When my baby was breached, I told the obstetrician, I wanted to deliver naturally. He literally deflated after the deep breath he had just taken and then he said: "Well that saves me the pleading then. If we were to deliver with a cesarean our Lord would have created women with a zipper in their belly." That was such a lovely suprise!
Yet more evidence of the defective characters of so many of those "practicing" medicine. Defective character, STL? Yes...character. What Unbekoming has described -- the arrogance, the impatience, the opting for what's convenient for 𝑡ℎ𝑒𝑚, etc. All signs of very poor character.
As a young woman, I figured out a loooong time ago that there was "something wrong" with doctors. Thankfully, I had limited experience with them and made it one of my life's missions to avoid them at all costs.
Thank you for this painstaking summary of the dangers of "modern" medicine for women, in particular, and all of us in general.
I switched from an OB in NYC to a Brooklyn birth center after discussing my birth plan with the OB and having her berate me for daring to desire a natural birth. She tried scaring me with a story of a baby who'd inhaled meconium and wound up in the NICU. I left there sobbing at 30 weeks and had a wonderful natural birth at 37 weeks at the Brooklyn Birth Center with an experienced midwife. Later I learned the OB was renowned on the upper west side for her skillful cesarean scalpel. Mothers gushed over their barely there scars. The OB wore fishnets and stilettos under her white coat. Desiree Clarke was her name I believe. Stay away.
I am so happy that I could have CS- I got my babies and so this is all that really matters. My kids are in their 20's now, have been healthy, happy individuals. Thank you dear God for life and for my beautiful children. Am so thankful for the CS and that I didn't have to experience natural birth. I couldn't care less if people called me a pariah. Life counts more than the manner of birth, please! Rebirth in the Spirit is the only thing that matters for eternity and many who have given birth naturally care very little about their own or their childrens eternal destiny.
In my case I arrived at hospital at 1 1/2cm dilated and 10 hrs later was the same. Never dilated, small cervix, delivering over 11 lb baby. It was him or me. During labor I remembered a movie that disturbed me greatly. The Cardinal with Tom Tryon. He was called to the hospital as his sister was giving birth and was told by the doctor that he could not save both and that he, the Cardinal, had to make the call. The Cardinal said the church was very clear on that. The mother would die a natural death and the baby had to be saved. No CS ever mentioned. When my OB came in at 10pm and took my hand and told me he would deliver my baby and make the pain go away, I was forever grateful.
sorry to offend you but I was sent this article and I gave birth having CS and I am happy that I have healthy kids. One hardly thinks back, it is hardly an issue. Relax and best regards and do not be embittered. Rejoice rather over life that is born.
I could tick off a few of these boxes here--twice down that road, staph infection, cascade of issues as they gave me Cipro for the staph an' then my tendons melted an' I'm a floxxie-- An' the first time they even tol' me it wuz b/c of "malpractice concerns" only--even tho' I wuz in great health (NYC hoss-spit-all, shame on 'em). 2nd try ta do it all "natchural" wuz with a midwife but she got cold feet--a former RN--an' frankly wuz as medicalized as the dok-turd (I had ta fighter 'er of on the amnio an' sonograms)
The solution? IF, as ya said, they all learned how ta comfortably do breech, twins, an' not treat healthy moms over 35 like they wuz senior citizens it'd help-- at home not at a hoss-spit-all is the place ta be (unless legit complications...sure).
I used ta joke with another friend that had to undergo the same surgi-CULL nightmares as I. We'd say if ONLY we'd'a been able to travel South to "The Farm" an' seek out Ina May Gaskin! She'd a dun' us right an' naturally too--nothin' phased her an' she had a waaaay better success rate than any dok-turds. Worth a read 'but this amazin' woman:
Bless Ina May may she RIP an' I hope one day--MANY will foller in her bold, brave footsteps! (It would result in a lot more healthy babies an' a LOT more happy mamas!)
I live in England and there is an ideological problem in the NHS when it comes to c-sections. They don’t want to do c-sections! Babies are stillborn or are born starved of oxygen, mothers die in labour, women are induced repeatedly over 4 plus days, babies are damaged by forceps deliveries. The most recent investigation was at the Shrewsbury and Telford Hospital NHS Trust where up to 201 babies could have lived if not for the failings in the maternity unit. Setting up a c-section versus natural birth is not in the interests of mothers or their babies. In countries like South Sudan with poor healthcare systems, the useful metric would be the number of women and/or babies dying in childbirth.
Dr Catherine Hamlin did amazing work in Ethiopia helping women who would've benefited having caesarean as an option. Her book "Hospital by the River" is both beautiful and horrific.
More women have induced labor. It is not natural, it is brutal. worse than natural labor. It stalls out too. Then you have the overweight women. My DIL is one of those. She was so large they had to insert the fetal monitor vaginally. That was 6 years ago. June 1 Scarlet will need to be delivered via C-section, just like her sister Savannah who was only about 6.5 lbs normal size. Try a dose of Oxytocin first.
My pregnancy was without a hitch. Only threw up during the shaky camera of the anatomy scan. They did a vaginal head check on me at 39 weeks. In hindsight, why couldn’t they just look at the 38 week ultrasound or, call me crazy, FEEL MY BELLY?? I began bleeding around midnight and we went to the hospital. They started continuous fetal monitoring. Baby had decels when I had contractions, which the triage nurse noticed right when she was leaving. We thought it was amazing timing she noticed right then. Maybe it was. In the morning, I had not progressed. They recommended pitocin and breaking water. I said something like “oh maybe I guess” *I feel the water spilling out* At that point I don’t think you can really stop and let baby be. I had gotten to maybe 4cm. They didn’t let me eat, in case I needed a C-section. I was so stressed and anxious, which STALLS LABOR. They recommended an epidural also “just in case” I needed a C-section. Then they said they didn’t know if baby could keep getting heart rate back up after falling so much and recommended a C-section. They brought me to the surgery after we reluctantly agreed. I was laced out with my arms outstretched. I cried looking at the door wanting my husband in the room. They didn’t let my husband in until I was basically being cut open. They told me I was numbed down below because they “already did a test”—what did that mean?!?! “My heart hurts” “Oh that’s normal” *pumps more drugs*
I was shaking so much afterwards I declined to hold my newborn right away. I also didn’t feel connected to baby (I love baby so much now). And that was just made worse by the stupid Car Seat Test and frequent and sincere “vitamin K shot is really important” talks. Later the surgeon walked into our recovery room and asked why I’d not been given witch hazel pads and ice—she’d thought I’d had a vaginal birth! I guess she didn’t really look much at my face, though.
I wonder if we’d written that we didn’t have insurance what would have happened. We didn’t understand supplemental and regular insurance and only had supplemental so we’re still paying the bills for them having traumatized me for years.
My big goal is to have a VBAC, but this state we moved to to save money (thanks Federal Reserve and the selfish people bought off by lobbyists in congress) doesn’t legally allow homebirth VBACs. I went to a birth center and they turned me away because of my C-section, too. I called all of the birth centers in the area, same thing. There is a big financial interest in preventing midwives from existing (look at the Birthing Instincts podcast and Dr Stu Fischbein, he’d be a good interview!! It’d be the next best thing for me to read that since a consult with him is $500 😔), of coercing women into hospital births, and of making society feel giving birth is always an emergency (every tv show it’s either portrayed on the woman’s back in a hospital, screaming, or some natural disaster is happening and oh no the woman is also going into labor! She gives birth in a dirty environment and Main Character delivers the baby for her and then after things are resolved momma goes to the hospital (like it’s the good guy) with her newborn.)
I’m so scared of hospitals and medical facilities now, but I have to be able to move past the trauma, betrayal, anger, and regret so I can focus on a stress-free next pregnancy. I also have to find a good OB (these guys are trained surgeons, their only major medical differentiation compare to midwives, though midwives are arguably better trained medically in birth!) to establish care somewhere—then I have to figure out how to deny all ultrasounds and “pokes” for the next baby.
For those saying “oh C-sections are great don’t ridicule them” Unbekoming never said the C-section rate should be 0%. Obviously there’s a time and place. But that time isn’t 30-60% during when the surgeon is most awake, though the place is always in the most westernized countries.
Thank you for writing this article. And sharing my story/this venting comment has been therapeutic for me as well. I didn’t know the infection and mortality rates were so high so I’m thanking God for letting me and baby get through without an infection or from dying. My baby brings my whole family so much joy and I love him so very much. I have great sadness that he didn’t get a non-traumatizing birth, but have hopes for future baby. And I’m now part of the sisterhood of very strong women who share “smiling scars.”
When my baby was breached, I told the obstetrician, I wanted to deliver naturally. He literally deflated after the deep breath he had just taken and then he said: "Well that saves me the pleading then. If we were to deliver with a cesarean our Lord would have created women with a zipper in their belly." That was such a lovely suprise!
Yet more evidence of the defective characters of so many of those "practicing" medicine. Defective character, STL? Yes...character. What Unbekoming has described -- the arrogance, the impatience, the opting for what's convenient for 𝑡ℎ𝑒𝑚, etc. All signs of very poor character.
As a young woman, I figured out a loooong time ago that there was "something wrong" with doctors. Thankfully, I had limited experience with them and made it one of my life's missions to avoid them at all costs.
Thank you for this painstaking summary of the dangers of "modern" medicine for women, in particular, and all of us in general.
I switched from an OB in NYC to a Brooklyn birth center after discussing my birth plan with the OB and having her berate me for daring to desire a natural birth. She tried scaring me with a story of a baby who'd inhaled meconium and wound up in the NICU. I left there sobbing at 30 weeks and had a wonderful natural birth at 37 weeks at the Brooklyn Birth Center with an experienced midwife. Later I learned the OB was renowned on the upper west side for her skillful cesarean scalpel. Mothers gushed over their barely there scars. The OB wore fishnets and stilettos under her white coat. Desiree Clarke was her name I believe. Stay away.
"One study found that the digestive tracts of infants born via C-section were disturbed for up to six months after birth."
Casual thought: I wonder what the rate of C-section and autism is.
One of my relatives scheduled her son to be born via C-section on HER birthday. I found it all a bit weird truthfully.
Scheduling on her birthday, how crazy to want a baby born on the same day you were.
First time moms with years on birth control have the odds stacked against them. Hormonal dys-regulation.
Fear and bullying are the usual tactics.
Profits and administration/corporate guidelines rule.
It is an emergency measure, and should be used in that manner.
One of the most used fear tactics - your baby is big and your pelvis is too small. Then a 6 lb. Baby presents.
I have seen tiny women deliver big babies with no issues.
Those with the best insurance have the most C-sections.
Interesting- thank you
I am so happy that I could have CS- I got my babies and so this is all that really matters. My kids are in their 20's now, have been healthy, happy individuals. Thank you dear God for life and for my beautiful children. Am so thankful for the CS and that I didn't have to experience natural birth. I couldn't care less if people called me a pariah. Life counts more than the manner of birth, please! Rebirth in the Spirit is the only thing that matters for eternity and many who have given birth naturally care very little about their own or their childrens eternal destiny.
In my case I arrived at hospital at 1 1/2cm dilated and 10 hrs later was the same. Never dilated, small cervix, delivering over 11 lb baby. It was him or me. During labor I remembered a movie that disturbed me greatly. The Cardinal with Tom Tryon. He was called to the hospital as his sister was giving birth and was told by the doctor that he could not save both and that he, the Cardinal, had to make the call. The Cardinal said the church was very clear on that. The mother would die a natural death and the baby had to be saved. No CS ever mentioned. When my OB came in at 10pm and took my hand and told me he would deliver my baby and make the pain go away, I was forever grateful.
Seems weird that you are bragging as a response to an article you probably shouldn’t have read!
sorry to offend you but I was sent this article and I gave birth having CS and I am happy that I have healthy kids. One hardly thinks back, it is hardly an issue. Relax and best regards and do not be embittered. Rejoice rather over life that is born.
I could tick off a few of these boxes here--twice down that road, staph infection, cascade of issues as they gave me Cipro for the staph an' then my tendons melted an' I'm a floxxie-- An' the first time they even tol' me it wuz b/c of "malpractice concerns" only--even tho' I wuz in great health (NYC hoss-spit-all, shame on 'em). 2nd try ta do it all "natchural" wuz with a midwife but she got cold feet--a former RN--an' frankly wuz as medicalized as the dok-turd (I had ta fighter 'er of on the amnio an' sonograms)
The solution? IF, as ya said, they all learned how ta comfortably do breech, twins, an' not treat healthy moms over 35 like they wuz senior citizens it'd help-- at home not at a hoss-spit-all is the place ta be (unless legit complications...sure).
I used ta joke with another friend that had to undergo the same surgi-CULL nightmares as I. We'd say if ONLY we'd'a been able to travel South to "The Farm" an' seek out Ina May Gaskin! She'd a dun' us right an' naturally too--nothin' phased her an' she had a waaaay better success rate than any dok-turds. Worth a read 'but this amazin' woman:
https://homebirth.com/ina-may-gaskin-this-is-an-article-about-ina/
Bless Ina May may she RIP an' I hope one day--MANY will foller in her bold, brave footsteps! (It would result in a lot more healthy babies an' a LOT more happy mamas!)
I live in England and there is an ideological problem in the NHS when it comes to c-sections. They don’t want to do c-sections! Babies are stillborn or are born starved of oxygen, mothers die in labour, women are induced repeatedly over 4 plus days, babies are damaged by forceps deliveries. The most recent investigation was at the Shrewsbury and Telford Hospital NHS Trust where up to 201 babies could have lived if not for the failings in the maternity unit. Setting up a c-section versus natural birth is not in the interests of mothers or their babies. In countries like South Sudan with poor healthcare systems, the useful metric would be the number of women and/or babies dying in childbirth.
Dr Catherine Hamlin did amazing work in Ethiopia helping women who would've benefited having caesarean as an option. Her book "Hospital by the River" is both beautiful and horrific.
More women have induced labor. It is not natural, it is brutal. worse than natural labor. It stalls out too. Then you have the overweight women. My DIL is one of those. She was so large they had to insert the fetal monitor vaginally. That was 6 years ago. June 1 Scarlet will need to be delivered via C-section, just like her sister Savannah who was only about 6.5 lbs normal size. Try a dose of Oxytocin first.
My pregnancy was without a hitch. Only threw up during the shaky camera of the anatomy scan. They did a vaginal head check on me at 39 weeks. In hindsight, why couldn’t they just look at the 38 week ultrasound or, call me crazy, FEEL MY BELLY?? I began bleeding around midnight and we went to the hospital. They started continuous fetal monitoring. Baby had decels when I had contractions, which the triage nurse noticed right when she was leaving. We thought it was amazing timing she noticed right then. Maybe it was. In the morning, I had not progressed. They recommended pitocin and breaking water. I said something like “oh maybe I guess” *I feel the water spilling out* At that point I don’t think you can really stop and let baby be. I had gotten to maybe 4cm. They didn’t let me eat, in case I needed a C-section. I was so stressed and anxious, which STALLS LABOR. They recommended an epidural also “just in case” I needed a C-section. Then they said they didn’t know if baby could keep getting heart rate back up after falling so much and recommended a C-section. They brought me to the surgery after we reluctantly agreed. I was laced out with my arms outstretched. I cried looking at the door wanting my husband in the room. They didn’t let my husband in until I was basically being cut open. They told me I was numbed down below because they “already did a test”—what did that mean?!?! “My heart hurts” “Oh that’s normal” *pumps more drugs*
I was shaking so much afterwards I declined to hold my newborn right away. I also didn’t feel connected to baby (I love baby so much now). And that was just made worse by the stupid Car Seat Test and frequent and sincere “vitamin K shot is really important” talks. Later the surgeon walked into our recovery room and asked why I’d not been given witch hazel pads and ice—she’d thought I’d had a vaginal birth! I guess she didn’t really look much at my face, though.
I wonder if we’d written that we didn’t have insurance what would have happened. We didn’t understand supplemental and regular insurance and only had supplemental so we’re still paying the bills for them having traumatized me for years.
My big goal is to have a VBAC, but this state we moved to to save money (thanks Federal Reserve and the selfish people bought off by lobbyists in congress) doesn’t legally allow homebirth VBACs. I went to a birth center and they turned me away because of my C-section, too. I called all of the birth centers in the area, same thing. There is a big financial interest in preventing midwives from existing (look at the Birthing Instincts podcast and Dr Stu Fischbein, he’d be a good interview!! It’d be the next best thing for me to read that since a consult with him is $500 😔), of coercing women into hospital births, and of making society feel giving birth is always an emergency (every tv show it’s either portrayed on the woman’s back in a hospital, screaming, or some natural disaster is happening and oh no the woman is also going into labor! She gives birth in a dirty environment and Main Character delivers the baby for her and then after things are resolved momma goes to the hospital (like it’s the good guy) with her newborn.)
I’m so scared of hospitals and medical facilities now, but I have to be able to move past the trauma, betrayal, anger, and regret so I can focus on a stress-free next pregnancy. I also have to find a good OB (these guys are trained surgeons, their only major medical differentiation compare to midwives, though midwives are arguably better trained medically in birth!) to establish care somewhere—then I have to figure out how to deny all ultrasounds and “pokes” for the next baby.
For those saying “oh C-sections are great don’t ridicule them” Unbekoming never said the C-section rate should be 0%. Obviously there’s a time and place. But that time isn’t 30-60% during when the surgeon is most awake, though the place is always in the most westernized countries.
Thank you for writing this article. And sharing my story/this venting comment has been therapeutic for me as well. I didn’t know the infection and mortality rates were so high so I’m thanking God for letting me and baby get through without an infection or from dying. My baby brings my whole family so much joy and I love him so very much. I have great sadness that he didn’t get a non-traumatizing birth, but have hopes for future baby. And I’m now part of the sisterhood of very strong women who share “smiling scars.”
It would also be interesting to know what percentage are IVF and does it include home births?