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The only midwife in our town didn't have space for me - I was devastated. I wanted a natural home birth, intervention free, surrounded by friends and family and all the
comforts of home. But, I had to accept the future reality of a hospital birth.I became determined to know all I could about policies, procedures and legalities. I researched all the baby books and set up interview appointments with six different doctors recommended by the midwife's office.
In the face of medical arrogance, I grilled every doctor: "Do you routinely perform episiotomies? Do you support natural childbirth? Do you rely heavily on the foetal heart monitor?" A lot of the questions I asked were clearly out of date. Doctors don't shave or tie you down anymore, but some were clearly more accustomed to routinely performing unnecessary procedures, such as episiotomies.
One doctor hedged when I asked her how comfortable she was with a variety of birthing positions. She cautioned that I could tear terribly in the squatting position, but later I found out that doctors avoid that position because they cannot see everything so they feel out of control. Nevertheless, I wanted an open-minded doctor and by the fourth interview I found her.
She was patient, attentive and understanding throughout our entire interview. Her patience was overall the most impressive feature when other doctors had clearly been irritated because I was not blindly accepting their expertise. She assured me that times have changed and that many of the stories I had heard were of ancient, barbaric days long past. She supported the idea of natural childbirth and encouraged me to labour at home for as long as possible. When I mentioned not wanting the antibiotic eye drops for my newborn baby she said, "no problem, you just have to sign a waiver."
Throughout my pregnancy I read more. Naomi Wolf's book, Misconceptions, was released and I devoured it. Though the cases she discussed had taken place in profit-driven, American hospitals, I knew that Canadian hospitals too have an agenda. Here, expedient births are carried out to maintain the hospital's strict budget. In both countries c-section rates rise considerably on Fridays before a long weekend.
I continuously questioned my doctor. I was most worried about undergoing a c-section. She eventually confided the hospital's 21% caesarean rate. She went through the different surgeons with me who perform c-sections, assuring me that, if needed, she would try to call one that does not take your entire uterus out and place it on your stomach for closure, which makes women undergoing the c-section feel incredibly noxious. My doctor always reached out to my concerns.
When I went into labour I didn't realize it for a long time. I awoke with cramping at six a.m., but compared to some of the menstrual cramps I had experienced this was tame. I figured it was another weird pregnancy pain and ignored it for awhile. At ten thirty I happened to have a doctor's appointment. I was one centimetre dilated. What joy! However, my doctor cautioned me that it could still be a week before I had the baby.
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Mandy-Saint Louis Doula
