The Unkindest Cut

The primary reason I became involved in childbirth was because I wanted to avoid a cesarean for my first delivery. Newly-pregnant women hear everyone else's birth stories, and I came to realize that most of the women around me had had c-sections, usually for their first births. The more I learned, the more I wanted to protect myself from having a surgical birth (more on this in a little bit).

And now there's news that the c-section rate in the US has climbed to almost 30% (read about it here). That's up from 24% from just a couple of years ago. So more and more women are having major surgery to deliver their children, are being sliced open with a scalpel and having their babies tugged from their wombs. One of the things the above link references is the belief that cesareans are actually safer than vaginal births. Now, I could list all the risks and difficulties from cesareans (and there are lots of them), and make another list comparing the same regarding vaginal deliveries, but that's essentially not why I chose to make c-sections my first birth battle.

I wanted to participate in my birth. I wanted to find out what it was like, to really have the experience. And I wanted to breastfeed. And I didn't want to be recovering from major surgery just as I was beginning motherhood.

Myths about cesareans:

• Cesareans are safer than vaginal birth - Actually, cesareans carry increased risks of everything from jaundice, respiratory problems in newborns, maternal death, and breastfeeding difficulties - there should be no doubt that they do cause increased harm to the mother, by their very surgical nature.
• Cesareans prevent incontinence, sexual difficulties, and pelvic damage - In truth, cesareans are far more likely to cause problems with bowel obstructions; sexual difficulties and pelvic damage are related to vaginal 'assisted' birth involving forceps or vacuums, because of the episiotomy, and are not inherent to the birth process. (ACOG support for this here.)
• Cesareans are just another birth option, and women should have choices in deciding how they want to birth - This is a misleading idea disguised as a compassionate outlook. Education shows that elective cesareans pose a hazard to women; having them available does not 'help' women at all, but puts them - unnecessarily - in harm's way. Medicine and surgery ought not be practiced with dangerous procedures being implemented through lack of education - in no other circumstance would we even consider that major surgery on this scale should be performed without medical necessity.
• It is more convenient to schedule a birth than be surprised by labor beginning spontaneously - I suppose everyone must decide what their priorities are.

I reaffirm what I said before. Doctors don't care whether you have a cesarean. They get paid more and they get to practice their surgical training, so if anything, they are likely to be predisposed towards the idea of women having cesareans rather than vaginal births. Ever heard of the famous paper in which a group of doctors gave their opinion that all births should be by c-section? Does that sound like it has women's best interests in mind?