I cant believe its been a year!!

[SportTees]

I thought they tried to kill me at the hospital with my first one. I'm going to a different women s only hospital this time. My husband has instructions if we can't make it to the womens hospital in time he is delivering it. I will not set foot in the hospital I gave birth to my first one in for any reason! The womens hospital is an hour away - I would go to a midwife but the closest one is 2.5 hrs.

 

[Robin'sBrood]

Quote:
I'll be delivering at a birthing center that is in a hospital, which is typical of this area. Your hospital experience sounds horrible.

I've never experienced anything like that with my 3 hospital births. The first one was probably the worse for me, but that was in 1988 when birthing centers were pretty much non-existent. My favorite hospital birth (so far) was with my 2nd baby in 1993 in a brand new birthing center inside a small community hospital. They had a large tub where I was allowed to labor until I was ready to deliver. That hospital no longer delivers babies.

This is where I'll be delivering this time http://www.wakemed.org/landing.cfm?id=847&oTopID=847

 

[ChikeeMomma]

I'm not expecting -- yet. Hopefully, trying this fall. Just like to follow your thread. Just wanted to say that I have two cute girlies. The first one wasn't a horrible experience, but I went to a doctor's office where they believed in doing whatever was easiest to get result. I'm a natural kind of gal and wanted it to go that route. My water broke and I wasn't having strong enough contractions, so they put me on petocin. And then the doctor ordered up an interthecal (spelling?? - like an epidural), which I did not want and by this time I was at 5-6 centimeters. So I am trying to breath through the contractions and trying to tell her no, I do not want this. Anyways, I went right to 10 centimeters without the interthecal. I was just peaved that she ordered it up without talking with me! And I was peaved that she could have tried other things before giving me petocin.
With the second girl, it was just what I wanted. I went to a midwife and delivered at the same hospital (they have a wonderful birthing center). My water broke again. I went in and same thing my contractions could be stronger. So they strip my membranes -- I think. Which is not pleasant, but it worked wonders!! I had no IV leads and no pain medication of any kind the second time around. I think a big part of it was working with a midwife made me very comfy all the way through my pregnancy. They told me that they do not treat pregnancy as a condition or disease as some doctors do and that we do need to trust what our bodies can do on their own. Anyways, I was so happy with them that I will go back there again! And I know that sometimes we do need medical intervention or if pain medicine makes you feel better than go for it! It's just not what I wanted and I was supported in that decision the second time around.

 

[Fraurloth]

Yea, it is very sad how women and pregnancy are treated nowadays. I hate to say it but, our health care system is not very concerned about the health and safety of the mother or her baby. It's all about the almighty dollar. Sorry about all the experiences I'm reading here.

 

[ChikeeMomma]

Fraurloth said -- I think the problem today is too many doctors like to play off the fear of women. What if? Well, you have to assess the risk yourself, because if you let your doctor, mom, coworker, grandmother, or whomever convince that you can't give birth on your own, you've really been mislead. It's only been the last twenty years that women have been pressured or scared into taking drugs. I couldn't tell you how many times I was pressured into taking pain killers with my first baby. I had to refuse at least five times. All I am saying is, birth is what you make it. As a person who has had two births experiecens that were polar opposite, I think hospitals aren't really the place to give birth unless it's absolutely necessary.

The most important thing is to trust your body!! So many women go into birth planning to take pain medication because they have had other women, doctors, and hollywood completely skew the imagine of giving birth as some traumatic ER experience when in reality it's nothing more than your body doing what it's supposed to!! Unfortunately, this idealogy has ruined many births experiences. But surprisingly, this type of attitude really only exsists in America where conflicts of interest seems to play a role in almost every aspect of human health.



I couldn't agree more in regards to doctors playing on fear (or I felt like the doctor did in the pregnancy and birth of my first) and trusting your body. I just know that the birth of my second was so much better! I did give birth at the same hospital both times, but it's like a really nice birthing center. Which the first time around I couldn't utilize because I was hooked up to petocin. It's silly, but it still bugs me and that was almost seven years ago!

 

[agnes_day]

personally, i like the pain medicine because the actual giving birth really isnt that important to me..its the baby afterwards. if i could, i would sleep through the whole thing.

 

[KatieH]

Quote:
Thanks

I have an interesting birth history, I guess

I was only 18 when I had my first, failed cytotec induction turned urgent c/s for fetal distress. 3.5 years later and pregnant with my second I went the whole uber natural route, planned a homebirth with a midwife. Well that didn't go well. I labored in agony for days (she was posterior AND asynclitic!

), transferred for fetal distress yet again and when she was born she started having seizures. MRI showed she had had a massive stroke at some point and was severely brain damaged, very traumatic (she's doing well now though she's visually impaired and developmentally delayed and has trouble controlling her bowels because of her cerebral palsy).

Anyway, we started on the process to converting to Catholicism after she was born. I very much believe in the Church's teachings on birth control, so I when I got pregnant with dd3 I knew I really wanted to try to avoid another c/s. As it stands I'm 27 and I only have one working ovary yet I've been pregnant 6 times

The thought of having 5 or more c/s really scared me. But no way did I want another out of hospital birth. Thankfully I found a great OB (even though she really pushed me to have a repeat c/s because that's the ACOG guideline, ultimately she respected me and my choice and was great and very hands off). Anyway, dd3 came 10 days late (on St. Patrick's day, my dh's patron saint!), easy hospital VBA2C!

She wasn't "natural" according to the strict standards, I requested to have my water broke at 9cm (it was bulging and that was terribly uncomfortable and plus I was tired of being in labor), then her heart rate dropped and I started have flashbacks to dd2's birth and started having a panic attack, so I got a shot of a narcotic to calm me down. No epidural though, but honestly it just didn't hurt thatmuch till the very end. She was perfectly positioned and the difference pain wise was crazy!

I have to go but I'll post more later

 

[KellyHM]

I realize some of you have had bad experiences with hospitals but other people have had great ones. I personally absolutely LOVE my OB/GYN and wouldn't even consider letting anyone else deliver my baby.

Doctors are NOT God, which they realize. Why else do you think they do all the tests & procedures that some of you find unnecessary? Because if they didn't do them and something went wrong they would get their butts sued off. It's this society's fault that the doctors are scared NOT to do those things...all the crazy sue happy people in the world.

Sure, most people do just fine an don't have complications. However, w/o a fetal monitor (or whatever else) how would you know if your baby's heart rate dropped or stopped all together? You wouldn't and then wouldn't you just feel terrible if you had a stillborn child b/c of your own stubbornness?

I could care less if people want to have their baby at home or wherever. It should be each person's choice. However, don't be so negative and try to dissuade people from having a hospital birth if that's what they want.

As a veterinarian I get to see all the problems associated with labor in animals b/c their owners are too idiotic to seek out help early on. Then I get to tell them the puppies are dead, the uterus is ruptured, the mother is bleeding out, etc, etc. All b/c they thought they could do it themselves.

I personally will be in the hospital, with all the monitors to make sure the baby is safe, with an epidural ASAP. And if the heart rate drops or there are other issues I'll be in the OR before the doctors even suggest it. I don't view labor as a "joyous" event, but rather a means to a joyous end.

Anyways, sorry for the mini rant, but I get so sick of people being negative about others' choices.

 

[ChikeeMomma]

Happy, healthy baby and mom are what matters in the end!

 

[Robin'sBrood]

You're a vet, Kelly? Do you do online consults, for chickens and dogs?

J/K!


I agree with your mini-rant opinion. No two pregnancies/deliveries are ever the same and ALL options should be left open for consideration.