wow...

I've had three c-secs now and may I say I hated every one of them. Two were done under general anesthesia and the last (lil Miss) was done with a spinal block. Believe me, the spinal block c-sec was BY FAR the better choice by a MILLION MILES. Waking up after major surgery was traumatic and awful. Getting off the anesthesia alone was horrible. Frankly, I don't remember a thing for about a week after each one. But with the spinal block I remember Lil Miss' birth. I got to hear her cry (well more like an indignant bleat) and see her right away. The down side was that I also had to listen to my doctor describe the whole operation while he was doing it. Thus, when he was having some difficulties with all the scar tissue and profuse bleeding, I became somewhat alarmed. I was given the option to look at and hold my baby as soon as they popped her out but I declined. As nice and natural as it sounds, frankly I wasn't that interested in having a bloody mess lying across me while the doctor was busy trying to keep me alive and put my inards back together. I said I wanted her cleaned and wrapped first and I don't feel the slightest guilt about that: we've had plenty of time oto bond and get close, I didn't need alll that gook on me to know my baby. If that new "natural cesarian" helps mothers feel a little better about having to have a c-sec I say hallelujah and more power to it! Anything that cuts down on the intervention is a good thing. But I hope it doesn'tbecome like natural childbirth has become: the standard of comparison. Its depressing enough for any woman to be told ad nauseum that there's a certain way to have your baby and then not be able to do it at the last minute. Women who end up having a c-sec already have to deal with a certain amount of disappointment and sadness... adding shame or any kind of "tsk tsk you shoulda done it THIS way" just makes it worse.

And having a healthy baby should not be made "worse" in any way.

sure looks cool tho

nice post.
we took bradley classes and had a water birth. momma was much more relaxed than on the bed. no drugs, cesarian or epidural.