Written By: Hira Hassan
How many births have I yet to see of my friends and family that went through the pathway of a term known as "Cascade of interventions " where their process was interfered with medically and emotionally and they ended up having an emergency C-section.
It can be explained well with another term known as 'Snowball effect'.
Imagine a little snowball starts rolling down a hill, and as it rolls, it becomes bigger and bigger.
In birth, when we interfere, one intervention leads to another, and then another even bigger intervention that leads to the final blow, that is, a C section.
Example:
Mommy A is told by her doc that she should get induced at her now past 37 weeks. Mommy A is not educated. She doesn't know that no woman stays pregnant forever and does not know that her body will NOT respond to the induction if her baby and body aren't ready for birth. Also, she is not informed about the risks associated with induction and how it impacts labor and birth. Mommy A gets scheduled for an induction
FIRST INTERVENTION: She is tied to the bed which limits her mobility and is attached to continuous fetal monitoring.
SECOND INTERVENTION: She gets an IV for Pitocin. Surprisingly, it does kick off labor but the contractions are unnaturally strong and frequent and more painful and Mommy A asks for an epidural (THIRD INTERVENTION) which slows down labor and limits her mobility even more. The baby goes into distress because of the irregular contractions and not tolerating any of it well.
Baby's heartbeat drops too low, and they need to reel MOMMY A to the OT for the biggest intervention of all.
I have several more to share...
But the point is
When will we learn?
Very few women really need medical interference in birth. Educate yourself so you know how to make informed decisions and, most importantly, find a care provider that supports a natural birth, and you can learn that in Childbirth Education Classes.
Do we buy a car just like that? No.
A mindful learner and critical approach are fundamentals of Good Birth Consumerism.
And believe me, there's nothing that empowers a mother more than a positive birth experience ✨️
YOUR BIRTH MATTERS.