The VBAC Blog

THINKING OF MUTILATING YOUR CHILD’S GENITALS JUST BECAUSE YOUR DOCTOR OR HUSBAND OR MOTHER-IN-LAW, OR ANYONE ELSE SAYS YOU SHOULD? THINK AGAIN!

CLICK ON BOLD HEADLINES BELOW TO READ EACH STORY.

Circumcision Surgery Accidents, Complications, and Atrocities
There are many horror stories on this site.

Photos of Skin Bridges
Painful, permanent scarring that can occur when foreskin is forcibly retracted.

Family Awarded $2.3 Million
for Botched Circumcision
“… the tip of the penis was placed in a biohazard bag and that doctors might have been able to reattach it if they had acted within eight hours of the procedure.”

Botched Circumcision
At the completion of the circumcision, hospital records indicated there was significant bleeding. Inspection of the penis revealed nearly all of the glans had been amputated at the time of the circumcision.

Lawsuit claims botched circumcision
“…rather than removing only the foreskin, the doctor cut and removed a portion of the baby’s penis, the suit said.”

Complications of circumcision
“Although haemorrhage and sepsis are the main causes of morbidity, the variety of complications is enormous. The literature abounds with reports of morbidity and even death as a result of circumcision.”

NEGATIVE ASPECTS OF ROUTINE INFANT CIRCUMCISION
“”The … doctors who still perform circumcision are violating the first rule of good medicine — primum non nocere — first, do no harm.” - Dr. Benjamin Spock

If you google “botched circumcision”, you’ll find more links than you’ll have time to read.

Click on bold items below to read the articles.

Neonatal Outcomes May Be Better With Vaginal Birth After Cesarean Delivery
“Neonates born after elective subsequent cesarean delivery have significantly higher rates of respiratory morbidity and neonatal intensive care unit (NICU) admission and longer length of hospital stay vs those with vaginal birth after cesarean (VBAC), according to the results of a retrospective cohort study reported in the June issue of Obstetrics & Gynecology.”

Natural birth after c-section possible at Natividad Medical Center again
Natividad Medical Center announced Wednesday that so-called VBACs vaginal birth after cesarean are back. “This is something that I’ve heard women wanting for as long as I’ve lived here,” said Judy Rasmussen, the hospital’s director of prenatal services.

Repeat C-section babies more at risk than VBAC babies!
“Babies delivered by elective, repeat cesarean section delivery are nearly twice as likely to be admitted to the neonatal intensive care unit (NICU) than those born vaginally after the mother has previously had a c-section…”

My Super Vagina!
“So, I did it! I had a VBAC, or a vaginal birth after cesarean.”

Let women choose birthing alternative
OUTRAGE! Lehigh Valley Hospital terminates the delivery privileges of Laurice Dunning and Valley Midwives

Click on bold items below to read the articles.

VBACs: Breaking the repeat cesarean cycle
Monica Cornish delivered her first child by cesarean section. “My baby was breech and my recovery was difficult due to some problems with the incision healing,” Cornish says. “They basically had to reopen it and leave it open for a week to drain all the blood out…

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Doulas of Central New York seeks positive birth stories

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Birth by appointment
When Emma Lincoln was getting ready to deliver her first child, she told her doctor to schedule a Caesarean section. Neither Ms. Lincoln, who lives in Salisbury, Md., nor her baby had any medical issues that would warrant the surgical delivery.

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You Try Saying No to a C-Section
According to Listening to Mothers II, the largest survey of women’s experiences during pregnancy, childbirth, and the postpartum period, one quarter of the survey participants who had cesareans reported that they had experienced pressure from a health professional to have cesarean surgery…

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Home Birthing is *Gasp* Safe!
A large-scale study in the Netherlands has found no difference in death rates of either mothers or babies in 530,000 births. Whether you give birth in the hospital or in the comforts of your own home, the stats are the same.

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Washington Times Examines Increase In Elective Caesarean Section Deliveries
Changing attitudes toward c-sections, doctors and insurance companies’ concerns about malpractice lawsuits, and some women’s perception that scheduled births are more convenient have led to the increase in c-sections, which carry risks of complications from anesthesia and longer hospital stays and recoveries than vaginal births….

Iowa’s Cesarean Numbers Climb to All-Time High
“Houchins blames the higher number of c-sections on the choice of many doctors to avoid the vaginal-birth-after-cesarean method (VBAC).”

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Secondary Cesarean Sections Pose Risk Factors
“Doctors warn most expectant mothers with a previous Cesarean section about the risks of vaginal birth following a Cesarean (VBAC) but not about the risks of multiple Cesarean sections both to mother or her baby.”

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Birth by surgery: The skyrocketing cesarean rate
“Two weeks before Kristi Ashley gave birth to a son in 2007, an ultrasound exam estimated the baby at a hefty 12 pounds, 10 ounces — too big, her doctor believed, for a safe vaginal delivery. After the child weighed in at 9 pounds, 4 ounces in the delivery room…”

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C-section births fall
“North Adams Regional Hospital performs significantly fewer c-sections than other hospitals around the state…”

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Need for transparency increases as Cesarean section rates rise
“Research conducted by the World Health Organization shows that these risks of cesarean outweigh the benefits when the c-section rate exceeds 15%.”

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C-Section horror
When doctors wait too long to operate. This occurred in South Africa.

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High blood pressure killed Chandra after C-section
“Shortly after a C-section to deliver her son, Chandra Mahabir’s blood pressure raised to such a high level that she suffered blood clots in her lungs and pressure on the brain causing her to die”, an autopsy revealed.

Encourage Washington Regional Medical Center to reverse their ban on VBAC

Research proves Vaginal Birth After Cesarean to be safer for mom and baby than repeat cesarean!

Show your support on:

Friday, April 17th at noon
Gordon Long Park
2800 N. Gregg
Fayetteville, Arkansas

*If possible, please bring a sign of support to the rally. A limited quantity of signs will be available.*

For more information about this or future Rallies for Willow Creek, Northwest (in Bentonville), and Mercy Medical Center please visit: http://www.arkansasVBACcoalition.com

Volunteers are needed for all events. Please email help@arkansasVBACcoalition.com if you’re interested in helping!

Please forward this email to everyone you know. This issue affects everyone, either directly or indirectly.

A poster advertising the rally is attached. Please feel free to print out posters to give to friends & family or post around town. We appreciate you helping get the word out!

We hope to see you there!
Aly Kirkpatrick
Chapter Leader, NW Arkansas ICAN
HBAC
http://www.ican-online.org