Ina May’s Guide to Childbirth: A Book Review Highly Recommended by a Prenatal Massage Therapist

In describing how these statistics were achieved, she delves into the methods that she and the other midwives in her practice use. His statistics include a ridiculously low intervention rate (cesarean section, forceps, and vacuum extraction are very low compared to national averages). Their practice interventions are around 3%, while national averages are much higher. Just mentioning C-section rates, with New Jersey as the example I’m most familiar with, the rate in that state is around 34%. And while this is cited by various medical journals and online articles as a number to be cut, not much has changed.

To provide the correct national average numbers, I am citing a research study conducted by the Midwives Alliance of North America. The file they distribute indicates the national averages for each of the available interventions, which are as follows: cesarean section: 31%; forceps or vacuum: 3.5%; episiotomy: 25%; oxytocin: induction – 24%, increase – 16%; epidurals: 67%. This fact sheet compares the rates of these interventions with the rates of midwives delivering at home. It goes without saying that home birth intervention rates are much lower (for example, a 5% cesarean rate compared to the national average). Interesting conclusions are drawn from the studies in this fact sheet, and it is very important reading for those considering a birth at home or in a birthing center. This study was conducted using data from 2004-2009 by the Midwives Alliance of North America, and also cited five other studies that can be found in the footnotes of the page cited here: mana.org/pdfs/DOR-Outcomes-Paper- Risk Fact Sheet.pdf

The opening part of her book shares birth stories of women with whom she or her partners have worked. These birth stories have been an encouragement to many women, as over the years she has received letters from women who read them before giving birth or when they had more children.

One of the most important aspects of Ina May’s book is her propensity to describe childbirth as a natural event, with certain physiological functions occurring normally. In a normal delivery, the uterus begins to contract, the cervix dilates to become a large opening that the baby can easily pass through, and then the body begins to contract harder to push the baby out. When no interventions are performed, in most cases this will occur naturally.

Unfortunately, in a hospital setting this natural physiological function is not respected. Women can be given epidurals to relieve pain and, in the past, have even been completely sedated while their baby was being delivered using one of several extraction methods.

Ina May’s experience is in a rural community in Tennessee, and she also attends deliveries in Amish and Mennonite villages in Tennessee. As most people know, the Amish generally do not accept medical interventions. Recent studies of the Amish have shown that they seek prenatal medical care for their first child and accept only technologies for their birth that are consistent with their religious beliefs. Members of the Ina May community will generally have a midwife for home birth, although they do not appear to be religiously oriented. In other words, The Farm women will generally deliver with a midwife unless a hospital delivery is absolutely necessary.

Through her experience, Ina May’s practice has been able to develop methods that work well for childbirth. The most important part of childbirth that Ina May emphasizes throughout her book is that the body knows what it is doing. The body has evolved over thousands of years to give birth. If birth were not a natural process and required the intervention of doctors, then humanity would have been extinct centuries ago.

Ina May mentions that many of the interventions performed by obstetricians are actually unnecessary and due to lack of patience on the part of physicians. For example, oxytocin or artificial oxytocin is often given in the early stages of labor. If patience had been exercised, in many of the cases in which it is administered, the body’s natural birthing process would have occurred automatically as needed to expel the baby. Since in many hospitals there is a time limit for the birthing process, as well as for each phase (regardless of whether the mother is a first-time mother or a second mother) that is why this chemical is administered. It is not unusual, the author notes, for a first-time mother to go into labor for one or two days. This time frame for labor is widely known, yet it is often ignored. Ina May also points out some of the dangers of these medications, including the possibility of uterine rupture from the violence of the contractions. These tears do not only occur in the case of a previous cesarean section, however, this danger is not normally mentioned to the woman in labor.

Another widely used procedure is forceps extraction. The author also points out many of the dangers associated with this practice. These dangers include harm to the baby (including stillbirth), as well as the need for an episiotomy. While vaginal tearing does not always occur, it does occur frequently, and this has led to the widespread use of episiotomy or cutting of the vaginal opening to prevent tearing. However, many doctors do not mention that this procedure can have long-term consequences.

On the bright side, Ina May also goes into detail about preventing some of these measures, as well as natural ways to speed up labor. For example, if a woman chooses a hospital delivery, she can choose not to be connected to immobilizer monitors. You can choose to reject the fetal monitor that is attached to your stomach and insist on using a fetoscope every fifteen minutes. You can ask that an IV not be put in, as you can refuse the medications. You may insist on being able to get up and walk (which an IV would not prevent as it may be on wheels) and refuse all other insertion procedures such as catheters and epidurals. Since the force of gravity can definitely help with the progress of labor, this is one way to move labor forward.

Above all, however, she recommends that women seek a birthing center with a midwife or have a home birth if they really want to prevent all interventions. For most birthing centers, and also for most people’s homes (unless they live in the middle of nowhere), a hospital is not far away. If labor goes very badly, transportation is usually fast enough to allow for a life-saving emergency cesarean section for the mother or baby. The author supports the Mother-Friendly Birth Initiative, which is a very worthwhile cause dedicated to helping women have more natural births.

Since many medical interventions can have long-term and unexpected consequences for a woman who has them, it is often best to try to avoid them. Even most doctors would agree that no surgical intervention is preferred. Cesarean section is a major surgery, with a recovery time similar to that of any other major surgery in which the skin and muscles are cut. This means a long recovery time from rest, which is not always possible for women who have to return to work quickly.

Since most women do not live in rural Tennessee, Ina May’s counseling is for those women who do not have access to a home midwife and who may prefer to be in a hospital where they perceive an additional layer of safety for the delivery of your child. . Most of his advice is directed at these women and will help them to have confidence in their own body’s ability to produce the child they yearn for. Therefore, this book is highly recommended reading for all women who are pregnant or planning to become pregnant. If you can read only one book during your pregnancy, I would recommend this book.

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