Posted by My OB said WHAT?!?.
Aug
28
Posted by My OB said WHAT?!?.
“I *Knew* You Would Hemorrhage…”
“I *knew* you would hemorrhage. I told the midwife you would. Everyone who refuses an IV does. I bet the midwife will start believing me now.” – L&D nurse to mother after a postpartum hemorrhage.
There are 29 comments to this post.
So, you’re saying that EVERY woman who ever went into labor without an IV hemmorhaged? ALL of them? Like, from the beginning of time?
Or is it the actual act of IV refusal that causes women to hemmorhage? Are you saying that the words “I do not consent” are some sort of incantation for exsanguination? I thought it was doulas and midwives who were accused of practicing voodoo.
What else do you *know* with your psychic powers?
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This sounds like confirmation bias. On top of that, the nurse felt free to criticize the mom for exercising her legal rights to refuse an IV. Is it me, or does she sound gleeful, like “I told you so, I told you so, NYAH NYAH NYAH, next time do as you’re TOLD!” or something? There is absolutely nothing about an IV in and of itself that protects against hemorrhage. However, having refused an IV may have contributed to substandard in situ, otherwise known as typical or standard-of-care, care, which may assume both IV and Pitocin drip already running, which can increase the likelihood of complications.
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first time mommy had this to say,
Aug 28, 2011 @ 4:48 pm (Quote)
My mom didn’t. No IVs and 3 vaginal unmedicated births.
Hmmm. Guess this nurse’s crystal ball wasn’t around then.
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Liz had this to say,
Aug 28, 2011 @ 5:05 pm (Quote)
I hemorraghed with both births. The first I had no IV the 2nd I had a heplock. The first time I bled quickly and the second time over the course of 2 days. Surprisingly, my OB said that the IV fluids I received through my heplock may have diluted my blood so much that it made my blood levels drop. I ended up needing a blood transfusion as well. So much for IV fluids preventing hemorraghes.
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funny, i had some excessive bleeding with #2, i call it that because nobody ever said PPH so maybe it doesnt qualify… not sure what the difference is…. and i didnt have an IV and all they did was give me some cytotec (looking back i see that it was because i didnt already have an IV and they were being polite and not breaking the seal so to speak, thats why the OB chose that medication) the nurses and i alternated some uterine massage, and then they FED ME BREAKFAST. Oh, and they let me have a nap, and delayed moving me for an hour. i felt a little woozy for part of that day, so i stayed in bed and ATE a lot. within 24 hrs i felt good as new! imagine, letting my body recover with FOOD instead of drugs or procedures. thank you lovely OB of mine!
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Funny, I had an IV with my miscarriage and EIGHT with my son’s birth, and I hemorrhaged badly. The eight IVs happened because they kept “popping” (I don’t know what else to call it) and they were only from 7 cm on, which was about 2 hours. The doctor actually ordered a transfusion for my miscarriage and the nurse wouldn’t give it to me because she believed another person needed it more. I lost 3/4 of my blood volume. When I hemorrhaged with my son’s birth, they had already taken out the IV (it went bad too) and the nurse wanted to put another in so they could give me pitocin. I refused so they gave it to me in a shot. The doctor actually told me to refuse IVs for every birth because of how many they had to put in me, and told me that they could always give pitocin to me in a shot, if (when) I ever needed it. Funny, nurse, how do you explain THAT one???
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When my mom hemmoraged after my brother’s birth, the doctor told her that it was because “her body wasn’t what it used to be”. yeah. She was 23! I told her it was probably because they pulled the placenta out and didn’t let her nurse. The sad thing is that she believed that for years, and maybe still does. At 23, she was told that her body was pretty much shot.
I had no time to even be offered an IV or heplock, even though I had planned on refusing it. Birth report says less than 200 mls of blood loss, so take that phsyc(o)ic nurse!
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Wow. Way to reveal that you are an ignorant slave to superstition! This is obviously not an evidence-based medical statement nor the basis for any medical decision. This is simply superstition at its best/worst! Haven’t you also heard; “everyone who has a birth-plan gets a c-section”? Sheesh. P.S. I had BOTH a birth-plan and no I.V. three times without a hemorrhage or c-section and I’m pretty sure it wasn’t a miracle (though it was made easier with the last two by staying home to give birth!)
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Sorry for not realizing that this was posted until now! Yeah, it was my first birth and instead of excited, overwhelmingly joyful day; it was lying in bed for 18 hours, unable to lift my head, let alone hold my son, and then in strolls this “I told you so.” It’s taken me 3 years to start healing from the utter rudeness of that day. Oh, and there was also the OB who yelled at my husband and told him he had no right to call himself a husband/protector if he couldn’t see how pale I was and needed a transfusion. Two things: my husband is color-blind and my midwives assured me repeatedly that I’d be just fine on fluids and bed rest…and you know what? I was!
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Sorry for not realizing that this was posted until now! Yeah, it was my first birth and instead of excited, overwhelmingly joyful day; it was lying in bed for 18 hours, unable to lift my head, let alone hold my son, and then in strolls this “I told you so.” It’s taken me 3 years to start healing from the utter rudeness of that day. Oh, and there was also the OB who yelled at my husband and told him he had no right to call himself a husband/protector if he couldn’t see how pale I was and needed a transfusion. Two things: my husband is color-blind and my midwives assured me repeatedly that I’d be just fine on fluids and bed rest…and you know what? I was!
On a brighter note, however, this hospital has recently changed it’s policies and is now starting towards obtaining the title of first mother and baby friendly hospital in the state!
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I had a hep lock and hemorrhaged after a natural delivery. But I wonder how this nurse would explain why the pitocin pushed through it was utterly ineffective for me and I had to have an (agonizing) shot of methergine after hours of bleeding anyway. Is that my fault too?
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Sigrid Reply:
August 28th, 2011 at 6:23 pm Sigrid(Quote)
Methergine is agonizing, isn’t it? It felt worse than a bee sting and made me SUPER anxious. Heart pounding and dizziness… not fun.
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himom Reply:
August 29th, 2011 at 7:28 am himom(Quote)
I had a client who received postpartum pit, methergine AND 1000 mcg cytotec (rectally) for minimal bleeding (she had twins vaginally, so OF COURSE she was going to hemorrhage, so they administered all of it without waiting to see what her bleeding would really do).
Then the OB called in the ER cardio team when her heartbeat & respiration rates skyrocketed and she started freaking out.
Talk about idiot-o-pathic conditions!
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