When I was searching for a health care provider at the beginning of my pregnancy, I chose a obstetrician without a second thought. The list of covered providers for my insurance did not include any midwives and I assumed that using one would require giving birth at home. My impression of what home birth might look like did not seem appealing at all. The decision at the time was easy. Since then I have learned more about certified nurse-midwives and certified midwives. They are trained to respond to complications in labor and delivery, and consult with physicians when appropriate. They … Continue reading →

I’m having my next baby in the Netherlands. I’m joking, but seriously, I just read that laboring women are allowed to eat in the Netherlands and when I was in labor, I wasn’t allowed to touch food for twelve hours. It was about fifteen hours before I actually got to eat something. Labor is hard work, and I felt like I was starving half the time. I really think I could have used the energy boost! By the time I got into my room, the hospital’s kitchen had already closed. My husband did a midnight run to pick up McDonalds. … Continue reading →

If you have had a prior cesarean, you may assume that you have to have another, but if you have a healthy pregnancy and your past cesarean was a low vertical incision, VBAC is an option for you. VBAC stands for vaginal birth after cesarean. Many factors lead women to believe that a VBAC is not an option, but many times, this not the case. If you had a prior cesarean due to failure to progress, for example, that does not mean you cannot have a vaginal birth this time around. Studies show your odds are two out of three … Continue reading →

Around the 1930s, most women switched from giving birth at home with a midwife, to giving birth at a hospital with an obstetrician. Unfortunately, at this point in history, women were still better off delivering at home. In the 1930s, 1 in a 150 pregnancies resulted in maternal death. As a result, many changes were made in the field of obstetrics. Procedures were standardized and doctors were more carefully trained. By the 1950s, the maternal death rate was lowered to 1 in 2,000. Today it’s about 13 in 100,000 (roughly 1 in 7,692). Most of the progress made in the … Continue reading →

When I was pregnant, I read a lot of forums, books, blogs and essays about different settings and styles of childbirth. The obvious choice is a hospital, but there are also birth centers, home births and free births. Many of the writers bashed hospitals, claiming unnecessary intervention, poor care, increased risk and self absorbed doctors as a few of the reasons hospital births are a bad idea. I chose to give birth in a hospital for a number of reasons, health insurance being the main reason. I was all geared up to “fight for my rights” as a patient and … Continue reading →

Before I had my son, I said, “No induction! No pain medication! No episiotomy! No nothing!” Then I ended up experiencing what I like to call “lazy labor” and wasn’t stretching quite enough to fit the little guy’s head through. I did have a drug-free birth, aside from the Pitocin. I’ve heard Pit makes your contractions ten times stronger; needless to say I’m eager to know what natural contractions feel like compared to the ones I felt. I would like to go into labor naturally next time without the use of Pitocin. Will the natural labor feel like a walk … Continue reading →

You’re in the midst of painful contractions, you’re exhausted, you feel as though you can’t take it any longer and your birth plan is tucked in a folder somewhere in your suitcase. After months of planning and decisions, you’re about to throw the towel and beg for mercy. The nurse offers an epidural, even though you originally said you didn’t want one. Should you take it? First of all realize that you are not a failure if you decide to take the epidural, but do ask yourself a few questions before you change your mind. How strongly did you feel … Continue reading →

People are always shocked to hear that I had my son without any pain medication. Even the nurses who cared for me were surprised when I turned it down. My doctor made a remark about not remembering the last time he did a non-medicated delivery. Am I really that rare? To me, choosing not to use pain medication was an easy decision for many reasons. 1. I preferred to be fully alert during the entire process. 2. I did not want to risk being subjected to any side effects. 3. I did not want to expose my son to such … Continue reading →

A growing number of doctors have been advocating routine inductions in their patients. In some practices, this is standard procedure at 41 weeks. It was for my OB, but fortunately, I went into labor 8 days late, on the day I was to go in to “discuss” induction. In other practices, doctors routinely induce patients for various reasons, including the belief the baby is growing too large, there is low fluid or the mother is diabetic. Natural birth advocates and many midwives have long warned against routine inductions. They cite several problems that can arise from routine induction. Many worry … Continue reading →

Active Birth is a term coined by Janet Balaskas, author and founder of the modern Active Birth movement. The idea of Active Birth was introduced in the late 1970’s, but it is not a new idea. In fact, Active Birth is the way women gave birth throughout most of modern history. According to Balaskas, around three hundred years ago, doctors changed the way women birthed from the active role the mother played in her own birth to the more passive role of patient that continues for most women today. The Active Birth movement and center founded by Balaskas in London … Continue reading →