VBACS not "allowed"

It makes me so sad to hear of women being forced into repeat cesarean births when they might choose a vbac, all things being equal. My client, as you may have guessed, is about 99% headed for a scheduled repeat cesarean birth. She's not happy. The baby is not engaged at all and keeps flipping. I think that even if we went with moxibustion, which I had suggested to her, that the baby would probably flip again.

But I was asking my web-friends who have had "elective" repeat cesareans, how can I make this better for her? And I now know that "elective" isn't really the word. It's scheduled but it's not what many would choose. It's what they are stuck getting because otherwise they'd need to drive 90 minutes to a hospital that "does" vbacs (yes, that ticks me off... WOMEN HAVE vbacs, doctors and hospitals don't "do" them).

Sure, they could've travelled far and wide. They could've switched care providers. They could've gone underground and found a homebirth midwife. They could've even had an unassisted birth.

But why? Why couldn't they just have the birth they wanted, in the birthplace they wanted? How about if a woman doesn't have to choose a birthplace or care provider that in their hearts they aren't comfortable with, or something that their partners just won't support? It's a damn shame.

4 comments:

kris said...

you're right, women have them, dr.'s don't. you know what got to me about what you just wrote? the fact that she would have to "go underground" to have a midwifery assisted homebirth. that just ticks me off. is this america or what? i won't get on my soapbox here, but that just ain't right!

you know, you asked what you can still do for her, i know you had a section too didn't you? the thing that helped me with my last was just having someone beside me the whole time. i was really scared of all that lay ahead of me that day. even tho it was scheduled, and i knew ahead of time, that was worse for me, b/c i knew what they were going to do. having my sis there while they were stiching me up (dad went w/ baby)made the whole thing more positive and peaceful for me. if she's nervous at all, hope this helps...

Amanda said...

Good point! What a joke, huh? When had my first baby, I asked about the possibility of vbac should I get pregnant again. I was told the hospital doesn't do vbacs and I would have to drive- funny coincidence- 90 miles to the next biggest hospital to have it. So before I even conceived my second child, my options were laid forth for me.

Luckily, now that I am pregnant with our second, my hospital now does 'offer' vbacs. I bet you though that if I had showed up fully dilated and engaged they wouldn't have made me wait 2 hours to prep for surgery... or would they? I was told at my last appt that I would be prepped for surgery and the operating room ready to go once I was admitted in full labor, "just in case this whole vbac thing doesn't work out". Where is the confidence and support I'm supposed to be getting here!?

Anonymous said...

longchamp outlet, ray ban sunglasses, polo ralph lauren outlet, louboutin shoes, jordan shoes, oakley sunglasses, ray ban sunglasses, kate spade outlet, nike free, oakley sunglasses, uggs on sale, nike outlet, tiffany and co, ralph lauren pas cher, nike free, louboutin pas cher, ugg boots, louis vuitton, nike roshe run, replica watches, air max, michael kors, louis vuitton outlet, sac longchamp, longchamp, louis vuitton, louboutin, nike air max, cheap oakley sunglasses, gucci outlet, burberry, tiffany jewelry, louboutin outlet, replica watches, prada handbags, oakley sunglasses, tory burch outlet, oakley sunglasses, ugg boots, nike air max, air jordan pas cher, louis vuitton, longchamp pas cher, louis vuitton outlet, polo ralph lauren outlet, longchamp outlet, chanel handbags, prada outlet, christian louboutin outlet, ray ban sunglasses

Anonymous said...

north face outlet, new balance, hollister, vans shoes, timberland boots, birkin bag, nike air max, ghd, hollister, bottega veneta, instyler, nfl jerseys, oakley, abercrombie and fitch, reebok shoes, louboutin, asics running shoes, wedding dresses, babyliss, giuseppe zanotti, soccer shoes, beats by dre, jimmy choo shoes, mac cosmetics, north face outlet, nike huarache, longchamp, converse, iphone cases, vans, ralph lauren, insanity workout, hollister, valentino shoes, herve leger, celine handbags, nike roshe, nike air max, lululemon, p90x workout, soccer jerseys, ray ban, converse outlet, baseball bats, mcm handbags, ferragamo shoes, gucci, nike trainers, mont blanc, chi flat iron