by
Christy Collins, Midwife
Pregnant
mamas, birth, and babies are my biggest passion in every minute
of every day. I can remember being 4 years old during bath time
and pretending to deliver a washcloth before I'd ever known what
a "water birth" was - little did I know at the time what my
future would hold! For those of you under 60 years of age, my
approach to birth will likely seem foreign and some of you may
even consider it radical in what's considered "normal" in our
society, but as the facts are presented, I am sure the picture
will become more clear as to why I believe we need to go
backwards in time to make birth as safe as it used to be. Yes, I
am referring to birth being safer before our grand technology.
Don't get me wrong, our life-saving techniques that have evolved
because of our technology have opened the door to the
availability of decreasing our maternal and baby mortality rates,
yet this technology in the wrong hands has caused normal birth
for low-risk moms to take a horrific turn. And all this fear
surrounding birth - it's atrocious, but it's NOT the MOTHER'S
FAULT.
To start off with, I would like for you to examine with me
what I would consider to be the largest preventable destruction
of an empowering birth in our culture. Let's take a look at the
United States Cesarean Section (C-Section) rate. Depending on the
publication, the United States holds anywhere between a 29.2% to
a 31% C-Section rate. The World Health Organization (WHO)
recommends the normal C-Section rate be at 10%. Being that 93% of
moms are considered "low-risk", why is it that 1 out of every 3
moms is having major surgery to bring her baby into the world?
The mortality rate for mothers is 3x higher with a C-Section than
with a normal vaginal birth. It is unfortunate, but the reality
is that these are 5 of the most common unnecessary reasons for
why the hospital's C-Section rates are out of control. (Keep in
mind that I am not addressing all OB's; I know some fine OB's who
are within the WHO's recommended standards on C-Sections).
* Scheduling surgery is an easy way for some doctors to ensure
that they get off of work on time.
* It doesn't hurt that major surgery pays better than a
vaginal birth.
* Many doctors are scared of natural childbirth because when
birth goes the way it should, it's out of everyone's control, and
that is a difficult concept for many surgeons.
* Numerous No VBAC (Vaginal Birth After Cesarean) policies
throughout the hospitals in the United States. So if you already
had one C-Section, and you're expecting another baby, they
schedule you for surgery.
* Induction, Induction, Induction. If you are being induced,
then it is clearly not time to for the baby to be born, or it
would have already happened on its own. Nobody stays pregnant
forever. When the baby is NOT ready to come and you try to force
both the mother and baby's bodies to do something that they're
not ready for, expect Mother Nature to fire back.
Here is a little known fact: You are not considered "over-due"
until you are 42 weeks and one day. The normal gestation period
for humans is between 38 and 42 weeks. The majority of OB's state
that their policy (or the hospital's policy) will not allow a
mother to go beyond 41 weeks or 41 weeks and 3 days, basically
7-10 days past that Estimated Due Date. Some babies really do
just like to "cook" longer. I've heard of a mother who had all 3
of her babies at 45 weeks. The fact is that the stillborn
mortality rate goes up by 1 in 1000 for every week past 42 weeks.
Taking into consideration that not many women will go past 42
weeks; an average of 4%-8% of women will go up to 43 weeks (and I
was one of those), the risk of "something happening" to the baby
is miniscule. Trust me, babies come out when they're ready, and
93% of the time, it really is safer that way.
"In 1987, the last year for which comparative statistics are
available, the United States' infant death rate was 22d-lowest in
the world among industrialized countries, compared with 12th in
1960". Could that be right; is it showing that our infant
mortality rate is getting worse? We spend more millions of
dollars in obstetric technological advances in this country than
any other country in the world, yet the newest 2006 statistics
states that the United States now has the SECOND WORST newborn
mortality rate in the developed world? Yes, you read that right.
"American babies are three times more likely to die in their
first month as children born in Japan, and newborn mortality is
2.5 times higher in the United States than in Finland, Iceland or
Norway".
My personal solution to the problem? Midwives. Most babies
around the world are born with Midwives, more so than with any
other health professional! It's only been in the last 60 years in
the United States that the "trend" began with babies being born
in hospitals. Licensed Midwives have more training in low-risk
natural birth than any obstetrician. Some of your parents and
most of your grandparents were born at home with a midwife or the
family doctor! Licensed Midwives attend years of school,
apprentice for a few years more, and catch thousands of babies in
their lifetime. Licensed Midwives carry oxygen, and other
lifesaving drugs to use if necessary. All Licensed Midwives are
trained in numerous life-saving techniques and neonatal
resuscitation. Most midwives have a 12% transport rate, which
means taking the mother to the hospital for one reason or
another, usually for a mom who has been in labor for a very long
time and needs some pain relief. You can bet that the C-Section
rate for midwives is perfectly within standards of the WHO's
recommendations. And the kicker? Every study available proves
that having a birth with a midwife at home or in a birth center
is AS SAFE or safer than having a baby in the hospital. And the
experience of having a home birth? Aaaaaaaamazing. Only 1.87% of
mothers interviewed would not have a homebirth again, whereas
over 70% of mothers who had hospital births said that they did
not want to do it again.
Something horrible has happened to our culture. Women have
been stripped of our rights and strengths and have been led to
believe that we could not possibly know how to give birth on our
own. Our birthing abilities are no different than any other
mammal. What would happen if you were all alone, with no ability
of assistance, and labor started? My bet is that you would go to
the smallest, darkest corner in a location that you were
comfortable in. You would eat and you would drink. You would
relax, you would breathe, you would ride the contractions, and
you would give birth. Naturally. Yes, it would hurt for the 96%
of us who would not have what they call a "painless" birth, but
it would not be the same pain that you would experience in the
hospital. Trust me, it's different - I've experienced both. Can
you imagine taking a mama cat about to birth her kittens and
giving her an IV, strapping on a blood pressure cuff, attaching
monitors to her belly to monitor her kittens heart rates,
spreading her legs into stirrups, and giving her an episiotomy
(vaginal incision) to make room? How silly is that picture? Now
imagine this: you don't have to lie on your back and you can move
around in whatever position feels comfortable, it's dark and you
can disappear into yourself, you can nourish yourself with food
and drink, you're in a familiar environment surrounded by love
and support and not being asked questions or given multiple
invasive exams by total strangers, you can push if you feel the
urge, or not if you don't...point being, if all's well and left
alone...birth works.
Christy Collins - Midwife
KernAngelesBirth@aol.com
www.GentleBirthMidwifery.com
661-435-8230
Tehachapi, CA
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