Why I chose a birth center

I have been noticing that a lot of women think that people who want to give birth natural are doing it just for some "gold star." They think that these women do it for sport to push their body to it's limits, like running a marathon. I always think this is funny and it makes me imagine women lining up for "extreme birthing" competitions. And while there are perhaps some women out there who feel they have something to prove by giving birth naturally, that is not why I am doing it.

I don't think that I am better than anyone else by going natural and I certainly don't blame anyone who wants to go natural and then ends up getting an epidural. I also don't blame people who just want the epidural to begin with. Honestly, if you would have asked me five years ago if I would EVER even consider going natural, I would have said, "No way in heck."

But that is before I became educated about how the birth process works in our country. Now I know that the wide use of Pitocin (to induce or augment labor) and epidurals are largely at fault for a c-section rate that is at least three times what it should be. Many women are induced with Pitocin which brings on VERY strong, unnatural contractions. Not only are they more painful for you, but they are more painful for your baby. So many women choose to get an epidural, which in turn slows down labor. This means the doctors up your Pitocin dose, and these contractions stress your baby out because they are stronger, longer and more frequent than natural contractions. So now your baby is in distress and it's heart rate is dropping and your only option to get him or her out in time is a C-section. Could it have been prevented? YES.

For some people they might not care if they end up with a C-section and if that is the case I say more power to you.. But for me, I would only want a C-section if it was a life threatening situation. You can only have around 4 or 5 C-sections before the risk becomes too great and you have to stop having kids. I don't want that limit placed on me, even if I don't want 5 kids now, I still want the option. It is also much more difficult to recover from a C-section than a vaginal birth, so I'd rather avoid it, if at all possible.

I have also learned how much of an impact nutrition can have on your birth experience. Protein is extremely important for pregnant women in preventing intrauterine growth restriction, preterm labor, and pre-eclampsia, among other things. Calcium is also very important in preventing preterm labor, vitamin K is important in preventing postpartum hemorrhage, and limiting your sugar helps prevent gestational diabetes. Nutrition can do so much to keep you low risk!

Women who give birth naturally are also less likely to be unable to breastfeed because there are no drugs inhibiting your hormones or hormone receptors that tell your milk to start producing. They are also more likely to deliver a full-term baby when his or her sucking reflexes fully developed. They are less likely to suffer from postpartum depression because of the rush of oxytocin that they get after delivery, which also helps them bond more quickly with their child.

Women who deliver naturally often have shorter labors because moving around really helps labor to progress (as well as making it less painful). Another benefit of freedom of movement is that you don't have to give birth on your back. Laying on your back is actually the worst position to birth in because is closes the birth canal by 30%, making your baby more likely to get stuck. It also puts the most pressure on your pelvic floor, which can cause some pretty bad tearing that may have otherwise been prevented.

So after weighing the risks and benefits of a hospital birth or a birth at a birth center, I decided to go to a birth center. I found a birth center that has 2 Certified Nurse Midwives (which means they are just like the midwives that work in hospitals), is right across the street from a hospital, and is cheaper than birthing at the hospital. The perfect situation!... for me.  

I interviewed with the midwives and they told me I will be able to eat and drink anytime to keep my energy up (also not allowed in a hospital), I will be able to move freely, labor in a warm tub (they call it the "aqua-dural" ;), use a birthing ball, they will give me massages and counter-pressure, use essential oils, and do all that they can to help minimize my tearing (which isn't just a cosmetic thing--it reduces recovery time too). They have never lost a mother or a baby, and they have rarely had to transfer a mother to the hospital and never in an emergency situation. Their C-section rate is three times less than the national average and most of those are just because the baby is breech. Even if I got too fatigued and wanted to transfer to the hospital for an epidural (which I really don't plan on cause that will cost me another couple of grand out-of-pocket), they could go with me and continue my care in the hospital. It is everything I could have possibly wanted and I am so excited to deliver there.

I am not against hospitals, I know they are wonderful and life-saving, I just wanted a different birthing environment and birth centers have proven to be just as safe, if not safer, than hospitals (especially when they are right across from a hospital like mine!). Obviously it doesn't guarantee that everything I wanted to happen will happen, but the chances are better.

Also, I know it will be really hard to do it natural, but I'm working hard now on my hypnobabies to help prepare me. And since I don't have the choice to get an epidural at my birth center, I know I will be able to go through with it (and I don't even consider myself to have a high pain tolerance). My midwives have assured me that I can do it and I know that with their support and the support of my husband, I can.

I also have spiritual reasons for wanting to birth naturally, one of the main reasons being that I have heard from other LDS women that have given birth both with an epidural and without, that their birth without an epidural was so much more spiritual and the veil was so much more thin. They have said that the angels accompanied them to help them get through it. Maybe it's silly, but I just think that if I do it natural I will be able to feel my Dad's presence, and that prospect makes me really excited. Other spiritual reasons for wanting to give birth naturally can be found here, here, and here. And I just love this post.

P.S. Is anyone going to read this whole thing? Probably not. I'm posting it anyway.