“The Business of Being Born”

Since May is Pregnancy Awareness Month, it’s a good time for all moms-to-be to watch “The Business of Being Born“, produced by Ricki Lake and directed by Abby Epstein. This powerful film that came out in 2007 speaks to the oftentimes unnecessary and abundant medical interventions during childbirth in the United States.

I had a personal experience with hospital intervention despite my intentions for a VBAC with my second daughter. Now in my case it may have been necessary but I will never know for sure. When my first daughter was born I had a text book pregnancy. All of my visits to my OB went well with no indication that there were any problems, until I made it clear to my doctor that I did not want to be induced hoping for a more natural experience. The very next visit he sat me down and explained that I was “borderline” and that my baby was too big and would never be birthed naturally. He pushed me to schedule a c-section, stating that I would die in childbirth if I attempted to birth even a 3 pound baby. Scared out of my mind, I opted for a c-section and Britton was born a very healthy 8lbs 10ozs, and I recovered as well as can be expected. But, I felt cheated.

So with my second pregnancy I started my VBAC training. I read Ina May Gaskin’s Spiritual Midwifery & Guide to Childbirth. I meditated, ate healthy foods and exercised. I was determined to do this! My new OB was supportive and made me feel comfortable with my decision. And so, 3 days after my due date, the contractions started at about 3 in the morning. I waited until 7am to go to the hospital because I wanted to make sure I was in true labor (contractions were 3-5 minutes apart, lasting 1 minute each). I had made it clear to my OB that I wanted to be free to walk around and help labor progress naturally, however when I arrived the nurses hurried me into a room and promptly hooked me up to a monitor and IV. My contractions were steady but not too painful, I could handle it! My doctor came in and artificially ruptured my membranes to “speed up” labor. Not much happened as a result. I was then told that I would need an epidural so that if my labor stalled and I needed a c-section, I could avoid general anesthesia. Well, the epidural went in and my contractions weakened. I was then given low-dose Pitocin to intensify my contractions. The Pitocin went in and 30 minutes later baby’s heart rate was all over the place. Machines started beeping, nurses rushed in, turned me on my side, gave me oxygen and “jiggled” baby to a steady heartbeat. Doctor decided to stop the Pitocin. I was at 9 cm and he said baby’s head was still way up there. He told me to try pushing, which I did. Baby wouldn’t budge (perhaps because she was still recovering from the ruptured membrane, epidural, Pitocin and jiggle!) And so I was told that c-section was my only option. I’m happy to report that Laurel was also born healthy (8 lbs 11 ozs) and my recovery went okay the second time, but I can’t help but think that if I would have just stayed at home I would have gotten the VBAC I hoped for. On the otherhand medical intervention could have saved my life! What do you think?

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Tagged as: business of being born, c-sectio, labor and childbirth