This weekend, a story came to my attention that left me emotionally devastated. You can read the story in its entirety here. The story highlights the birth of baby Olivia, who, following a rather tumultuous attempt at a vaginal delivery, was delivered via forceps. Because of forceps’ placement and doctor’s skill, or lack thereof, Baby Olivia’s skull and spine were broken, leaving her on life support for 5 days before she passed away. Reading this story, I can only imagine the horror and anguish that this family feels. I can only imagine that the mother, whose body must be broken and battered from a botched forceps delivery, and whose daughter is lost to her, now has to cope with both physical and undeniable emotional pain. I can only imagine how the father, who witnessed the botched delivery, and lost his little one, will live with that emotional anguish.
I can only imagine, and reflect, on my own experience with forceps delivery. Like the mother in this sad story, c-section was pushed to the back burner. Olivia’s mother, in fact, asked for a c-section, prior to admittance to the hospital, and was told that “she’d be left with a scar.” After 3 hours of pushing, I too was told that a c-section would leave me with more physical baggage then a forceps delivery. I think, too often, that people underestimate the very real dangers of forceps delivery…in part because we are not warned of the horrors of such a delivery. I have yet to read a story of, “my wonderful forceps delivery.” I have yet to meet a woman, who delivered via forceps, with a glowing review to such a delivery.
Like Olivia’s parents, I maintain that forceps deliveries should be banned. My thoughts are, if you get to the point in a vaginal delivery where your body is just not ready/responding, then go for the c-section. In fact, my thoughts are, if you need any sort of intervention, including induction, you may as well go for the c-section. Although my thoughts may be unpopular, they are rooted in my own experiences, and in the experiences that I hear about from others who struggle on a daily basis with birth trauma.
Thanks for reading,
Lauren
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