Does anyone have experience with natural birth in a hospital? [name]How[/name] were you able to stick with your birth plan? I’ve been reading a lot about the birthing process and am interested in a natural birth. I’ve talked to two different OB-GYNs about this and was met with a lot of hesitation, even though I have no health problems and am at a healthy weight. From what I’ve read, it seems like women who don’t want unnecessary interventions have to battle with doctors and hospital staff to avoid them. Am I misinformed? With a 30%+ c-section rate and excessive use of pitocin in this country, I don’t think doctors are getting it right. I understand these interventions can be life-saving and invaluable, which is why I would choose a hospital over my home. But why are these interventions so over-used?
I did a mostly natural birth in a hospital. They did give me pitocin afterward to help with the placenta, but no other medications. It wasn’t too bad. My hospital gave out birth plan sheets for us to fill out and bring with us, and they were very respectful of my wishes. I’m sure every hospital is different, but my experience was actually fairly pleasant (under the circumstances 
My doctor was out of town, but the doc at the hospital was nice, and my nurses were wonderful. Everything went incredibly smoothly. They didn’t even try to do an episiotomy, though I did have a small, one stitch tear. I knew I didn’t want any pain meds, but I definitely wanted to be in a hospital in case of an emergency. You may want to look into c-section rates for your hospital. We have one in town with a 50% c-section rate, which is crazy high. My hospital has an 18% c-section rate. Those numbers might help you know what to expect at your hospital. Good luck, and make sure your doctor knows your wishes before hand. That will help.
Oh and I should say, I could have turned down the pitocin, but at that point I was holding my baby, and I just didn’t care I told them to do whatever they thought was best.
I can’t give you any first hand experience as I don’t have kids but I do a lot of research on pregnancy and birth and the over-use of intervention by doctors (pitocin, c-sections, etc.) are mainly because (some, not all – I feel like that’s a distinction that needs to be made because the majority of doctors really are just concerned about yours and the baby’s health) doctors don’t want to wait for your body to do what it was designed to do. The sooner you deliver the sooner they can go home.
You could look into getting a doula, they’re a huge help during delivery to make sure when you’re in too much pain to really be coherent that your wants are still being heard and taken into consideration; they’re also great for giving support during the labor and delivery process.
Personally, I hate hospitals and I’m not a fan of doctors or what childbirth has become in the modern world so I’ll (hopefully) be delivering all my future children at home.
I’ve also never given birth but birthing practices have been of huge interest to me since I discovered that my local hospital performs sections on 1 out of 3 women, which is very alarming.
Intervention is more likely to be necessary if you are induced, from what I’ve read. The pitocin speeds up contractions at the beginning but can also cause the labour to stall.
It might be difficult to find a doctor willing to comply with your wishes but if I were you, I’d insist on it. If you aren’t tough about it you can bet they’ll be wheeling you in for a cesaerean before you know it. Stick to your guns.
I don’t have any experience with pitocin and c-sections, which I am grateful for. I was already completely dilated by the time I got to the hospital so I did not need any extra help with pitocin. Two of my sister-in-laws have horror stories about them being given pitocin, and one of them developed an infection because her water broke but she wasn’t dilating enough. She was forced to have a c-section. The other just had strong contractions and took forever to dilate and she describes it as being unbearable. I have heard that doctors want a quick delivery if it is at all possible, but I don’t understand why they would force some mothers to have c-sections when it is major surgery and poses risks to the mother. My mother told me she had a c-section with me because I was a breech baby and sometimes doctors don’t want to take chances with that. I know that they try to turn the baby before the due date if it is breech.
C-sections and pitocin were always my number one fear with my son and it will probably be again with my others.
Two resources you definitely want to check out are the documentary film The Business of Being [name]Born[/name] (http://www.thebusinessofbeingborn.com/) and the book Pushed: The Painful [name]Truth[/name] About Childbirth and Modern Maternity Care (http://www.amazon.com/Pushed-Painful-Childbirth-Modern-Maternity/dp/0738211664/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1345725332&sr=1-1&keywords=pushed). [name]Both[/name] will open your eyes to how completely screwed up the system is here in [name]America[/name].
With my first, I was induced at 35.5 weeks because my water broke but I wasn’t contracting or dilating yet. When I got to the hospital, I was offered Pitocin but told I could also wait for my body to do its thing. However, the doctor and nurses made it clear that if I waited, I could be there for days. I waited for six hours while walking up and down the halls (I was told walking helped get things going) and then finally gave in and asked for the Pit. I was put on the lowest dose at first. Four hours later, still nothing. Then over a period of several more hours, they gradually increased the dose until it was at the max. At that point, the contractions were hellacious. I know there are women out there who can go without an epidural while on Pit, but I found I could not, even though I had wanted a natural, unmedicated hospital birth. The contractions were just too overwhelming and too close together, giving me hardly any time to rest in between. At that point, I had been in the hospital for something like sixteen hours and was utterly exhausted by the time it came to push.
So now on my second pregnancy and knowing what I know, I will refuse induction and Pitocin, unless absolutely medically necessary. Unlike Oxytocin, the body’s natural “love hormone” produced during childbirth (and during sex and in low doses during any kind of physical contact), Pitocin doesn’t act as a natural pain reliever, nor does it help mother and child to bond in the moments immediately following birth. And because it stimulates much more intense contractions, it is harder on both mother and baby, making fetal distress and maternal fatigue more likely, thus increasing the chances for further intervention, such as a C-section. Pitocin is a nightmare. You don’t want it, believe me.
ETA: In my rant against the evils of Pitocin, I realized I didn’t actually answer your question about the overuse of interventions. Both the documentary and the book I mentioned go into great detail about this, but basically, the childbirth/maternity system in America has become more about the business of making money than it has about the health and wellness of mother and child. Before about the mid-twentieth century, the majority of childbirths in America took place at home with the help of midwives. Eventually, the field of obstetrics became a greater medical presence, and in order to justify their existence, OBs began taking over the midwives’ roles. The history of obstetrics in America is filled with some horror stories about the practices women once endured (no doubt they will say the same thing about our generation one day), which the documentary explains in detail. Eventually, hospital births became the norm and interventions commonplace. One bit of information from the film which I found very interesting is that the rate of C-sections spikes in the late afternoon (around 4:00-5:00 p.m.) and at around 10:00 p.m. at night. One doctor speculates that this is because OBs have either been at the hospital all day and are eager to get home to dinner, or they’re not willing to stay at the hospital all night.
Some serious food for thought…
I ditto choosing a natural birth friendly hospital as well as a doula as your first steps. I had my 2nd child in a hospital naturally and never wanted that again for a variety of reasons. A friend told me once “you sign up for the hospital, you ride the hospital ride” which is totally true. There are obviously wonderful hospitals that will work with you but in the end, there is protocol they must follow. My third and fourth children were born at home with a midwife and my son [name]Felix[/name] was to be too, but he had died before 20 weeks ( by nothing I or my mw did during prenatal care) so I chose hospital induction with him. Birth place is such a touchy topic and there ate so many factots and considerations that go into it for mom and baby. [name]Do[/name] you have a birth center near by? I wish I had that option, but the nearest one to me is about an hour snd twenty minutes away.
[name]Just[/name] sharing my story since I was able to achieve a natural birth in the hospital. I hope you are able to find a birthing sollution that works for you, feel free to private message me anytime.
I wanted to add that the Business of Being born is a great documentary, it came out when [name]Linus[/name] was almost a year old. Great because so many people who doubted my hb with him understood then why I chose that even if they themselves decided something else. I an also a huge fan of anything by [name]Ina[/name] [name]Mae[/name] Gaskin and have had the chance to meet her in person on two occasions. Spiritual Midwifery is a great book imho, a little hippie-dippie but so am I so it works, lol. I am again choosing a mw and hb for this baby unless there would be a reason not to.
I’ve given birth without an epidural 3 times. For my first they tried to induce me since I was two days past my due date and they were worried my son would get too big. Actually he did get stuck in the birth canal, and they had to cut me to save his life. He literally was blue. I don’t mean gray. I mean [name]BLUE[/name]. He really did almost die. So I’m not one of those people who knock medical intervention because it isn’t completely old school.
However, in both of the hospitals I’ve given birth in, having an IV is mandatory. Which I don’t really have an issue with, other than the not really liking needles thing. Through the IV they are able to deliver a sedative (which is elective), which takes an edge off the pain but in no way knocks it out. I delivered 3 times with only that. And it hurts, but it’s not so bad that you don’t want to ever go through it again.
On my last baby I had the flu and back labor and was honestly scared she would kill me. I ended up going with the epidural. I loved that thing. It didn’t hurt like I thought it was going to when they put it in, it did tickle though. They want you to be absolutely still and it tickled so much. I think the hardest thing was to fight the urge to twitch. It made the whole birth so much easier. I could feel pressure to push but I wasn’t high and I wasn’t in pain. For the first time I really enjoyed the labor portion of pregnancy. I was able to take in the entire circus that a delivery room is, which I never noticed before. Then my beautiful [name]Mia[/name] was born and none of it mattered. I will definitely be going with the epidural again. Natural childbirth is doable, but I preferred my experience with the epidural.
Great advice already. I was going to post much of what was already said so I will skip all that!
I had two completely natural hospital births with #1 and #2 (the twins were a homebirth). Biggest advice-- I didn’t have a doula, but I was very assertive about my wishes and communicated them with everyone that came into my room.
I had “natural” hospital births with both of my kids. I had a doula both times and I felt that she was helpful in avoiding pitocin or intervention by keeping labor moving naturally, suggesting different positions to labor in, etc. Because of hospital rules, I still had to have pitocin after the baby was born to help the uterus “clamp down” but this didn’t bother me.
I think having an open-minded doctor and nursing staff at the hospital really helps, so try to find out which hospitals in your area are “natural birth friendly.”
I haven’t given bith yet & probably wont for a couple years, but I have been looking into it ALOT and have also decided to go with a natural birth (hopefully) but I have chosen to do it at home with midwives and a doula it just seems like the best option. I’d also like to suggest to you a birthing centre instead of a regular hospital, I think that you should look into that if you want a natural birth but want the reassurance. I’d also like to add that that just because you have a baby at home doesn’t mean that if something goes wrong that they won’t be able to help you, they have alot of tools on hand that can deal with situations if they arise. I didn’t read other people replies but I did see someone suggest the business of being born which I also highly suggest! Also there’s another documentry that I watched called “Pregnant in Amercia” which was also good. I live in [name]Canada[/name], but it still gave me alot of insight on hospital births. I think alot of the time (not always of course) that they don’t care to much about you or your baby they just want to do it and get out of there, I feel as though with a midwife it feels much more comfortable and caring. Everyone has a different opinon and different preferences, this is just mine. I think labour is made out to be such a scary experience that people feel they must need the drugs to get through it. I want to have a clear head and enjoy the experience (bad and good) and the c-section rate these days is appalling, more and more people are willing opting for it because of a number of things, fear and convience. C-section should only happen in an emergency situation. good luck with your decition!
Also would just like to add again, these are all just my own opinons on things, if someone has a different opinon on these things I have nothing wrong with that and I hope people don’t find anything wrong in my opinons.
Thanks for all the advice! I was starting to feel like I was at a dead end after researching my options in my area. I think education and a doula are probably key. I also want to look into [name]Bradley[/name] classes when the time comes. I never realized before how challenging it seems to go natural in our society today. Kind of sad.
Also, The Business of Being [name]Born[/name] was great! It’s on Netflix instant queue list for anyone else interested.
I’ve not given birth but I know that both me and my siblings were born in a hospital with intervention.
With me and my twin brother the doctors noticed that my heart rate would increase and then fall rapidly. So they tried to move me into a position to alleviate the stress on my body. In moving me my brother got tangled around his umbilical cord which ultimately lead to him being stillborn (they weren’t monitoring him as closely as they were monitoring me).
With my younger brother he actually got stuck in the birth canal and came out looking like a smurf.
So while not always necessary, intervention can be helpful but other times it isn’t. I’ll probably give birth in a hospital with an epidural. I want someone there with the equipment to do whatever may become necessary for both me and my child.
These methods are probably used because they are more convenient (to the hospital - that’s the sad part). I’m a medical student and I’m pregnant for the first time, and you do not learn much or anything about ‘natural’ birth in school. I’ve never been interested in Maternity care, but now that I’m becoming more informed on the topic, I can’t help but be very confused at how ineffective we’ve become at something that has been happening since the beginning. Seems the cesarean rate for my state is 34.8%, which is alarming in itself. I have an OB and planned to deliver in a hospital… but it’s a scary thought to think that I won’t have control when it’s time to deliver my baby.
I think it’s important to be very assertive, and stay at home as long as possible (per my mom’s suggestion) before going in to the hospital. Get a birth plan in order and review your chosen hospital to see how… accepted… birth plans are. Have a support person to be assertive for you when you’re at the hospital. My husband is very assertive in general, and I’ve been keeping him informed and I know I want him there when or if I meet some resistance. As a student of the medical field, I understand the importance of medical intervention when necessary. I think a part of the problem though is that hospitals are, for some reason, making it necessary when sometimes it doesn’t have to be.
My first baby was delivered naturally in a hospital.
But I had a very fast labor. I was seven centimeters the first time they checked me and he was born about 30 minutes after that. No time for anything and the doctor barely got there in time to catch.
If my daughter doesn’t decide to come on her own in the next two weeks, I’ll be induced. I’m nervous about that, but both my doctor and a specialist have told me that because I have gestational diabetes and polyhydramnios the safest option is to get the baby out before the end of the pregnancy. That is when most of the really bad complications, like stillbirth, happen.
I don’t doubt that there are some doctors who want to rush deliveries so they can go home, but I believe that most just want to ensure a healthy baby.
There is so little that a doctor can control in labor and delivery, so they probably do try to take as much control as possible.
The only thing that I was disappointed about with the first experience is my early bird was rushed off to the NICU and - even though they stressed in all the birthing classes the importance of skin-to-skin contact in babies and preemies — we weren’t able to hold him at all for 12 hours and I couldn’t try to nurse for 24.
He was home five days later, but it would have been nice to have more of a chance to hold him at the beginning.
Good luck.
I’m in the ‘not planning on giving birth in a while’ basket. But both my aunt and mom were pediatric nurses for a very long time - they both feel that women have been giving birth for thousands of years naturally so if that’s what you want to do - you should. However, they also strongly advocate choosing a hospital that you feel comfortable with and that has a great ER and NICU program should something go wrong - especially if there has been a history of difficult births in your family. I just wanted to mention it because so far nobody really has. The best policy is to be assertive and over-prepared.
IT does make a big difference on where you live. The Business of Being [name]Born[/name] is a great documentary, but you have to take it with a grain of salt and understand that (like most documentaries) it is biased - and especially does not apply if you do not live in the US. We live in [name]Canada[/name], and I will definitly be doing a natural birth - we have a team of midwives that have been awesome, and I look forward to the support they give during the labour process. I would love to be at home, but my husband is still a bit hesitant, so we’re not 100% sure yet where the birth will happen.
At any rate, if you do end up deciding to go with a natural labour - make sure you go into the hospital with it in writing, and stick to your guns! Make sure you have a support person with you who will stand up to the docs/nurses to fulfill your wishes… and someone who is able to remind you why you wanted to go natural in the first place, when you’re in the midst of a painful contraction.