I was wondering why no one was commenting on my last post. I assumed no one wanted to hurt my feelings and so they just fumed to themselves. I knew I could count on a NICU nurse to speak up. I was going to just write another comment and it started gettig long, so I decided to put it in a new post.
I'm really not opposed to hospitals as much as I am opposed to trying to hurry up the whole birth process. Here's a link to an article discussing the rise in c-sections in the U.S. http://childbirthconnection.org/pdfs/rising_cesarean_rate.pdf It's now over 30%. I realize that is due, in part, to older women giving birth and a huge increase in multiple births due to fertility treatments (stay tuned for my post on this topic). But, there's still a large portion that happens because of unnescessary interventions. It's a slippery slope when a doctor decides to induce. One thing leads to another.
I had zero health problems and Clara wasn't in distress, but my doctor still sent me over to the hospital to have her 2 weeks before my due date. I couldn't even feel my contractions yet. He didn't discuss my options or ask me if I wanted to wait to go into labor on my own even though there was no reason I couldn't go home and wait for it to happen. I'm sure he assumes that all women just want to be sent over. This just leads me to believe that kind of stuff happens to a lot of women and I think it's completely insane.
If my contractions hadn't started on their own once he broke my water, I would've had to be put on pitocin. If I still didn't progress in a certain amount of time and if Clara had gone into distress because of it all....... operation room, here I come. That's what I have a problem with.
As for the homebirth, it's actually very unlikely I would do it. I haven't done any reading up on it, so I don't know mortality rates or anything; it's just crossed my mind once or twice. If I did, it would be with a midwife and with an ambulance parked out front. And it would only be if there were no problems with my pregnancy.
While I'm on the topic, here's another reason for my dislike of hospitals. When we got to the hospital around 12:30, they were in the process of cleaning a birthing suite, so they put me in a semi-private room to get things started. They got me in my gown, hooked me up to the monitor, then sent me over to the suite when it was ready. I was in there for about half an hour total. Ok, I labor in the suite and have Clara at 7:30. Around 11:00 they tell me they need to move me back to a semi-private room in case someone else comes in in labor. (It was a full moon, so there were lots of babies born the same day). And this was while Chris had gone to get me something to eat. I was like, "can I wait til my husband gets back?" They're like, "no, we'll bring all of your stuff over for you". So Chris gets back and he's like, "WHERE'S MY WIFE AND BABY?"
Anyway, no one did come in needing the room and when we got the bill, we were charged for the semi-private room we spent all of 30 minutes in, the birthing suite and 2 nights in the semi-private room. I find it hard to believe they weren't just out to make an extra buck by shuffling me around. I understand that if a room was used, they have to clean it and stuff, but I wasn't in labor when I came in, so why couldn't I have just sat in the waiting room for half an hour. Also, we were told in our birthing class that there were 5 birthing suites on a first come first serve basis, so if they were full when you got there, you got stuck in a semi-private. So, why did I have to move?
Not only that, but there was really no breastfeeding support at the Huntsville hospital. The nurses offered no support but were all too happy to tell me if she didn't eat more they would have to give her formula. (And that was me having to decifer what they were saying; I'm only assuming it was English they were speaking.) Yeah, that's the way to support a new mom; scare her into thinking she's starving her baby so she gives up on breastfeeding.
Ohhhhhh, and my doctor was checking me when I feel a Wooooosh and see that I'm swimming in amniotic fluid. Hellllloooo, ya mind telling me before you do that? Yeah, I didn't see him get the instrument to break my water and he didn't tell me he was going to. Oh, Chris was not happy about that one.
I know, I complain a lot about Clara's birth, but it was actually very close to picture perfect. About 5 hours of "real" labor before I was holding her in my arms. I didn't mind the Huntsville hospital at all. The nurses were very nice and I really liked my doctor. I just felt completely out of control of the whole situation even though I thought I knew how I would handle things before going in. I know more now and hopefully won't be quite the pushover next time.
I am glad that there are dedicated nurses like Becky to take care of my seriously ill newborn if I'm ever in that situation, which I pray I never am. Thanks for the comment, Becky! Sorry for the rant, I just get started talking and can't stop myself. I know the majority of that had nothing to do with your comment. I really need to write down Clara's birth story before I forget everything. I've been meaning to, just haven't gotten around to it.
Friday, June 22, 2007
Yay, I Got a Comment!
Posted by Kelsey at 8:35 PM
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2 comments:
I understand! I hope I didn't offend either! I agree with you on your comments. I think that the c-section rate has gone up and not to our advantage. I agree with natural birth, just in the right setting. I agree there is too much intervention in labor now too. That's why we have these "nearly term" babies that have trouble breathing on their own. Well, they weren't supposed to come out for another few weeks, what do you expect?!?! Hopefully, next time around you'll have a better "hospital" experience. The rooms at Memorial Woodlands are LDR rooms meaning you stay in that room the entire stay. I hate l&d rooms and then recovery rooms. Stupid! That wasn't right of your dr to break your water withour your permission. I actually discussed it with mine before he did it since I was an induction. We decided to do it for many reasons. Mainly because I was already in labor on my own. I was at 3cm, with regular contractions about 4 min apart. My Mom warned me not to let him break my water for fear of c-section, but when we discussed it I trusted his decision. I agree hospitals have there downfalls. Believe me! I work at one! They are kind of a nec. evil! Have a good week!
I always say you can have a good or bad experience anywhere. It is a good idea to "shop around" different places (whether they be hospitals, birthing centers, or both) to find which place suits your philosophy of childbirth and postpartum care. It's not just where you will stay that is at stake but where the baby will spend most of his/her time as well. We have many people that are irritated that we do not offer a nursery during the day. However, it is explained when they preregister that this will be the case. Different hospitals and birthing centers offer different kinds of care. Of course, there are some doctors that only deliver at one hospital, so if you have strong feeling regarding your establishment, you may want to pick where you want to deliver before picking you doctor.
Regarding the epidural issue: I can kind of relate to the nurses (since I am one). Pain control has become the biggest priority it seems and nurses feel a lot of pressure to make sure they are doing everything possible to make sure their patient has tolerable pain control. That being said you should never feel like anyone is pressuring you to do anything you do not want. Just realize they are probably offering several times because they got burned in the past by a patient who originally didn't want an epidural and then got mad at the nurse because by the time she wanted one it was too late.
On birthing center: This is a hard one for me. I personally would not do it because I do feel like it's a risk. However, there a many people that would state being at a hospital is riskier. You could be given a wrong drug, you could get a hospital acquired infection, your baby could get the wrong drug etc. The doctors do tend to lean to C-sections at the slightest hint of a problem. However, if you are up front with your doctor and have a good relationship with him/her, most of the time they will work with you. I have a level of comfort from the NICU being right there in case anything goes wrong. That being said I do not think you are doing intentional harm to yourself or you baby if you decide to deliver at a birthing center. Like I said before, visit the facilities, find out their protocols for before delivery, delivery, and after delivery care. That way you can make the best decision for your family.
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