Ruby's review of Ina May's Guide to Childbirth
Ina May's Guide to Childbirth by Ina May Gaskin
Ruby's review
rating:
bookshelves:
bun-in--cook--ding-,
non-fiction,
reference
recommended for:
anyone likely to get pregnant or have a partner who gets pregnant
status:
Read in February, 2008
There's a popular illusion that being in a hospital is the healthiest place to be. This seems especially true in childbirth, and nervous first time mothers are likely to imagine that their family's safety is best assured there.
It turns out that this is not at all true. Given the money-conscious nature of our HMO ruled health care system; the schedules of overloaded ob-gyns; the high liability concern in hospitals; and the chilly, impersonal feeling in many maternity wards, the hospital is not safer or healthier for anyone, and is not an environment conducive to a good delivery. Labors conducted under our current ob-gyn standards are much more unsafe than a traditional unmedicated, midwife delivered births--for both the baby and the mother.
This was eye-opening to me. I think I knew it, but forgot somehow.
As compelling as Ina May's reminder is, she speaks of another powerful reason to labor naturally: power itself. Delivering a child is one of the most incredible feats a huma...more
It turns out that this is not at all true. Given the money-conscious nature of our HMO ruled health care system; the schedules of overloaded ob-gyns; the high liability concern in hospitals; and the chilly, impersonal feeling in many maternity wards, the hospital is not safer or healthier for anyone, and is not an environment conducive to a good delivery. Labors conducted under our current ob-gyn standards are much more unsafe than a traditional unmedicated, midwife delivered births--for both the baby and the mother.
This was eye-opening to me. I think I knew it, but forgot somehow.
As compelling as Ina May's reminder is, she speaks of another powerful reason to labor naturally: power itself. Delivering a child is one of the most incredible feats a huma...more
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