The Feminist Breeder laments the so called feminist ideology that suffering through birth is anti-feminist, a misguided notion that has to be held accountable for at least some of the percentage of the almost 40% of surgical births that happen in North America.
"So many young women today think that drugged-up births and cesareans are the “feminist” choice, and that labor pains are oppressive or patriarchal in nature. I understand… I really do. I once was that girl. I thought anything that could disconnect me from my biology meant freedom, and even joked about wanting a hysterectomy before I ever had kids.* I didn’t necessarily want a cesarean (I’m scared of surgery) but when I became pregnant, I had blind faith that the obstetrician I hired could easily and painlessly remove the parasite I was growing in my womb with a nice epidural cocktail and some forceps. Simple, right?
Of course I had no education whatsoever about epidurals or forceps or cesareans, and how much damage they could do to a woman’s body. I just assumed that if the technology existed, then they must have perfected it, and if it could keep me from feeling a contraction then by golly, I had to get me some of that."
So, what if you decide to take control over your birth? Ah, well, The Establishment doesn’t like that. In this brilliant 2008 expose, Born in the USA: How a Broken Maternity System Must Be Fixed to Put Women and Children First, Dr. Marsden Wagner pulls back the curtain and shows us exactly how The Establishment feels about a woman who attempts to humanize, personalize, or retain autonomy over her own birth experience.
In his book, Dr. Wagner (an obstetrician and former Director of Women and Children’s Health for the World Health Organization) explains,
“This table heaps contempt on women whose ideas and preferences for giving birth inconvenience the doctor. Many obstetricians find the table hilariously funny. Isn’t it frightening that the ultimate weapon obstetricians use to punish overly “independent” women is to cut into their bodies, using a surgical procedure (cesarean section) only obstetricians can perform, which completely deprives the women of control over their own bodies?”Yes, Dr. Wagner – it IS frightening. Even more frightening is the fact that so many young women frivolously joke about electing a procedure that you describe as nothing short of violence against women. All the while, women and babies are dying at a higher rate in the U.S. than in most other developed countries.
HERE to read the entire article on The Feminist Breeder
And the Maternal and Infant mortality rates in our countries (US and Canada) continue to rise, and WILL continue to rise until women take back their births and stand up- not just for themselves but for their sisters too.
The Brilliant Gloria Lemay posted this on her blog and it is ohhhhhhh so true:
When Good Women Remain Silent
“First they came for the breech birthers, and I did not speak out–because I was not a breech birther;
Then they came for the twins, and I did not speak out–because I was not carrying twins;
Then they came for the high risk women, and I did not speak out-because I was not a high risk woman;
Then they came for the VBACs, and I did not speak out– because I was not a VBAC;
Then they came for me– and there was no one left to speak out for me.”
Taken from a talk by Laureen Hudson of California at the Trust Birth Conference (March 2010).
My new favourite Quote (for this week anyways):
“’If one went to the extreme of giving the patient the full details of mortality and morbidity related to cesarean section, most of them would getDon't' let the medical machine fool you into installing a zipper. Once it's there, it's awfully hard to get rid of. Once it's there, the machine will insist on using it.
up and go out and have their baby under a tree,’ [Dr. McDonald] said.”
[Neel J. Medicolegal pressure, MDs’ lack of patience cited in cesarean
‘epidemic.’ Ob.Gyn. News Vol 22 No 10]
