1 hr 9 min
Episode 31: How to birth safely when surrounded by people who don't believe in you The Operation M.I.S.T. Podcast: Tackling the Maternal Health Crisis
-
- Health & Fitness
"Your placenta is dead. It's calcified. Your body is trying to tell you this pregnancy needs to be over."
"You didn't bring your bag in to this appointment? Aren't you optimistic? Now you're going to leave and come back-don't you know that you could sit on your cord and since your waters are all dried up, you could lose your baby and not know it?"
"Dry births are extremely painful. I don't recommend it."
"We know your baby is big and you're going to deal with dystocia...it's best to just let us get the baby out."
"Your baby is not responding well to the epidural (within 30 minutes of administering it) so you need to make the decision that is best for the both of you and just let us take the baby."
"You are only three centimeters dilated even though your contractions are five minutes apart. Your body is telling you that it doesn't want to have a vaginal delivery."
Over the course of four days, this mom had to try to labor while being told the statements above by the residents in the hospital.
Luckily, she had all the information she needed to make informed decisions, a team of people to support her outside of her OB, angels within her hospital system who encouraged her along the way and the resilience to do what she knew was best despite her immediate environment.
She went on to deliver a healthy average-sized baby vaginally with no complications.
I am grateful to the moms who entrust us with their motherhood journeys and ultimately, with their lives. Although medical intervention has become more commonplace during pregnancy and delivery over the years, agreeing to intervention can sometimes be the difference between life and death; between recovering well and having complications; between living a healthy life and running into health and quality of life issues years down the line.
For example, since more blood is lost following a cesarean delivery than during a vaginal one, and one of the top reasons women die following delivery is from bleeding too much, it is important to us that moms only undergo c-sections when it’s absolutely necessary to do so.
Monitoring is one thing, but having the education, resources, relationships and ability to advocate for yourself combined with the data is another thing altogether.
For any mom who read this post who was triggered by it, please forgive me; these stories and your stories need to be told. In that way, women can know that when they choose to trust their design, they should not be made to feel bad about doing so. They can also know what they may encounter when trying to deliver their baby. Not all experiences are like this, but you'd be surprised by how many there are.
If you are pregnant and would like someone to walk your motherhood journey with you, please visit www.operationmist.org to learn how we can support you. If you are not pregnant, but are supporting someone who is, please advocate for them when you can. It is hard to labor and fight at the same time.
"Your placenta is dead. It's calcified. Your body is trying to tell you this pregnancy needs to be over."
"You didn't bring your bag in to this appointment? Aren't you optimistic? Now you're going to leave and come back-don't you know that you could sit on your cord and since your waters are all dried up, you could lose your baby and not know it?"
"Dry births are extremely painful. I don't recommend it."
"We know your baby is big and you're going to deal with dystocia...it's best to just let us get the baby out."
"Your baby is not responding well to the epidural (within 30 minutes of administering it) so you need to make the decision that is best for the both of you and just let us take the baby."
"You are only three centimeters dilated even though your contractions are five minutes apart. Your body is telling you that it doesn't want to have a vaginal delivery."
Over the course of four days, this mom had to try to labor while being told the statements above by the residents in the hospital.
Luckily, she had all the information she needed to make informed decisions, a team of people to support her outside of her OB, angels within her hospital system who encouraged her along the way and the resilience to do what she knew was best despite her immediate environment.
She went on to deliver a healthy average-sized baby vaginally with no complications.
I am grateful to the moms who entrust us with their motherhood journeys and ultimately, with their lives. Although medical intervention has become more commonplace during pregnancy and delivery over the years, agreeing to intervention can sometimes be the difference between life and death; between recovering well and having complications; between living a healthy life and running into health and quality of life issues years down the line.
For example, since more blood is lost following a cesarean delivery than during a vaginal one, and one of the top reasons women die following delivery is from bleeding too much, it is important to us that moms only undergo c-sections when it’s absolutely necessary to do so.
Monitoring is one thing, but having the education, resources, relationships and ability to advocate for yourself combined with the data is another thing altogether.
For any mom who read this post who was triggered by it, please forgive me; these stories and your stories need to be told. In that way, women can know that when they choose to trust their design, they should not be made to feel bad about doing so. They can also know what they may encounter when trying to deliver their baby. Not all experiences are like this, but you'd be surprised by how many there are.
If you are pregnant and would like someone to walk your motherhood journey with you, please visit www.operationmist.org to learn how we can support you. If you are not pregnant, but are supporting someone who is, please advocate for them when you can. It is hard to labor and fight at the same time.
1 hr 9 min