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Select
your care provider wisely.
The
care provider you choose to help you give birth will
be one of the key ways to avoid a cesarean section that
isn't necessary. When interviewing your doctor or midwife,
be sure to ask them what their primary cesarean rate
is in their practice. This asks them to tell you the
number of first cesareans, a more accurate picture of
how often they perform this surgery, thus leaving out
all of the repeat cesareans. This number should be low,
preferably under 10%.
Another reason that your doctor or midwife is important
is that they often have only a few places where they
bring their patients for births. Some practice in a
home birth setting or birth center, while others have
multiple hospitals that they use for their birthing
clients.
Hospitals
also influence the cesarean rates by their policies for
labor and birth care. Talk to the participating hospitals
and find out their cesarean rates.
Choosing
Your Practitioner
Interviewing Your Hospital
Get
educated about labor and birth.
Taking a class, talking to other people who have been
there and reading good books are crucial in your quest
for the birth that is right for you. By learning about
the process of labor and birth, you are more liekly
to be relaxed and feel comfortable with your surroundings
and the birth process. In the course of your education
you will also learn about birth plans and how you can
appropriately express your choices for birth to your
doctor or midwife and your place of birth.
Free
Online Childbirth Classes
Birth Plans
Avoid
induction of labor.
Induction of labor can lead to an increased ccesarean
rate. This is particularly true if you have never given
birth before. The quality of your cervix, how ready
it is to give birth, will also influence whether or
not your induction leads to a cesarean. Learn about
alternatives to induction of labor as well as the types
of induction used.
Another issue is social or elective induction. These
inductions are used to benefit your schedule or the
schedule of your doctor or midwife. If you want to avoid
an unecessary cesarean, avoiding induction is one way
to lower your risks of surgery. If your induction is
for medical reasons, talk to your practitioner about
what type of induction works best for your situation.
How Induction Works
Induction Birth Stories
Use
medications and interventions wisely.
Medications such as a epidural anesthesia and others
have their time and place in birth. However, if you
use them too early in the process they can also increase
the risk of having a cesarean section. If you wait until
you are in active labor or past five centimeters, you
can reduce some of this risk.
Interventions can also lead to an increase in the cesarean
rate. A good example would be breaking your bag of waters
and wedging your baby in a position that makes a vaginal
birth more difficult or impossible, like a posterior
baby. It could also increase the infection rate for
you and baby.
Epidural Facts
Drugs for labor?
Bring
support for labor.
Support is key for labor and birth. Using a professional
doula is a great way to reduce your risks of having
a cesarean. The cesarean surgery rate for the clients
of doulas is lower by 50%. These trained professionals
are schooled in the ways of labor support using massage,
positioning, relaxation, information and many more skills
to make you more comfortable during your labor.
Doulas:
Professional Labor Support
Doula Birth Stories
Who is who in the delivery room?
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