A coworker of mine, whose wife is pregnant with their first child, just sent me this:
This makes me unspeakably sad for so many reasons. Here’s my take on it:
- Labor begins when the baby starts releasing hormones into the mother’s system that say that the lungs are mature and ready to go. Anything that alters that balance impairs the baby’s ability to breathe well outside the womb
- Those hormones start a chain reaction that set up every other thing; contractions, dilation, the “fetal ejection reflex” (yes, there is such a thing), placental detachment and expulsion, and lactation. Anything that alters that impairs everything that comes after in the chain.
- A hugely pregnant, uncomfortable, tired woman, when given an out, will take it. It’s biological nature to move towards pleasure and away from pain. Offering this kind of thing is sort of like handing out formula samples at the hospital; the implication is that you will somehow need the out. It steals a woman’s triumph out from under her, without her ever really knowing or understanding what happened; there’s just this vague unease.
- It is recklessly ignoring true informed consent. The implications, both macro and micro, of a decision like that, are not addressed here, nor will they be in an office visit discussing elective cesarean and/or induction, because a physician who’s tired, overworked, and profit-motivated, will take the out when given it, and a nicely scheduled birth is so much easier for them than the rollercoaster that is natural birth.
Every time I think I’m imagining at least part of how bad things in the American Birth Climate can get, something like this pops up in my face like a horrorshow. Someone talk me down?
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Only saw this on second glance: The color-background subtitle says: “It just makes sense.” – Oh, the irony – of course it DOES NOT!!!
What just makes sense? That’s what I want to know. Also, what does the little star mean after it?
Could it be a trademark??
Ok… from the perspective of someone who is informed about birth and birth choices, this flyer is icky, I know. I think the choice of using the tagline “It just makes sense” above the heading “Scheduling Childbirth” sets off some pretty serious alarms.
But… read it. What they’re *actually* trying to do is gently talk (uninformed) women DOWN from scheduling induction or c-section for non-medical reasons. They’re an insurance company, after all; they’re PAYING for the surgery, the hospital stay, the drugs. They’d rather you not cost them more money.
Their arguments are weak… after all, if they recommend flat-out that you not induce or schedule surgery for non-medical reasons, and then “your baby dies because you didn’t,” you can sue them for practicing medicine without a license :-/… so they have to say “Talk to your doctor.” But at least they do say “If you’re thinking about jumping straight to surgery because you’re scared of labor pain… well, there’s other freakin’ ways to deal with it!”
Also, just have to toss in: I have UHC as my insurance provider, and haven’t received this flyer from them.
Yeah, we’re not first-timers either, but then, I didn’t have my last birth with them, so they don’t KNOW that for sure… they only know that my husband has a dependent child. So they’re not blanketing ALL their pregnant clients with it. Maybe they know that I know better!
Here’s my take on it. There are women with hormonal dysfunction where the chain reaction doesn’t go right on its own. Whether due to a pituitary tumor years ago, or other causes, I have not been able to conceive and keep a pregnancy on my own-the normal is not normal for me. Also, my labor has never started on its own. Kept waiting with baby #1 until almost 42 weeks, where I had placental failure and an inducted baby with postmaturity. So when #2 was 41 weeks we opted to induce as to not cause the baby problems. #3 I had an infection at 38 and it caused me to go into labor on my own. However, at 5cms things stalled and required pitocin. So the question is, with #4 do I put myself (having some issues but each don’t warrant induction-only risks) and the baby at risk for a large baby with postmaturity health issues, or just induce at 40 weeks and have a great healthy labor and delivery? That is why they let doctors decide. A good doctor takes into account the history of the patient, past medical issues, possible outcomes and weighs them and makes an informed decision. I agree with “Ironica”, United Healthcare has never truly cared about me-just the bottom line. They are not promoting early inductions. I don’t find offense by the brochure. I’m actually surprised they are not more strong inn pushing 42 week inductions only like in the book they sent me.
Hey Kristi…
From what you’re saying, you’ve never had a pregnancy that wasn’t managed from within the medical model of care. That might change how you look at a lot of things, both about you, and about birth in general. Once you’re outside that model, looking at birth, the idea that induction is even considered, let alone cesarean scheduled, becomes offensive in its own right.