The Trial of Labor

I happened upon an interesting self-ascribed feminist post about “medical rape” and the “medicalization of childbirth.”  I’m certain that I have written about being an empowered patient, since that is one of my goals as a childbirth activist - to help empower women to participate in their health care, ask questions, get second opinions, etc.

I’m not sure the original author has much knowledge of the socio-political dynamic in part responsible for the current state of modern medicine.  However, she makes some good points.  For instance:

The male medical establishment - even with female practitioners - tend to subvert women and suppress their decision-making ability, especially in the reproductive health sector.  Why?  Well, it is easiest to exert power over a woman when she is on her back with her feet in stirrups, her butt hanging over the edge of a paper-clad table, and a speculum shoved into her private parts.  Who hasn’t felt vulnerable and less powerful in that position?

I’m not suggesting that all obstetricians are bad or that men make sucky gynecologists, not any more than I’d suggest that cesareans are completely unnecessary, or that the safest place to have a baby is at home.  Then again, statistically about half of the cesareans performed in this country are not necessary (and don’t improve our infant mortality rate), and actually staying home is the best way to ensure that unnecessary interventions aren’t performed on you when you’re only 2cm dilated at the hospital.  Unfortunately, a growing number of women are dissatisfied with the services their obstetricians provide, are disgusted by medico-legal decision-making when it comes to women’s (and babies’) physical and psychological well-being during the childbearing year, and suffer poor childbirth outcomes.

Something has to give.

Tags: obstetrics, gynecology, medical rape, medicalized childbirth, awareness, advocacy, childbirth

I just talked with my regular OB.  He was under the impress that I had a Mullerian Anomaly (such as a septate uterus) and a major contributor to my recurrent pregnancy loss.  I’ve seen a Reproductive Endocrinologist recently who came up with his own recommendation.  He suggested that my 1-1/2 inch fibroid was distorting my uterine cavity and causing the recurrent pregnancy loss.  He said that he would be “very concerned” about that fibroid.

I double-checked my obstetric records from my 2004 pregnancy.  The fibroid was discovered during a 10-11 week ultrasound (a first-time mom, I was nervous that the midwife didn’t find my baby’s heartbeat).  The fibroid was roughly 4.5 cm then and is therefore about the same size now.  However, I don’t believe it to be a cause of my recurrent losses.  Rather, it is a symptom.  It is a symptom of imbalanced hormones, usually too much estrogen.

Anyway, my OB’s nurse called me today to say that he (my OB) would NOT recommend a myomectomy for a non-symptomatic small fibroid.  I don’t bleed without stopping; I don’t have unmanageable pain.  Since I already have a cesarean scar, he sees no reason to add to that.  Phew!

So, if anyone tells you that you definitely need a myomectomy, please do seek other opinions.  Your uterus may just say “thank you.”  In my case, it should be thankful that I’m saving it from at least two more uterine surgeries.

As you can tell, I am back to reading my google alerts.  I came across a post titled “Cesarean vs. VBAC - Birthing Story” and decided to read it.  It seems to me that this is the very type of woman who needs the support and resources that ICAN, CIMS, Childbirth Connection, Conscious Woman, and the like provide.  Women are understandable very protective of their birth stories, so I didn’t post a comment.  However, she may come across my post if she tracks her pings.

I’d like to address specific details of her story.

1. “I was instructed to read through the risks of VBAC and give in my consent in writing…. this during my first visit to the doctor.” She wisely decided to wait to “consent” to the mode of delivery.  Understandably she had concerns and questions due to the manner in which the information was presented to her in her first visit.  Furthermore, she states that her doctor never seemed to discuss the benefits of normal birth.
2. “No mommy would want to carry a healthy baby for 9 months only to risk the baby’s health during delivery.”  Absolutely!  And natural birth advocates believe that every woman deserves the right to weigh the risks and benefits of cesarean versus normal birth for herself.  OBs are not upfront about the risks to both baby and mother from cesarean delivery much less the harm that occurs once mom and baby are home.  Doctors suggest procedures and tests that have not been proven to aid the birth process yet may have a negative impact on normal birth.  These include continual fetal monitoring, artificial rupture of membranes, induction, vaginal exams, IV, episiotomy, and the list continues.  These interventions usually only benefit the doctors and nurses.  And did you know that amniocentesis carries a substantial risk for pregnancy loss?
3. “My mid-wife advised me to wait till the 35th week before I made any decision. But the doctor would not wait till such time. Even before I gave my written consent on my preference I got a call from doctor’s office about scheduling my C-section for the 13th May. (my due date was 26th May).  This irritated me to great levels. While one of the major benefits I was going to get by opting for C-section was a date of my choice, the doctor had deprived me of the same by just giving me one option.”  OBs suggest that it is safer to perform a cesarean before Mom goes into labor.  However, scheduling a cesarean 2 weeks before a due date is risky.  It is sad that this OB was intent on taking this woman’s last “choice” away from her.
4. “Besides, I knew that I was making good progress and could go in for VBAC.”  Women should trust their instincts about birth and surround themselves with people who support their needs and desires.
5. “During my 40th week appointment, the doctor examined me and said that I had made no progress at all since 37th week. The baby’s position and the cervix measured the same. She also scared me that the baby was big and it could be a very hard delivery for me.”  The next day at the hospital she began labor on her own. 
6. “The nurses who were monitoring me repeatedly started asking me if I really wanted to go in for C-section which was scheduled at 11:30am.”  Hooray for her nurses!!  It seems like they wanted to encourage her to have a normal birth!
7. “I got a call from the doctor immediately … I must say it almost sounded like a threatening call. She said if I didn’t go for C-sec at the decided time, she was not going to be available for the entire week and that some random doctor from the hospital.”  Yes, that was a scare tactic.
8. Her “big” baby weighed just over 7 pounds.

The reason I’ve quoted and listed these points from her story is that this story is all too common.  When are we going to stop this abuse, this subversion, this last form of modern sexism?

I was irritated to discover that Time magazine published an article entitled “Choosy Mothers Choose Cesareans” in their special Environmental Issue. Since cesarean surgery is an over-used procedure[1], it is quite inappropriate for this type of article to appear along-side articles dealing with the Presidential candidates’ climate change positions and how the US can be more green.  Needlessly consuming medical services is anything but green, and Time magazine should take responsibility for its poor choice in content.

According to the article, more women are choosing cesareans, a trend doctors expect will continue.  I do not know nor have heard of anyone actually choosing a cesarean, save the stories I read or hear about through the media.  I believe that the media is creating this belief that women choose cesareans, and that this is a trend we should expect to see continue.  But perhaps it is true that women are choosing major surgery for reasons cited, such as (1) fear of ripping/tearing the perineum, (2) fear of incontinence, (3) fear of pain, (4) fear of birth, (5) or fear of having a stretched-out vagina.  Time’s article feeds into the misperceptions of birth generated by Hollywood blogs and reality shows like A Baby Story.

Fear of ripping/tearing:  from what I have learned over the years, women rarely rip or tear during childbirth if they push following their body’s signs, are given appropriate time to labor and birth their babies, and/or have the perineum massaged or supported during pushing.  Episiotomies can cause more damage to the perineum, vagina, and anus than a natural tear anyway.  I wonder if this fear stems from botched episiotomies?

Fear of incontinence: cesarean delivery does not prevent incontinence.  Sorry!

Fear of pain: I wonder why so many women are taught to fear the pain of childbirth.  Granted labor was one of the most challenging things I have ever done, but I think my exercise habits and outdoor enthusiasm (road biking, hiking, backpacking, running) had prepared me for childbirth.  I don’t look back on my labor and regret the pain - I regret the fact that a cesarean became necessary.  Anyone who has done a little bit of study on the purpose of pain in childbirth can tell you that it is actually beneficial - it can indicate problems that need attention as well as provide important feedback to the mother and her careproviders regarding her progress.

Fear of birth: there actually is a term for women who have a fear (phobia) of childbirth - lockiophobia.  If a woman is not phobic, then she should work with a psychologist or psychotherapist to determine the root causes of her fear and overcome those.  Pregnancy can bring up psychological pains of the past, but they are not avoided through cesarean surgery.

Fear of a stretched-out vagina: do I really need to address this?

The title of my post suggests that cesareans will limit future choices.  This is true - women who have had a cesarean are at risk of being pressured into repeating surgery for future births, have a slightly more elevated risk of uterine rupture and other poor birth outcomes, are unable to have normal birth at most birth centers [2], may not be able to have a normal birth at their local hospitals [3], will be pressured to comply with hospital protocols that may lead to interventive birth outcomes for future births, may have difficulty finding providers who will support their choices in future births to name a few limitations.

Other things you may not know about cesarean aftermath [4]

1. Risk of post-partum depression and post-traumatic stress disorder
2. Negative impact on breastfeeding, bonding, and other key mammalian birth-related processes
3. Stillbirth, miscarriage, infertility
4. Pain, adhesions, slow recover, unsightly scaring
5. Negative impact on relationships with other family members, particularly partners/spouses
6. Rejection of birth - some women choose to never have another baby because they don’t want to go through surgery again; some women don’t feel like they gave birth; some women equate cesarean birth with “birth rape“

Thankfully I have come to learn about the viability and appropriateness of vaginal birth after cesarean.  I was encouraged to subscribe to the ICAN Yahoo list where I learned much of what I know now about birth that I didn’t know before my daughter was born.  I know the dangers of choosing cesarean for the first, second, or fifth time.  I have experienced stress, depression, and other tangible and intangible outcomes related to cesarean surgery.  I worry that my current trouble with recurrent pregnancy loss is related to the cesarean.  I resent that I have to consume more medical services to rule out uterine defects caused by the cesarean.  Tomorrow I will have a hysterosalpinogram performed.

It is regrettable that women such as Ms. Chung are led to believe and accept that cesarean birth is risk free, complication free, and consequence free.  It is simply not the case, and it does not take more than 30 seconds with an internet search engine to learn that much care should be taken when deciding if cesarean surgery is right for a woman and her baby.  The March of Dimes states that cesarean surgery should only be performed when the mother’s life or baby’s life is at risk.  Cesarean surgery is a blessing when used appropriately, but its safety is not justification for indiscriminate use.

[I sent a slightly abridged version of this post to Time magazine's Editor.]

[1] The World Health Organization maintains that an acceptable rate of birth via cesarean surgery is 10-15%.  When the cesarean rate exceeds this range, the risks outweigh the benefits.
[2] To read the AABC’s recent statement on VBACs at birth centers, click here.
[3] Go to http://www.ican-online.org to see if your hospital allows VBACs.
[4] See also http://www.childbirthconnection.org/article.asp?ck=10166; read ICAN’s book, Cesarean Voices to learn how cesareans have impacted real women and real babies.

In about an hour I will be interviewed for a local news station regarding Montana’s cesarean rate.  I don’t know much more than that.  The reporter has a young child.  The reporter is supposed to be meeting with a local hospital official.  Other than that, who knows what her focus will be.  In anticipation of this interview, I decided to review some things that I have read and wrote regarding cesarean rates.

With regard to rates, it is important to consider that the US cesarean rate (2006, preliminary) is 31.1%.  The rate has increased by 50% since 1996.  The rate recommended by the World Health Organization is 10-15%.  Once the cesarean rate exceeds 15%, the risks (statistically speaking) outweigh the benefits.  The Montana cesarean rate (2006, preliminary) is 28%, nearly a 3% increase from the year prior.  According to a source at the local hospital, our local rate is around 31%.  I was told that only 16 VBACs took place in 2006 at my hospital.  (A local CNM questioned the accuracy of the VBAC figure, suggesting that VBACs were under-reported.)

I can list many contributing factors to the continued increase in the cesarean rate:

• Medico-legal concerns on the part of doctors, hospitals, and insurance providers (it’s HUGE, actually)
• “So and so had a cesarean . . .”
• Hollywood stars having elective cesareans
• Young and underpriviledged mothers are more at risk for cesarean surgery
• An unchecked trust in care providers - most women do not seek second opinions when it comes to maternity services
• Sensationalization of birth - Baby Story and OR Live come to mind
• Society - our view of birth has changed; the culture of fear has spread to childbirth
• Cesareans ARE more safe now than they ever have been

Of course I’ll direct the reporter to resources such as:

• ICAN
• The Mother-Friendly Childbirth Initiative
• Childbirth Connection
• Conscious Woman

I just received my weekly “cesarean awareness” google alert.  I find it interesting what is included and what isn’t.  I blogged about Cesarean Awareness Month posts I found and found additional ones here.  Some of these are not mentioned in the alert copied here below.  Also, I find it interesting that my posts didn’t show up in the blog alert but did in the web alert.  HuH!

April is Cesarean Awareness Month
By timothydeanmills.com(timothydeanmills.com)
In the United States in 2006, 31.1% of babies were born by cesarean section–a 50% increase since 1996. In Georgia, that number was 31.3%. The World Health Organization recommends a maximum c-section rate of 10-15%.  Tim’s weblog - http://timothydeanmills.blogspot.com/

International Cesarean Awareness Month
By Kathy
April is International Cesarean Awareness Month. Please check out my C-section posts by clicking on that category. In addition, here are some other C-section related links. The International Cesarean Awareness Network Pushed Birth …
Woman to Woman Childbirth Education - http://womantowomancbe.wordpress.com

Cesarean Awareness Month!
By doula_char(doula_char)
April is Cesarean Awareness Month What is Cesarean Awareness Month? An internationally recognized month of awareness about the impact of cesarean sections on mothers, babies, and families worldwide. It’s about educating yourself to the …
whatzadoulado - http://whatzadoulado.blogspot.com/

April is Cesarean Awareness Month
… and let them guide you and help you, is it up to you to ask the right questions, is it up to you to make sure you get the right answers… Here is the website to learn more about ICAN, and Cesarean-Awareness-Month …
Boriquita’s WebSite - http://boriquita.multiply.com/

April is Cesarean Awareness Month
By Boriquita(Boriquita)
I wish I knew half of what I know now for my first birth. I guess I can use this information now for this birth and any other experience in the future… I have learned that I must take responsibility for my learning, not one person in …
Boriquita Comments - http://boriquita99.blogspot.com/

Google Web Alert for: “cesarean awareness”

National Cesarean Awareness Month - Topix
April is National Cesarean Awareness Month! Over 50% of the C-Sections taking place in this country TODAY are deemed unnecessary by the World Health …

International Cesarean Awareness Month — Blogs, Pictures, and more …
James KG wrote 2 days ago : Cesarean Awareness Month (CAM) is an internationally recognized awareness month which sheds light on the impact of cesarean …

April is Cesarean Awareness Month - Associated Content
Check out April is Cesarean Awareness Month - Submitted by WD at Associated Content.

KentuckianaMoms :: View topic - April is Cesarean awareness month
April is Cesarean Awareness Month! 1 in 3 Louisville women gives birth surgically, and the number is rising every year. Join us Monday, April 7 to learn …

Cesarean Awareness Month — Blogs, Pictures, and more on WordPress
James KG wrote 2 days ago : Cesarean Awareness Month (CAM) is an internationally recognized awareness month which sheds light on the impact of cesarean …

I wish I understood how all of this web aggregator stuff worked . . .

I found this on ICAN’s eNews (www.ican-online.org/community/eNews/) and want to share it with those who maybe aren’t (yet) subscribers!

Cesareans Affect Lives. Real women, real babies. Lives changed.

How has your cesarean impacted you? Come to www.ican-online.org and blog about your experiences in 100 words or less, tell us your story.

Cesarean Awareness:
is not only about the “bad” cesarean and recovery
is not about guilt for not succeeding at VBAC
is not about not attempting VBAC
is a state of being, whatever that may be for you or me - hope, fear, acceptance, sadness, depression, thankfulness
is about doing the research to understand the reality of the risks taken on every time another mother has another surgery

ICAN is about all birthing women having access to that information.  Cesarean Awareness Month is about encouraging the spread of that information.  We want to encourage you to find a way to spread the awareness in your community. Wear your ribbon. Write on your car. Buy brochures to drop off in the library. Put up a poster at your work. This is about open communication about the health of our women, babies and families.

Cesarean Awareness Month (CAM) is an internationally recognized awareness month which sheds light on the impact of cesarean surgery on mothers, babies, and families worldwide.  Cesarean birth is major abdominal surgery for women with serious health risks to weigh for both moms and babies.  Cesareans may be safer now than they ever have been, but this surgery is being conducted more frequently than is prudent or safe.  The acceptable rate established by the World Health Organization (WHO) is 10-15% - what is your community’s cesarean rate?

The blogosphere is atwitter about Cesarean Awareness Month.  Here are some posts I found today that deal directly with CAM:

• Instinctual Birth’s post
• No Womb Pod’s post
• Strain Station’s post
• Cesarean Awareness’s post
• CT Birth Experience’s post
• She Got Hips’s post
• CT Doula’s post

If you have blogged about Cesarean Awareness Month and don’t appear on my list, please leave a comment so we can read your post.

To learn more about cesarean awareness, support, and education, visit the Internation Cesarean Awareness Network (ICAN) website and/or look for a chapter in your area.  Another great resource to consult when weighing the benefits and risks of intervention in chilbirth is Childbirth Connection.  Also, I recommend looking at and considering the Mother-Friendly Childbirth Initiative.

How do you plan to honor Cesarean Awareness Month?  How can you let people know that natural birth is an important issue for you and for them?  I promise that there is some way, no matter how small it may seem, that you can have a positive impact on your birth community.  Even wearing a cesarean awareness ribbon several days this month will help.  If you need ideas, feel free to ask.

Last Friday one of my students presented me with a potted mini rose bush.  I assumed it was a gesture related to my recent miscarriage, but actually it was a gift in celebration of International Women’s Day (3/8/08).  International Women’s Day?  I had never heard of such a thing, but in my student’s home country, it is customary to present women with flowers on IWD.  I was glad she chose a potted flower!

My last post listed the top 10 countries for being a woman according to the UN Development Programme.  The US (12) did not make the list, but neither did the UK (16), Mexico (52), my student’s Ukraine (76), or Germany (22). [1]  In the course of looking up the data I found Kemal Dervis’s statement for International Women’s Day.  The theme is “Investing in Women and Girls.”  Dervis states that this theme “is about changing the systems and attitudes that discriminate against women and prevent them from fully participating in and benefiting from the economies and societies in which they live.”  How do we plan to honor this goal in the US?  How can we tackle important women’s issues in our communities?  How will we positively influence local, statewide, and national political trends to discuss and improve the lives of women and girls in the US?

Are you “unseen” in your community or recognize women at risk in your community?  Do something proactive!  Whether it’s starting a support group, mentoring teen moms, taking a meal to a family or friend in need, picketing City Hall, raising legislative awareness, or even simply smiling at a woman or girl who looks like she needs it, you can make a difference. 

[1] UN Development Programme, Human Development Report 2007/2008, GDI Rank

I just read a fascinating story about Norman Morris, a professor and obstetrician in the UK.  He died last month so his career was chronicled briefly in the Telegraph.

Throughout his life Morris was guided by a deep humanism. He felt that the way in which women were traditionally treated by the health service was inhumane, and that the psychological stress involved often militated against the best possible outcomes and tended to increase demand for artificial pain relief.

If that doesn’t pique your interest . . .