Why Natural Birth: Benefits to Mom
“How do they handle tearing at the birth center? I’m so scared for stitches down there...”
“We don’t really see that here,” my midwife responded.
“But my sister (a nurse) says that women always tear from head to toe…”
The midwife continued patiently: “Your body won’t grow a baby that it can’t handle. Just do what it tells you. If a certain position feels right, then that’s the position that will open your unique pelvis for your unique baby.” I was dumbfounded.
“If we see any tearing,” she continued, “it’s really just a skid mark.”
This conversation began a mental shift for me. After years of seeing my body as a problem to be fixed at the gym, the doctor’s office, or with a trendy diet, I began to appreciate the life-giving powerhouse that houses my spirit. What those five minutes taught me was that women instinctively have the ability to conceive, grow, and birth new life. Problems arise when interventions prevent us from acting on those instincts. While I could wax poetic about all the benefits of natural birth, I’ll stick with just three for today.
Benefit #1: Less Tearing and Faster Recovery
The above conversation threw me into a googling frenzy where I soon stumbled across Evidence-Based Birth. Their research confirmed what my midwife had explained: “This type of delivery (medicated) is more likely to cause severe tears in your perineal area.” I excitedly talked to my older sister (not the nurse) who had achieved four natural births. She confirmed that “Oh yeah I never tear. Just feel sore afterwards.” I was nervous about “getting ripped open”, just as everyone warned me, but you know what? It didn’t happen! I recovered quickly and was soon back to my old self. I chalk this up as a definite reason to refuse the meds and let my instincts do their thing.
Benefit #2: Full Golden Hour Benefits
This life-changing hour merits an article of its own! The benefits brought by the Golden Hour are extremely impactful and long-lasting. And while it is possible to enjoy this time after a medicated delivery, the side effects experienced by both Mom and Baby render it less effective.
For starters, Baby needs to be awake and alert in order to perform the Breast Crawl. This is a series of nine steps that starts with immediate skin-to-skin, and ends with Baby literally leaping her way toward Mom’s breast. I really encourage you to watch a video of this incredible performance; I had to see it for myself before coming to full appreciation. In one study, the Breast Crawl was shown to bring numerous benefits to Mom including an early expulsion of the placenta, decreased uterine size, and prevention of anemia in 100%(!) of participants. The kicker is that all moms in the study had vaginal births and most avoided pain meds. The Crawl, it would appear, is less likely to occur when Mom and Baby’s instincts are hindered by the effects of labor analgesia.
While the short term benefits are clear, research tells us that an unmedicated Golden Hour has long term effects on Baby’s sleep and stress levels. Which, you guessed it, means better sleep for Mom! The American Academy of Pediatrics now recommends that after delivery, Mom and Baby remain in skin-to-skin contact unless medically contra-indicated. The reasons cited include: “reduced crying, decreased stress, improved sleep and wake states, and enhanced brain development.” Mom, those sleepless nights are aggravating and can even contribute to postpartum depression. Get ahead of the game by getting this first hour right!
Benefit #3: Better Breastfeeding
Breastfeeding is an incredible feat of nature that brings a host of benefits to Mom. These include postpartum weight loss, reduced stress, risks of breast and ovarian cancers, type 2 diabetes, and high blood pressure, to name a few. Medicated deliveries, however, often inhibit successful breastfeeding by presenting a number of initial hurdles. In the first place, the IV fluids placed with an epidural often cause breast tissue to swell, making it difficult for Baby to latch properly. Furthermore, bonding is absolutely necessary for breastfeeding, but an epidural can affect your body’s output of oxytocin (the bonding hormone) and deter your efforts to start good habits early. And finally, as observed by La Leche League, babies are often groggy and unresponsive for as long as a week after a medicated birth, hindering their suck-swallow reflexes.
If, however, you’re dead-set on a medicated birth, take heart that all of the above is dose-dependent. So the less anesthesia received, the less difficulties you are likely to experience. If this sounds like you, the Walking Epidural might be a great option! Whatever your birth plan, the key to long term success is getting those first few feeds right. One study found that of the 91% of mothers who wanted to breastfeed their child, only 73% were successful. 4% however, gave up after the first week, 13% after a month, and only 51% continued after the 4-week mark. It’s clear that women, already in a difficult life stage, grow frustrated and give up. And who can blame them? Heck, that was me with my first! But what if we had enjoyed success from the start? I, for one, would have absolutely loved to continue breastfeeding Josephine. Opting for an unmedicated delivery is one factor that can greatly affect the long term outcome of your breastfeeding journey.
But can’t epidurals benefit Mom too? In some cases, yes! And if that is what your birth calls for, embrace it. I support all manner of deliveries here. Remember Ecco Natural Birth is all about naturalizing any and every birth scenario. So take heart and don’t give up on your Crunchy Mama dreams just yet. And if you haven’t done so already, be sure to download the app and get the course for all the "birth day" guidance you’ll need!
SOURCES
https://llli.org/news/birth-interventions/
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3508512/
https://www.mercyone.org/desmoines/_assets/documents/media/women-infants/golden-hour-instruction-sheet.pdf
https://ijmrr.medresearch.in/index.php/ijmrr/article/view/277/540#:~:text=%E2%80%9CBreast%20crawl%20helps%20uterine%20contraction,initiation%20and%20maintenance%20of%20lactation.
https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/16322165/
