Birth survey, anyone willing to help me out? - Page 2

[Incubator]

Originally Posted by jennica

I was just wondering, because above you said you specifically wanted the moms who plan epidurals or c-sections, so I was just pointing out, that is probably not the demographic here. Of course each birth tells it's own story and there may be interesting info from them all, I just thought you were looking for a certain type to compare them with the births on TV, but maybe I misunderstood that?

Also, I was wondering about anonymity because you've been responding to people here with specific info about their survey and birth, that was not posted in this thread. I was therefore wondering if you were collecting names with surveys. I would have assumed confidentiality for something like this, but as I read the thread, it seemed to be something that would be shared with others with names attached, which is something I may not personally want to do. I was just trying to get a feel for that aspect before taking it.

Good luck with your endeavor.

I responded specifically to two of the survey participants. Fyrestorm, for one, because her birth story is very distressing and she seems to have made an effort to share it with as many people as possible. Also, she left her email address (by choice) on the survey, therefore I did not feel it was inappropriate to comment on her survey.
Lizabear also noted on the thread that she had completed the survey and also indicates a loss in her signature. I contemplated whether I should comment or not, and decided upon it because of my desire to thank her for sharing with me. With all other survey participants I have not revealed any information that was presented to me.
If at any point I make a comment that you would prefer I did not, I will gladly remove it, or you can indicate on the survey itself that you'd prefer I do not mention anything you've shared. However, on the two comments I've made, I don't believe any specific information was divulged that was not already evident to an outsider.

[Incubator]

Originally Posted by fwlady

I did 4 surveys, one was a HB/UC transfer. And, I had other births, that I had to transfer after the birth. I think that the survey does need more about the 3rd stage, because birth doesn't end with the baby's emergence. And, other traumatic things can happen after the baby. Kymberli

Thank you very much Kymberli. Your input about the survey itself is more appreciated than you know.

[Incubator]

Originally Posted by MegBoz

Well, I'll come out & say that plenty of unnecessary c-sections happen in American every.single.day. It's simply stats... the WHO says the rate should be 15% max & beyond that, risks outweigh benefits. It's 32% today in the US.

Last I checked the bodies of American women didn't suddenly, in just one generation, stop functioning properly. So, yeah, that means there are lots of "Unnecessarians" out there.


I posted a thread "why decide on an epidural before labor?" Some interesting things came out of it that I hadn't thought of before - like the fact that some people's own mothers told them regularly how giving birth was horrific & the worst day of their life. Or others who don't want to feel "out of control" or who just really dislike pain & are willing to take the risks of an epi so they can enjoy the experience & not be in pain.

Culturally, we're taught in America:
1. Birth is painful & dangerous
2. Doctors are to be trusted. They can take away the pain & fix any of the problems that may arise with this dangerous process
therefore... it's stupid to birth at home without a doctor & pointless to birth without an epi & feel all that pain when you don't have to.

So there you go.

I certainly agree with you, and I have heard all of those things from women around me, but in the vast majority of cases, I have not heard their birth stories. I understand that women are frequently scared of birth, not based on their own experience, but on the stories they've seen/heard. With my comment: "or a woman that believes her c-section was necessary (I'm not saying it wasn't, quite the contrary! How could I even guess if it was or wasn't without more information?)" I am also not implying that it WAS necessary, merely pointing out that I can't even begin to guess if it was or was not if I don't know what happened. That's what I'm trying t get here. How many of these women who trust doctors for everything and are terrified of labor pain and had a section: How many actually experienced labor without medication and did something to cope with the pain before resorting to chemical relief? What were the circumstances of their labor and section and what are the chances that the section was actually needed? what are the chances that the interventions caused the section?

Also, I'm not saying that MDC mamas are like this, I'm also not saying that all of them are NOT like this. I thought it would be a good idea to throw a few extras into the mix, like I indicated earlier, to get an insight into what causes women to reject medical birth, and what happens to a naturally-minded woman giving birth in a hospital? All these things interest me.

[LizaBear]

Originally Posted by Incubator

Lizabear also noted on the thread that she had completed the survey and also indicates a loss in her signature. I contemplated whether I should comment or not, and decided upon it because of my desire to thank her for sharing with me.

Had I wanted to remain anonymous, I would not have commented on this thread, I have no problem with you making a comment at all.

Stillbirth is something that is too often swept under the rug, not spoken about. It happens. More than it 'should' I'm sure. And, for the purpose of the survey - Jesse's birth was a hospital birth.

[Fyrestorm]

My story is out there..everywhere I can print it! I left me e-mail and have no problem not being anonymous. Even though my screen name still keeps me pretty anonymous

[jennica]

Thanks all for clearing the anonymous thing up. That all makes sense now. I will take the survey later tonight.

[earthmama369]

Likewise, my birth stories are already out there. I'm not worried about being anonymous. (I'm starseeker7 on the surveys.)

[Incubator]

Ah yes, Starseeker, the IV Ripper!
I was also taken by the weight of your second child, since my second weighed the same. I had the same problem with the heel sticks with my first child (who was only 9lbs 2 oz) and no one believing that the child had grown that big on its' own.

[Incubator]

I wanted to thank everyone for your help, especially those who filled out the survey knowing that the purpose of it is to satisfy my own curiosity and further some personal research.
To anyone who is interested, here's a little update on the progress and some stats. The results are going to be a bit simplified until I go back and re-categorize some of the "other" answers.

3% twins, the rest are singletons
two respondents @ <35 weeks, 78% between 38 and 41 weeks, two respondents >43 weeks
65% IV use, 35% no IV (those who had no IV until c-section or Epidural are counted as "no")
35% monitored continuously by belts, 15% internal, 3% with none at all.
24% induction, 6% c-section before labor
One cytotec induction, 44% of inductions were with pitocin only, 33% with cervidil followed by pitocin
43% augmentation with pitocin (this includes inductions)
43% of pitocin recipients were started at 3-4 cm, only one received pitocin after 8 cm but before birth.
56% reported pain of 3 or less before pitocin (scale 1-10) 19% reported pain of 3 or less after pitocin. 64% report pain of 7 or more after pitocin. (this includes those who received an epidural with pitocin)
34% epidural use. 3% received other chemical pain relief, but not an epidural.
44% of epidural recipients got it after receiving pitocin
97% of respondents used breathing techniques
31% labored in bed 57% had a doula 43% used a birthball
74% pushed while reclining or on the back, 10% while squatting
34% did not tear, 44% tore, 16% episiotomy. 62% were 2nd degree
one vaccum extraction
seven cases of fetal distress, 3 shoulder dystocia
18% c-sections
76% report no pressure to perform a c-section
one court-ordered cesarean
one stillbirth (that was noted, there was no question about fetal outcome on the form)
three labors > 40 hours

I wanted to add that I know what an honor it is to have this kind of information and your feelings about them shared with me. I greatly appreciate each and every one of you "spilling your guts" as it were, to me about how you felt during your birth.
Now that I've had some results, I know how to construct the next survey better, so that the information is more complete.