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Why mothers should be offered caesareans
By ella | March 6, 2006
I can’t quite believe that such an irresponsible piece of journalism appeared in the Observer this weekend. I’m all for mothers being able to choose the kind of birth they want and being supported in their choice but Jo Revill’s argument is wrong on so many levels.
How anyone can argue that “We are fast approaching the point where logically we should encourage women to have a caesarean whether or not they have a medical or psychological reason for wanting one. This is because women are having babies later and because the babies themselves are becoming bigger” or arguing that a planned c-section is better than attempting labour because “By having a planned surgical delivery, you simply avoid the biggest risk factor of all: the possibility of an emergency caesarean” defeats me.
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Categories: In The News
Couldn’t agree more. Surely there’s risk attached to a surgical procedure than to a straightforward natural birth? I was lucky, my daugher was born after a reasonably quick natural labour. I was terrified of the possibility of a caesarean and would have hated to have been forced to have one.
I had a planned c/s because my daughter was 11lb 5oz when she was born. Yes, I have “child-bearing” hips, but there was no way that she would have come out of me without a LOT of pain and most likely a very bad tear.
My SIL, on the other hand, had her second son vaginally. He weighed almost 10lb and got stuck in the birth canal. During labor, six nurses came into the room and two basically body-slammed my SIL’s belly to get him out. Thank God, he was not injured in the process but that’s not the case for many other children.
I have a friend who had an emergency c/s after hours of labor. She was not prepared mentally for the possibility of abdominal surgery, was terrified throughout the process, and developed severe post-partum depression afterwards.
I’m not saying that everyone should have a c/s. That’s as irresponsible as saying that nobody should have a planned c/s. But I strongly believe that women need to be educated about the possibility of a c/s and be able to make an informed decision.
To me, the whole anti-c/s movement is the same as the breastfeeding movement. The pendulum swings every 30 years or so. I was horribly depressed that I wasn’t able to breastfeed my daughter because of all the propaganda telling me that she would have all sorts of illnesses as well as be unable to truly bond with me. A year and a half later, she has hardly ever been sick and adores both of her parents.