What does "trusting birth" actually mean?

[JanetF]

What does it mean to you when you really unpack it? Does it mean that you trust the process itself, that birth is perfect? Does it mean you trust women's bodies to birth because they're great at it? Does it mean you trust in birth but only under certain conditions like head down, term baby, well nourished woman, dilating quickly? Do you have things you trust and things you don't about birth? Do you know why that is or what they are? Do you trust the birthing process but not yourself? I'm interested to see what everyone thinks I'm still working on what I think

[PGTlatte]

For me, it means believing that I am equipped to achieve a normal, uncomplicated birth completely on my own, without the need for drugs or other interventions to make it happen, and that if something occurs that I need extra help for, I will be in the right place at the right time with the right people, and the Universe will provide what I need. And it did.

[DoomaYula]

I trust in women's bodies to birth -- conditions can always occur, but I trust that our bodies were made to give birth. (ETA: without augmentation, without meds, without interventions.)

I do NOT trust the nurses/docs/CNMs at my local hospital. I wish I did. I've yet to see one practitioner who believed that birth could occur without SOME intervention. I've seen them "punish" women for choosing med-free birth.

[mamato3cherubs]

I would have to put more time into wording the exact meaning for ME. But i will say this. I sort of compare it to walking sometimes. I trust in my ability to walk, and the ability of others walking down the street near me. But of course there is that slim chance that something will interfere with that and trip me. I still trust in myself to recover from the trip, but may need help. And one trip wont interfere with my trust in the ability of people to walk.

Maybe im just crazy. Just seems as normal as walking to me. So I trust it.

[MsBlack]

I trust birth to be as miraculous and trustworthy as any other element of the human physical design, which is pretty darn good at maintaining life given 1/2 a chance and sometimes less.

I trust birth to be the very effective way humans have arrived here...now, in such great numbers that some speak of 'overpopulation'.

I trust birth to work as well as the materials it is given to work with...in terms of food, rest, fluids, feelings, toxins, social conditions...and all

I trust birth to be, as every element of our lives is, a perfect manifestation of the materials we have provided (see above), as well as the manifestation an individual's own beliefs, needs and emotional 'set', and a manifestation of society's teachings as those impact the individual, and the methods of support/help available ('available'--within a woman's own understanding, which is not always the same as 'what is available in her community', considering that some will refuse all med treatment, and some will refuse to consider homebirth or freebirth).

I trust birth to be a mystery that we will never fully understand nor control--and don't need to, for it to work in all the ways it's meant to work. This includes birth as a vehicle for the challenges of illness, death, suffering, personal and social spiritual growth--like anything/everything in this material sphere of our existence

I trust birth to be as safe as life gets, as glorious as life gets, as sad life gets, as dangerous as life gets, as enlightening and confusing, as joyful and mysterious and ordinary as life gets.

[SublimeBirthGirl]

For me, trusting birth means believing that things, for me, will go as they should. I trusted that I would almost definitely have an uneventful labor and a healthy baby. I trusted that if there were complications, I would deal with them the right way for me. Birth is no more perfect or imperfect than nature itself.

[Alison Cole]

Trusting birth means...

...that things will generally proceed best if mom follows her instincts and intervention is kept to a minimum.

...that birth is not an emergency most of the time.

...that a reasonably complete understanding of the birthing process is one of the most helpful things a care provider can offer to his/her birthing clients.

...that each woman's birth is unique to her, and this uniqueness is not necessarily an expression of pathology.

I'm sure there's more. But that's what immediately springs to mind.

[mwherbs]

Originally Posted by mamato3cherubs

I would have to put more time into wording the exact meaning for ME. But i will say this. I sort of compare it to walking sometimes. I trust in my ability to walk, and the ability of others walking down the street near me. But of course there is that slim chance that something will interfere with that and trip me. I still trust in myself to recover from the trip, but may need help. And one trip wont interfere with my trust in the ability of people to walk.

Maybe im just crazy. Just seems as normal as walking to me. So I trust it.

this is pretty well worded and close to what I think- it is part of human nature to walk, talk, breathe, sleep, drink, and have babies-- I know women can do it and that babies participate
I think that the current use of the idea and wording trust birth is to try and push back the trend toward very medical birth= general populations of people believe that birth should be a medical/surgical event and as long as that belief continues it will self-fulfill - c-sections and medicated births are a speciality of hospital birth-- I mean they specialize in medical birth --- If I go to a brake shop rarely are they just going to send me home without having changed a bunch of things on my brake system-- even if they were not really needed- just happens- imagine a brake shop where you go in with a brand new car and 1/3 of the time they replace the whole system- claiming it is faulty-- would you really believe that the shop was doing everything fairly and right by you? or would you become suspicious that they are doing something wrong to come up with such answers?--

[jlpetitte]

Trusting birth to me means many things, but mostly that women are made-- just like other mammals to birth their babies. Occassionally complications may occur, just like with other animals, and we have many great tools/skills to deal with common complications. Trusting birth means not looking through a jaded lense when you have seen 1 or 20 births go unexpectedly-- not always expecting the worst and looking for that.

[Midwife Kris]

Sorry but I'm suspicious of the nature of this question in this thread given it is current featured argument on a certain home birth debate blog.

[rmzbm]

Originally Posted by llp34

For me, it means believing that I am equipped to achieve a normal, uncomplicated birth completely on my own, without the need for drugs or other interventions to make it happen, and that if something occurs that I need extra help for, I will be in the right place at the right time with the right people, and the Universe will provide what I need. And it did.

Well said, that's just what I think. I do NOT trust the medical community. They failed me too many times.

[JanetF]

Originally Posted by metromidwife

Sorry but I'm suspicious of the nature of this question in this thread given it is current featured argument on a certain home birth debate blog.

Well that's news to me actually and if you checked my other posts you'd notice I'm real, no troll and actually run the Australian homebirth network. But hey, it's not like 1000 posts means anything, right?

[rmzbm]

Um, yeah, I missed that post. Janet is a very well known & respected poster on the birth forums. The farthest thing from a troll I can imagine!

[mwherbs]

there is a movement called Trust birth and maybe that is why there is some other discussion in another place- I haven't read other discussions other than on MDC and several midwifery lists I belong to and trust Janet as well- that it is an honest question on her part and not part of some bad news blog

[Midwife Kris]

I wasn't accusing anyone of being a troll just think the nature of the topic is fuel for a fire elsewhere, therefore I am suspicous. Sorry if that is offensive to all.

[Gray's Mommy]

For me, trusting birth is that I believe in myself enough to allow my body to do what it needs to do so I can birth my child.

[JanetF]

So I'm not a troll but you're suspicious of my motives in posting a really great question? Ok that makes no sense to me. The people who oppose hb aren't basing it on anything real in the first place so whether or not those of us who promote evidence based practices talk about it or not, they have plenty to say. They're not bound by using evidence and studies like I am, so they have great opportunity for using their imaginations. I think this question is a valuable one for careproviders to consider as well as women and I was hoping for a great discussion about it.

[rmzbm]

I actually find it kind of ammusing...I have a "trust birth" bracelet & was thinking the other day to post & ask for people's definitions of that. Glad Janet did before I did, LOL...

[BirthFree]

I didn't read the other responses so it wouldn't influence my post. I think "Trusting birth" means to me that you believe in birth - in babies - in mothers - in the process and in creation (however you phrase that) to do it perfectly. I think that it is rare that given information, space, confidence, choices and trust, that a Mom and baby don't work birth out on their own.

If someone does not trust themselves they will not hear the inner voice telling them to take a particular positon to birth or labor. They will look to someone else to tell them what to do, to manage things (I know that isn't all the time - every rule has an exception, but speaking in somewhat generalizations here).

I think first believing in yourself is the foundation to believing in birth. If you think, "Gee, what a MIRACLE it is that this baby grew to this perfectly made little being in there, ready for birth, ready for life. My body and my baby DID that! I am a part of an amazing thing!", then it's likely that you can also think along the same lines that IF your body did that, it is possible that indeed it can ALSO birth that baby!

If you go into it thinking "Well my provider is monitoring my baby so it doesn't get too big and is thinking that it would be easier to have me go in for an induction at 38w because they will be on vacation starting that Friday" you have given away your choices and empowerment to someone else and forfeited the confidence. Sometimes babies are 'too big' but there is aparantly an epidemic that only induction will save us from (big time joking) - so the delicate balance is already nuts here. Does she know the truth of pregnancy and birth? I would guess no.

So this could turn into a huge detail-induced post - but that's what it means to me. I think trusting birth has to be on both sides of the coin (provider and Mom) to work well. It can work otherwise, but to work well...

Honestly, sometimes I feel that who cares about body-image, I'm after birth-image! It's all tied together...

[mama to 2 girls]

Hey Janet! I thought this was you! I used to frequently put my 2 cents worth in at JB but just found myself "fitting in" here more.....I don't know why just maybe because I figured I should stay in my own "territory"! ....but I definitely miss it there! I think I will have to do a re-intro and join in again! (I was hannahbananasmom)

Ok...sorry to get off the topic...here goes....

I trust in birth because I think it is what we are designed to do and I trust in our bodies, MOST of the time they know what they are doing! There are exceptions but usually our bodies know exactly what to do. For an example my cousin just had a nice healthy 9lb. 10oz baby boy (she is not a big girl about 5'2") and everyone was saying that he was going to be big and she was going to need a c-sec. but she pushed him out in only 20mins.(she did have drugs though) but NO c-sec.! YAY! His head, chest and stomach circumference were the same as my almost 8lber....but it still goes to show her body knew exactly what it was doing and grew that baby just right for her!

I believe that there are exceptions where some women have true "problems" but for the most part I truley believe that some problems are just "made up" for all the OB's out there to be made into "heros"! : i.e. breech babies, (and yes there are exceptions) but most babies know which way they want to come out!



BTW, Janet is NOT a troll!