Posted by My OB said WHAT?!?.
Sep
6
Posted by My OB said WHAT?!?.
“I’m Going To Have To Talk You Out Of That, If You Don’t Mind.”
“I’m going to have to talk you out of that, if you don’t mind.” – OB to mother when the OB learned that the mother was planning a home birth.
There are 24 comments to this post.
Heather P had this to say,
Sep 6, 2011 @ 10:05 am (Quote)
first time mommy had this to say,
Sep 6, 2011 @ 10:12 am (Quote)
I’m going to have to find a new care provider, if you don’t mind 
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” you can try but unless there is a medical need that comes up I would prefer home” I tried for 2 days after my water broke to have a home birth but ended up in the hospital on pit…. found out the cord was wrapped around the baby’s neck too many times, and they had to cut it before he was out but even though I did not get the home waterbirth I wanted it was better than my first birth by a long shot.
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Actually, I would love for the doctor to try to talk me out of a homebirth.
1) The doctor can then note in my chart that he has legally protected himself or herself in the event of a bad outcome, therefore the doctor can relax in the knowledge that I cannot sue him or her for not telling me homebirth was Teh Scareeez!
2) If the doctor realizes I already know all the same statistics and I can rebut the doctor’s stats with information of my own, the doctor may realize a woman can make an intelligent choice to homebirth AND that many routine hospital practices are the factors driving women to do so.
If that one doctor then is able to alter practice in such a way that women are given a more dignified and self-directed experience in the hospital while still receiving the care they need (but not “care” they don’t need) then heck yes, I’ll give the doctor a chance to talk me out of it.
Me: Well, the homebirth midwives only have a 3% episiotomy rate. What’s yours?
Doctor: Well, I only cut one when necessary.
Me: So do they, and it’s only 3%.
Doctor: But if you don’t cut an episiotomy, you run the risk of a 3rd or 4th degree tear.
Me: The homebirth midwives have only a 1% rate of 4th degree tears and 5% third degree. What’s your episiotomy rate again?
Etc. The doctor won’t want to stay in that conversation long, though, because your office visit is only 7 minutes long, and really, how persuasive can the doctor be when the clock is ticking? And you are holding all the cards? And you’ve probably done more research on homebirth than the doctor has?
Sure, Doc. Talk away. But listen to my answers too.
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For some reason, I’m imagining the OB saying this in a John Wayne voice…lol
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jenni Reply:
September 6th, 2011 at 6:01 pm (Quote)
laughing so hard i might hurt myself… but i’m actually imagining Ryan Stiles on Who’s line is it anyway impersonating john wayne….
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first time mommy Reply:
September 6th, 2011 at 6:45 pm (Quote)
I miss that show!!!
lmao I’m picturing it being a skit on that show with Collin and Ryan!
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Go ahead, knock yourself out!
@ Jane: I love your idea of asking for the doc’s stats. Really – they never come out straight with numbers. I wonder why…
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Jane Reply:
September 6th, 2011 at 4:32 pm (Quote)
Because they don’t know their own numbers. That’s my bet. They’re aware they do these things but the things we’re asking about don’t seem important enough to them to keep track of it nor even take note. They don’t keep track of episiotomies for the same reason I don’t keep track of how many times a day I use the bathroom. It’s just something that gets done.
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Susan Peterson had this to say,
Sep 6, 2011 @ 6:49 pm (Quote)
You can try!
Same comment as others here; this is what popped into my mind as I read this.
But actually, don’t bother. My mind is made up. That’s what I think I would have said after having a couple of babies at home. Wild horses couldn’t drag me back to the hospital.
Susan Peterson
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Never EVER tell your OB if you plan a homebirth. They will pull the dead baby card on you to scare you out of it.
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Kat Reply:
September 9th, 2011 at 12:10 pm (Quote)
Well, it depends on the OB. This is true for the majority of OBs, but there are some who are supportive. My sis has a terrific OB who gladly acts as backup for her home births. He’s never tried to talk her out of it, and in fact he tells his reception staff that *she* will tell *them* when she wants to come back in for the next prenatal checkup.
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Tee Reply:
September 9th, 2011 at 7:27 pm (Quote)
I have a friend that is currently expecting her fourth child. The first two were born naturally in the hospital but she had a beautiful home birth with her third. She was sort of debating where to birth her daughter this time around, wondering if she should give birth in the hospital again due to her “advanced maternal age” and some mild pregnancy complications that she has had recently. However, she was hospitalized overnight a couple of weeks ago and that reminded her how much she really hates hospitals! She has elected to have a second home birth and I am so excited for her! Thankfully, her OB is incredibly supportive of her decision. I was downright shocked when she told me how sweet he has been to her! Up until hearing that from her, I would have said the exact same thing you did. Sadly, doctors like that really do seem to be few and far between.
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BeckyJ Reply:
September 9th, 2011 at 11:47 pm (Quote)
It’s almost non-existant that OB’s are supportive of homebirth. Alot of them will either fire their client or try to scare them out of it or be honest and say, “I’d rather you not, because it’s bad for our business if there are more homebirths.”
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Add Your Comment.
Just so happens I do mind. Next OB, please!
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