C-Sections On Demand: "Labor Shouldn't Be Viewed As A Rite Of Passage Into Motherhood"
While doctors in America are actively trying to reduce the number of elective C-sections, pregnant women in Britain may soon be able to get a cesarean section on demand.
As the Huffington Post reports, the government provides free health care in Britain and a new rule change critics say is the health care system caving into the “too posh to push” crowd will allow women with “no identifiable reason” to have a c-section if they still want one after a discussion with mental health experts.
“In general, a C-section is a safe operation, especially when performed as a planned procedure,” the new guidelines, which come from the National Institute for Health and Clinical Excellence, say. They will take effect later this month. Pauline Hull, mother of two who has had two sections because of medical reasons and says the guidelines are long overdue.
“It’s about time women who have no desire to view labor as a rite of passage into motherhood be able to choose how they want to have their baby,” Hull says. “The important thing to me was meeting my baby, not the experience of labor.”
Hull runs the website, Elective Cesarean, from her home just south of London and says midwives exaggerate the risks of C-sections and underestimate those of vaginal births.
Babble’s own Meredith Carroll agrees, calling her scheduled c-sections a “satisfaction guarantee”.
The National Institute for Health and Clinical Excellence in Britain says it routinely updates guidance every few years and denies there was any pressure to change its more restrictive C-section advice. But in recent years, advocates and some doctors have slammed the U.K. health system for not giving women a greater say in childbirth.
Some experts don’t see the new guidelines as a big deal. “It’s only a small percentage of women who ask for a C-section,” said Cathy Warwick, chief executive of the Royal College of Midwives.
“As long as it’s safe for both mother and baby, a vaginal birth is absolutely the best way for anyone to deliver,” said Dr. Daghni Rajasingham, an obstetrician and spokeswoman for the Royal College of Obstetricians and Gynaecologists. As we’ve reported here on Being Pregnant, although safe, c-sections come with a risk of infections and are generally deemed harder to recover from.
“Women shouldn’t think a C-section is going to be a walk in the park, but they should have all the information they need to help them make an informed choice,” Hull retorts. True. Some even say that whatever pain you miss from labor, you get on the flip side with recovery.
Personally, I prefer a vaginal birth as I’m kind of into childbirth as experienced by millions of women before me and medical intervention but I’m also grateful that c-sections are so safe and are an option should I encounter any medical emergencies. However, I don’t think I’d ever schedule one. What about you? What are your thoughts about c-sections on demand? Should women, especially those who, as Hull says, “have no desire to view labor as a rite of passage into motherhood” be able to have the birth of their choice?
Why would anyone opt for invasive abdominal surgery when you can just as easily not? Other than that, the cost is greater as well. If you have the money laying around and don’t feel like pushing, I guess that’s great for you. The only way I would ever have a c-section is if it was a medical emergency and one or both of us might die without it.
My mother had a c-section with both me and my sister. It was the late ’70s and early ’80s and apparently you weren’t given a choice.
Well, first of all, health care in the UK isn’t ‘free’. It’s paid for by all citizens through taxes. Same as in Canada.
Secondly, I’ve seen this topic pop up again and again over since the decision has come out and I think we’re making a mountain out a molehill. The actual percentage of women who actively elect for a c-section instead of a vag birth is probably very, very small. Their reasons are their own and as long as they have been fully informed of the risks and still desire a c-section, then I personally don’t see a problem with it. The important thing is that the society in general and the medical community continue to support vag birth in a positive manner and encourage women to birth that way.
Personally, I would never schedule a c-section unless it was medically necessary. I might actually be faced with that decision soon, and I am very sad about it. I would so much rather have a vaginal birth. BUT…what is right for me is NOT always what is right for someone else. If a woman would rather have an elective cesarean, that is her prerogative. Who am I to tell her that she is wrong to want to have that birth experience? Birth is magical, whether it is vaginal or cesarean.
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I had a c-section because they thought it would become an emergency. I was ready for my horrible recovery and I was scared and miserable and frightened. Then, after the surgery, I was shocked. I was walking around perfectly four days later and off the pain pills by then as well. My friend who went through a vicious tear with labor was confused by my quick recovery since I was out and about to parties with my baby less than a week after birth, while she spent about three months desiring never to sit again. I’ve been offered the chance to VBAC this pregnancy, and I’m still unsure of what I’m going to do.
i had to have a c-section with my first child due to being to small to fit a baby threw and in my county if you have one they will not do a v-back so i will be having another one next month and personally after 46 hours of labor im looking forward to not having to go threw that again
Wow. How can a person NOT think that birth (whether vaginal or by cesarean) is a rite of passage and major life event?? It’s the first moment you meet your child and become a mother. Of course the experience matters! The medical aspects of it should still be taken serriously though. I absolutely agree that mothers should have major input and decision-making power in how they birth, but anyone who thinks c-sections are safer or easier than vaginal birth is ill-informed.
I would never schedule a csection period. The Only way I would have one is in an emergency situation. I had a very easy vaginal delivery and was up and at em in less than 48 hours. Maybe I was lucky but I see no need to subject myself to unnecessary surgery and a much much higher hospital bill. But every woman is different so I won’t comment on other people’s situations
Kinda have mixed feelings on this one. I always intended to have my children in a natural, peaceful setting, vaginally. Then I had brain surgery in my early twenties that made a vaginal birth impossible for me. I was disappointed that my plans were altered but when I conceived, the ecstasy of having a baby overcame any disappointment over a medically necessary c-section. Now, at 38 weeks, I eagerly await the arrival of my little one, regardless of the means. As long as he’s healthy!!! And I’ve convinced myself that the no need to push is an added bonus.
Given the choice? I’d probably choose a vaginal birth. It has to be better for the baby. I hear there are hormones released during labor and that the massaging of contractions is better for the baby too. But to each their own. I can’t judge another mother for choosing one or the other.
@Kitten- I’m very glad you had a quick recovery. You should keep in mind though that everyone’s experience is different. You and your friend are not the same person, so you shouldn’t expect to tear or have a prolonged recovery just because she did. If you haven’t already, you might take a look online at some more positive birth stories (both vaginal and cesarean). Ultimately the choice is yours, and you should do whatever you feel is best for you and baby. Good luck!
I’m with Kitten.. I had a scheduled c-section with my first, because he was nice and comfy in his breech position. I had a ridiculously easy recovery – only took ibuprofen for pain the next day, and was up walking around! Now, barely 13 months later, I’m 6 months preggo with #2.. I’m going for another scheduled c-section – with the babies so close in age, its actually less risk to my baby, myself, and my uterus to do so, especially since I want more than 2 kids!!
I had an emergency c-section with my first son about 4 years ago- this was after 30+ hours of labor and 5 hours of pushing, only to discover he was stuck on my pelvis and was starting to lose oxygen. Recovery was hell- I basically delivered both vaginally and surgically. And I was a bratty patient. Refusing to listen to nurses and walk and move as I should have.
During lengthy discussions with my OB, we decided that a scheduled c-section would be safest for the birth of my second son. I learned my lesson the first time and was cruising around as soon as I was able. Recovery was remarkably easier. But I also didnt have the labor and delivery I did the first time.
I am currently almost-6 months pregnant with my 3rd (and last) and will be scheduling a c-section, as my OB’s once again feel it is in my best interest.
I would NEVER have elected to have a c-section. Women have been delivering vaginally since the beginning of time. That is the way the good Lord intended. I have often cried because I wanted the “traditional” experience. But I will do whatever I have to do to protect my child.
I had an emergency Csection with my son 6 years ago …. I thought that recovery was easy…. Then I had my daughter 4 years later via planned Csection and that recovery was even easier!!!