Does the controversy surrounding natural childbirth genuinely surround the pain associated with labor and birth, or might it instead be because women are fearful of an event they have become so unfamiliar and unprepared? Labor is intense. Contractions are strong and powerful. The process of birth consumes you. It is also life-altering and potentially the rawest beauty any one person could ever experience or witness.
Historically, laboring women have surrounded themselves with other women, usually friends and kin, who provided practical aid, comfort, and emotional support through labor. The goal of such support was to empower women to cope with the demands of labor. We have each witnessed videos of dolphin and elephant “doulas” circling laboring tribe mates an encouraging support and protective barrier.
Mothers today in America frequently choose epidurals as their resource for pain relief in labor. This transition from women supporting women changed when childbirth moved from home to hospital in the first half of the 20th century. Nursing care later transitioned from supportive to technical towards the end of the 20th century. Childbirth has therefore, become very foreign to most people and our skill in supporting each other effectively has all but vanished.
Often the decision for an epidural isn’t an informed, planned decision but essentially the only option laboring mothers were given in what seemed like a downward spiral towards over whelming crisis. Labor support with a midwife and/or doula allows a mother to perceive a greater amount of control and improve her ability to cope during labor. Mothers with support through labor have demonstrated higher self-esteem, less post-partum depression, and an increased satisfaction with the birthing process. They additionally experience less pain, have less anxiety and breastfeed more successfully and have increased bonding with their newborns (Sauls, 2002).
Evidence demonstrates that “mothers who experience these positive physiologic outcomes from being supported through labor are more likely to have positive attitudes toward motherhood, develop rich and successful family relationships, and have positive development as women” (Sauls, 2002).
In my professional opinion, the use of anesthesia in labor is neither a sign of weakness nor selfishness, but a symbol of our increasing reliance on technology and comfort. It is also an indication of how insecure and fearful women feel about their ability to birth. ~Leslie Ann Fuchs MD
Resources for support in achieving natural childbirth can be found through the resource link to the left of this post.
Posted by Penny Lane MSN, CNM
Believe Midwifery Services, LLC
Sauls, D. (2002). Effects of labor support on mothers, babies, and birth outcomes. JOGNN, 31(6), 733-740.
