Amber Craig didn't like what was going on in the world of medicine regarding policy and standards of practice. In response to the American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists' stand on VBAC, Ms. Craig wrote a well-thought letter to the president of the ACOG, citing sources and medical studies pertinent to the conversation at hand. In it, she suggested that they reverse their restrictive policies on VBAC - which, as a result, encouraged many hospitals and practices to "ban" women from seeking VBACs.
Well, she received a response. The ACOG wrote back, in a letter full of misinformation. So, Craig wrote back again, gently correcting them with cited resources, from their own medical publications.
The ball is in their court... Where it will go from here, who knows... But, if you are a VBACtivist, if you are a childbirth educator, doula, obstetrician, midwife, or woman, I recommend taking a look at these letters. Here you are (start at the bottom and work your way up).
Showing posts with label responses. Show all posts
Showing posts with label responses. Show all posts
2.20.2008
2.09.2008
The Latest from ACOG
Oi, ACOG's newest statement on home birth is no shocker. I encourage you to read it carefully and then compare it to the numerous MEDICAL studies that there are regarding hospital vs PLANNED homebirth outcomes.
What more is to be said? Plenty.
- The Mommy Blawg responds.
- True Birth takes a second look at the absurdity of their claims - perhaps they simply aren't reading their own papers?!
- While House of Harris gives a nice run down of the inaccuracies of their statement.
- True Face of Birth hands back some information, good information, in the face of their stuttering.
- Permission to Mother is fed up and deals with them in her own post.
- VBAC Warrior responds to their Strategic Plan as well as their home birth statement.
- And Pushed Birth gives ACOG the critical eye by how they are making judgment calls and playing the 'bad mom' card.
What more is to be said? Plenty.
2.07.2008
Male Laborer
This is an interesting little tidbit that I came across on the www.
Please, take a moment to watch it.
Please, excuse the oddity of a MAN birthing...
PLEASE, take note - did you feel odd that the nurse and doctor were so rude to him? Treating him so roughly? Patronizing him? Talking down to him?
I sent this to a few friends and 'colleagues' and, though most are not NCB advocates, they all were struck at how horrible they were treating this man.
Odd...
They talk to women that way on a daily basis in hospitals across the U.S....
Most women don't even bat an eye at the way they are treated...
Why does it illicit a different reaction when it is a man?
On an end cap, a few of the women I sent this to were treated just this way by their birth attendants and did not think the least thing of it.
Please, take a moment to watch it.
Please, excuse the oddity of a MAN birthing...
PLEASE, take note - did you feel odd that the nurse and doctor were so rude to him? Treating him so roughly? Patronizing him? Talking down to him?
I sent this to a few friends and 'colleagues' and, though most are not NCB advocates, they all were struck at how horrible they were treating this man.
Odd...
They talk to women that way on a daily basis in hospitals across the U.S....
Most women don't even bat an eye at the way they are treated...
Why does it illicit a different reaction when it is a man?
On an end cap, a few of the women I sent this to were treated just this way by their birth attendants and did not think the least thing of it.
1.28.2008
Gestational Diabetes - Revisited
A short while ago I was asked my opinion on the GD testing.. I am finally back to blog it out...
OK - the wonderful 'drink this concentrated sugar solution and come to have your finger pricked to see if you have high blood sugars' test.
Well, can you tell my bias simply from that statement.
First off:
How the test is done- This test can be done fasting or non-fasting, with blood drawn from finger sticks or from your veins. You are made to either drink a special sugar enhanced drink called Glucola (the sugar concentrate) or eat jelly beans. Then, a short time later, your blood will be tested for the level of glucose. They usually ask you to not eat for 12 hours before, but not always. And they ALWAYS tell you not to workout much after the Glucola consumption.
When the test is done - It is done to most women around 28 weeks gestation. However, if you have a family history of diabetes or had gestational diabetes in a previous pregnancy they may test you earlier. There are also guidelines that say not everyone needs to be tested for gestational diabetes, though it is routine in many places.
How the results are given- 140 and below are considered not gestational diabetics, anything above this reading will usually be sent for further testing.
Problems with this test... MY GOODNESS, don't get me started.
Most women are told to lay off the physical activity and often are told to take the drink first thing in the morning after a 12 hour fast through the night... OK... (duh) - First off, who actually takes in that amount of sugar after a 12 hour fast? Many MANY women have SOME variation of blood sugar anomalies even when not pregnant - this type of body abuse will most assuredly be skewed in such circumstances.
I tell you, as a borderline hypoglycemic, I SURE would be bouncing sugar out of every pore after doing something as idiotic as that. Not to mention the health risk to someone such as I? Ei, Ei, Ei. In fact, in a study titled "Hypoglycemia during the 100-g oral glucose tolerance test: incidence and perinatal significance", they found that many women (6.3%) who don't have hypoglycemia have reactive hypoglycemia to the oral glucose tolerance test... and they have significantly lower incidences of gestational diabetes. (Weissman A, Solt I, Zloczower M, Jakobi P.Obstet Gynecol. 2005 Jun;105(6):1424-8.)
They 'say' there are no side effects... I took the GD test one time... once! What happened to me? I was sweating, shaking, my heart was racing so fast I thought it was going to fly out of my chest, I got a horrible headache, I felt like I was going to puke, and the room was spinning. I have spoken to many MANY women who reflect similar experiences - some even pass out... don't TELL me there are no side-effects...
Another issue is that if you are sick (a cold, the flu, a tummy bug, not enough sleep, etc...) ALL of those things can inhibit correct (and normal when healthy) glucose metabolism.
A third issue is that, if a woman is NORMALLY small of frame (95-115lbs PREpregnancy) - a normal adult dose of this sugar solution will render inaccurate results.
What do the studies say?
The cochrane review states: There are insufficient data for any reliable conclusions about the effects of treatments for impaired glucose tolerance on perinatal outcome. So... Testing and "treatment" doesn't improve outcomes??
So WHY ARE WE DOING THIS?
The ACOG recommends only screening those women who are either 30 ears old or older OR who are at an increase risk for GD from personal or familial history.
Why not simply universally advocate healthier diet, exercise, cinnamon as a natural blood sugar assimilator (yes cinnamon), and education? Rather than this UNPROVEN, UNHEALTHY, INEFFECTIVE screening, diagnosis, and treatment?
So - no real help from me, I know. But you asked my thoughts. My thoughts are the misdiagnoses, stress on the maternal body, and the unsubstantiated practice of this routine test is not enough to get me to keep my baby from nourishment for 12 hours, sit on my lazy butt for as long a time, chug sugar solution, and then let someone stick a needle under my skin just to tell me that my sugars are high. Sigh. I am being moody today, I know. :o)
OK - the wonderful 'drink this concentrated sugar solution and come to have your finger pricked to see if you have high blood sugars' test.
Well, can you tell my bias simply from that statement.
First off:
How the test is done- This test can be done fasting or non-fasting, with blood drawn from finger sticks or from your veins. You are made to either drink a special sugar enhanced drink called Glucola (the sugar concentrate) or eat jelly beans. Then, a short time later, your blood will be tested for the level of glucose. They usually ask you to not eat for 12 hours before, but not always. And they ALWAYS tell you not to workout much after the Glucola consumption.
When the test is done - It is done to most women around 28 weeks gestation. However, if you have a family history of diabetes or had gestational diabetes in a previous pregnancy they may test you earlier. There are also guidelines that say not everyone needs to be tested for gestational diabetes, though it is routine in many places.
How the results are given- 140 and below are considered not gestational diabetics, anything above this reading will usually be sent for further testing.
Problems with this test... MY GOODNESS, don't get me started.
Most women are told to lay off the physical activity and often are told to take the drink first thing in the morning after a 12 hour fast through the night... OK... (duh) - First off, who actually takes in that amount of sugar after a 12 hour fast? Many MANY women have SOME variation of blood sugar anomalies even when not pregnant - this type of body abuse will most assuredly be skewed in such circumstances.
I tell you, as a borderline hypoglycemic, I SURE would be bouncing sugar out of every pore after doing something as idiotic as that. Not to mention the health risk to someone such as I? Ei, Ei, Ei. In fact, in a study titled "Hypoglycemia during the 100-g oral glucose tolerance test: incidence and perinatal significance", they found that many women (6.3%) who don't have hypoglycemia have reactive hypoglycemia to the oral glucose tolerance test... and they have significantly lower incidences of gestational diabetes. (Weissman A, Solt I, Zloczower M, Jakobi P.Obstet Gynecol. 2005 Jun;105(6):1424-8.)
They 'say' there are no side effects... I took the GD test one time... once! What happened to me? I was sweating, shaking, my heart was racing so fast I thought it was going to fly out of my chest, I got a horrible headache, I felt like I was going to puke, and the room was spinning. I have spoken to many MANY women who reflect similar experiences - some even pass out... don't TELL me there are no side-effects...
Another issue is that if you are sick (a cold, the flu, a tummy bug, not enough sleep, etc...) ALL of those things can inhibit correct (and normal when healthy) glucose metabolism.
A third issue is that, if a woman is NORMALLY small of frame (95-115lbs PREpregnancy) - a normal adult dose of this sugar solution will render inaccurate results.
What do the studies say?
The cochrane review states: There are insufficient data for any reliable conclusions about the effects of treatments for impaired glucose tolerance on perinatal outcome. So... Testing and "treatment" doesn't improve outcomes??
So WHY ARE WE DOING THIS?
The ACOG recommends only screening those women who are either 30 ears old or older OR who are at an increase risk for GD from personal or familial history.
Why not simply universally advocate healthier diet, exercise, cinnamon as a natural blood sugar assimilator (yes cinnamon), and education? Rather than this UNPROVEN, UNHEALTHY, INEFFECTIVE screening, diagnosis, and treatment?
So - no real help from me, I know. But you asked my thoughts. My thoughts are the misdiagnoses, stress on the maternal body, and the unsubstantiated practice of this routine test is not enough to get me to keep my baby from nourishment for 12 hours, sit on my lazy butt for as long a time, chug sugar solution, and then let someone stick a needle under my skin just to tell me that my sugars are high. Sigh. I am being moody today, I know. :o)
1.25.2008
Looking Glass Alice
Looking Glass Alice is a new blog I happened upon today. She had such BEAUTIFUL words, I had to share...
"Because we are too short, too tall, too thin, too small of foot, too old, too young, too wide, and our pelvises are too narrow, too small, too untried, or unproven or the wrong shape, and our uteruses are too scarred, or pointing the wrong way, or we are too multiparous, too fertile, too infertile, too female, too small, too big, too fat, too emotional, too detached, too strong, too weak, too intelligent, too well designed to birth, not designed well enough, and our vaginas are too scarred, too unproven, not stretchy enough or too stretchy, and we’re too inconvenient, too unpredictable, too demanding, too informed, too loud, too messy, and our bodies labour too long or not long enough, and our cervices don’t dilate 1cm an hour on command and because when you hire a surgeon you get surgery and hospitals are for sick people…and so for these and many other reasons, we are part of the homebirth movement."
Award
By accepting this Excellent Blog Award, I have to award it to 10 more people who’s blog’s I find Excellent Award worthy. I can give it to as many people as I want but please award at least 10. Thank you out there for having such great blogs and being such great friends! You deserve this! If chosen, you agree to the same information above. If chosen, also feel free to award people who have already been awarded…Well, thank you 2Caps, for the award! I am flattered and adequately blushing! The kind thing she said about me?
"Nicole has her very own childbirth education curriculum now! She believes we are fearfully and wonderfully made and that birth is a good thing, and I agree with her! "
Now I need to award some people. Here is my role-call of awardees. Please see the above information to claim your award...
- Kris - for being the Most Compassionate and Passionate New Doula-In-Training Blogger.
- VBACWarrior - for being the Most Controversial, Raw, and Educational VBAC Blogger.
- Sheridan - for having the Most Eloquently Scripturally Tied Birth Advocacy Post I have read in a long time.
- Corin - gets two... for having the Most Eye-Pleasing Layout AND for having the Most Easily Digestible Educational Pieces (meaning that the lay man can read em and the fence rider can accept them).
- umm... Corin got TWO....
- Guinever - for the Best Menu Bar and Side Bar - she gets mad props for loads of easy to find, user-friendly information on her blog. And it doesn't look messy!
- Maria - for some of the Most Beautiful Birth Stories and Pictures on the bloggernet.
- Kathy - for one of the Most "Huh... Insightful and Thoughtworthy" Posts in The Disappearing Woman
- Carla - for What She Has Started and Is Doing in the Birth Advocacy World.
- Andrea - for Being 'The One' (we all hope to be) and Spreading the Word. - her blog often makes me cry, often motivates me, never ceases to astound and ground me.
1.10.2008
Gloria Lemay on U/A Birth
Here is Canadian Midwife* Gloria Lemay's response to the DIY Deliveries: More Women Go It Alone (ABC's Good Morning America report), originally posted on ICAN.
Dear Women,
The above quote is by a physician who was interviewed by Good Morning America for a program about Unassisted Birth on Jan 8, 2008.
I think it’s very important to address the statement that a woman can hemorrhage and bleed to death in as little as five minutes. This is a very horrifying comment for a doctor to make and, for anyone who doesn’t really know birth, it could be enough to send them running for the hospital.
First of all, yes, it’s possible to hemorrhage and bleed to death quickly in birth IF YOU HAVE A SURGICAL WOUNDING. Women die from bleeding in cesareans and with episiotomies. The closest to death that I have ever seen a woman in childbirth was in a hospital birth where the ob/gyn cut an episiotomy, pulled the baby out quickly with forceps and then left the family doctor to repair the poor woman. We were skating in the blood on the floor and desperately trying to get enough IV fluids into her to save her life while the family doctor tried to suture the episiotomy wound as fast as he could. I have never seen anything like that in a home birth setting or a hospital birth that didn’t involve cutting.
Think about it--would any midwife ever go to a homebirth if it was possible for the mother to die from bleeding in five minutes? I know I wouldn’t go if that could happen. We had a visit here in Vancouver BC from an ob/gyn from Holland back in the 1980’s. Dr. Kloosterman was the head of Dutch maternity services for many years and he was a real friend to homebirth and midwifery. He told us that you have AN HOUR after a natural birth before the woman will be in trouble from bleeding. Does this mean that you wait for an hour to take action with a bleeding woman? No, of course not. If there’s more blood than is normal, you need to call 911 and transport to the hospital within the hour, but you’re not going to have a maternal death before an hour is up. I have had 10 transports for hemorrhage in the many homebirths that I have attended (over 1,000). Two women have required transfusions. The other 8 recovered with IV fluids, rest and iron supplements. Of course, no one wants to see blood transfusions in this day and age. We also don’t like to see a woman anemic after having a baby because it makes the postpartum time very difficult. The most important action after having a baby is to keep the mother and baby skin to skin continuously for at least the first 4 hours.
What doctors won’t tell you is that the most severe cases of postpartum anemia are in women who have had cesareans. Major abdominal surgery results in anemia. I have a friend who is a pharmacist in a hospital. He spends most of his days trying to figure out individual plans to help cesarean moms get their hemoglobin counts up. He finds these cases of severe anemia in post-operative mothers very distressing.
I hope this information is helpful to you.
As far as the other nonsense this person is trying to frighten you with:
1. Significant tearing—if you look with a mirror at your vulva after birth and there seems to be skin that “flaps” away from the rest of the vulva structures, you can always go into the emergency ward and have someone suture the wound. Tears do not bleed like cuts do. This should not dissuade anyone from staying away from the place where the scalpels reside.
2. Breech position—you’ll know if your baby is breech. When the membranes release, you will see black meconium coming out the consistency of toothpaste. With a head first baby, the meconium colours the water green or brown but with a breech, the meconium is being squeezed directly out without mixing with water. The other way that you should suspect a breech presentation is if you have a feeling from about 34 weeks of pregnancy on that you have “a hard ball stuck in your ribs.” Breech presentations are about 3 percent of births.
3. Cord wrapped around the neck—the smart babies put their cords around their necks to keep them out of trouble. If you have a baby with the cord around the neck, it can be unwrapped very easily either during or right after the birth. The most important thing is to keep the cord intact.
Gloria Lemay, Vancouver BC Canada
Advisory Board Member, ICAN
Contributing Ed. Midwifery Today Magazine
Teaching midwifery on the internet at www.consciouswoman.org
Speaking at the Trust Birth Conference, Redondo Beach, CA in March 2008
* Gloria Lemay cannot officially call herself a "midwife," according to British Columbia ruling. Only midwives belonging to the BC College of Midwives may use that title. She is allowed to advertise as a "birth attendant."
Thank you, True Face, for bringing this to our attention.
“The baby could be born in a breach [sic] position, or with the umbilical cord wrapped around its neck. The mother could suffer from significant tearing or from a maternal hemorrhage and bleed to death in as little as five minutes.”
Dear Women,
The above quote is by a physician who was interviewed by Good Morning America for a program about Unassisted Birth on Jan 8, 2008.
I think it’s very important to address the statement that a woman can hemorrhage and bleed to death in as little as five minutes. This is a very horrifying comment for a doctor to make and, for anyone who doesn’t really know birth, it could be enough to send them running for the hospital.
First of all, yes, it’s possible to hemorrhage and bleed to death quickly in birth IF YOU HAVE A SURGICAL WOUNDING. Women die from bleeding in cesareans and with episiotomies. The closest to death that I have ever seen a woman in childbirth was in a hospital birth where the ob/gyn cut an episiotomy, pulled the baby out quickly with forceps and then left the family doctor to repair the poor woman. We were skating in the blood on the floor and desperately trying to get enough IV fluids into her to save her life while the family doctor tried to suture the episiotomy wound as fast as he could. I have never seen anything like that in a home birth setting or a hospital birth that didn’t involve cutting.
Think about it--would any midwife ever go to a homebirth if it was possible for the mother to die from bleeding in five minutes? I know I wouldn’t go if that could happen. We had a visit here in Vancouver BC from an ob/gyn from Holland back in the 1980’s. Dr. Kloosterman was the head of Dutch maternity services for many years and he was a real friend to homebirth and midwifery. He told us that you have AN HOUR after a natural birth before the woman will be in trouble from bleeding. Does this mean that you wait for an hour to take action with a bleeding woman? No, of course not. If there’s more blood than is normal, you need to call 911 and transport to the hospital within the hour, but you’re not going to have a maternal death before an hour is up. I have had 10 transports for hemorrhage in the many homebirths that I have attended (over 1,000). Two women have required transfusions. The other 8 recovered with IV fluids, rest and iron supplements. Of course, no one wants to see blood transfusions in this day and age. We also don’t like to see a woman anemic after having a baby because it makes the postpartum time very difficult. The most important action after having a baby is to keep the mother and baby skin to skin continuously for at least the first 4 hours.
What doctors won’t tell you is that the most severe cases of postpartum anemia are in women who have had cesareans. Major abdominal surgery results in anemia. I have a friend who is a pharmacist in a hospital. He spends most of his days trying to figure out individual plans to help cesarean moms get their hemoglobin counts up. He finds these cases of severe anemia in post-operative mothers very distressing.
I hope this information is helpful to you.
As far as the other nonsense this person is trying to frighten you with:
1. Significant tearing—if you look with a mirror at your vulva after birth and there seems to be skin that “flaps” away from the rest of the vulva structures, you can always go into the emergency ward and have someone suture the wound. Tears do not bleed like cuts do. This should not dissuade anyone from staying away from the place where the scalpels reside.
2. Breech position—you’ll know if your baby is breech. When the membranes release, you will see black meconium coming out the consistency of toothpaste. With a head first baby, the meconium colours the water green or brown but with a breech, the meconium is being squeezed directly out without mixing with water. The other way that you should suspect a breech presentation is if you have a feeling from about 34 weeks of pregnancy on that you have “a hard ball stuck in your ribs.” Breech presentations are about 3 percent of births.
3. Cord wrapped around the neck—the smart babies put their cords around their necks to keep them out of trouble. If you have a baby with the cord around the neck, it can be unwrapped very easily either during or right after the birth. The most important thing is to keep the cord intact.
Gloria Lemay, Vancouver BC Canada
Advisory Board Member, ICAN
Contributing Ed. Midwifery Today Magazine
Teaching midwifery on the internet at www.consciouswoman.org
Speaking at the Trust Birth Conference, Redondo Beach, CA in March 2008
* Gloria Lemay cannot officially call herself a "midwife," according to British Columbia ruling. Only midwives belonging to the BC College of Midwives may use that title. She is allowed to advertise as a "birth attendant."
Thank you, True Face, for bringing this to our attention.
12.20.2007
Reader's Questions...
Kim asked: "How do you find you work with midwives at homebirths? What services do you generally replicate? What services do you provide post-partum that midwives do not?"
As another Doula said recently, it is a treat to attend home births. I may be kicking myself in the gut for this one later, but I am going to be honest - we, as doula's, are most beneficial at hospital births, as that is the place where you will not have as much support, need more advocacy intervention, and not be assigned one support person to be with you throughout the duration of the journey.
Times when we compliment midwife-attended home births well: when the S/O or dh is not involved, is deployed, works long-distance - or it otherwise not available, when mom has other children who could use distraction or someone to ask questions to, or when MW lives a far way away, mom has a history of fast labors, or a combo of the two.
I have found that midwives are VERY open to a doula attending a home birth as many women feel safer surrounded (literally) by female energy (and no, this is not a New Age or Scientology thing). Often, in a home birth setting, I arrive before the midwife does, help midwife to assess when it would be a good time for her to come over, make food/drinks, clean up, help with the kids, answer phones, assist said midwife, AND help with regular doula goings-on.
The best way to explain it is this: in a home birth setting, I am an extra pair of hands and a comforter. In a hospital setting, I am an advocate, a mediator, a monitor, a comforter, a servant, and a constant companion.
I don't provide much pp that a midwife won't, although I may be able to get over to your home sooner for something than your midwife, depending on how many clients your mw has at that time/season... I also offer, at your 2 week, to do ANYTHING you need: answer questions, go over the birth story, fold some laundry, pick up a prescription, watch the older kids so momma and baby can take a 2 hour nap, run the vacuum, help with breastfeeding, etc... I don't know many mw's who do the domestic duties at check-ins.
Amber asked (sorry no linky): "When a woman has been determined "high risk" for preterm labor and given bedrest from 20 weeks into her pregnancy, does that automatically preclude a natural childbirth from happening, assuming the pregnancy is continued to full term. Yes, the situation is mine. I am now almost 22weeks and desperate to know if 14weeks of bedrest automatically means a C-section. I've been dreaming about giving birth for so long and I just can't find any help."
Amber - it all depends on what reasons you have been given for 'high risk'. In most situations, natural childbirth is the safest route of birth for both baby and mom. This is doubly true for babies who might have other 'issues' at birth - as medication in birth can further compromise the health of mom and baby, vaginal, unmedicated birth is even more important. Again, I would need more information on your particular situation before I would be able to address your specific needs... but, with what information you gave me, my answer is 'no, bedrest does not automatically preclude a natural childbirth from happening'.
You could probably find a CBE willing to do a private, in-home CBE course for you, and a doula who was familiar with your particular situation could greatly benefit you - as well as doing your own research to become as familiar with your situation as possible - knowing the risks of different interventions, so that when your medical team suggests something you can be well prepared with your own armory of information. As I repeat often to mom's, 'no one is responsible for your health care and that of your unborn baby but YOU'.
I love answering readers' questions and welcome ppl to write their own in the comments. If you leave your linky, I will buzz you to let you know I have responded to your Q.
As another Doula said recently, it is a treat to attend home births. I may be kicking myself in the gut for this one later, but I am going to be honest - we, as doula's, are most beneficial at hospital births, as that is the place where you will not have as much support, need more advocacy intervention, and not be assigned one support person to be with you throughout the duration of the journey.
Times when we compliment midwife-attended home births well: when the S/O or dh is not involved, is deployed, works long-distance - or it otherwise not available, when mom has other children who could use distraction or someone to ask questions to, or when MW lives a far way away, mom has a history of fast labors, or a combo of the two.
I have found that midwives are VERY open to a doula attending a home birth as many women feel safer surrounded (literally) by female energy (and no, this is not a New Age or Scientology thing). Often, in a home birth setting, I arrive before the midwife does, help midwife to assess when it would be a good time for her to come over, make food/drinks, clean up, help with the kids, answer phones, assist said midwife, AND help with regular doula goings-on.
The best way to explain it is this: in a home birth setting, I am an extra pair of hands and a comforter. In a hospital setting, I am an advocate, a mediator, a monitor, a comforter, a servant, and a constant companion.
I don't provide much pp that a midwife won't, although I may be able to get over to your home sooner for something than your midwife, depending on how many clients your mw has at that time/season... I also offer, at your 2 week, to do ANYTHING you need: answer questions, go over the birth story, fold some laundry, pick up a prescription, watch the older kids so momma and baby can take a 2 hour nap, run the vacuum, help with breastfeeding, etc... I don't know many mw's who do the domestic duties at check-ins.
Amber asked (sorry no linky): "When a woman has been determined "high risk" for preterm labor and given bedrest from 20 weeks into her pregnancy, does that automatically preclude a natural childbirth from happening, assuming the pregnancy is continued to full term. Yes, the situation is mine. I am now almost 22weeks and desperate to know if 14weeks of bedrest automatically means a C-section. I've been dreaming about giving birth for so long and I just can't find any help."
Amber - it all depends on what reasons you have been given for 'high risk'. In most situations, natural childbirth is the safest route of birth for both baby and mom. This is doubly true for babies who might have other 'issues' at birth - as medication in birth can further compromise the health of mom and baby, vaginal, unmedicated birth is even more important. Again, I would need more information on your particular situation before I would be able to address your specific needs... but, with what information you gave me, my answer is 'no, bedrest does not automatically preclude a natural childbirth from happening'.
You could probably find a CBE willing to do a private, in-home CBE course for you, and a doula who was familiar with your particular situation could greatly benefit you - as well as doing your own research to become as familiar with your situation as possible - knowing the risks of different interventions, so that when your medical team suggests something you can be well prepared with your own armory of information. As I repeat often to mom's, 'no one is responsible for your health care and that of your unborn baby but YOU'.
I love answering readers' questions and welcome ppl to write their own in the comments. If you leave your linky, I will buzz you to let you know I have responded to your Q.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)
LinkWithin
