irish_cob
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Does anyone else find that their MW/OB negativity has the opposite effect intended? Something that Lisa and I were discussing on the phone today. I had an appt with a new MW today as I have moved house so I now fall under a different area and I'm registered with a different GP. I hadn't discussed home birthing before with the previous MW so I can't say if her reaction would have been any different.
But the first thing she said was that home birthing is something they offer to ladies with straightforward pregnancies, so she needed to look over my notes. So off she went, and it turns out I'm apparently high risk because I tick some boxes so I have to be seen by a consultant at the hospital. My previous medical history: supraventricular tachycardia in 2006 (mega fast heart rate - it reached over 230 bpm) and I ended up in A&E because I had no idea what on earth was going on. This was investigated at the time, had an ultrasound scan of my heart and all was ok. They said it was just one of those things, and not all that uncommon in young women. I've never had a severe attack since that initial one in 2006, sometimes I could feel one starting and I worked out through trial and error that I could prevent attacks by cutting out alcohol and down on caffeine, and if my heart does start racing then a warm drink stops it. So strangely enough since being pregnant when I've hardly had any caffeine and only the odd sip of alcohol, I've not had a single attack, and I can't see that it's likely that I will have one in labour, so I consider that very much a managed risk, and definitely my HISTORY, not a current condition.
BMI is now 41 or 42 depending on whether she uses her computer or her wheel thing *cringe*. So of course I'm at risk for gestational diabetes. I went for the GTT but I ended up clammy, dizzy, woozy and sick, and I vomited after 45 minutes so I can't even tolerate the test! I'm refusing to go for another test as that knocked me off my feet for 24 hours and I can't imagine it did the baby any good if I felt that rough, and I'm not prepared to go through it again, I really genuinely want to die, I hate feeling sick and like I'm going to collapse. I suspect the same will just keep happening if I do go, so they'll never get me to the end of the test. So if they want to find out if I have GD they're gonna have to think of another way, but anyway that's besides the point. So the MW says if I do have GD I'll have to go to hospital because I'll need insulin in labour and they don't carry any. Um really, thinks I. I didn't realise going into labour meant your blood sugars suddenly went crazy high and you needed insulin on tap! If I was using insulin as a diagnosed gestational diabetic surely I would have my own blood testing kit and insulin and be able to monitor my own sugars in labour as I would have been doing anyway? So I said I would still want a homebirth even with GD as I wasn't convinced it was a big enough risk to opt for a hospital birth and the MW said that it was up to the midwives to decide because it is them putting their registration at risk at the end of the day and they wouldn't feel happy attending a GD homebirth.
3rd thing in my medical history - loop excision of the cervix. This can cause scarring which can mean that the cervix doesn't dilate properly. Again, I'm not sure why this means I have to go and see a consultant at 34-36 weeks because I asked about it previously and they can do nothing except monitor you in labour to make sure you're dilating properly. And I believe midwives are perfectly capable of monitoring dilation, and I believe that even if it turns out I'm not dilating properly, it doesn't become a huge medical emergency that means I need transferring that second, I don't think failure to progress means that the baby ends up in distress, so there would be enough time to work out my options, whether that's manual dilation help from a midwife or transfer for a c-section, I still don't think there's any reason why I can't try for a home birth. I also asked the colposcopy nurses who are the ladies I see every year and who actually carried out the procedure, and they said I had the minor-ist procedure and they don't think it will affect my cervix, and they're the experts who actually know me and know what procedure they've done, not a consultant in a different hospital.
And I had a history of depression in my 20s, but again, what can going to see a consultant at 34-36 weeks do about that? Why would having a tendency to depression mean I need to be in hospital rather than having the birth I want at home? Not to mention I've been stable and well since 2006 (that's 5 whole years ago!)
And then, once she'd finished dissecting my notes and finding all the possible issues, she palpated my bump and said, "oooh she's breech, you know that's a c-section right?" Arrrrgh!! I'm only 29 weeks, that's plenty of time for her to turn round, and even if she doesn't, of course I can still try for a vaginal birth with a breech baby. Talk about going for the negative most option first, it would have been much better for her to have said "oh I think she's breech but she's still got plenty of time to turn round, we don't have to worry about it yet" rather than jumping straight in with c-sections.
I really feel like they don't look at you overall, they don't look at what's in front of them. My blood pressure is fine, my pulse is fine, the baby's heartrate is perfect, my fundal height is correct for my dates, the baby feels the right size according to the MW, I'm feeling well and healthy, my blood test results are all good, I'm still active and mobile, and my 12 and 20 week scans have been absolutely normal. Yes I'm obese, but I was obese before I was pregnant, it's my normal state of being, and I feel very well and healthy and am having a very straightforward pregnancy - no bleeding, no problems at all.
So the midwife said she would be referring me for shared care and I'd be receiving an appointment to see the consultant at the hospital because they'd want to see me, and I felt like saying "yes, but I don't want to see them", but I said "yes, fine" and smiled instead :diplomatic: and she said that we could see about homebirth once I've had the appointment. I didn't tell her that I'd be phoning up and cancelling the appointment as soon as it arrived on my door mat
But I'm just left feeling the opposite to her intentions I'm sure. I'm left feeling even more stubborn that I want my home birth. I find it awful that you have to push for your rights, and that seemingly minor events in your history push you into the high risk category for seemingly no reason, I could understand it if I'd had major surgery in the past or I was suffering bleeding or there were developmental problems with the baby, but it's not the case, the issues they're worrying about don't seem to be things that an appointment with a consultant at 34 weeks will solve in any way, shape or form. I feel like I want to tell the whole of the medical profession to get knotted, and I feel even less likely to comply with what they want. The more they make things difficult, the more stubborn I get. Is this just me or do others dig in their heels too? Since when did they get to tell me what I can do with my body? I mean, thank goodness we've got these consultants and boxes to tick, I can't imagine that women possibly managed to give birth before them! :sarcasm:
Lisa said she's heard of cases where women have even been threatened with having the police called and being sectioned because they persisted with their right for a home birth. How ridiculous! We discussed the fact that instead of threatening us pregnant ladies, perhaps sitting down with us and discussing things sensibly, and trying to see things from both points of view and finding a position of compromise would be much more sensible than bullying and threatening. You can understand why freebirthing begins to hold more and more appeal to many people. The more I think about it, the more frustrated I get. Somehow the minute you're pregnant, the medical profession seems to think it has the right to tell you what to do, and what's going to happen to you, and I find that immensely condescending.
There, that's my rant done for the day. Anyone else get more stubborn the more someone tells them they can't do something?
But the first thing she said was that home birthing is something they offer to ladies with straightforward pregnancies, so she needed to look over my notes. So off she went, and it turns out I'm apparently high risk because I tick some boxes so I have to be seen by a consultant at the hospital. My previous medical history: supraventricular tachycardia in 2006 (mega fast heart rate - it reached over 230 bpm) and I ended up in A&E because I had no idea what on earth was going on. This was investigated at the time, had an ultrasound scan of my heart and all was ok. They said it was just one of those things, and not all that uncommon in young women. I've never had a severe attack since that initial one in 2006, sometimes I could feel one starting and I worked out through trial and error that I could prevent attacks by cutting out alcohol and down on caffeine, and if my heart does start racing then a warm drink stops it. So strangely enough since being pregnant when I've hardly had any caffeine and only the odd sip of alcohol, I've not had a single attack, and I can't see that it's likely that I will have one in labour, so I consider that very much a managed risk, and definitely my HISTORY, not a current condition.
BMI is now 41 or 42 depending on whether she uses her computer or her wheel thing *cringe*. So of course I'm at risk for gestational diabetes. I went for the GTT but I ended up clammy, dizzy, woozy and sick, and I vomited after 45 minutes so I can't even tolerate the test! I'm refusing to go for another test as that knocked me off my feet for 24 hours and I can't imagine it did the baby any good if I felt that rough, and I'm not prepared to go through it again, I really genuinely want to die, I hate feeling sick and like I'm going to collapse. I suspect the same will just keep happening if I do go, so they'll never get me to the end of the test. So if they want to find out if I have GD they're gonna have to think of another way, but anyway that's besides the point. So the MW says if I do have GD I'll have to go to hospital because I'll need insulin in labour and they don't carry any. Um really, thinks I. I didn't realise going into labour meant your blood sugars suddenly went crazy high and you needed insulin on tap! If I was using insulin as a diagnosed gestational diabetic surely I would have my own blood testing kit and insulin and be able to monitor my own sugars in labour as I would have been doing anyway? So I said I would still want a homebirth even with GD as I wasn't convinced it was a big enough risk to opt for a hospital birth and the MW said that it was up to the midwives to decide because it is them putting their registration at risk at the end of the day and they wouldn't feel happy attending a GD homebirth.
3rd thing in my medical history - loop excision of the cervix. This can cause scarring which can mean that the cervix doesn't dilate properly. Again, I'm not sure why this means I have to go and see a consultant at 34-36 weeks because I asked about it previously and they can do nothing except monitor you in labour to make sure you're dilating properly. And I believe midwives are perfectly capable of monitoring dilation, and I believe that even if it turns out I'm not dilating properly, it doesn't become a huge medical emergency that means I need transferring that second, I don't think failure to progress means that the baby ends up in distress, so there would be enough time to work out my options, whether that's manual dilation help from a midwife or transfer for a c-section, I still don't think there's any reason why I can't try for a home birth. I also asked the colposcopy nurses who are the ladies I see every year and who actually carried out the procedure, and they said I had the minor-ist procedure and they don't think it will affect my cervix, and they're the experts who actually know me and know what procedure they've done, not a consultant in a different hospital.
And I had a history of depression in my 20s, but again, what can going to see a consultant at 34-36 weeks do about that? Why would having a tendency to depression mean I need to be in hospital rather than having the birth I want at home? Not to mention I've been stable and well since 2006 (that's 5 whole years ago!)
And then, once she'd finished dissecting my notes and finding all the possible issues, she palpated my bump and said, "oooh she's breech, you know that's a c-section right?" Arrrrgh!! I'm only 29 weeks, that's plenty of time for her to turn round, and even if she doesn't, of course I can still try for a vaginal birth with a breech baby. Talk about going for the negative most option first, it would have been much better for her to have said "oh I think she's breech but she's still got plenty of time to turn round, we don't have to worry about it yet" rather than jumping straight in with c-sections.
I really feel like they don't look at you overall, they don't look at what's in front of them. My blood pressure is fine, my pulse is fine, the baby's heartrate is perfect, my fundal height is correct for my dates, the baby feels the right size according to the MW, I'm feeling well and healthy, my blood test results are all good, I'm still active and mobile, and my 12 and 20 week scans have been absolutely normal. Yes I'm obese, but I was obese before I was pregnant, it's my normal state of being, and I feel very well and healthy and am having a very straightforward pregnancy - no bleeding, no problems at all.
So the midwife said she would be referring me for shared care and I'd be receiving an appointment to see the consultant at the hospital because they'd want to see me, and I felt like saying "yes, but I don't want to see them", but I said "yes, fine" and smiled instead :diplomatic: and she said that we could see about homebirth once I've had the appointment. I didn't tell her that I'd be phoning up and cancelling the appointment as soon as it arrived on my door mat
But I'm just left feeling the opposite to her intentions I'm sure. I'm left feeling even more stubborn that I want my home birth. I find it awful that you have to push for your rights, and that seemingly minor events in your history push you into the high risk category for seemingly no reason, I could understand it if I'd had major surgery in the past or I was suffering bleeding or there were developmental problems with the baby, but it's not the case, the issues they're worrying about don't seem to be things that an appointment with a consultant at 34 weeks will solve in any way, shape or form. I feel like I want to tell the whole of the medical profession to get knotted, and I feel even less likely to comply with what they want. The more they make things difficult, the more stubborn I get. Is this just me or do others dig in their heels too? Since when did they get to tell me what I can do with my body? I mean, thank goodness we've got these consultants and boxes to tick, I can't imagine that women possibly managed to give birth before them! :sarcasm:
Lisa said she's heard of cases where women have even been threatened with having the police called and being sectioned because they persisted with their right for a home birth. How ridiculous! We discussed the fact that instead of threatening us pregnant ladies, perhaps sitting down with us and discussing things sensibly, and trying to see things from both points of view and finding a position of compromise would be much more sensible than bullying and threatening. You can understand why freebirthing begins to hold more and more appeal to many people. The more I think about it, the more frustrated I get. Somehow the minute you're pregnant, the medical profession seems to think it has the right to tell you what to do, and what's going to happen to you, and I find that immensely condescending.
There, that's my rant done for the day. Anyone else get more stubborn the more someone tells them they can't do something?
I actualy told them they wernt allowed to stop me.
still didn't stop him trying to scaremonger me out of it mind, he didn't have an answer for me when I said "how many 'normal' births have you attended?". It's funny how they have selective hearing when being asked questions 
