Nuts and Bolts

Good morning! I’m debating on one of two subjects for today: Obamacare or c-sections. I have an awesome introduction that I stole (with permission) from a friend on Facebook for Obamacare and I just read something really scary about c-sections. I think I’ll tell you about yesterday first and then decide.

I got two waistcoats done yesterday. I decided to take the seams out on Seth’s breeches and do them the right way. Then I did Cedric’s. Right now I have the pocket flaps done for Seth’s waistcoat. They don’t take very long but because they have long slits at the bottom on the sides and in the back, there is a lot of starting and stopping and it’s really fun and exciting. The socks that my mother made for them arrived yesterday and they are awesome! I want some. Anyway, Seth’s waistcoat shouldn’t take long and then there is just the button holes and buttons, the waists on the breeches, and the ties for the legs of the breeches. Not bad. It will take some time, there are a lot of buttons. But it won’t be hard.

I think I’ll go with c-sections for today. I have been reading Silent Knife by Nancy Wainer Cohen and Lois J. Estner. I have met Nancy; she’s a wonderful source of information and a wonderful person who happens to have some pretty strong opinions on a variety of things pertaining to pregnancy, childbirth, and infant care from avoiding c-sections in the first place, VBACs for when they haven’t been avoided, and circumcision. In spite of the fact that I’ve had the book for some time and have been wanting to read it, I really expected it to be somewhat dry and maybe even hard to read. Quite the contrary. It is not dry and is easy to read (unless there are many boys running around asking questions and just generally needing attention). In fact, I would like to be reading it right now and likely will be reading if I ever get the sewing done today that I would like to.

This morning I read a very graphic description of what exactly happens during a cesarean section. It isn’t pretty people. I have a pretty good imagination and it just isn’t pretty. Also, Sunday as part of the doula training, we watched a video of a cesarean section. It isn’t pretty people. You don’t need an imagination when it’s right there in front of you and you can see that it just isn’t pretty. If you are brave, here is the link to a very good video: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YIw-FnRsUlU It is somewhat long but they do a good job (I know, like I’m a really good judge of a ‘good job’ when it comes to these things). What I mean by ‘good job’ is that it looks like they’re taking care to get all of the layers individually (I’ve heard and read horror stories about that) and everything looks really good. Not my idea of fun sewing, though. Not my idea of how I would choose to give birth to my babies.

First of all, it is a major surgical operation. Major. There is a lot of cutting involved and there is a lot of blood involved. In a vaginal delivery, blood loss of more than 500 mL (that’s about two and an eighth cups) is considered a hemorrhage. A routine cesarean results in a minimum blood loss of 700 mL. It appears that more than 1000 mL (twice that of a vaginal delivery) is considered hemorrhage for a cesarean. So, blood loss.

The blood is lost because there is a lot of cutting going on; there are seven layers to get through in order to get to the baby and most of them require cutting. First, the skin. Second, adipose (fat) tissue. Third, fascia which is the base for the adipose tissue. The rectus abdominal muscles are next and because they run parallel to the abdomen and meet in the middle, they can simply be pushed out of the way. Fourth, the peritoneum (lining of the abdominal cavity). In here there are just things to be sure to miss like the bladder and bowel before getting to the fifth layer which is another layer of peritoneum (the ‘floor’ as it were). Then there is the uterus. Yeah. If it gets cut or pushed out of the way, it has to be fixed; sewn up or replaced. (Here’s a good link for the nuts and bolts kind of glossed over: http://www.babyzone.com/pregnancy/labor-and-delivery/cesarean-section-guide_70457.)

Here’s the kicker—the uterus is actually removed from the abdominal cavity and placed on the woman’s belly while it is being sewn up. While this does make a certain amount of sense, it also is just way out there. Beyond left field. Outer space? Beyond the outer reaches of the Milky Way? Yeah. It’s one thing to take a pocket out through a hole you’ve created in a jacket in order to ‘fix’ it before replacing it and sewing up the hole you had to make. It’s quite another to contemplate taking out a uterus through a hole you’ve created in a body—a living, breathing human!—in order to ‘fix’ it before replacing it and sewing up the hole you had to make. Wow.

Here’s another kicker—women do this on purpose. They have elective cesarean sections. If there is a medical reason—if mom or baby might die if it isn’t done—sure, go for it. Otherwise, you’re nuts.

Have a great day!