The business of being born

Erinka · August 2015

I just watched the film "The business of being born". Is it right on or a little far fetched? I was all about pain meds & epidurals during birth but now I'm rethinking.

KateLouise · August 2015

I haven't watched the business of being born, mostly because I'm in NZ and I don't think our hospital system has the same approach to childbirth as what I understand is common in America.

Having said that, I'm a huge fan of natural child birth, having had two wonderful natural birth experiences, and aim to reserve the medical stuff for a medical issue.

Every documentary will have a bias, but there is a heap of research and info out there on the pros and cons of various interventions that you could look into, and different options for exploring to work through a natural labour if you decide that's the route you'd like to aim for.

Best wishes

browneyes_326 · August 2015

I have seen it but it's been so long I should rewatch it! I remember thinking it was pretty right on ... My husband is in healthcare and is pretty cinical about that stuff too. He sees it from the inside. I have had an epidural from the minute after I walked in the hospital and one that I was forced to wait and didn't get it until the last minute and the recovery on the second was night and day from having a epidural for 12 hours!
Now I want to go find the film & watch it again!!

flyinmommy · August 2015

I thought it was a bit extreme. And no one needs to see that much of Ricky Lake... Ever.

redfallon · August 2015

I have not seen it, but from what I understand it is very biased against most hospital births and interventions that may occur.

Maybe I should watch it so I can see what all the fuss has been about.

redfallon · August 2015

According to Netflix I started watching this 2 years ago and got 8 mins in and rated it 1 star. I rewatched up to that point just now and was already pissed off and realized why I didn't go farther. This time, I got to 14 mins before turning it off bc I got even more pissed off.

Yes. It is VERY BIAS against doctors and hospitals. They say that OBs are not trained for regular births and that all hospitals are in it for the money and want you in and out ASAP.

That was not my experience at all! My OB was and is wonderful. She left decisions on what to do up to me and my husband. She did not force me to do anything and I never felt rushed by the nurses or my doctor. My OB office's position on C-sections is that they are a last resort and only done in an emergency if the baby or mother is in distress.

I don't know if I'll be able to finish watching over an hour of this movie.

I guess there are people out there who have bad birth experiences, but I was not one of them. I also do not like the generalizations and fear tactics already in the movie in the first 8-15 mins.

Erinka · August 2015

Thank for all your responses. I was very split after watching. It is very biased and not created by experts but it still made me think I should consider birth without meds. I don't know... I'm only 13 weeks so I have some time to research.

mindaa · August 2015

Lurking...
you might try the book Expecting Better for another perspective. The author basically walks through the decision making process by analyzing data from medical studies. Not everyone loves it, but I thought it was worth the read.

amp61470 · August 2015

I watched it and thought it was interesting. I went in knowing it was biased, therefore took everything with a grain of salt. What I got out of it was that it appears better to be calm when giving birth. I do not want an epidural and will do what I can to avoid it. I want to feel the birth. I plan on going as natural as possible. I loved seeing the babies being born, it was amazing to me. I am not using a midwife, I am over 40 and I love my doctor. Midwives are great for some, but I trust my doctor will not subject me to anything that is not necessary. I would never give birth at home, I would be too nervous.

Carazona5 · August 2015

I liked it, it gives some knowledge and some things to think about. I don't think I'll be brave enough to have my first ever baby be born at a home birth but at least now I know what the medicines they want to push on you do and what the options are. It made me more confident that I CAN do this without them, people gave birth for years and years before all the meds. I'm not saying I'm opposed to any western medicine but i would rather not have them pump me full of pitocin to speed things up and then give me an epidural to numb me and then tell me I need a c section after all of that. So I want to try my best without those things but I don't know how it feels so we'll see. Lol
Also what I learned from it is that you really don't need to rush into the hospital the second you feel any labor starting. That's why they want to rush you along with all the meds because it will take you forever. Most times you really can labor at home for awhile.

oceanchild · August 2015

I can say it's right on; I worked in a hospital for a surgeon and also worked for an OB.
Working around that is the reason why I left that practice to find a midwife and doula when I got pregnant with my first baby. I ended up with an OB anyways, but he's the opposite of the typical OB portrayed in TBoBB. Very supportive of no interventions, letting mamas go into labor past their guess dates, VBACs. Love him.
It's a good movie. Yes it's biased, but it's biased for a reason - to help people become informed. If a mama is informed and decides that she wants that kind of birth, then awesome! I support her. I support every mama's right to choose the kind of birth she wants. But an unnecessary medical procedure should not be chosen for her bc a doctor wants to go eat dinner with her colleagues at 6:30pm at the country club (I was present while this happened to one of our patients).

The business of being born

Re: The business of being born

Jamie

Jamie

Choose Another Board

Search Boards