Posted by My OB said WHAT?!?.
Aug
28
Posted by My OB said WHAT?!?.
“…It Was Illegal In California To Have A Vaginal Birth After Having A Cesarean Section.”
“My doctor told me it was illegal in California to have a vaginal birth after having a cesarean section.” – mother repeating what she was told by her doctor.
There are 30 comments to this post.
That is so stupid. I really hope that was a scare tactic and not anything real. Not that it makes it any better.. but perhaps a few stupid people is better than a state full of stupid law makers and doctors?? I’m sorry someone said that to you OP.
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The Deranged Housewife had this to say,
Aug 28, 2010 @ 5:59 am (Quote)
LOL This reminds me of a typical conversation I’ve had with “friends,” etc. Now I just look at them and laugh when they say things like that, and nicely say, “Umm….that’s not true. I’m sorry, but your doctor is lying to you. Have a nice day!” 
My friends and neighbors know that if they talk to me about such subjects, they’re going to get an earful. Whether they like it or not.
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Cmat Reply:
August 28th, 2010 at 10:08 am (Quote)
Hm, I’d actually kind of be glad that I had someone nearby to fact test my doctor against. lol
If it walks like a duck, quacks like a duck.. probably a duck. Likewise, if it sounds like crap, smells like crap.. probably crap- like the original quote by the doctor.
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Although I’ve heard it all and wouldn’t be at all surprised if a doc actually said this, I’d be VERY careful about what I hear second-hand. There’s always the issue of context, friend misinterpreting doctor, doctor “meaning” to have said something else, second-hand person missing something in translation…It’s like that classic party game where people whisper around the circle until the last person conveys a completely different message than the first person. I’m not outright dismissing the quote; it probably is true. The firsthand quotes on this site bear more credibility, but maybe the OP can shed a little more light on this.
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Jessidork Reply:
August 28th, 2010 at 2:04 pm (Quote)
Fun fact of the day – the game you mentioned, “Telephone,” is called “Arab Phone” by the French. Racism can be just a little more overt in some places… 
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Jen Kamel, VBAC Facts had this to say,
Aug 28, 2010 @ 8:21 am (Quote)
Wendy,
You would be very surprised. The reason I wrote that article was because I was seeing so many people find vbacfacts.com by googling some variation of “is VBAC illegal.”
I suspect women are told this because it stops the conversation as most would not want to do something illegal. You can imagine how they feel when they find out after their unwanted, unnecessary repeat cesarean that VBACs are legal throughout the US.
Warmly,
Jen from vbacfacts.com
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Jen Kamel, VBAC Facts Reply:
August 28th, 2010 at 8:24 am (Quote)
While this woman was not told that VBAC was illegal during her VBAC consult, she was told many other things that are completely false. Fortunately, she knew enough to question her OB and switch to another provider.
http://vbacfacts.com/2010/03/16/another-vbac-consult-misinforms/
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Some providers confuse “standard practice of care” with “the law”.
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Katy Reply:
August 28th, 2010 at 3:18 pm (Quote)
Sounds like some providers also confuse their opinion/preference with the law.
There is nothing wrong with someone saying “I’m sorry, I don’t feel comfortable attending a VBAC. Here are my reasons why…now you can decide if it’s right and I’m the doctor you should be with.” It’s really pathetic to just plain lie and expect no one will call you on it.
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Charity Reply:
August 28th, 2010 at 7:09 pm (Quote)
But that would mean they’d have to admit a weakness in their field… That’ll never happen. It’s just unfortunate that so many doctors spout crap like this and they’re never questioned… Don’t doctors know everything there is to know about their field? HA!
I have a friend who was considering a VBAC until my midwife scared her… Needless to say, my midwife got an earful.
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Some docs are not allowed to attend VBACs at their hospitals, just like it’s illegal for some midwives in some areas to attend home births.
The key word is ATTEND.
No where is there a law that restricts the mother from birthing her baby however and wherever she wants.
Although, like Emily said, they’ll probably concoct something to sling at the mother to ‘make her pay’ for her foolishness.
Foolish for wanting to keep her and her baby safe and healthy.
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I was discussing my plans to go for a VBAC after 2 c-sections with a friend and she said, “Oh, I thought it was illegal in New York to do that…” I said, “No, I’ll just have a harder time finding a provider willing to keep me on as a patient!”
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Add Your Comment.
So much for a woman’s rights over her own body.
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Jane Reply:
August 28th, 2010 at 6:19 am Jane(Quote)
I just googled it:
http://vbacfacts.com/2009/02/28/is-vbac-illegal/
“VBAC is not illegal anywhere in the US.”
The only law I was able to find is that it’s illegal for hospitals to ban VBACs. Interesting.
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Jane Reply:
August 28th, 2010 at 6:22 am Jane(Quote)
Of course, I didn’t make note of WHERE it was illegal to ban VBACs, sorry.
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Heather Reply:
August 28th, 2010 at 12:14 pm Heather(Quote)
No kidding
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