feedback for "Ricki Lake"

1. I'm pretty sure the author that Ricki was referring to was Ina May Gaskin, not Ivan McGaskin.

   posted by : Zoe on 5/2/2007 at 7:30 AM Flag For Abuse

2. Where can we catch a showing of this wonderful documentary?

   posted by : SrndptyGddss on 5/2/2007 at 1:40 PM Flag For Abuse

3. what a wonderful article thank you the film is at the tribeca film festival looks like there are tkts left for 2 showingshttp://www.tribecafilmfestival.org/tixSYS/2007/filmguide/title-detail.php?PageNumber=2&AlphaRange=BB&Category=ALL&FilterVenue=ALL&Day=&Month=&Year=&Genre=ALL&FestProgram=&ShowShorts=&ShowPast=Ymay 3 9:45 kips baymay 4 5p 3rd ave & 11both AMC theatreshopefully it'll get distributioncan someone please please change the text in the main article from 

   posted by : anaxarate on 5/2/2007 at 3:29 PM Flag For Abuse

4. aaak, it got all smushy

   posted by : anaxarate on 5/2/2007 at 3:29 PM Flag For Abuse

5. I am certain that Ricki said Ina May Gaskin and not Ivan McGaskin. In fact, no one named Ivan McGaskin shows up on amazon.com   Great article and I'm sure it will be a fun film to watch. As a homebirth mom, I wish Ricki wouldn't have called the childbirth pain "magical." Even though I would agree that getting through the pain was at some level transformative, I know that people who are skeptical of med-free births wind up shutting down or rolling their eyes when they read that it's "magical." The author of the article asked for the truth about the pain of childbirth. From my perspective, the honest truth is that, as long as you're given the space and privacy and support that you need, the pain is manageable. Excruciating, yes, but also manageable.

   posted by : birdfourth on 5/2/2007 at 5:33 PM Flag For Abuse

6. I really wish she wouldn't have characterized vaginal birth as "successful," thus implying that anything but a vag birth is "unsuccessful."  I'm pretty sure most people would agree that a healthy baby = successful birth no matter what the actual method.   I'm sure the documentary is awesome and amazing and all that, but I can't NOT roll my eyes at Ricki Lake.  I just don't care enough about her as a celebrity to get excited about this.

   posted by : RachelZ on 5/2/2007 at 7:29 PM Flag For Abuse

7. While it is true women have had babies without doctors for all of history, it is also true that the incidence of mortality in newborns and delivering mothers has decreased dramatically since women began birthing in the hospital setting. An at-home birth is beautiful and natural and serene and everything else wonderful unless of course there are problems with delivery. It is to deal with such unanticipated problems that doctors began assisting in the birthing process. While midwives provide excellent assistance in the birthing process, it should be pointed out that they do not have the medical training of OB-Gyns. While most women will not need an MD during delivery, you do not want to be even minutes away from a hospital if you are one of the few women whose newborn does require a physician. It is unfortunate that proponents of at-home birthing create a stigma of hospital births being anything less than ideal. A good friend of mine considers the birth of her child a "let-down" because after 62 hours of labor she finally had to "break down" and go to the hospital. Instead of the relief of having a healthy baby, she felt shame in "giving up on a natural birth." After so many hours of hard labor she was physically unable to experience the joy of her newborn. Instead, her exhaustion led to post-partum depression which lasted for months. She won't even consider having a second child because the experience was so painful. What's good for some is most definitely not good for all.

   posted by : Think About It on 6/18/2008 at 4:04 PM Flag For Abuse

8. Re: Think About It~
   
   1. The US maternal mortality rate is nothing to write home about, technology and hospitals notwithstanding. Other countries that integrate midwives with OB's, and homebirths with hospital births, have better maternal mortality rates. Of course we need doctors. I myself was delivered via emergency C-section because of undiagnosed placenta previa. My mother and I could have both died without that emergency care!
   
   HOWEVER...
   
   2. Most complications have warning signs! A good midwife would've noticed that there was blood in the amniotic fluid and transported my mother immediately to a hospital. Midwives must know their limits, but so should doctors.
   3. You say that "you do not want to be even minutes away from a hospital"~ but that ignores the fact that in hospital you may still face delays in getting appropriate care. My closest hospital takes 45 minutes to get a surgical team together at night. If I have a medical emergency during childbirth and my midwife can call ahead, we could transport to a hospital slightly farther from me and get care faster that if I were in my closest hospital!
   4. I am sorry that your friend had such a difficult labor. She should feel no shame for needing assistance...that is what the hospital is for! However, that is not a typical homebirth scenario.

   posted by : NatalieJean on 6/25/2008 at 2:36 PM Flag For Abuse

9. RachelZ, no I don't think a healthy baby is the only thing that warrants a succesful birth. To me it was being respected and cared for well, which didn't happen for meand led to another c/s. I have nightmares about it. Yes, my two awesome sons are healthy, but I wasn't treated well or given a fair chance to try to VBAC, so NOPE, not successful for me (and for many women out there actually...check out the ICAN group). For the docs that caused me grie? Probably.

   posted by : unnecesarean2 on 6/25/2008 at 3:35 PM Flag For Abuse

10. The Business of Being Born was a fantastic documentary. As a married woman that has yet to have children I found it empowering to realize that I have more options than to just have a baby in a hospital with an OB.

    posted by : rachel08 on 9/3/2008 at 12:48 AM Flag For Abuse