Common Pregnancy Myths & Fear Mongering Misinformation as Told By a Midwife ⋆ Earth and Water

Giving birth shouldn’t be a medicalized battleground, yet in the American obstetric system, that’s often the reality. Instead of viewing pregnancy and birth as natural occurrences, supported by informed women and skilled attendants, the dominant narrative paints them as potential illnesses needing constant intervention.

This approach, driven by fear and financial incentives, disrespects women’s autonomy, contradicts evidence-based research, and ultimately harms mothers and babies.

One glaring example is the overuse of interventions that lack clear medical justification. Caesarean sections, major abdominal surgeries, are performed at alarming rates in the US, exceeding World Health Organization recommendations by nearly double.

Despite evidence highlighting the benefits of vaginal birth for both mother and baby, a culture of convenience and fearmongering drives many women towards unnecessary C-sections, leaving them with longer recovery times, increased risks of complications, and potential emotional trauma.

Similarly, inductions of labor, often initiated for non-medical reasons like provider convenience or exceeding arbitrary due dates, can cascade into further interventions. Pitocin, a synthetic hormone used to induce contractions, can lead to intense and prolonged labor, increasing the likelihood of pain medication, epidurals, and ultimately, C-sections. This domino effect highlights the crucial need for informed consent and shared decision-making, prioritizing natural labor progress whenever possible.

The system itself contributes to the problem. Fearful rhetoric surrounding birth, often perpetuated by healthcare providers themselves, leads to a perception of childbirth as inherently risky. This fuels a culture of interventionism, where doctors are seen as “rescuers” and women as passive vessels in need of constant monitoring and control. Additionally, financial incentives for interventions like C-sections create a conflict of interest, blurring the lines between genuine medical necessity and profit-driven practices.

The power dynamics are further skewed by instances of bullying and disrespect within the system. Women report feeling pressured, coerced, and even verbally and physically abused during their births. This lack of autonomy and trust erodes the birthing experience, ultimately contributing to increased birth trauma and postpartum depression.

The problem isn’t just rooted in individual practices; harmful myths also play a significant role. Misconceptions about the safety of natural birth, the risks of vaginal deliveries, and the supposed superiority of medical interventions create an environment where women are discouraged from trusting their bodies and advocating for their preferences.

Breaking free from this flawed system requires a multi-pronged approach. Firstly, empowering women with accurate information and evidence-based practices is crucial. Informed consent, shared decision-making, and access to midwives and birth centers can shift the power dynamics.

Secondly, dismantling financial incentives for unnecessary interventions and holding providers accountable for respecting women’s autonomy are essential steps. Finally, challenging harmful myths and fostering a culture of trust and respect within the birthing system are critical for true transformation.

Birth should be a time of joy, empowerment, and connection. By reclaiming our bodies, challenging the status quo, and demanding a system that prioritizes natural birth and informed choice, we can create a future where the American birthing experience truly honors the miracle of life.

Beginning –

Birth is an intricate and delicate system of hormones that work together to progress the labor and delivery process. Each hormone triggers an important step all the way up to the moment of birth where we receive the bonding hormones.

Anything foreign introduced into this system has the potential to disrupt it. Disruptions can include anything from stalled labor to feelings of disconnect between yourself and your baby.

The standard system of care for birthing parents and their new babies is not set up for our best interests. Despite having the research and knowledge that many of our standard practices are harmful, we continue to push them on every parent-baby unit.

Birth is such a powerful initiation into parenthood for the birther and into life for the baby. How it goes has a significant impact on the unit and how well they do together in the following months and years into childhood. Instead of allowing this very important initiation to unfold in it’s powerful way, we numb it with everything we can.

Sure, this is helpful in the pains of labor but it comes at the price of causing potential trauma if things go poorly and the ramifications of setting up these parent-baby relationships to be more difficult. This situation sets parents up for failure which is then detrimental to the whole of society. Parents who have traumatic births and or don’t feel bonded to their baby may have a hard time caring for them properly.

We have been made to fear birth. It can be a dangerous and emotionally charged process that deals with very real outcomes, but we were also made to continue on the species. Therefore, most birthing bodies are made to accomplish it with little to no complications when supported with appropriate care, which varies from person to person.

This fear however has left us with even more difficulties when it comes to legalities of the system. Homebirth and midwifery aren’t legal in all places and those seeking a more physiological experience may have to fight for it. This is made even more difficult by well meaning friends and family who aren’t informed on what is actually normal, unnormal and helpful versus hurtful in the system.

Birth is a private event that has been taken over with controlling vigor in the name of false safety. This extreme level of control has ramifications on levels we aren’t immediately aware of but ripples through all of our society. The legalities and restrictions have put a chokehold on birth, birth workers and the options the common person has available to them.

8:10 –

They started moving the birth scene into the hospitals around the 1950s. Up until that point, most babies were born in the privacy of the home with only a few select individuals whom the mother felt comfortable with.

We’re so disconnected to the birth process that many of those who have had multiple births themselves are still unfamiliar with the process and what is and isn’t normal. So many are eager to wipe their hands of any responsibility in the matter, handing over complete control and dictation to their doctor.

This hospital setting and relinquishing control to the system works really for some parents and babies. It shouldn’t be forced upon everyone though. Some new parents desire the more sacred, spiritual and divine side of this transformational process and to experience it without dilution or micro management. These parents take on the responsibility of working for a good and positive experience and outcome through a marathon of self education as well as a mental, emotional and physical preparation for birth.

Most who get the empowered birth they want did a lot of upfront work in an effort to make it happen. Working through fears and coping possibilities ahead of time being some ways of preparing. We can do our best to prepare but birth is a chaotic mystery that unfolds differently each time.

The energetic resonance we’re born into effects us throughout our lives. We don’t want our first ever experience of the world to be one of fear. We ideally want it to be in a resonance of love, empowerment and joy.

17:25 –

We’re told about so many things we should be afraid of in birth, like the cord being around the neck. Do umbilical cords get wrapped around babies necks? Sure. It’s a pretty common occurrence that is almost never an actual problem.

Another very common misconception and out of date practice is not allowing laboring individuals to eat or drink during the process. The fear is that aspiration may occur under the unfortunate circumstance of an emergency c-section. This isn’t a common enough occurrence for it to be a standard practice. Especially when we have the research to prove that lite eating and drinking is helpful in maintaining stamina and energy levels. Particularly with certain foods like hydrating fruit.

We don’t want to blame anyone for poor standard practices, as the doctors and hospital staff are simply a product of the system themselves. Schools train these individuals with a mindset of attempting to control any potential problems before they arise. Unfortunately, when you’re always looking for problems, you will find them even when there are none.

Obstetricians aren’t trained in normal birth. They’re trained to manage complicated births. Most don’t know what a normal birth really looks like and we have to be informed on what’s normal so that we can properly identify when something isn’t. Not to say that their skills aren’t hugely useful when they’re needed. We’re very fortunate to have them available when we truly need them.

Another misconception is that breech babies are a dangerous birth factor that almost always automatically signs you up for a c-section. This is based on a faulty study that took off despite being inaccurate.

25:20 –

The nocebo effect is similar to the placebo effect. Whereas the placebo effect occurs via nothing more than the power of suggestion, the nocebo effect is when you cause a problem because you were looking for a problem to exist where it didn’t.

This is a common thing that happens during prenatal care. We spend so much time looking for problems despite any evidence of there being a problem present. Problems in pregnancy skyrocketed once we introduced ultrasounds a testing as a standard.

If you find yourself in a position of being told something is wrong, you almost always have plenty of time to do your own research, explore your options and get a second or even third opinion. Trust your gut and be honest with your provider about your concerns and what you desire.

You can usually read whether or not they’re supportive of what you want and if they truly are looking out for your best interests or trying to corral you into unneeded interventions. Bullying in this system by the doctors and staff is unfortunately very common. Know your rights. They work for you.

33:15 –

“Big baby” is a common fear tactic that doctor’s use to control the narrative in the labor and delivery process. So many pregnant people are told that they’re baby is “too big” and that they’re going to have to be induced and it’s simply not a thing that’s true. Our bodies are built to be able to birth what we would consider a big baby and in the majority of cases this is not something to be concerned with.

Are there exceptions? Always. The truth of the matter is though, that we can’t accurately predict how big a baby is going to be. Most weight guesses (and that’s all they are, is guesses) are based off of length of the baby, which can be measured via ultrasound. Length does not translate into weight, though and perhaps your baby is just on the “taller” end.

Gestational diabetes has it’s own problems in this system. We shouldn’t be giving pregnant people this sugary drink across the board with zero discernment for their blood sugar history. We discuss my own history with hypoglycemia and how this test should have never been given to someone with my health background. We cannot treat every ‘patient’ with the same across the board standards.

We aren’t given any advice on how to manage our health through healthy habits, lifestyle or food intake. Everything is managed through medication and procedures even though most would benefit hugely by simply making some changes to their diet.

41:50 –

A twin pregnancy automatically signs you up for a c-section for no reason other than it generally being an unfamiliar territory for your doctor. Twins can be nonproblematically born vaginally. The pros here are the same as they would be with a singleton birth. Faster and easier healing afterwards being the main one. A c-section is a major surgery and healing from that while trying to care for a single newborn is incredibly hard, much less having 2 newborns to care for while healing.

It’s unfair that we have to fight as hard as we do in this system just to get the basic, evidence based care that is best for ourselves and our babies and most don’t even realize that there is a fight to be had. The problem lies hugely with our culture and so many of us continue to accept things as they are.

It is the age of information, though and it is the responsibility of each of us to utilize this tool and become informed about what is best for ourselves and our children. A lot of the time that means fighting well meaning loved ones in addition to the system but this is your first act as a parent and making those decisions for yourself and your baby.

New parents and their babies are the core of our society and we’ve for too long pushed them into the background and away from the priority of support. This is sabotaging our communities with problems that could be remedied with more support. “It takes a village” but we don’t often cultivate those villages anymore. Granted, historically our villages were already in place. They didn’t have to be cultivated. Unfortunately, they most often do have to be worked at now and this lack of support drowns most new parents.

About Our Guest

I was trained as a midwife, beginning with a 4 year apprenticeship and eventually serving in the role of Licensed Midwife (Arizona). I outgrew that in 2012, returning my license to the State and following my Soul into the undefined world of spiritual birth guidance with the bonus of having midwifery skills and experience.

I maintained the CPM credential from 2009-2023 but became disillusioned and non aligned with this organization (and any organization that seeks to control birth and midwives) and gave this one back as well. After 15 years of serving women at home, I continue to do this in Hawai’i but for the most resonant and aligned women that see birth and motherhood as sacred initiations and desire a knowledgeable witness as their guide.

https://indiebirth.org/