New Beginnings Doula Training

New Beginnings Doula Training
Courses for doulas and online childbirth education

Thursday, May 26, 2011

Choices made during a difficult birth

I just need to applaud the women who face difficult decisions in birth.  I feel blessed in that my births are pretty smooth.  I've never had my water break, I've never been gbs positive, I've always progressed, there's never been any question about the health of my baby.  So, yea, I have natural births, but in pretty smooth sailing waters.

As I watch what rougher waters look like though...those women who are trying to navigate between the natural and the medical with no crystal ball to tell them how their body would respond to either, I am amazed at their capacity to make decisions for themselves and for their unborn child.

Often times these decisions are not in their plans, and were never expected in the first place.  They are often made under fears and trepidations with a great sense of the unknown.  I say that mountain is just as  hard to climb, if not harder than a normal straightforward normal birth.  So I want you all to know...those who have faced those troubled waters that you are amazing and deserve just as much recognition as any woman who has ever born a child.

1 comment:

Robyn said...

Amen, well said!

Birth is a Journey: Does it have to be life changing?


  • One woman might have to climb on an overfilled boat, risking her life and nearly dying as she escapes over the ocean to come to this land. This experience could certainly be life altering. It may very well color the rest of her life, positively or negatively. (I overcame this amazing struggle and here I am triumphant! OR Holy crap, that was SO hard I don’t know if I can go on! By the way, neither response is “right”. No one would judge the woman with the 2nd response.)
  • One woman may buy an airplane ticket, sit on a comfortable 747 and fly to America with a nice smooth flight and landing. She is happy to be in America. Those welcoming her are glad she is here safe and sound. She may only travel by plane 2-4 times in her life, so it is pretty memorable. But the journey itself probably wouldn’t be life changing; it would simply be a journey.
  • One woman may learn to fly an ultra-light plane to lead a flock of geese into America teaching them to migrate. This experience could certainly be empowering and life altering.