BlogHer - MATERNAL HEALTH LEGISLATION - Comments

we are adopting, and my

ChildofGod — Tue, 18 Aug 2009 17:41:10 -0500

we are adopting, and my heart aches for his first mom. He is due to be born October 10th and I am so conflicted. Here this precious woman has taken away all the pain of infertility that I have had for almost 18 years. But, in taking my pain away she is going to have pain I can't even understand. I have fallen in love with her as a person, as a mother and I cry and cry thinking of her having to go through all of this.

Thanks for letting me peak into what a birth/first mom is feeling. We are doing an open adoption and hope she wants to spend time with him one day. (HUGS)

Mothers Act

blocker771 — Mon, 08 Jun 2009 09:05:48 -0500

Mother’s Act advocates get very shrill and angry at anyone who questions their advocacy and especially they get very shrill, angry and THREATENING towards anyone who presents the truth of what this bill is really all about, which they refuse to look at or discuss. The most repugnant aspect of this bill is how psychiatric interests work so hard to smoothly misrepresent the unnatural (drugging of pregnant mothers) as natural or okay when prior to psychotropic drugs, mothers were always counselled by traditional Western medical authorities not to take any drugs or as little as possible. How the authority of traditional doctors was usurped by nonmedical quasi medical(?) authorities would make an interesting investigation. Also, Mother’s Bill advocates are strangely silent about the birth defects that have been linked to these drugs and existing litigation against drug companies for compensation for the death, damage and disability to newborns linked to these drugs. The other point about the Mother’s Bill is that it is ironically named for a psychiatric victim and the legislation provides for millions of pregnant women to be able receive without their informed consent the damaging treatment that the woman named for this bill unfortunately was victimized by receiving without her informed consent.

your blog made me cry.. it

mom2brody — Tue, 10 Mar 2009 23:05:36 -0500

your blog made me cry.. it was beautiful... she is a lucky little girl to have 2 moms who love her..

i am an adoptive mom and every night i tell my baby boy how much I love him and how much his dad loves him.. then i also tell him about his birth mom and how much he means to her and how she loves him... i never want there to be a doubt in this mind that she loves him...

God bless you and your angel too!

is giving birth the only aspect of child rearing with risk?

Icha — Sun, 22 Feb 2009 17:26:44 -0600

It seems strange to point this out, but does the argument against homebirth ever substitute other things for birthplace to test its logic? For example, has anyone ever thought about requiring all parents to buy volvos and prohibit them from buying, say, a mazda sports car because an infant (and its parents) would be far safer in a volvo if they are involved in a crash? Or how about the carseat itself? Not all carseats are equal, some are much safer than others. Should parents be required to buy only the absolute safest car seat? Of course not, no one ever even considers these things, even though car crash fatalities are a leading cause of death for children and adults. These are things we are allowed to decide for ourselves based on many factors, including basic freedoms of freedom from unwarrented government surveillance and interference.

I believe that homebirths are the safest option for some people, myself included. Safety statistics aside, does society apply the same readiness to legislate to behaviors that don't have to do with women's bodies and reproductive capacity? It doesn't...the minute a woman's reproductive capacity is concerned, we (this society) think we have the right to make all sorts of laws governing what she can and can't do. Most other behaviors are left up to choice. This is not about what option is safest. It's about who gets to make reproductive choices for women: professoinal organizations, the courts, the state, other interested parties, or the woman herself.

CDC data

MinorityView — Fri, 05 Dec 2008 20:51:13 -0600

Interesting analysis of the CDC data here:

http://womantowomancbe.wordpress.com/2008/09/18/excess-preventable-morta...

The point of the analysis is that the particular set which Dr. Amy Tuteur is using to claim that home birth with a direct entry midwife has a higher rate of mortality for the baby has an oddity. A number of the deaths are due to conditions which would have resulted in death EVEN if the baby had been born in the hospital. Most of the analysis has to do with possible reasons for the existence of the fatal conditions--which can be summed up as less amniocentesis leading to fewer abortions. This is the same reason that Ireland (fewer abortions) has more babies who die shortly after birth than France (more abortions). So these numbers don't actually support midwife error or place of birth dangers as causing at least some of the deaths.

Birth is Beautiful

amon4923 — Sun, 02 Nov 2008 16:20:15 -0600

I think that the most important concept to remember is that birth is beautiful. Whether you’re delivering in a hospital or in a hut, the result of an average of nine months of pregnancy and delivery is to be able to start your lifelong journey with your baby.

I also believe that all aspects, from conception to delivery, should be viewed as another element to the extraordinary process of childbirth. With that said, I feel that the idea of a natural delivery as not only entirely safe but also an empowering process, is masked in hospitals. From being thrown into a wheelchair to hooked up to IV’s and monitoring, birth is seen as nothing short of a medical affair. This idea leads women to see themselves as patients and often allows authoritarian doctors to guide their bodies through delivery for them. It’s discouraging to hear a doctor tell you you’re not progressing “quickly enough” (leading to drugs like pitocin or cervadil – which can lead to distress of the baby – which can lead to a c-section). When women don’t fit into the “typical” mold doctors are taught they should, they take matters into their own hands, showing women that their bodies are just not good enough. When in reality, all women are different, and if doctors were better trained in NATURAL childbirth, America wouldn’t be experiencing the spike in interventions, c-sections, and who knows what other consequences our babies are dealing with because of this.

I believe childbirth to be a time for families to welcome their newest addition, and what better place than at home? For millions of years our ancestors were delivering at home, devoid of electronic fetal monitoring and epidurals, and the proof of its success is in our mere existence.

The fact of the matter is...

Colormepink — Sun, 02 Nov 2008 09:23:20 -0600

Women have been having babies... well forever. I chose to have mine in a hospital setting, but if I had to do it over again, I think I would have chosen differently. I had a terrible experience, both times and I regret it. Instead of feeling powerful and satisfied, I was made to feel weak, the drs. were disrespectful of the process and I was miserable. I couldn't wait to get home, cut and torn as I was, so that I would be in charge of myself and my child.

The idea that we're too stupid to make our own decisions is becoming so prevelant, and it seems over and over that it's big business that is perpetuating this idea in order to save themselves. I think that society as a whole is starting to turn back toward a more holistic life, our food choices, medical treatment choices, and education choices to name a few.

Technology in our homes has given us so many more choices and so much more information that it surprisingly seems to be putting an end to a lot of the "big industry" that has ruled for so long. I think we're going to see more and more of this kind of attempt at control as these "industries" struggle to remain the big business that they have been.

We must continue to stay informed and fight against this control over our choices. It is our choice and must remain so.

Christine
It's My World. Welcome To It.
Blog: http://www.colormepink.com
Homeschool Blog: http://web.mac.com/colormepink/
Jewelry Blog: http://www.starbrightjewels.com/blog

The vaginal birth is the one

bobloblaw — Tue, 09 Sep 2008 15:49:45 -0500

If given birth normally, the kid might present complications with the cord around his neck.

what?! you must be a man. women have been giving birth vaginally for literally, thousands of years. NO woman would chose a c - section over a vaginal birth.

My best friend had her first 2 children in a hospital, drugged up, and was miserable. she felt like both the doctors, nurses and staff didnt really care about her or her baby. She felt disconnected qto her children b/c they were taken away.

Her third child (and last to date) was born at home with a midwife, and she LOVED the experience. even said it made giving birth fun.

I was born myself in a boothing center via midwife, but, alas - i do not remember much of it. lol.

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miami maritime lawyer

you are so twisted- DEM

rshannigan — Sat, 16 Aug 2008 18:39:11 -0500

you are so twisted- DEM stands for DIRECT ENTRY MIDWIFE, it has nothing to do with place of birth. in washington and in California, CNM's deliver at home and in hospitals, depending on what's best for the patiends. so the chart you showed isn't really saying what you're interpreting it to say.

I think you'd have a hard time finding a homebirth midwife willing to deliver a high-risk pregnancy at home. So naturally, the docs would be a little worse. However, you can't attribute the birth outcome solely to the location of the delivery any more than you can attribute it to the color of the woman's skin or anythign else.

It's not surprising that the AMA opposes homebirth. Homebirth with a homebirth midwife is cheap and safe; it trivializes the need for a medical institution that profits when people are sick and dying.

http://mrshannigan.blogspot.com

poor sweet mamas + babies

modmom — Fri, 15 Aug 2008 11:41:36 -0500

great post amy!

reminds me how lucky i am to survive cancer + enjoy mothering my daughter

Link Textmod*mom

modmom.blogspot.com

WOW! no words~I wish Matt

lilmommythatcould — Fri, 15 Aug 2008 06:55:31 -0500

WOW! no words~I wish Matt and his beautiful baby all the love in the world.

~Susan

http://lilmomthatcould.com/

eyes wide open

illusivejoy — Fri, 08 Aug 2008 11:12:14 -0500

WOW. I can't believe this is the first I have heard about this "Mothers Act". I am going to dive in and find out whatever I can about it. Postpartum is a real and serious metal health issue that deserves attention. New moms need a culture that supports them in reaching out for help if needed, not one that further stigmatizes depression. Cultural beliefs and messages around how a new mother "should" feel are strong. I support any legislation which helps screen women for this serious form of depression and offers them support.

Thanks for the information.

Still searching...http://www.illusivejoy.wordpress.com

information

scaldy — Fri, 08 Aug 2008 10:53:57 -0500

Hi. My name is Sara and I am a wife and mother of 2 boys(ages 1 and 2). I came across this page while doing research for a HUGE paper for my Women's Health Nurse Practitioner degree. The paper is on the MOTHERS Act. After reading all of the blogs and doing reasearch for weeks, I felt that it was important to post something. Amy, I did come across your page as well telling the story of your two boys and the problems you had on Zoloft. I too have suffered from postpartum depression (especially the second time around) and was scared. Still, I have reviewed the act time and time again, and I can not seem to find the information on the bill that states anything about medicating patients. If someone could kindly point that out, I would love to be informed of this. What I did read was that the bill provides opportunities for grants that will allow further research on postpartum depression and educating mothers and their families about the condition. Also, postpartum depression is considered a mental condition that most insurance companies do not cover treatment for because it is not a physical ailment. This bill will assist mothers and providers with the possability of having required treatment covered by insurance and longer maternity leaves that will decrease the risk factors of postpartum depression. That is some information that I have gained since doing this paper. Thanks, Sara

The vaginal birth is the one

maryadavis — Wed, 09 Jul 2008 19:11:59 -0500

The vaginal birth is the one that seems more violent for the child. Imagine his trauma trying to squeeze out. A C-section is less painful for both the mother and the baby. There aren't any big risks to this procedure. If given birth normally, the kid might present complications with the cord around his neck.
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security systems

Power, economics and the medicalization of birth

drumbeat — Mon, 30 Jun 2008 13:58:19 -0500

The more aggressive a culture gets the more that culture interfers with birth. Several themes have come up in the writings so far. What constitutes safety, and who has the right to determine safety and the type of birth.

As a midwife of many years, I learned that safety had little to do with a midwife's ability to practice in a medicalized system. Midwives had more than documented safety in providing safe and satisfing care. Midwifery care(being with woman) is ancient and modern. Medicine, specifically doctors, became involved in birth stating that they provided safer care because of a specific body of information that was held tightly within a male dominated educational system that prevented women from attending. Then birthing insturnments were highly protected and the public was lead to believe that technology provided them safer birth. Statistics did not agree with that and still do not agree, but we all know that statistices can be quoted for every point of view. By moving into technology our culture perceived that technology could control nature and this control belief got into the birthing scene. Our medicalized system does not allow for normal vs abnormal. When medicine, then liability, got involved in decision making, birth became pathology. As long as we continue to see birth as pathology there will be a domination of medicine in the normal process of pregnancy and birth. Yes, there are women who have medical issues that risk their life and their babies life. For these women we have an excellent medical care system. But the majority of women are healthy. Pregnancy without all the interference that technology brings would do well to stay away from medical perception that there is pathology in every pregnancy and birth. Women need to consider who they view as an authority over their body- is it medicine? or is there room for each women to be an expert of their own body. Pregnancy is more than the physical event that medicine has reduced birth to and every woman is aware of this. Yet pregnant women have been convinced that the MD knows more than they do about an universal female event- giving birth. It seems to me that women need to reclaim their own authoritative power in order to work in a system that sees them as pathology and dollars.

dolly