To Lacy: My Thoughts on The Business of Being Born

My dear friend, Lacy, whom I have known for literally, almost ever (okay, so like circa 7th grade) has been contemplating having children—as in having them and then physically HAVING them. She first blogged about this last fall and I have to say, it sparked a lot of chatter on her blog for about a week or so. I found it amusing, a pregnant woman, about to go through one of the scariest things I had imagined in my head at least. Fast forward to this spring, I had given birth to my beautiful baby girl, figuring out motherhood and how it has changed my life, and going back to work. Then Lacy and her sister, Kayla go off and blog about this documentary that they watched together called, “The Business of Being Born.” From the title you can probably tell where this is going and how doctors and hospitals are out there to make money…and lots of it. Okay, so, what is the big deal? So, I’ll give it a whirl and find out what all the fuss and muss is about this documentary that sparked even more chatter between Lacy and Kayla’s blogs. Lacy’s question to me was this: After seeing this documentary, do I still feel that my doctor is beloved and that I had a C-Section for the right reasons? How did I feel about the hospital experience, ect.?

I told Lacy I would watch it with an open mind. Honestly, it was a little difficult as I knew going into it that I would have some thoughts of my own considering the experience that I had. None of the less, it came in on my Blockbuster.com over the long weekend. I set out to watch it on Monday, my last day of freedom and here are my thoughts:

1. The documentary made me think a lot, actually. Why is it that the majority of the world, and I do mean most significantly, the industrialized parts of the world, have midwives instead of doctors at their births? Very shocking statistics.

2. A common misconception is that a midwife is practically someone off the street. In reality, most are registered nurses who have done extensive training in labor and delivery in hospitals and birthing centers. They come fully equipped with all the necessary paraphernalia to do their job—no boiling water and bed sheets—these ladies come with oxygen tanks and everything.

3. If you are a healthy woman and having a healthy pregnancy and want to have a natural child birth, why go to a hospital?

4. And yes, I did not need this documentary to tell me that there are doctors out there who would rather do a C-Section than go through labor and/or delivery. In fact, one of my friend’s doctor schedules all of her patients to be induced so that she can be sure to be there. While good that your doctor is there, what if you do not want to be induced?

5. There were just some things that I found immensely odd to me. Example…your child is in your home and same room with you while you are in excruciating pain. I’m sorry, but there are just some things that a 4 year old does not need to see! Esk. I thought that was very odd.

6. I found the birthing tub thing very interesting…and weird. I’m not judging, but just be my luck, the baby would drown or it would slip out of my hands, but that is just me.

7. What if something bad happens? Things can go from bad to good in a matter of seconds and sometimes there is no time to make it to the hospital.

8. The film raised a question of the birthing experience and bonding with your child. I thought that was the biggest crock of crap ever.

So here is my nitty gritty opinion about it all. I was a big huge fan of the epidural. I was started on potocin around 6:15 am and immediately started having contractions. I lasted without the epidural till about 3:00 pm. I know I could have gone longer without it, but I didn’t want to get into a place where I felt like I needed it. I was happy with my decision. Sadly, that is one of my primary reasons for going to the hospital to have my baby…pain management…and the other big thing for me was the question of what if something bad happens to the baby or me? Would I ever consider at home or a birthing center for my needs, yes, I would…with pain meds though.
I was very fortunate that I picked the best doctor in the world to fit my needs. She was amazing, supportive, and really knew her stuff. Did I feel as though she pushed me into my C-Section? No, I do not. Did I have it earlier than expected? Yes, but that was because we were concerned that the baby could go into distress and no one wanted that! When it came down to it, my body was not going to let me do it. Elizabeth wore my body out and it was not going to be physically possible for me to have this baby the good ol’ natural way. When Dr. P looked at my placenta, it was starting to become unhealthy—and I was two weeks early. We will see what happens the next go around with my pregnancy and I already know I will be having another C-Section…and I’m okay with that.

As for my hospital experience, it was great for me. Granted, the WHOLE time I was there, I was in pain, but that was to be expected. My hospital was very upfront about that fact that they are for profit and there to help me with my needs at all times. The whole four days I was there, there was only one nurse/person in the hospital that I did not like. I’m lucky to have had such a good experience.

My overall opinion about the whole entire kit and caboodle is that as women, we need to be informed of ALL of our options before making a birthing decision (it never crossed my mind to go to a midwife). As long as you feel comfortable with your decision and the outcome, that is all the matters. Would I still go to a hospital even if I didn’t have to? Absolutely, but that is just me. I am a control freak like that and I want all of my bases covered, just in case.

At the end of the day, it doesn’t matter how the baby got to be there—be it in a birthing water tub, a hospital bed, or a surgery table, when you hear that baby cry for the first time and realize you are a mom, well, that my friends, is the moment that changes your life forever…