Greetings and Seasons Greetings To All!

I have recently had a event in my family life, actually my Nieces
Family as it was her pregnancy and childbirth experience. She had not
attended any childbirth preparation classes and has a HX of a c-
Section from her first pregnancy and also Gestational DM. So she was
cared for by a OB/Gyn Doc, and did not want much from me besides a
little information here and there. I gave her info about
Breastfeeding and all that entails i.e. storage, complications,
pumping .... and we talked about her plans for this labor. She
planned to have a VBAC, Yea!

Well, first things first. Since she had a HX of GDM she got ultra
sounds out the yahoo and also a fasting blood glucose, and urine
screens. Any way they all showed her to be negative of DM this
pregnancy and the baby appeared almost full term (38 weeks) at the
last check up. So when she went into labor (that week) and went to
the hospital everything was thought to be in order! The hospital said
she they would try to stop the labor with Mg So and when they got the
contractions spaced to about 30 minutes apart she was sent home. Her
doc decided to schedule a elective section after a week of this labor
not progressing bah hum bug!

The section went off without a hitch and my Nieces birth plan went
out the window as she had trust her Doc and not her body, albeit her
contractions for a week were getting her irritable and all that so
she figured take the bay out the easy way, typical American looking
for a softer and easier way! Well the operation was a success but
they almost lost the baby! it was not at term or even near term as
thought before. My Niece had GDM and some how it was not caught! My
Niece, (Kelly) was released from the hospital (4 days later) when the
baby was transferred to Children's Hospital NICU from a community
hospitals NICU.

She had planned to breast feed that went out the window too! That is
until the NICU nurses at Children's Hospital, convinced her of its
nutritional value for the antibodies. She began pumping a week after
the birth yet she ha 2 breast pumps before the birth from her shower,
one a hand held battery operated unit and the other a double pumper!
after a week of pumping and storing bottles of frozen breast milk, an
over abundance of supply at that time since the babies input was only
1 ounce every 3 or 4 hours and he would not be released from the
hospital till he was taking in 3 ounces every 4 hours. Besides he was
on a respirator and in an artificial coma. The baby was fed through a
NG tube after it was taken off the respirator, about a week after its
birth, Blah.

The last obstacle for the baby (Elijah Lloyd'lee) I call him Lloyd,
to come home was Kelly had to decided to STOP breastfeeding. She said
it felt funny to pump it. She also stated she had enough on hand to
supplement the feedings of formula for a month and Lloyd would get
the nutritional qualities I had stressed to her , I had also stressed
the emotional benefits too but it was over she would not BF the baby
not once. Lloyd has only known the bottle and it surely is a lost
moment. The Nurses had told her she had to decide and that Lloyd
would have take feedings of the formula only for a day without
complications before he could come home. So even Kelly's plan to
implement a supplemental feeding with Breast milk was squashed.

My rationale for placing this here is this "Women who have had a C-
Section often think a VBAC is an option but when they experience some
pain the first reaction is to go back to what they already know to
work and forget about the "Noble" plan to have a baby the way GOD
intended" Its like a pie in the sky dream for many, I think, IMHO!
Also the same goes for Breastfeeding. Its a shame, Me included, that
many Americans always want the softer and easier way regardless of
what it actually may risk or what it's results in the future will
entail.

Peace,
Have a Blessed Day,
Jami Ullman, LPN, CHIV/AIDS Community Instructor, Doula

Please visit my club for Doulas and Midwives at
http://www.groups.yahoo.com/group/columbusmidwifesanddoulas

and my web site at:
http://www.geocities.com/4birthing/crowning.html

I also invite you to join a Nursing Association devoted to improving
the childbirth experience:
http://www.ANACS.org