Comments on: CBB Talks to Ricki Lake and Abby Epstein About Your Best Birth, Part 1

By: Jamie

Jamie — Wed, 01 Jul 2009 15:49:49 +0000

I absolutely agree it’s every woman’s right to choose how she gives birth! (c-section, epidural, non-medicated, etc.) However, for those of you arguing that all that matters is a healthy baby (and you’re right! That really is all that matters!), remember that any drugs you take during childbirth, whether it’s pitocin to induce labor, an epidural, receive anesthesia, etc., those drugs DO cross over into the placenta. The amount may be small, but it still does cross the placenta and therefore DOES get into your baby.

In an uncomplicated pregnancy, an unmedicated birth is the HEALTHIEST birth for your baby. Though I am very grateful for the availability of pitocin, epidurals, and c-sections in emergency/problematic situations!

By: Crystal

Crystal — Wed, 01 Jul 2009 15:04:27 +0000

Ashley-that is all that matters! It doesn’t matter how the baby got here as long as the baby is healthy. I think we take having a healthy baby for granted and so we say something like “all that matters is having a healthy baby.” What if you had a perfect delivery and then had a stillborn. Are you going to remember that your delivery was perfect or that your baby died? I know this is extreme but that was an extreme statement. A friend of mine once told me that she knew a woman who REFUSED a c-section even though her doctor kept insisting otherwise. Her baby was in distress and the cord was wrapped around his neck. She did end up delivering the baby “natural” but he had brain damage from his imbilical cord. It was a terrible story. If my doctor tells me I need a c-section and they’ve done everything they can for me I’m not going to argue because the most important thing to me is MY HEALTHY BABY!!!

By: Ruby

Ruby — Wed, 01 Jul 2009 08:03:47 +0000

Heather what a beautiful story! Congratulations on your new baby girl!

Crystal – it’s been categorically proven that for healthy women with a low-risk pregnancy home birth is AS safe or safer than a a hospital birth.

Plus by having my baby at home I avoided the unnecessary cascade of intervention which happens all too often causing trauma and injury. I delivered my baby with the help of my partner and 2 very experienced fantastic midwives – nobody else was needed.

Of course there will always be unforeseen emergencies but these are statistically very very rare.

By: Heather

Heather — Tue, 30 Jun 2009 21:56:54 +0000

I appreciate teh idea that this is about educating women about all of their options, not so much about advocating one over the others. In my opinino, the best birth is the one whee there is a physically and emotionally healthy Mom, baby, and family, and where bonding occurs. Generally speaking, I think out of hospital births are better for bonding, but at the ame time, i would much see a medicated, well bonded mommy and baby than one that stuck to natural birth just for the sake of it and ends up too exhausted to bond quickly- it happens, I’ve experienced it, and it has lasting effects.
That said, I just hd my third baby at home on June 13th, and it was one of the mot glorious experiences of my life. I have incredible memories of tlaking to my three year old daugte, smiling with her while she pats my hair, as I was in the most intense parts of labor. My 6 year old son ran into the room just in time, previously he had said he did not want to see the birth, and he was the one to announce to the whole family that he had a new sister. It was a bonding experience for the entire family, and I think it has made our transition to a family of 5 a beautiful one- my other children feel incredibly connected to their new sister.

By: Crystal

Crystal — Tue, 30 Jun 2009 20:50:41 +0000

I have never given birth and thus have no kids but I have a few questions about the “Business of Being Born.” If you decide to have a home birth with an assisting midwife, what happens if it becomes an emergency? Isn’t it better to be in a hospital where if something goes wrong an operating room is right down the hallway? It just seems dangerous to me. I mean it’s fine if everything goes well but what if it doesn’t? What is the risk to the baby? I know that people have been doing it for 100s of years but people also used to die in childbirth quite often. I really hope someone can answer my questions.

By: Ruby

Ruby — Tue, 30 Jun 2009 13:02:16 +0000

I’m in the UK so it’s a different system here and all uncomplicated births are with midwives. Doctors only get involved if there are risks or a section is required.

I watched The Business of Being Born last year when pregnant with my first baby. It was instrumental in my decision to have my baby at home which I did without any complications.

What shocked me in the documentary was how many women in America believe they have to have a doctor as their main care provider and how many don’t even question the system and the over medicalisation of birth.

By: MiB

MiB — Tue, 30 Jun 2009 11:44:12 +0000

I haven’t seen the business of being born, but I just had to add, that my friend who is a midwife, and my aunt who is an OB both have told me that when the mother is relaxed during birth there is much less risk for complications, so the mothers experience IS crucial when it comes to minimizing the risk of complications and stress to the baby, and thus increase the chance to have a healthy baby.

By: Ashley

Ashley — Sun, 28 Jun 2009 16:23:22 +0000

Fnhdl pointed out another big problem that many women have to deal with! (thank you for that by the way). Switching OB’s is not as simple as you make it seem, bubbs. For one thing, many women are restricted to using doctors that are within their insurance network. I’m actually dealing with that problem right now. My friends have recommended all of these wonderful doctors and midwives, but hardly any of them are in my network!!! It’s incredibly frustrating. So for that reason alone, we can’t always have our first choice.

Secondly, as fnhdl pointed out, many practices are now composed of several OB’s. I don’t know if it’s just a Florida thing or a new trend in general, but most of the offices around here require their patients to cycle through all of the OB’s so you don’t have a choice of who you see. You’re stuck with whoever is on call which sucks because each doctor could have a completely different philosophy. I know someone who was with a practice like that for her first pregnancy but has since decided to switch to a different one that has midwives because she doesn’t want to take any chances like she did the first time around (fortunately she lucked out when she had her son and got the natural birth she wanted… she wants to make sure that happens again the next time).

I still maintain my opinion that it’s dumb for women to say that it doesn’t matter how you give birth (because it very much does). I guess we just have to agree to disagree on that.

By: fnhdl

fnhdl — Sun, 28 Jun 2009 00:25:27 +0000

bubbs, you mention that if we are with an OB we aren’t comfortable with to just change OBs. Well, I had an OB who I loved, but he works in a practice with 5 other OBs. During my pregnancy, I met 4 of them, HATED 1, disliked 1, liked 1 and really liked the other. The fifth, I never met, but heard he was horrible. I could have ended up with any of them on the day of my daughters birth, it all just depended on who was on call. I wasn’t going to switch because there were 3/6 that I would have been happy getting. I was lucky because the one I really liked was on call when I went into labor. I started having contractions 5 hours before his shift ended, but amazingly delivered within 3 (only at the hospital for 1 1/2) hours! So, for me it really worked out well. My doctor was kind, and encouraging and kept telling me that I had the strength to get my baby out without meds, as I had wanted. The doctor I hated was set to take over at 6 AM when my doctor finished his shift. Had I had a normal length labor, I would have been stuck with her, and she quite openly scoffed at my plan to go med-free. I may have ended up with a labor I never really wanted had I gotten stuck with her.

By: Zee

Zee — Sat, 27 Jun 2009 14:47:38 +0000

I had my daughter at a hospital with an epidural. It was not the plan, but once I was in labor things changed. My contractions never got a rythymn and they were lasting 3 and 4 minutes. I actually had a 9 minute contraction. My daughters heart rate kept dipping, but my doctor never tried to force me to have c-section. They were even encouraging me to get in the tub. I ended up having to stay on the monitors because of the heart rate dips. I did have her vaginally, and felt the big whoosh when she came out. Do I wish I could have still had the natural birth..no. I am just glad she is ok. I think sometimes women put to much emphasis on their birth experience and this in part leads to some of the post-partum depression becuase what they wanted to happen didn’t. Not that I am saying that this is the only reason for post-partum depression, but I think for many women, it feeds into it. This is why people say “it doesn’t matter as long as the child is healthy”. they say it because to many times the emphasis is put on the process and not the result. Do yo want your child any less because he or she didn’t get her they way you wanted? I do agree with a one of the earlier posters, in that the only negative thing about my daughters birth were the women looking down on me because I didn’t breast feed. Personally, I would have loved to, but I take thyroid medication that is excreted in the breast milk. Doctors say it doesn’t harm the child, but I don’t trust that. I didn’t want to find out years later that they were wrong and it did. All of it is a personal choice, but you would never know it the way one side or the other is always hounding you. I am glad that this video shows women that they have options, but I don’t think that you should let it make you make a final decision, because things happen… and it’s better to be prepared than disappointed.