I Did Not Cut My Baby's Umbilical Cord for Six Days So We Could Have a Natural "Lotus Birth" Just

[laundry_queen]

86. You don't need to lecture me on how a pelvis works thanks.

I learned my stuff from medical texts, hundreds of studies, dozens of midwives, some midwifery/doula courses and my doctor said himself I knew more about birth than he did and in the end he let me plan my births how I wanted, and we used to go back and forth debating medical studies and what interventions were advantageous and which weren't and in the end he viewed me as an equal with regards to childbirth...so don't try to one up me with your 'obstetric nursing textbook'. Nursing textbooks concentrate on medical procedures and complications, not how to facilitate a natural birth.

Anyway. The pelvis is not a static structure. It flexes and moves, enlarges and contracts. And the baby's head is also quite malleable. It's why many babies are born with coneheads. It's why babies have 'soft spots', so the plates in their head can move and overlap in order to fit through the birth canal. And no, a good OB cannot tell by a manual exam. Manual exams are notoriously unreliable for determining the size of the pelvis and besides, even a very small pelvis may be able to accommodate a smaller than average baby given the right circumstances. One really doesn't know until labor is underway.

I get how many woman are emotionally vested in believing they absolutely needed a C-section. I'm not saying you didn't need one but I find it interesting that you are very defensive about it, as if I'm questioning your specific circumstances or you think I'm one of those natural birth nuts too. You seem to feel the need to prove to me that you have more knowledge and know more about it than I do and that your C-section most definitely was necessary. I don't get why you are that upset about it. I just posted because I don't think it's responsible of you to make a statement that a 30% C-section rate is somehow a really great thing. It's not, and other people need to see some facts. A C-section is major surgery and has its own complications.

BTW, petite has NOTHING to do with it (another myth). My grandmother was 4'11" on a tall day, very petite and very narrow hips, and gave birth to 8 babies, from 8 - 11 lbs, no C-sections. No, her labors weren't all easy (some were) but she didn't need surgery. You are just perpetuating a myth that outside stature has anything to do with inside mechanics. Now if a woman who is 4'11" marries someone who is 6'6", perhaps it is more likely that she may have more problems giving birth than if her husband is 5'4", and in that case then yes, a C-section may be necessary. There may be a slight correlation if the father is really large, but generally a woman's body, unless there is gestational diabetes, doesn't usually grow gigantic babies that can't be birthed. Most necessary C-sections have more to do with placental placement issues, distress of the baby, transverse babies or multiples than with small maternal pelvises.


Anyway, I think I've gone on enough about it and I'm not going to get into analyzing your labor because it's clear to me you believe your surgery was necessary and there is nothing wrong with that. My whole point in responding was to counter some of the myths that many OBs like to tell their patients in order to make birth more convenient for themselves. You have to realize not everyone is you, and that most C-sections are done for crappy reasons. That doesn't negate your experience. You don't need to be defensive - you made the best decision for YOU. I get it - after my incredibly empowering VBAC with my second, I went on to have 2 scheduled C-sections. I was made to feel less-than for doing that from many people. But the decision was right for me at that time in my life, and my third C-section was a better decision than trying to induce me 2 weeks past my due date, with gestational diabetes, in a remote community with no emergency maternity services. Was it necessary? I don't know. I made the best decision I could at that time and I'm at peace with it. You should be at peace with your decision too.