that may make things difficult to give birth vaginally, so I am not opposed to a C-section if necessary.) My sole concern is for the health and welfare of my baby boy. Each day that draws me closer to his anticipated due date is a joyous celebration that there is one less day to wait.

I have had three friends give birth in the last two years: 2 tried vaginal births and had to have emergency c-sections. Yes they had a longer recovery, but all (mothers and babies) turned out beautifully and healthy. Both of the csec moms have been made to feel as if they somehow failed their child because they couldn't deliver vaginally ??? even though both were medically necessary. Would this have been different if they'd been scheduled? Maybe, but who's to say that a scheduled csection isn't a valid birth? Just because you didn't labor like your mother did, or struggle like your neighbor did, does not mean that you aren't a good mom and that you are somehow not a ???real??? woman. You still carried that baby for 9 months, you still worried about what being a Mommie would really mean, and you still loved that little baby more than anything else.

I am not one to say that my choice is the best choice - but it is the right choice FOR ME. If we, as women, could just accept that just like each woman and each pregnancy is different - each birth is special and amazing - regardless of how that child comes into the world, it is the way it was meant to happen - I think we'd all be better off.

Women were having babies for centuries before hospitals and women were dying in childbirth for centuries before hospitals in much higher percentages than die in the United States today. I can tell you that my wife would have bled to death after giving birth to either of our children had she not given birth in a hospital where surgery could be performed IMMEDIATELY. She had a placenta "increta" -- which is when the placenta grows into the uterus. This situation is virtually undetectable before birth -- and if the placenta doesn't detach, the usual tendency is for the attendant to pull on the umbilical cord, which would then tear the uterus open and the mother would most likely bleed to death without an immediate hysterectomy. I thank God that my wife was giving birth in a hospital and a place with a Level III NICU.

I cannot understand this emphasis on returning to a "natural" time of higher maternal mortality and infant mortality. The fact that some people have "complication-free" home births cannot overcome the fact that many have problems that require IMMEDIATE attention or they will become fatal. And I don't even want to think about what happens to the child born at a home birth who has an APGAR score of 1 at 1 minute.

I could go on and on about this, but I believe the percentages show that it is clearly safer for both the mother and child if the birth is in a hospital with appropriate equipment and personnel standing by to deal with the emergencies.

Giving birth to your child should be the most empowering moment of your life. We as Women need to reclaim our bodies, minds and souls. We have the right to decide how our children should be birthed. Women have birthed babies into this world since the beginning if time. Women should be honored. We are the creators. Birth is a Rite of Passage no Woman should be denied.

You want to do an article scandalizing some surgical procedure? go for breast augmentation, tummy tuck or vaginal rejuvenation.
Please leave C/sections alone.
We have two kids both born by scheduled C/section. I was up and walking the evening of the surgery and the whole experience was in one word, PERFECT. And my sex life is GREAT (and no urinary incontinence)thanks to undamaged equipment !!
If I decide to have another child, I know which way to go. Definitely not the voodoo humbug of natural birth!

rio grande-it sounds like your the kind of person that would love to never pee or poo. Do you have a maid ? have you ever washed clothes ? The only thing voodoo about natural child birth is that your at the bar having happy hour after having your baby cut out of your womb.

I'm a male so you can stop reading if my unexperienced viewpoint bothers you. The human race has been delivering children naturally for thousands of years. Its only recently that C-sections have become popularized not by the mothers, but by the hospitals. Why? Its because America has become a place where people's greed is more important than their morals. We make money off of each other for profit without regard for our fellow human being. This is yet another issue why I am ashamed to call myself American. Hospitals are no different than corporations trying to earn a profit. The only answer to this and many other issues is Nationalized Health Care where doctors are rewarded on merit, not how many expensive procedures they can crank out. -Nick

doctors get paid more for a c section than that of normal birth....

I think HEALTHY women who have C-Sections are missing out on the TRUE magical feeling of Birth I felt EVERYTHING I have 2 kids I weighed 98 pounds when I got pregnant with the first and 101 with the second I cut the Caffine Cigs and Sugar out I stood up and squatted when I had my son 4 hours of labor NO DOCTOR only Mid-wives NO DRUGS. Too many mothers want to numb the experiance I want to LIVE IT. The fact that you even THINK you damage your Cervix or any other female organs is hog wash, the body can do amazing things and I don't think Mary had any problems delivering Jesus naturally. Also my sex life hasen't changed 1 bit and one other little thing I HAVE NOT 1 SCAR or STRECH MARK I am 36 years old Top that C-Section Mommies.

One question would be: Why do women think they should have epidurals, c-sections, antibiotics, etc? Is it because we are definetely ignorant many times about what is happening to our bodies when we are pregnant and trust our doctors enough for them to say "don't worry, we'll take care of you" and "if you feel too much pain we can make it better" with all those things mentioned above. Why is no one teaching us women that giving birth is a natural process, that our bodies know how to do it. We are lead to believe that it is so painful we could not possibly stand it... but it is not true. Hospitals should definetely offer all of these options to women to want them, but they should also emphasize that all those things are not needed and we should not be made afraid and think that we have opt for all kinds of drugs to deliver a baby.

I think that Block (who discussed changing the perception of birth from bloody and painful to one of a natural process) is on the right track. The key, IMO, is education and ownership of a pregnancy. For instance, my wife and I are expecting a child in 2 months. We have decided to go the natural path, and avoid as many interventions (and unnecessary post-delivery procedures) as possible. It is EXTREMELY difficult to find support for this sort of birth plan, leading my wife to change both OB and hospital to find a supportive environment.

"Oh, honey, you don't get a badge for going through that labor, you know?"

Or, "You know you get a baby at the end anyway, even if you get drugs, right?"

But more than that, pay attention in your conversations with mothers who have delivered less-than-naturally... my wife and I found that in discussing our plans with these women (whoever they are in our lives - friends, co-workers, family), though they might agree that natural is better, they always exempt their own delivery because it was somehow special. Or different. Something specific to them precluded them delivering naturally.

It comes down to education. Even breach babies, the one big indicator for C-Sections mentioned in the article, can be delivered naturally (my wife's father was a breach baby). Not to mention that there are methods and techniques to try to get a breach baby to turn. Don't get me wrong, there may well come a time for interventions and possibly even a C-section, but I think much of the reason for the rising number is (a) convenience for the mother and doctor (abominable), and (b) lack of education.

And not only of the options and the repurcussions of those options, but also education of what parents will face in the delivery room. If you have not considered the possible outcomes, the possible dilemmas and choices you will face (and, yes, this means research), then the doctors and nurses are going to find that and exploit it as a weakness. Let's face it, if you haven't considered a question in the comfort of all the months leading up to the delivery, there is little chance that you are going to be in any position to make the best choice in the delivery room when you or your wife is in pain and the doctors are playing on your fears.

Don't get me wrong, it doesn't have to be adversarial. Having bucked the "traditional" approach (and since when did natural birth plans become less than traditional?) all along as we prepare for the new addition to our family, my wife and I have had to constantly defend our decisions and fight for the birth experience we want. I may come across a bit strong in my tone, but the bottom line to the whole thing is that you have to educate yourself, own your pregnancy, own your birth plan, and know that you are doing the best thing for your baby.

I am a small-framed woman who has had two children born via c-section due to "unproductive labor". This hospital setting was not my choice. I had to go , albeit with my nurse-midwife, because my health insurance dictated where I would have coverage. My nurse-midwife was unable to attend me at home because HER liability insurance wouldn't cover her actions outside of a hospital setting.

I am completely convinced that the reason that my two labors did not progress was because I DID NOT WANT TO BE THERE! Hospitals are for sick people, and preganancy is not an illness! While I am grateful that I have two healthy boys, I still resent the way they made their appearance in the world.

If I get pregant again, I'm going to go to Tennessee to have the baby. There is a natural birthing place there that started out as a hippie commune in the late sixties. Called 'The Farm', it still offeres natural birth practices far far away from my HMO! (www.thefarmmidwives.org) They accept major insurance, and have a variety of options for birthing. No one in my home state of Connecticut will do a natural VBAC for me since I have had two c-sections, so I am going to travel to get what I want!