Childbirth

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For with the heart man believeth unto righteousness; and with the mouth confession is made unto salvation.

John 3:16:

For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life.

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GOD SAID, Genesis 3:16:

Unto the woman he said, I will greatly multiply thy sorrow and thy conception; in sorrow thou shalt bring forth children; and thy desire shall be to thy husband, and he shall rule over thee.

GOD SAID, John 16:21:

A woman when she is in travail hath sorrow, because her hour is come: but as soon as she is delivered of the child, she remembereth no more the anguish, for joy that a man is born into the world.

MAN SAID: In our highly enlightened society, pain is not necessary in childbirth.  Birth should be treated as a medical procedure routinely requiring drugs and surgery, not as a natural phenomenon that progresses at its own pace.

Now THE RECORD.  The second punishment proclaimed by God concerning the woman (Eve), a punishment which was the consequence of her sin, was the sorrow she would endure during the birthing process.  Attempts to alleviate or escape this now natural occurrence of life should be handled with very careful hands, for the results of man’s intervening have been and can be devastating. 

Childbirth is a trillion dollar business.  Typically, when large amounts of money and personal interests are involved, improprieties occur, and maternity will prove to be no exception.  Issues such as doctor’s and hospital fees for certain procedures, the doctor’s vacation schedule, delivery room concerns, and the family’s whims often override the natural time of life. 

Chemicals are often injected into the mother that purposely induce labor and can cause a number of health issues.  To add to this problem, a mother can be given epidurals that not only interfere with her ability to feel contractions, but also can be harmful to the baby while it’s still in the mother’s womb.  Among developed countries, the United States ranks second in the world for its infant mortality rate.  These alarming facts beg the following question: Are the decisions being made by hospitals in the best interest of the mother and her baby, or are they for the hospital and some of its doctors and staff?  Keep in mind that when God says yes to sorrow in childbearing, and man says no, the consequences will yield something other than the intended outcome.

Those who are old enough to remember may recall what happened during the late 1950s and early 60s.  Women suffering from morning sickness were given the drug thalidomide to help alleviate the symptoms associated with pregnancy.  Man’s intervention resulted in severe birth defects.  Babies were being born with very short or absent limbs, and with hands and feet taking a flipper-like appearance, known as phocomelia.

Epidurals began being used in the United States in 1935, touted as a “miracle” of modern science.  Women were eager to avoid the pain during childbirth.  Doctors assured them that the procedure was entirely safe.  Women today who choose a natural childbirth are often viewed as martyrs who suffer unnecessary pain.  Many women are under the impression that hospital birth is safer than home or natural births assisted by a midwife.  They believe home birth is dangerous and archaic.  However, a study done by the British Medical Journal in June 2005 shows this not to be the case.  The study concluded that:

Planned home birth for low risk women in North America using certified professional midwives was associated with lower rates of medical intervention but similar intrapartum and neonatal mortality to that of low risk hospital births in the United States.  [End of quote]

A study done in 1996 by the UK also showed that home birth was as safe or safer than hospital birth for low to moderate risk women.  It should be noted, however, that in cases where complications arise and surgery may be necessary, it is a good idea for the mother to be within 30 minutes of a hospital in the event of an emergency.  A professional, qualified midwife will know when complications require medical intervention.  Although the vast majority of women in the United States rely on drugs and surgery during their delivery, groups such as the World Health Organization have urged the U.S. to return to a midwife based system.  The following is a list of some of the benefits of midwife-attended home births, or natural births, over modern methods of drugs and surgery:

• Midwives can build a stronger relationship with the mother and give her stronger support throughout the whole procedure, rather than a doctor who often comes in at the last minute to deliver the baby, or the nurses who constantly move around to wait on other patients or perform the normal duties of their job.

• There is a cycle that women go through during childbirth: as their fear increases, so does tension.  Mothers usually find it more comfortable to be in familiar surroundings (such as at home) to keep them calmer.

• Home births pose a much lesser chance of infection to the mother and her baby from foreign germs that are frequently found in busy hospitals.  Issues caused by hospital-generated illness and infection are well-known.  The term nosocomial infection was coined to refer to something you get at the hospital (and that you didn’t bring to the hospital).  Multitudes of women and their babies down through history have died soon after childbirth as a result of infection.  This situation was known as childbed fever.  It was a sweeping problem in hospitals throughout the 19^th century.  At that time, Dr. Ignaz Semmelweis, a physician known as the “savior of mothers,” while working at the ViennaMaternityHospital, found that he could dramatically lower the rate of infection in childbearing mothers by simply washing his hands between autopsies and deliveries.  Dr. Semmelweis was “thanked” by the medial community for his discovery by being fired from his job, accused of being mentally ill, and committed to an insane asylum where, within two weeks, he was murdered.

Studies indicate that rates of infection are much lower with births at home than with hospital births.  Dr. Marsden Wagner of the World Health Organization referred to the hospital nursery as a “cradle of germs” because of the impersonal procedures performed and the overuse of technology and drugs.

• No separation is between the mother and her baby after childbirth.  The following is from the Lamaze Institute’s website:

After giving birth, a woman held her healthy newborn baby for a few minutes.  Then her baby went to the well-baby nursery, and she went to her hospital room.  Her baby stayed in her room during the day and stayed in the nursery at night because she was told she would get more sleep this way.  The mother realizes that she has spent a lot of time apart from her baby.  She wonders what the research reveals about the needs of mothers and babies after birth.

Nature prepares you and your baby to need and seek each other from the moment of birth.  Oxytocin, the hormone that causes your uterus to contract, will stimulate “mothering” feelings after birth as you touch, gaze at, and breastfeed your baby.  More oxytocin will be released as you hold your baby skin-to-skin.  Your brain will release endorphins, narcotic-like hormones that enhance these mothering feelings.  These hormones help you feel calm and responsive and cause the temperature of your breasts to rise, keeping your baby warm.  Because of the normal “adrenaline rush” babies have right after birth, your baby will be bright, alert, and ready to nurse soon after birth.  [End of quote]

• Studies have shown that babies who are separated from their mothers after childbirth have greater difficulty beginning breastfeeding.  At this point, mothers have waited nine months, anticipating time to be with their babies.  Studies show that it is better physically and psychologically for the baby and the mother to be with each other beginning their lifelong bond immediately after birth.  Even in hospitals, women can request to have their babies with them instead of taken to the nursery after birth.

• Home birth is less expensive.  If paying out-of-pocket, home births on average generally cost anywhere from $2,000 to $5,000, while hospital births can cost up to six times that amount.  Caesarean section births can cost as much as $50,000 and additional days in the hospital for recovery.  Depending on the insurance company and your location, your insurance may cover all the costs of a home birth.  Studies estimate that “a shared maternity care system would lower the cost for childbirth by roughly 40%, or $13.143 billion.”

• If other young children already live in the house, it can be an easier transition for them.  Mom isn’t gone for several days before returning with a new addition to the family.  Home birth households can have the children go to bed and wake up the next day with their new sibling in the house with things going on as usual.

• Many women consider natural birth to be empowering.  Women who are supported during labor without the intervention of drugs or surgery often leave with a positive view about their birthing experience and parenting skills.

Some of the dangers of introducing anesthesia, or other foreign chemicals, and unnatural procedures during childbirth include the following:

• Inducing labor for the sake of convenience (instead of inducing labor for medical complications, which is sometimes necessary) with drugs like Pitocin increases the likelihood of certain problems during childbirth including vacuum or forceps-assisted vaginal birth, caesarean section surgery, fever, changes in fetal heart rate, shoulder dystocia, low birth weight, admission to the NICU, and jaundice (yellowish skin caused by the breaking down of red blood cells).  All these things required treatment and increased the length of the hospital stay.  Some of these problems are due to labor being accidentally induced before the baby reaches full term (at least 37 completed weeks).  This is because due dates are not exact.  During the last two weeks before birth, the mother’s and baby’s bodies prepare themselves for delivery.  In most cases, the mother’s body will only begin labor when it’s ready.

• Modern birthing methods restrict the mother’s freedom of movement throughout labor.  In the case of epidurals, it can impossible to walk around during labor because of its effects on the back and legs.  Again from the Lamaze Institute:

At times during labor, you may feel tired and need to rest in a comfortable position.  However, according to a 2003 study published in Nursing Research, a laboring woman’s lower back pain is worse when she is lying down.  (Hospitals put mothers in the lying-down position.)

Researchers who examined all of the published studies on freedom of movement in labor found that, when compared with policies restricting movement, policies that encourage women to walk or change position in labor may result in the following outcomes: shorter labors, more efficient contractions, greater comfort, and less need for pain medicine in labor.

In fact, no woman who participated in any of the research studies said that she was more comfortable on her back than in other positions.  No study has ever shown that walking in labor is harmful in healthy women with normal labors.  One study published in The New England Journal of Medicine in 1998 did not find that women who walked had shorter labors; however, the women in the study who walked were so satisfied that 99% of them stated that they would like to walk again during future labors.  [End of quote]

• Epidurals and other pain relievers can easily lead to more problems during childbirth.  Again from the Lamaze Institute:

With an epidural, because the pelvic muscles relax, it may take longer for the baby to rotate and descend through the birth canal, and the baby is more likely to get stuck in a position (called “posterior”) that makes cesarean surgery much more likely.  The absence of pain can interfere with your natural release of oxytocin and may lead to the need for Pitocin.  Epidural medication can cause a drop in your blood pressure, so you will need IV fluids both before and during the epidural.  Lower blood pressure can cause a drop in blood (and oxygen) flow to your baby, so you will need continuous EFM if you have an epidural.  Some women with epidurals do not feel when they need to urinate, so you may need a catheter to empty your bladder.

The changes in the way labor and birth unfold and the interventions needed to watch for, prevent, and manage side effects during an epidural set the stage for a number of possible problems.  Studies show that epidurals are associated with a lower rate of spontaneous vaginal birth, a higher rate of instrumental birth (vacuum or forceps), and longer labors, particularly for women having their first babies.  Studies also show that women with epidurals have a higher rate of fever during labor and, as a result, their babies may need to be tested and treated for possible infections, separating mothers from their babies after birth.  There is some evidence that the use of an epidural, especially for first-time mothers, may increase the likelihood of cesarean surgery.

Epidural medication does affect the baby.  The newborns of women who receive certain kinds of epidurals (that include a narcotic drug) have more problems breastfeeding in the first hours, days, and weeks after birth.  [End of quote]

When God says yes, wise men and women get in line.

GOD SAID, Genesis 3:16:

Unto the woman he said, I will greatly multiply thy sorrow and thy conception; in sorrow thou shalt bring forth children; and thy desire shall be to thy husband, and he shall rule over thee.

GOD SAID, John 16:21:

A woman when she is in travail hath sorrow, because her hour is come: but as soon as she is delivered of the child, she remembereth no more the anguish, for joy that a man is born into the world.

MAN SAID: In our highly enlightened society, pain is not necessary in childbirth.  Birth should be treated as a medical procedure routinely requiring drugs and surgery, not as a natural phenomenon that progresses at its own pace.

Now you have THE RECORD.

 

 

References:

Authorized King James Version

Anderson, R.E., and D.A. Anderson, “The cost-effectiveness of home birth,” J Nurse Midwifery, Jan.-Feb. 1999, 44(1):30-5

British Suite of Studies, 1996

Johnson, K.C., and Betty-Anne Davis, “Outcomes of planned home births with certified professional midwives: large prospective study in North America,” BMJ, June 18, 2005

Lamaze Institute, “Care Practice #1: Labor Begins on its Own,” www.lamaze.org  

Lamaze Institute, “Care Practice #2: Freedom of Movement Throughout Labor,” www.lamaze.org

Lamaze Institute, “Care Practice #4: No Routine Interventions,” www.lamaze.org

Lamaze Institute, “Care Practice #6: No Separation of Mother and Baby After Birth with Unlimited Opportunities for Breastfeeding,” www.lamaze.org

Mothering, Oct./Nov./Dec. 1989

Mothering, Jan./Feb. 1990

Schlenzka, P.F., “Safety of Alternative Approaches to Childbirth,” unpublished dissertation, Palo Alto, CA: Stanford University

Stewart, The Five Standards of Safe Childbearing, 1981, p127

The Birth Gazette, review of The Cry and the Covenant, fall 1987, pp32-33

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