Most pregnant women
have at least some desire or hope to have a natural birth. We want to
know that we are capable of birthing our babies, like many of our
ancestors. However, many women find themselves thrown into an unknown
world full of fear with little knowledge of what is happening to their
bodies. This unfamiliar experience leads to a lot of different fears, as
we have been discussing over the last few months.
In the presence of
normality, almost every woman can give birth naturally and
intervention-free with the right education and support. Even women with
high-risk pregnancies can give birth naturally if they are supported and
monitored appropriately. It is important, however, to be educated
about the birth process, know in advance what the risks and benefits are
of any treatment you may encounter, and know how to tell the difference
between an “unwanted” intervention and an “unnecessary” intervention.
There is a difference
between “unwanted” and “unnecessary” interventions. I think what most
women fear is actually unnecessary interventions, because we should be
able to recognize, even though we may not want them, there is a time
when interventions may become necessary to save the life of the mother
and baby. But how do we recognize the difference? Well, There are a few
easy steps you and your support team (whether a husband, partner or
doula) can take to ensure you are getting the information you need to
distinguish between an unnecessary intervention and a necessary one.
To make sure you know
whether or not you are getting a unnecessary intervention, there is a
series of questions that will allow you to recognize when a treatment is
really necessary and to make informed decisions. So let’s look at how
you do this:
What is informed consent?
Informed consent means that you are given all of the information, both
positive and negative, about any procedure that will allow you to make
an educated decision. For example, if your practitioner suggests giving
you Pitocin to speed up labor, they are required to tell you why they
are suggesting this, what the risks and benefits are, what are the
alternatives and also discuss what happens if you do nothing.
How do you give informed
consent? To give informed consent just use your BRAINS (I like this
popular pneumonic device to help remember what to ask).
B – Benefits.
What are the benefits of this procedure? Why are you recommending this
procedure? Why are you recommending this procedure? How do you see it
helping the birth process.
R – Risks.
What are the risks of this procedure? What are the effects on mommy and
baby? How long will these effects last? What is the chance this
procedure won’t work?
A – Alternatives.
Are there any natural alternatives to this procedure? Are there any
medical alternatives to this procedure? What haven’t we tried yet?
I – Intuition
– What is your intuition telling you about the procedure? Do you trust
that it is necessary, or is your mind and the knowledge you acquired
previous to birth telling you to try something else?
N – Nothing. What will happen if we do nothing? What will happen if we wait?
S – ‘Scuse me?
Can we have some time to talk about the procedure? It is necessary to
have some time alone with just you and your partner to discuss the
information and make the right decision for you and your baby.
Knowing this information
will help you determine whether an intervention is necessary or
unnecessary and you can feel confident that you won’t receive any
interventions that you don’t need (or want).
Need to build your base of
knowledge so you can make informed decisions during your birth? Register
for our FREE pregnancy seminar coming up in March www.FamilyBirthSupportServices.com.
