The Womanization of Birth

I saw this the other day and thought it was a lovely message about birth:


http://www.canow.org/canoworg/2008/07/the-womanizatio.html

July 28, 2008
The Womanization of Birth
Yesterday I got to be part of an amazing experience. I spent eight hours with a friend as she gave birth, in her own home, with the help of her husband and a team of midwives.
Since having my daughter two years ago, I have attended at three births, a hospital birth with epidural and a hospital drug-free birth (which my birth also was), but this was the first home birth I had seen.
The difference was astounding.
Instead of being constantly on a fetal monitor, and kept to a doctor's schedule, she was free to move as she needed to, and the midwives checked in with her before checking the baby's heartrate by doppler. When she was going through transition, and felt that she couldn't continue, instead of offering drugs the midwife gently reminded her that the strength of her contractions was her own strength, and that they would never get harder than she could handle. When she was having difficulty getting rid of the last bit of cervix to be able to begin pushing, the midwives helped her into a position that made it easier for her to breathe through contractions, and helped speed her dilation. Instead of an episiotomy, she had only a very minor surface-level tear. Instead of the gloved hands of a stranger, his father gently caught the baby as he emerged and helped to lay him on his mother's chest. Instead of immediately clamping and cutting the umbilical cord, the baby was allowed to get his full supply of blood before clamping. What a difference it made; he was the pinkest baby I have ever seen!
Throughout the whole experience the atmosphere was supportive, kind, gentle, and woman-centered. What happened, and when, was determined by what the mother wanted and needed.
The result: a healthy 10 pound baby boy, a mother impressed by her own strength, a father who actively participated in the birth, and a happy family at home.
Home birth may not work for everyone (especially any mother with pregnancy risk factors), but it is a beautiful alternative to the medical intervention experience of birth that so many mothers are subjected to today.
Posted by CA NOW at 12:16 PM in Family, Health, Reproductive Freedom, Women Permalink
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