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Written by Kim
Congratulations to the Johnson Family on the birth of their handsome, sweet little baby boy Brody. In my mind, every birth is a miracle and a joyous occasion, regardless of how it happens.
However, this being said, the rate of cesarean births in our country (and around the world) needs to be addressed. Dr. Nancy Snyderman's attitude throughout the birth, making sure to state clearly throughout the procedure that 1. The "section" was not scheduled for the Today Show and 2. It was the right decision for them because Brody was 10 pounds made me angry.
Regardless of how irritated I felt Dr. Snyderman was, what was most striking to me were the tears of joy (or sadness) in Carrie's eyes. Now I can not at all comment on how Carrie was feeling after Brody was born, but she was only able to see her new baby boy for about 10 seconds after his birth. He wasn't even held close enough to the new Mommy so she could touch him or give him a kiss and while the baby was being cleaned by the nurses Carrie was left alone, barely even noticed. Actually, even Dr Snyderman noticed this and went over to Carrie to comfort her and congratulate her on the birth.
This reminded me of the doula clients I had who had a cesarean birth and how happy I was to be beside my client, continually telling her what was happening, congratulating her, stroking her hair, and making her feel loved and cared for (rather than left behind).
The story continues in Carrie and Josh's recovery room when Carrie's parents arrive to meet their new grandson for the first time. Brody had beeen prominantly propped up on Carrie's shoulder wearing his Today show gear, and when Josh goes to pick Brody up to show him off to his in-laws, Carrie reminds him that she can not pick him up to even hand little baby Brody over to Josh. WOW, that must be hard.
After my second son was born he was taken to the NICU to receive some oxygen and be watched closely, to be over-protective. I remember walking down to the NICU just a few hours after my birth. I can't even imagine how it must feel to not even be able to pick your baby up after your birth.
I have come across several blogs that are posting about this birth story. If you are interested in reading their comments visit:
ICAN Responds: "Today Show" Spreads Misinformation
The Crunchy Domestic Goddess
Daily Finance
To watch this episode of "In the OR" on the Today Show click here
Showing posts with label Today Show. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Today Show. Show all posts
Friday, February 5, 2010
Tuesday, September 15, 2009
The Perils of Home Birth? - Carri's Thoughts
Posted by Carri
On Friday there was a segment on The Today Show titled "The Perils of Home Birth." Frankly the title already tells you what kind of piece this was. Though they tried to make it somewhat balanced by showcasing a bad outcome of a home birth and then also a short part about a couple that had a good outcome from a home birth, I felt that the whole piece was very crafty and I'm certain was effective in deterring many women away from home birth that may have chosen it otherwise. There is nothing more effective than showing pregnant women that their babies could die if they choose something out of the "norm." That was the point. The Academy of Obstetrics and Gynecology has a publicist with the agenda to steer women away from alternatives in childbirth, and this was a prime example of their smear campaign against midwifery.
I thought it was interesting that it was two men discussing this subject and casually saying things like giving birth at home is "hedonistic" and like a "spa treatment." Both comments are very untrue and frankly offensive. I have given birth both in the hospital and at home, and neither were "spa like" - I'm not sure how two men get away with thinking that?! All in all, I feel this is a huge issue for women today. For some reason people are all about "choice" when it comes to abortion - even partial birth abortion, but if women want to make choices they feel are best for them and their babies they are hedonistic and jeopardizing the life of their baby. This is very controversial and I beleive is profit driven. Birth is one of the leading profitable businesses for a hospital and they would suffer huge losses if there was a large shift away from the hospital birth.
They also mention in the piece that many women have a home birth for the "experience." Duh! This is where the main disagreement lies; they are approaching birth as a medical emergency, and midwives and other natural birth supporters view it as a natural part of life that can occasionally have medical emergencies. Birth is more than pushing a baby out. Birth is about welcoming your child into the world and digging deep within your soul to grow as a woman and become a mother. There is a lot of evidence that shows that women who give birth naturally bond better with their babies and adapt to their role as mother much more strongly than those that have epidurals or cesareans. No mother should have to suffer the loss of a child, but depriving women of the choice of where and how they want to bring their babies into the world is also a travesty.
Do I think all babies should be born at home? No. I believe there is a place for both and am thankful that we have both. However, I do not agree that it is OK for ACOG to head a smear campaign against midwives and home births for their own profit driven agenda. Women should have choices, and that most definitley includes where and how to birth thier babies.
On Friday there was a segment on The Today Show titled "The Perils of Home Birth." Frankly the title already tells you what kind of piece this was. Though they tried to make it somewhat balanced by showcasing a bad outcome of a home birth and then also a short part about a couple that had a good outcome from a home birth, I felt that the whole piece was very crafty and I'm certain was effective in deterring many women away from home birth that may have chosen it otherwise. There is nothing more effective than showing pregnant women that their babies could die if they choose something out of the "norm." That was the point. The Academy of Obstetrics and Gynecology has a publicist with the agenda to steer women away from alternatives in childbirth, and this was a prime example of their smear campaign against midwifery.
I thought it was interesting that it was two men discussing this subject and casually saying things like giving birth at home is "hedonistic" and like a "spa treatment." Both comments are very untrue and frankly offensive. I have given birth both in the hospital and at home, and neither were "spa like" - I'm not sure how two men get away with thinking that?! All in all, I feel this is a huge issue for women today. For some reason people are all about "choice" when it comes to abortion - even partial birth abortion, but if women want to make choices they feel are best for them and their babies they are hedonistic and jeopardizing the life of their baby. This is very controversial and I beleive is profit driven. Birth is one of the leading profitable businesses for a hospital and they would suffer huge losses if there was a large shift away from the hospital birth.
They also mention in the piece that many women have a home birth for the "experience." Duh! This is where the main disagreement lies; they are approaching birth as a medical emergency, and midwives and other natural birth supporters view it as a natural part of life that can occasionally have medical emergencies. Birth is more than pushing a baby out. Birth is about welcoming your child into the world and digging deep within your soul to grow as a woman and become a mother. There is a lot of evidence that shows that women who give birth naturally bond better with their babies and adapt to their role as mother much more strongly than those that have epidurals or cesareans. No mother should have to suffer the loss of a child, but depriving women of the choice of where and how they want to bring their babies into the world is also a travesty.
Do I think all babies should be born at home? No. I believe there is a place for both and am thankful that we have both. However, I do not agree that it is OK for ACOG to head a smear campaign against midwives and home births for their own profit driven agenda. Women should have choices, and that most definitley includes where and how to birth thier babies.
Monday, September 14, 2009
The Non-Perils of Midwifery
Blog post from the ACNM website on September 11, 2009
Earlier, the Today Show aired a sad, unfortunate piece called “Perils of Midwifery.” (They later updated the Web segment title to "Perils of Home Births.") Not only does it follow the heart-breaking account of a birth gone horribly wrong; it exploits the couple’s tragedy—turning it into a sensationalized story that scares women and grossly misrepresents midwifery.
The safety of midwife-attended births is well documented in a substantive and ongoing body of research. If ACNM, the professional organization for certified midwives and certified nurse-midwives, had been consulted during the development of this piece, the Today Show’s journalists would have known about these top 5 fact-based resources from the past year:
1. Evidence-Based Maternity Care: What It Is and What It Can Achieve says that midwives top the list of “underused interventions” that should be used “whenever possible and appropriate.” Several systematic reviews showing improved outcomes associated with midwifery-led care are cited.
2. A Cochrane Review concluded that “most women should be offered midwife-led models of care.”
3. A study published in the British Journal of Obstetrics and Gynaecology found that planned homebirth is as safe as hospital birth for women with low-risk pregnancies.
4. Just last week, Canadian researchers declared that “Planned home birth attended by a registered midwife was associated with very low and comparable rates of perinatal death…and other adverse perinatal outcomes compared with planned hospital birth....”
5. Authors of an ACOG Obstetrics & Gynecology article say they encourage midwifery care and “support future randomized trials to compare” home vs. hospital births.
Women and health care professionals need to be making decisions that are informed by evidence-based medicine—not reactionary interventions and unbalanced investigative journalism. Women deserve better.
Earlier, the Today Show aired a sad, unfortunate piece called “Perils of Midwifery.” (They later updated the Web segment title to "Perils of Home Births.") Not only does it follow the heart-breaking account of a birth gone horribly wrong; it exploits the couple’s tragedy—turning it into a sensationalized story that scares women and grossly misrepresents midwifery.
The safety of midwife-attended births is well documented in a substantive and ongoing body of research. If ACNM, the professional organization for certified midwives and certified nurse-midwives, had been consulted during the development of this piece, the Today Show’s journalists would have known about these top 5 fact-based resources from the past year:
1. Evidence-Based Maternity Care: What It Is and What It Can Achieve says that midwives top the list of “underused interventions” that should be used “whenever possible and appropriate.” Several systematic reviews showing improved outcomes associated with midwifery-led care are cited.
2. A Cochrane Review concluded that “most women should be offered midwife-led models of care.”
3. A study published in the British Journal of Obstetrics and Gynaecology found that planned homebirth is as safe as hospital birth for women with low-risk pregnancies.
4. Just last week, Canadian researchers declared that “Planned home birth attended by a registered midwife was associated with very low and comparable rates of perinatal death…and other adverse perinatal outcomes compared with planned hospital birth....”
5. Authors of an ACOG Obstetrics & Gynecology article say they encourage midwifery care and “support future randomized trials to compare” home vs. hospital births.
Women and health care professionals need to be making decisions that are informed by evidence-based medicine—not reactionary interventions and unbalanced investigative journalism. Women deserve better.
Tuesday, May 5, 2009
BeadforLife featured on the Today Show
Posted by Kim:
Carri and I feel so blessed that through our business we have been able to help make a difference in a woman's birth experience. Beyond that we LOVE that our business has also helped to support other women owned businesses and in fact has helped to touch women's lives around the world. What an amazing feeling.
As with most great things that have happened in my life, I simply happened to be at the right place at the right time. After Carri and I launched our line of Birth Wish Bracelets, we were happy that our idea had finally come to fruition, but after several months we just felt like it could be better. Enter me asking a good friend, by chance, if she happened to know where I could purchase Fair Trade beads. Well wouldn't you know that she happened to be wearing a BeadforLife bracelet and she suggested we talk with them, because they happen to be headquartered in Boulder!
Well that one short conversation lead to a wonderful partnership and Carri and I are very honored and proud that we not only offer BINSI Birth Wish bracelets as a wonderful baby shower or blessingway gift or favor, but that the bracelets in our kits are the amazingly beautiful bracelets made by the BeadforLife beaders.
Because we are so honored and thrilled to be working with BeadforLife we were VERY excited to receive the news that BeadforLife will be featured on NBC's Today Show on Wednesday, May 6th. The show will feature the extraordinary work of BeadforLife, our poverty eradication organization working in Uganda. Over five million viewers will see how BeadforLife has created a network of women in Uganda and throughout North America and beyond to work together to eradicate extreme poverty.
Carri and I feel so blessed that through our business we have been able to help make a difference in a woman's birth experience. Beyond that we LOVE that our business has also helped to support other women owned businesses and in fact has helped to touch women's lives around the world. What an amazing feeling.
As with most great things that have happened in my life, I simply happened to be at the right place at the right time. After Carri and I launched our line of Birth Wish Bracelets, we were happy that our idea had finally come to fruition, but after several months we just felt like it could be better. Enter me asking a good friend, by chance, if she happened to know where I could purchase Fair Trade beads. Well wouldn't you know that she happened to be wearing a BeadforLife bracelet and she suggested we talk with them, because they happen to be headquartered in Boulder!
Well that one short conversation lead to a wonderful partnership and Carri and I are very honored and proud that we not only offer BINSI Birth Wish bracelets as a wonderful baby shower or blessingway gift or favor, but that the bracelets in our kits are the amazingly beautiful bracelets made by the BeadforLife beaders.
Because we are so honored and thrilled to be working with BeadforLife we were VERY excited to receive the news that BeadforLife will be featured on NBC's Today Show on Wednesday, May 6th. The show will feature the extraordinary work of BeadforLife, our poverty eradication organization working in Uganda. Over five million viewers will see how BeadforLife has created a network of women in Uganda and throughout North America and beyond to work together to eradicate extreme poverty.
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