In some respects, Jenni hits the nail on the head. Mom’s
often struggle with comparison. It can negatively affect so many areas of our
lives. It can lead us to become control freaks and cause us to question our
worth when we can’t seem to “measure up”. And when we begin to
take pride in our ability to do something right, lack of humility can lead to
lack of discernment in how we interact with people in our lives.
Naselli writes, “I am concerned as I hear some women
evangelize for natural birth, and then I observe the hurting women who can’t experience
natural birth.” It’s true, zealousness to do things the best way possible can
lead to failure to understand and properly respond to the needs of those around
us. However, in such a scenario, the problem I see playing out is the woman’s lack
of discernment – to judge well what she should or shouldn’t say to the hurting
women – not her desire to promote natural birth. Unfortunately,
Naselli makes it sound as if “evangelizing” for natural birth is a problem in
and of itself. But one can promote natural birth while also properly loving the
women around them who have not or are unable to experience natural labor and
delivery.
Naselli’s section, “My ‘Unnatural’ Life”, is concerning to me as well. Writing, “I am alive because of four Cesarean sections”, she
begins sharing a series of “unnatural” events that have shaped the lives of her
and people dear to her. While it’s not entirely made clear, it appears
the four c-sections she refers to are the ones had by her mother and herself.
Her statement could be entirely true, but in the paragraph that follows Naselli
fails to recognize that many women today experience unnecessary interventions during labor and delivery.
She writes, “C-sections, and other medical interventions,
are gifts from God to preserve life.” Interventions can and often do preserve
life. This is undoubtedly a gift from God. But interventions can also be used
inappropriately, leading to a host of new issues. The latter scenario is the
number one concern natural birth advocates have with the direction birth in
America is trending. While birthing in America may prove safer than birthing in
Sierra Leone, we should not ignore the fact that maternity care in America is in crisis.
At 32.9%, America has one of the highest rates of cesarean
sections in the industrialized world. There’s no evidence to support the belief
that one third of America’s mother’s are sufficiently high risk to merit a
c-section.[1] When
compared across countries, there is no evidence that cesarean rates that exceed ~15% result in better birth outcomes for mom and baby. Research
increasingly suggests that failure to provide evidence-based care is leading to
unnecessary interventions. While a maternal death rate of 14 out of
100,000 births may seem a decent statistic, we should not ignore the fact that according to the
World Health Organization, since 1995, the
maternal mortality rate in the United States has increased 160%. The United
States' maternal mortality rate is ranked at the top of developed countries.
We live in a fallen world. As such, pregnancy, the birthing
process, and parenthood beyond, will always present the opportunity to trust God. But unless you affirm determinism (the belief that God has intricately
planned every detail of your life right down to what you will eat for lunch
today), you should not accept the belief that it is ever God’s plan for
something in birth to go wrong. It is not God’s perfect plan for mother’s to
need interventions in labor and delivery. “God’s Birth Plan” is for moms and babies to experience
successful natural births. Consequences of the broken world we live in often
lead to women experiencing otherwise. We know this pattern to be true of life
in general. It is not God’s perfect will for us to suffer, and yet we often do.
This is why we need a Savior and anticipate his return when things will be as
they should be again.
This is also why despite being educated and making the best
choices possible surrounding birth, things can still go wrong. A mother may
experience a seamless natural birth (praise be to God!), but until Christ’s
return, she will never be guaranteed a life free of complications or
disappointments.
Naselli’s right, we don't have ultimate control over our
lives or our childrens’ lives. But we can strive to trust God, do our best with the information and options we are given, and properly love those around us in the process. We
can also allow him to use our negative experiences for good (after all, many natural birth advocates have a past of birth trauma). We can
grow in wisdom and knowledge. We can work to change America’s poor birthing
trends while also loving women who find themselves hurting as a
result of them. God will give us strength and be gracious to us along the way.
