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Houston Babies
In need an OB/GYN that does not believe in c-sections!
Hi- I really want to find a female OB-GYN in the Houston area that believes in vaginal birth. It seems like so many these days prefer to go the easy route. I know so many moms that believe they really didnt need a c-section but felt persuaded by their OB/GYN....Please help!
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Re: In need an OB/GYN that does not believe in c-sections!
I don't think many OBs want to do c-sections, vaginal deliveries are much easier...they simply enter the room and catch in many cases. Of all of the ladies I know none of them have elected to have a c-section and their doctor didn't push them for convenience. My friends have had breech babies, placenta previa/placental abruption, non-descending babies, wrong presentation, etc., none of them had c-sections because their doctor just wanted the easy way out.
That being said there are many doctors that are more cautious, my OB is one of them. She will not allow a mother to take a risk with her own life or her baby's life so she will call for a c-section if necessary...just as she called for bed rest for me in my pregnancies.
Check out The Women's Specialists of Houston. I encourage you to consider the Midwives there. My OB is in this practice, Dr. Kimberly Bobo and I've had two successful vaginal deliveries with her.
Ditto. My child almost died in child birth. I ended up with a delivering vaginally, but was about 5 seconds from an emergency C-Section....if my doctor didn't "believe in them" I may not have my son today.
This. I feel like with today's medicine, you should take advantage of everything possible to keep yourself and your baby safe. I love my doctor (Gogola at Greater Houston OBGYN), I feel like he's definitely not "c-section friendly" as this was really important to me, too...but I know if it came down to life/death/health, that I'd have one.
I never really realized that a c/s was the "easy way out." It is MAJOR surgery.
That said, if it came down to saving my life, I would want a doctor who would do whatever it takes. I didn't have to have a c/s. My doctor didn't push me to have one. I did talk to her at length and make the decision to have one on my own for various reasons.
This is a great New Yorker article to read if you want to better understand some of the reasons why c-sections are performed. It's lengthy, but there's a lot of good information on the practice of obstetrics and how it's changed since the development of the APGAR score.
The Score
While I agree that you wouldn't want a doctor who would not want to perform a c-section in an emergency situation, I see where you are coming from and agree that many are performed unneccessarily and many doctors push for them due to fear of lawsuits or time convenience. It is equally naive not to believe that.
I agree with the poster above who suggested you check out the midwives at the Womens' Specialists of Houston. They are low intervention and if they call for an emergency section, you can feel confident that it is absolutely necessary. They are affiliated with a practice with many excellent OBs who would step in to perform the surgery if it is necessary. I switched to the midwives at 30 weeks due to concerns similar to yours and still see them for my well woman care. They have spent more time answering my questions and working with me than any of my 3 pior OBs.
This. A C section is not an easy way out, many would prefer not to do them, like mine. But if the life of the baby and mother are in danger then a C Section may be necessary. I have never heard of an OB/GYN not believing in them. I have seen way to many things that go wrong in a birth, but that is the nature of my job.
I had a c-section with Dr Bobo, and I think it was the right decision.
It did end up being my call after discussion of my chances of a successful induction with the doctor. In my case, I had a combination of a large baby (9 lbs 11 oz) who refused to drop. Even at 40 weeks, she was waaaay up high, well out of my pelvis; I had no progress at ALL, no dilation, no softening or shortening of the cervix, no contractions, nothing. I was actually pretty comfortable even up to my delivery date. She thought I had a 20% chance of having a successful induction, so I opted for the c-section rather than go through labor then end up with an emergency c.
Afterwards she told me I'd made the right call, since she was pretty sure I wouldn't have successfully delivered her vaginally -- she barely fit through the incision! (Overheard in the OR: wow, look at those shoulders!)
But before I ended up with such a large baby, we'd discussed how long she'd let me go overdue. We knew the dates were correct, and I had a history of a subchorionic hematoma, so we were cautious. But she'd have let me go to 41 weeks before we even discussed induction and she knew I preferred a natural birth. The ONLY reason an induction came up before 40 weeks was because of DD's size and it was on the recommendation of her and my peri... I chose the section and tried to walk her out beforehand (I'd have converted to an induction had I had any progress.)
I also see Dr. Gogola. I was honestly one push away from an emergency c-section with my daughter - they were literally on the phone with the OR telling the anesthesiologist we were on our way when I had to get a push in and she came out with the assistance of the vac.
Dr. G did do a c-section with my second child for health reasons only.
Trust me, I would much much much rather have a c-section and have a healthy baby than lose my child during delivery.
Pics by Fleurish Imagery
You might look at OBs who do VBACs. If they are willing to help a woman deliver vaginally after a c/s, it would be logical that they would be very supportive of avoiding a c/s in the first place. Of course some c/s are necessary. But mine wasn't. I truly believe that my induction and my c/s was done for my OB's convenience and 2 other OBs who have seen my records agreed that they would not have induced me and that there were other options to try to avoid c/s.
I used Dr Hector del Castillo for my VBAC. I have heard that Dr Juan Franco also does VBACs. You can pm me if you want my original OB's name (she has not been listed so far on this post)
If you are interviewing OBs, I think it's important to ask about their c/s rate as well as how long past your due date they'll let you go. Also, no matter who your doctor is, don't be afraid to question their decisions. I don't mean to ignore their advice, but to ask about what the other options might be and why they think that option is best for you. Is this an emergency or do we have time to talk? Is there a downside to waiting 10min, 1hr, 1day before we do option X? That sort of thing. Honestly I think I might not have been induced when I was for DD if I had asked these things because I was never in any sort of emergency situation.