Birthing people need to be respected

No matter the location or who attends a birth, you need to feel valued, dignified, and empowered, especially when it comes to making decisions about how your child comes into the world.  Even if the you have an unwanted cesarean birth, this can be an empowering experience if you are treated with respect and support.

You need to birth where you feel most comfortable

You have the right to make an informed decision as to where you wish to give birth.  Birthing a baby is an intense, emotional, spiritual event that is hindered by fears and insecurities.  To birth normally, you need to feel completely safe.  Hospital, birthing center, or home birth is not for everyone.  Birth where you are most comfortable.

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Both the Medical and Midwives model of care needs to coexist

I think everyone can agree that the world needs OBs.  For high risk people/complications where interventions and/or a c-section is warranted there is no doubt that OBs save lives.  OBs are first and foremost trained surgeons specialized in abnormal birth.  The World Health Organization states that the c-section rate should be around 8-10%.  If the number dips below around 5%, more birthing folks start dying at or around the time of birth (but also they found that if the cesarean birth rate goes ABOVE around 15%, more people die at or around the time of birth).

The world needs midwives just as much, if not more!  The Midwives Model of Care treats pregnancy and birth as a normal, natural part of your life, not an illness or a catastrophe waiting to happen.  With low-risk people, midwives can be essential to empowering the you mentally, emotionally, physically, and spiritually.

You need choice in care providers

In addition to the above, I think people need to go to the provider that they feel the most comfortable with.  Trust in your provider is key.  If you have an OB it’s important you trust that they are going to have your best interest in mind, not their malpractice insurance or convenience.  You need to be able to trust that you won’t have unnecessary things done to you with limited and biased informed consent.

With home or birthing center birth, midwives are extensively trained in normal birth.  I mean this to dispel the myth that out-of-hospital midwives won’t know if something’s wrong until it’s too late.  Since they know what normal birth looks like, they know if you’re doing well or if you need assistance or transfer.  You need to be able to trust their judgment with these issues.  If you do not trust your midwives, it’s very hard to open yourself up to birth and be relaxed like you need to be.

You have the right to make informed decisions

You need to be presented with all the information about pregnancy, birth, and afterwards in a calm, loving, non-judgmental way and be respected for the choices you make, whatever the reasons.  You should not be bullied into whatever the medical professional thinks should happen, and along with informed consent comes informed refusal.