Gentle Birth, Gentle Mothering book review:
I was delighted to read Gentle Birth, Gentle Mothering; A Doctor’s Guide to Natural Childbirth and Gentle Early Parenting Choices.
The endless studies, statistics and percentages listed as Sarah J. Buckley, MD gave us all of the details of birth was softened by her own personal stories and choices, keeping us entertained while informed. Her plain speak and passion made it an easy and interesting read.
The book is broken into two parts: Part 1: Gentle Birth and Part 2: Gentle Mothering. Part 1 begins by walking us through some of the more abstract aspects of birth and the sacred journey into motherhood that it is.
In “Reclaiming Every Woman’s Birth Right” Sarah highlights the unfortunate truth that through decades of feminists movements, we’ve allowed the matter of birth to fall to the bottom of our societal battle priorities.
Although it’s been overshadowed by equal opportunity, sexual harassment, bedroom politics, abortion and body image, it is still a feminist issue and one in dire need of some attention. With unprecedented cesarean and infant mortality rates and natural childbirth a rare find, we are no longer trusting women’s bodies to do what they are so perfectly designed to do.
Gentle Birth With Intuition
Sarah guides us through our intuition and the natural mammalian instincts we all innately carry within us from our mothers before. She urges us to trust our bodies and the delicate processes they go through during this time by practicing living in tune with the natural cycles of the earth and its rhythms.
Birth is another state of being and we must learn to surrender to this mindstate and allow our body to move and speak the way it needs to bring our babies earthside.
Through healing our standard birth practices and allowing them to return to the sacred, instinctive transformations they are meant to be, we heal the earth and the broken society we have created.
By interrupting the powerful and delicate flows of birth such as the release of hormones required for ecstasy in birth and instant bonding with baby, we’ve inadvertently caused repercussions that follow our babies into adulthood, such as anxiety and depression.
So too have the mothers been damaged by trauma meant to prevent traumas and thus, leading us to build a society full of distrust in ourselves and broken relationships direct to the progression of our species.
Testing During Pregnancy
Chapters 4 and 5 highlight the standard tests all pregnant mothers and their babies are subjected to in our modern OB system despite the lack of research into long term effects of this testing.
With these tests causing maternal stress and anxiety and little benefits to neither the individuals being tested nor the statistics as a whole. With regular testing on GBS status and gestational diabetes as well as regular ultrasounds and pressure to induce “overdue” babies, we may be causing more distress and harm to otherwise perfectly healthy pregnancies.
Birth is as natural and safe as it gets. Specifically and intricately designed by nature to ensure the continual of the human race. A cocktail of hormones that are released at very specific times for very specific reasons and body parts that know exactly how to move and stretch for the best outcome possible for mother and baby.
Hormones so important and particular that synthetic ones cannot match up to their power and function. Interference in any of these natural components can off put the natural process and open us up to a variety of unfortunate interventions and issues for not only the birth but for breastfeeding and the mother baby relationship.
This leaves us with the notion that undisturbed birth for the vast majority of pregnant women who do not present any risk factors, is the best and safest sort of birth.
Consequences of Interference
Society’s needs for a woman to be quiet and complacent as well as our fear and distrust of the process has led to an overwhelming number of epidural birth as our new normal.
With research supporting various possible consequences to epidurals and our standard supine position including perineal tearing, trouble breastfeeding, lowered APGAR tests and a host of other issues it’s disappointing that this norm is often taken with little to no knowledge or regard of these risks.
Active management of the third stage of labor is also responsible for unfortunate circumstances in some cases involving harm to the mother and baby due to early cord clamping, tugging at the placenta and attempt to proactively control bleeding.
The rate of cesareans has inclined drastically over the past decades growing from 5.5% in the 70’s to 22.8% in 1993 and then 31.1% in 2006. Cesareans are treated with normalcy and nonchalant from both society and doctors who are more comfortable with the control they get in surgery in comparison to the surrender and uncertainty we face with natural birth.
We have forgotten that cesareans are major abdominal surgeries and should not be taken lightly. They open numerous risks and lifelong side effects to both mother and baby, extending to affect future pregnancies and offspring as well.
Sometimes cesareans are necessary and in these times we should be thankful the technology exists to make them safer than in the past but we should only be looking at them as an absolutely last resort and never as a go-to option.
Benefits of Homebirth
Our transfer to the hospitalized OB system has only taken place in the past 50 years or so where home birth and midwives had been the standards since the beginning of history. Rates of intervention are up to 10 times higher in a hospital setting than a homebirth and studies have shown the home birthed babies are more alert and in better condition than their born in hospital counterparts.
Our birthing bodies were made to bring forth life in the safety and secluded privacy of our homes and bringing us into the hospital setting with it’s bright lights and spectacles has had consequences on our experiences of birth, turning them from something sacred and beautiful into something terrifying and embarrassing.
Feeling safe and having all of your emotional and personal needs met is crucial to a positive birthing experience. Home Births are best for this whereas hospital births are going to focus on the physical health aspects and more or less disregard care for how the mother feels.
Having a physiologically natural birth is the beginning of a journey for both mother and baby. The intricate processes that unfold during labor and birth unfold precisely to set up the best chances of survival for both mother and baby, who are a unit and not separate even after birth.
The continued close contact of the two via breastfeeding, skin to skin, co sleeping and kangaroo care ensure that body temperature and breathing is regulated, brain development is optimal and that risks of diseases and death are lessened for both mother and baby.
Ensuring that this relationship has the best beginning possible and as much support as can be gotten in the early years can help us to steer away from unfavorable outcomes in not only the family setting but the population as a whole.
As we are all a part of the bigger picture and healing begins where it all begins: at the first breaths we take and in our mother’s arms.
Other Articles You May Enjoy:
- Common Pregnancy Myths & Fear Mongering Misinformation as Told By a Midwife
- Birthing From Within; a book review for new parents
- Your Beliefs Around Birth Can Make Labor Easier or Harder
- Expecting Trouble; Prenatal Care in America (A Book Review)
- The Womanly Art of Breastfeeding; a book review for new parents
Author
S.S.Blake; Spiritual Life Coach, Yoga + Meditation Teacher and Founder of Earth and Water
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Citations:
Buckley, Sarah J. Gentle Birth, Gentle Mothering; A Doctor’s Guide to Natural Childbirth and Gentle Early Parenting Choices.