Baby Got VBAC

I had lunch with my amazing friend Carrie

yesterday and she gave me this great book... all of my mom friends know how desperate I am to have a VBAC this time around with baby2. So much so that I have been reading up lots on Natural childbirth so that I have the ability to move around while I labour instead of being confined to the bed. I would say I have an "average" pain tolerance - certainly not superwoman. A few of my friends have done it naturally and my mom did it 28 years ago with me. I know it can be done - pioneers did it right?

For some women it's a badge - as well it should be! Personally - I don't care if anyone else knows if I do it naturally or not - I just want to add every small iota of a chance to have a VBAC. Even if I can put it off for an extra 3 or 4 hours I'll be happy. I had horrible horrible back labour with Madeline and I simply can't imagine going through it again but... I also thought I'd never be pregnant again and - here I am!

So anywho - my friend Carrie (who is having triplets ergo is a superhero) gave me this book and I got straight to reading it last night. I KNEW I was going to like it when I opened it up to the first chapter. "The Cesarean Epidemic: Obstetrics on the cutting edge." Her first paragraphs:

In 1970, the U.S. C-section (CS) rate was a stable 5 percent. By 1980, it had more than tripled. By 1983, one in 5 women was giving birth by major surgery and the rate has yet to drop below that number. CS is the most common major surgery performed in the U.S.

No objective person could possibly believe that one in 5 women requires major surgery in order to be a healthy mother giving birth to a healthy baby. Experts estimate that the national rate could be safely halved, which means that at a minimum, nearly half a million women have unnecessary CS every year.

Compared with vaginal birth, CS carries substantially increased risks of death and permanent injury. To give you an idea of the capricious natures of the cesarean decision, researchers asked 5 experts to review nearly 50 cases of CS for "fetal distress." In nearly 1/3rd of the cases, 4 of the 5 reviewers agreed the CS wasn't necessary. However, 3 months later, give the SAME 50 cases, the same experts changed their minds in 25 percent of the cases.

CS babies incur extra risks as well. The baby may be cut, and are more likley to be in poor condition at birth. Apgar scores are consistently lower on CS babies. (In her stats she sites that these were on ELECTIVE C-sections - so there was no "fetal distress" to begin with - the mother simply wanted a CS) Babies born by CS were over 3 times as likley to be admitted to intermediate or intensive care and 5 times more likley to need assistance breathing. It is also documented that more newborns born this way have breathing problems and jaundice.

All of this - AND the World Health Organization has also admitted that there are simply too many CS being performed. The U.S. government set the goal of achieving a 15 percent national CS rate by 2000. Ironically, in 1979, the National Institutes of Health viewed a 15% rate with such alarm that it convened a panel of experts to develop recommendations on how to lower it.

I guess after reading all of this I shouldn't feel so terrible about wanting a VBAC so badly. I guess it just makes me mad that all of this research shows us that there are simply too many being done and for some very very shady reasons. I am trying to look at the bright side that all of the CS moms in my moms group were able to have VBACS the second time round. HOORAY for inspiration!