Giving
birth is a personal experience for every woman. I have friends {me included}
who have such good birth experiences that they’re ready to do it again just a
few weeks post-partum. On the other hand, I know some women who have decided
not to have more children because of how difficult their birth experience was
for them – both physically and emotionally. I am aware that this is a sensitive
topic, and I want to be respectful of women who have had difficult experiences
or whose birth experiences were significantly different from what they
planned/expected.
In
The Business of Being Born there’s a quotation that stuck with me, “People
spend more time researching what type of tv to buy than they do what type of
birth to have.” Women don’t know their options. While healthcare professionals generally have their patients' best interests in mind, sometimes their ideas about childbirth conflict with what might be best for the birthing mother {whether they want an unmedicated birth or not}. The national
C-Section rate is over 32% {CDC stat} -- which is a really high number considering research supports that only about 2% of
births are in need of emergency c-sections. While I’m thankful for the lives of
both mamas and babies c-sections have saved, it’s been proven that vaginal
deliveries are overall safer/healthier for the baby and the mama.
The
intention of this birth series is to educate folks about unmedicated birth in a
hospital system and to give my reasons for choosing natural birth. These posts
are not to rebuke or look down on friends and others who have had an epidural
or c-section {selected or not}. My hope is for people to do a little bit of research about what kind of birth is best for them. I understand that everyone will not come to the same conclusions as me, and I respect that. I just feel strongly that people should know their options.
All
that being said: Birth matters. I think I’ve become pretty outspoken about
being pro-natural because I care about my friends. I care about their birth
experiences. My birthing experience, more specifically with Simon because he
was the first babe, was my introduction to motherhood. I'm incredibly thankful for a good experience that set the tone for the first stages of becoming a mom.
{via}
Since
posting Ragan’s birth story, I’ve gotten plenty of practical questions about
having an unmedicated birth and how to plan/prepare for the experience. It makes
me really excited to know that people are starting to question our hospital’s
birthing ‘business’ and that more people want to be informed about their
birthing options. It probably would be much easier to plan for a home birth or
go to a birthing center – but I know many women {me included} who feel more
comfortable being in a hospital setting. It can be done, but you definitely
have to do a little more work and be more prepared.
I’ve
broken the "series" down into some sections to help organize information:
- Why natural birth
- Your doctor/midwife
- Get a doula!
- How I've gone natural and other info
No comments:
Post a Comment
I love comments. It's like getting mail.