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C-section Rate jumps to record high!
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As of 2007 The National Center for Health Statistics have reported that the c-section rate has now raised to 31.7% That basically means 1 in 3 pregnancies will result in a c-section. VBAC's are continuing to go down. (Now it's down to about 8%. ) Oklahoma ranks among one of the highest in the country for c-sections. What is going on here? Having a baby used to focus on the baby and getting them out safely (and as natural as possible). Contrary to what some Doctor's think, c-sections are not always the safest way. There are many good reason where one is needed but for the most part it appears that a lot of them are done purely for convenience. Convenience for the Doctor who can go home after office hours and not worry about being called in the middle of the night. This is not what's in the best interest of the babies.
There are many risks for the mother with c-sections. Each time a woman has a c-section her risk for developing placenta previa (en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Placenta_praevia ); placenta accreta (en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Placenta_accreta ); and placental abruption (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Placental_abruption) increases in subsequent pregnancies. A woman also has a chance of suffering from secondary infertility, miscarriage and eptopic pregnancy in subsequent pregnancies. Not to mention damage to other organs in the body. Infants also are at risk for health problems when born via c-section. Respiratory Distress Syndrome, Wet lungs (transient tachypnea -due to not expelling all the fluid out of their lungs). When babies are born vaginally, nature takes care of expelling the fluids. When a baby is pushed through the birth canal, the fluid is expelled from the pressure. When babies are born via c-section there's a chance the Dr. or nurse won't get all the fluid sucked out. It's also very typical for babies to be born too early when they're sectioned which opens a whole new list of things that can go wrong. http://www.enotalone.com/article/19250.html
Having a baby in this day and age has turned it into a medical procedure. It's all about scheduling the day for when it's convenient for the parents and the Doctor, not what's best for baby. The birthing process should be 100% about the baby but sadly it's easy for that to get lost. According to the World Health Organization, the c-section rate should only be 10-15% but we're slowly increasing that number every single year. And it won't be going down anytime soon. One great educational tool is the movie "The Business of Being Born" ( http://www.thebusinessofbeingborn.com/ ). This is a REAL eye opener for all to see. It shows just how the medical field really is when it comes to having a baby. It's a business to them. A medical procedure. Not what it truly is meant to be.
If a c-section is truly medically necessary, a woman still has the option of going into labor on her own (depending on the medical reason for the c-section), and then going ahead with the c-section once labor has started. Again, it may be hard to find a Doctor who would be OK with this because of course that means they may be called at 2am come perform a c-section. Recovery from a c-section is not fun. Many celebrities seem to prefer this birthing method and it seems like they're out and about like nothing happened within a few days walking around. For some women it is possible to be up and around with minimal pain, but for a lot of women the recovery is not very pleasant. And it's not just the physical pain. With that are other issues that come up that know one ever told us about. Depression is a big one! The emotional toll a woman takes after having a surgical birth can be hard to deal with on top of pain from the incision and a new baby! It's important to talk to your Doctor if you're feeling bad. It's very normal too. This website has lots of useful information on dealing with depression after a c-section: http://www.csectionrecovery.com/emotional_recovery_ppd.html
There's so much information out there that moms need to get their hands on! Education is key. Arm yourself with knowledge. Knowledge is power and in this case it means the world when it comes to bringing YOUR baby into this world safely.
Please check back frequently as more articles will come that will go into more detail about c-sections as well as VBAC (and the risks associated with that type of birth) as well as many other topics related to birth and pregnancy.
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