The Unnecesarean

The Unnecesarean: noun, often capitalized

1. A delivery performed via cesarean section for which there is no medical indication
2. A medically unnecessary cesarean section
3. Excess C/S

Delivery by cesarian is performed at astronomically high rates in the United States (33%).  A medically safe rate of cesarian is around 15%, while some hospitals have rates as high as 40-50%. That means that more than half of the cesareans that are performed are medically unnecessary.

Check out my most recent blog post for Baby-Birth about unnecesarians. Click here

 

Midwifery Model of Care

Often, I am asked about how midiwves care for women differently than other obsterical providers.  And while, it's different midwife to midwife, there is the basic Midwifery Model of Care that I'd like to share as a fundation for why we are different.

Midwives Model of Care™

The Midwives Model of Care™ is based on the fact that pregnancy and birth are normal life events. The Midwives Model of Care includes:

·       monitoring the physical, psychological and social well-being of the mother throughout the childbearing cycle

·       providing the mother with individualized education, counseling, and prenatal care, continuous hands-on assistance during labor and delivery, and postpartum support

 

·       minimizing technological interventions and;

·       identifying and referring women who require obstetrical attention

Patience in the Post Term

You are not alone. More than 1 in 4 pregnancies go past their expected due date in the United States. This is even higher for women who are having their first babe and for women who are having a boy.
Going over due can be discouraging and can weigh on our patience, both as a provider but more often as a mother.  It can seem like the babe's birthday is never going to come. But this period of waiting can be a great time for reflection, preparation, and intimacy.  Sometimes we are in such a rush to get everything done, we need to be reminded to stop and take it all in.
I went one week overdue with my son, my second.  I remember it weighing on my patience but I also remember it being a time of joy and rest with my husband and my little daughter, my first.
In Judaism, there is a Yiddish word B'shert, (Yiddish: באַשערט).  It literally means "destiny" and can even mean a destiny that is divine. A baby's timing is b'shert, meant to be, by their very own diving timing.
So take heart, have patience, have hope, and know that you can and will do this most magnificent thing, give birth.