Blog Charter

or...the WHY of this blog:  My goal and desire is to make birth safer for my daughters. Number one. Because, no...in our country, today, it is NOT safe ENOUGH.  And number two, so that no one, NO MOTHER, has to go through (keep going through) what I have. I'll repeat the cesarean statistics over and over, so get used to it :) But, after many years of an ever-rising cesarean rate,  the latest numbers from the CDC showed finally a static rate (see more here .)  But we MUST not let our guard down...it is STILL too high and there are still dangerous practices in the obstetrics world.  The World Health Organization (WHO) has mantained for many years now that the rate for ANY country should be NO HIGHER than 10-15%. That means that at least 1/2 and up to 2/3 of all cesareans performed today in the U.S. are UNNECESSARY. And in the meantime, the maternal mortality rate is climbing. Our infant mortality rate is higher than some 3rd world countries.  I'm rushing through all of this as a synopsis now, and hope to dwell and post a lot more on all of this, but...in the countries where midwives are used in as much as 7 out of 10 births (and some have 30% homebirth rates too), the c/s rates are the lowest (Holland is around 18% i believe) in the world AND the maternal mortality and infant mortality (neonatal, i think i mean?) rates are lowest as well. I want this country to wake up.  This is not just about the "mommy wars" (which I hate) and being able to choose a cesarean (fine, but do you REALLY know the risks involved??.)  My Noah died, not because of where I was at the time it occurred (home and then hospital), but because before they could rescue him, he was deprived of oxygen from a placental abruption (first, and then a concurrent uterine rupture, according to pathology)...........and I almost died/had to be revived.....all because of two previous (or at the very least one, the first) very unnecessary c-sections. (check the rates for placental abruption...how they go up after just one c/s, then even MORE after more than one c/s... here ) I'll explain more about each later and why they were unnecessary or not. And I'll try to get through talking more about my pregnancy and birth with Noah eventually. I'll be sharing lots of articles and studies and stories from other women, mothers. Every mother has a story to tell....bare with me, mine is kind of long...well, I'll be long-winded about it :)  This is a passion for me.