help organizing thoughts for giving advice

[chambom]

My DD is 19 months old now and I did so much research about birth and knew exactly what I wanted and why.

Now I have friends who are pregnant and I try to explain things and I can't keep my thoughts simple and clear cut. They are asking me questions and are open to my thoughts.

So, can you guys help me with the top 5 reasons you don't want a c-section unless absolutely necessary. The answers need to be mostly related to the babies health.

One of my thoughts is...

1. healthy gut flora from birth(any resources?)

what else?

[kltroy]

Reasons not to have a c/s are easy! (I say this having had one for breech, and then a VBAC for my second child)

Major abdominal surgery (including can't pick up anything heavier than your baby or even DRIVE A CAR for more than 2 weeks)
Will have to fight for a VBAC for all subsequent births, or have repeat c-section
Better outcomes for baby (new study showed that ALL CAUSE MORTALITY is higher for c-section babies than vaginal deliveries, regardless of any other factor - came out 6/09 but i don't have the reference offhand)
lungs - c/s babies have lots of crud/mucus in their lungs. vag. babies do not b/c it all gets squeezed out during the birth

My approach to this sort of thing is generally to:
1. Refer friends to a good midwife if I know of one in their area, or if not, tell them why a midwife will give them better care if they are a low-risk healthy mom (point #3 has some stats on this I think) Also assure them that their insurance *will* cover MW care - most CNMs get around that problem by running their bills through their collaborating OB/GYN but even if they don't, a quick phone call to the insurance takes care of it.
2. Shove a copy of Ina May's Guide to Childbirth in their hands if possible
3. Point them to the resources at www.childbirthconnection.org - especially the links about choosing a healthcare provider

[Lilcrunchie]

I bumped into something related to the gut flora issue a few weeks ago (had read it before but found it again while looking for something else).

http://www.webmd.com/allergies/news/...-allergy-risks

http://www.medicalnewstoday.com/articles/4262.php

http://linkinghub.elsevier.com/retri...91674908009408

http://www.reuters.com/article/healt...87067720080918

http://adc.bmj.com/cgi/content/abstr...&RESULTFORMAT=

There are obviously lots more.

[prancie]

1. it's emotionally and physically traumatic for you and the baby
2. it's much riskier for both you and the baby
3. the more c secs you have the higher your risks are
4. possible to have difficulty having sex for some time afterwards (this happened to me)
5. no flood to love endorphins at the conclusion of birth for you or your baby to facilitate bonding
6. you will always have a compromised uterus (thought it is not a huge risk, it is hung over your head constantly)
7. greater risks of post-partum depression
8. greater risks for breastfeeding issues

these are all i can think of off the top of my head

[MsBlack]

Why do the risks you name all have to concern baby?

Because as I understand it, women are 3 times more likely to die from a csec than from vaginal birth. The numbers of deaths are very low in either case, but still--why would a woman risk her life for an unnecessary csec?

And of course, if a woman dies from complications of surgery, that's definitely not good for her baby either.

[mamatolevi]

I'd refer your friends to ICAN as well. There is some great information there as to the risks of c/s to mother and baby.

There's also the risk of cutting the baby (not very often, but it does happen) and if the dr nicks the mother's bladder, it'll never be the same again.

for me I'd say the risks to future fertility rank pretty high. Even with the first c/s, the risk of a hysterectomy goes up (not sure how much).

I totally agree with Ms. Black's post about primarly listing risks that concern just the baby, but understand the thoughts behind it... most mothers will sacrifice themselves and their health for a healthy baby.