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Writing about birth for one year now!
Write About Birth has been online for one year now! I know this, because my web hosting company just sent me an invoice for the next year. I paid it immediately since they were quick to note that failure to do so would take the website offline pretty quickly. One year, and quite a few articles! I hope I have been of help to families who have been looking for practical information on preparing for unassisted birth, as well as through sharing more controversial views about the nature of childbirth.
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Autonomy during childbirth
Dr Amy Tuteur, the skeptical OB, recently ran a post about patient autonomy. This post was, presumably, a reaction to Rixa Freeze’s recent blog post on the same topic, in which she correctly stated that autonomy equals informed consent plus the right to refuse. Tuteur concluded her post by saying:
The bottom line is that the principle of autonomy means that a woman does not have to go to the hospital to have a baby, but it means nothing beyond that.
She is both right and wrong.
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Spanish drama – baby removed because of… breastfeeding!
I am sorry I came to the nightmarish party late, but there is a tragic story I still very much want to write about – a story that should horrify us all, and a story about a mother’s love as well. This is a story about racism, misogyny, and discrimination against mothers and babies. In Spain, a 22 year-old Marrocan mother called Habiba took the brave and difficult step of leaving an abusive relationship. She turned to the government for help, and had her 15 month-old baby, Alma, taken away from her. Why? Because Habiba did the very thing recommended by the World Health Organization and just about every other medical organization in the world – she breastfed her baby.
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Wonderful article about c-sections and natural birth
Hey folks! I came across by an article written by a blogger who is a great supporter of natural birth, and then ended up with c-sections. It is well written, powerful, and I suggest you head over to read this thought-provoking blog post. It’s here – See Birth. Read on for some of my comments on her article.
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Homeschooling adventures
My older child is addicted to mathematics these days, and the moment I get on my computer to start writing, she asks me when we will continue school work – mostly maths! Her constant stream of questions and requests has not been leaving me much time to blog, work, or anything much. Plus, it’s summer and we are enjoying the nice weather while we can. I thought I’d share some recent gems from my nearly five-year old with you folks. She makes me smile (and drives me crazy sometimes), so I hope she’ll do the same for you.
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What is a “natural” cesarean section?
Many natural childbirth advocates agree on this – the c-section in the US is way too high at 32 percent. But there will always be cases in which a cesarean section is truly medically necessary. Some of these will be emergency c-sections that were not planned in advance. In the case of cesareans that were planned in advance (for women who have placenta previa, for instance), there are options that make the c-section more pleasant for the family. Just what are these “natural” or “family-centered” cesarean sections?
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Does intuition play a role in pregnancy and birth?
My dictionary defines intuition as “the ability to understand something immediately, without the need for conscious reasoning”. Intuition is a handy tool that all humans make use of on occasions, whether it is in raising their children, avoiding a stranger that gives us the creeps, guiding our professional and financial decisions, and even during pregnancy and birth. Intuition is not just for hippies, new age folks, or psychics – though those groups are just fine, too. Intuition is for everyone and before you brush it off, remember that you, too, rely on your intuition at times.
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Milk teeth hell
I have already written about my two year old son’s tooth decay and the state of dentistry in the country I live in before (What does tooth decay have to do with birth?). My son has dental caries on his four front teeth, and up until recently I was unable to find a dentist who would treat him. Not only is there no option of general anesthetic or other option in which the young patient is no awake for the treatment, but pediatric dentists either refuse to treat milk teeth at all, or drill but don’t fill the hole. Something to do with, according to dentists, “gasses” being released from the teeth?
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Why every pregnant woman should prepare for an unassisted birth
Mention unassisted birth in any group of people, and you are likely to get many weird looks as well as a few truly horrified ones. Yes, UC is a controversial topic on which everybody is bound to have an opinion. Indeed, even seeking information on how to handle both normal birth and complications oneself is taboo in many circles. I argue that every single woman should have at least basic information about the physiology of childbirth as well as knowing the symptoms of complications, and how they can be dealt with. I think every pregnant woman should prepare for an unassisted birth.
Why?
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New study warns against early induction of labor
You know how many obstetricians start discussing labor induction at around 38 weeks due to fears of going overdue? It is true that the risk of stillbirth goes up at the 42 week mark, but there is no need to induce labor for non-medical reasons earlier than that. Indeed, there is a powerful argument against doing so – a new study, published in the journal Obstetrics & Gynecology, suggests that babies born between 37 and 39 weeks have a higher risk of dying.
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