Hi.

I am so glad that you wrote that! I felt exactly the same way as I
read it, in fact I could not even got through the entire book because
it was all just making me so sad and angry...
Here are my ramblings....
I am a new nurse, not in L & D as the hospital I work at has an
extremely high c-section rate and I just didn't think I could handle
it. I am still trying to figure out how to be active in the movement
and still sleep at night. This book was a good example of why I made
this decision, as I had a difficult time going to sleep at night due
to the anger and sadness that was building up inside of me.
Thank you for posting your comment, it made me feel not so alone in my
search be an activist in a movement/issue that most women in my family
and wider circle accept as "natural" (ie. c-sections, pit, epidurals).
In fact the majority of the nurses I work with elect for scheduled
c-sections!!!!!
I also have to add that many of Blocks comments made me question the
decisions I made during my own birth. Then I got to thinking about
how other women might feel judged or "left out" by having birth
stories that involve epidurals, membrane stripping, or c-sections?
How do we continue to attract women to this and talk to them about
their options when they truly believe what their doctor and health
care professionals are telling them?
Anyway, obviously I was left with a lot of questions, many of them
personal, about the movement, about my role in the movement, and about
how to get women outside of this circle to read books like this
without feeling judged or angered.
All of that aside, I applaud this book for stating the truth and
asking some incredibly difficult questions that we all need to think
about. Can you tell how conflicted I currently am?:)
Look forward to the call.
melissa


--- In BOLDBookClub@yahoogroups.com, "Jillian De Moya"
<joyfulbirthjourneys@...> wrote:
>
> Hi,
>
> I have to admit, this book has been hard for me so far. I agree with
> everything, but I am angered, and occasionally overwhelmed with what
I am
> reading. The other thing for me is that I am finding that most of the
> information I know already. To be fair, I am only a little more
than half
> way through it, but are any other "birthing" people feeling this?
>
> Michal, I think your insight is right on, and I would love to see
this book
> read widely. Maybe I'm feeling just a little tired and cranky, I don't
> know. But one line in the book really resonated with me. At that
hospital
> in NJ where the c-sec rate is 44%, an older Dr. who said that back
in the
> 80's there was a feminist movement and the women back then wouldn't
put up
> with the crap that happens today! Wow. What has happened? What has
> changed?! The cry in my heart is WHEN are the WOMEN going to stand
up and
> say that they're NOT going to buy this line being given ANYMORE!!!!
On so
> many fronts in maternity care!
>
> Well, sorry to throw a damper in there after such happy comments, but do
> ya'll relate?
>
> Jillian
>
> On 10/23/07, Sheridan Ripley <sherinfo@...> wrote:
> >
> > I wholeheartedly agree with all you said! I haven't quite finished
> > reading, but am loving what I have read so far. Very good
information in
> > this book!
> > sheridan
> >
> >
> > On 10/23/07, Michal <Michal@...> wrote:
> >
> > > I think this book is excellent. I find it to be on par with Marsden
> > > Wagner's book, "Born In The USA." The difference between them is
> > > that Dr. Wagner is an insider, and looks at issues from that
> > > perspective, whereas Jennifer Block is a journalist who is not yet a
> > > mother, and looks at the issues with the clarity of someone who is
> > > not caught up in the system.
> > >
> > > I contrast that with Tina Cassidy's book, and with other books
> > > written by women who already have children, and the writing is
> > > clearly influenced by the type of birth they experienced. I find
> > > that women who have had negative experiences write about and focus
> > > on the pain and fear of birth, but shortchange the power and
> > > strength of women. Cassidy spends an awful lot of time describing
> > > the instruments used to extract dead fetuses from women's bodies.
> > > There is not a lot of emphasis on the fact that there were many more
> > > live babies born than dead ones.
> > >
> > > Jennifer looks at the numbers and sees that it is ridiculous that so
> > > many women are denied VBACS when such a small number of women and
> > > babies are harmed from them, and sees that maternity care is more
> > > about risk and liability than about healthcare.
> > >
> > > This is another book for a college course. Women who are pregnant
> > > and are not looking to become specialists in birth activism are not
> > > the target audience for this book, although I wish they were. This
> > > is a great book for a college course, where young women could be
> > > exposed to the issues from an intellectual standpoint, before they
> > > even think about having children.
> > >
> > > Michal
> > >
> > >
> > >
> > >
> > >
> > > Yahoo! Groups Links
> > >
> > >
> > >
> > >
> >
> >
> > --
> > Sheridan, HCHI
> > My OC Hypnobabies site: www.enjoybirth.com
> > Positive Hypnobabies Birth stories and Birth Video are at
> > www.pregnancybirthandbabies.com
> > Forever Green - healthy chocolate and other natural products.
> > http://www.myforevergreen.org/568601/
> > My Blog is at www.5rips.typepad.com
> >
> >
> >
>