Cesarean Awareness Month

First of all, my apologies for being MIA.....with teaching Bradley classes and a daughter who is in the midst of some more "separation anxiety", I have been extremely busy. (The loads of laundry and winter clothes that are still not packed away can attest to this truth!) Okay, onto the selected topic....

April is Cesarean Awareness Month! Now that April is almost over, I bet you are glad I gave you so much notice. ;) I encourage all of you to at least think about the issue of Cesareans for a few minutes today, especially given that the rate of c-sections are increasing with each passing year. The U.S. now has a cesarean rate of over 30%. That means that in any given group of three pregnant women, one of them will undergo MAJOR ABDOMINAL surgery to deliver her baby.

You can visit www.ican-online.org for more about the issue in general. It is the home site of the International Cesarean Awareness Network. The group is dedicated to prevention of medically unnecessary cesareans, as well as support for women who are trying for a Vaginal Birth After Cesarean (VBAC). They are THE source on cesarean information and plainly talk about the risks of c-section versus vaginal delivery. Despite what Britney Spears may have believed or inadvertently promoted with her 2 elective c-sections, there are very real and high risks associated with cesarean delivery. In a later post, I plan to address some of the common myths associated with Cesareans, but for this post, I will just babble while you read. ;)

As you may or may not know, Cavan was born via c-section on August 25, 2004. That date has forever changed me as a person on multiple levels, not the least of which entails the incredible transformation from "woman" to "mother", draped in all the immense and awesome responsibilities of that title. My son emerged from my womb with his beautiful blue, inquisitive eyes and that adorable chin! He was healthy, perfect and whole. He was the product of my love for my husband, nourished completely by my body for nine-plus months. How could a person NOT be changed after going through pregnancy and birth?

However, another change occurred on that late night when I was cut open. Along with my son, a birth activist was also born. As I laid on that hard, cold table...staring up at those harsh, glaring lights (conjuring up that exact deer-in-headlights feeling of fear, dread and helplessness)...I *knew* there was a better way for babies to be born. I *knew* this was not what Our Creator intended. I *knew* this was not how my baby boy was supposed to be born. Don't get me wrong. I am very thankful that our medical technology has advanced to where it is today and I thank God we have it available for when complications/emergencies occur. But the problem is that in the U.S. today, way too many cesareans are being done for the wrong reasons. In the majority of cases, they are NOT occurring for true medical emergencies or complications. We have gotten so accustomed to meddling with the normal, natural process of birth that it is *we* who are actually creating the vast majority of complications and emergencies. (When I say "we", I guess I really mean the medical staff as neither you nor I are standing in today's birthing rooms...unless you all have a side job as an OB/GYN physician or nurse that I knew nothing about!)

I am all in favor of medical interventions, when indicated. I am totally supportive of c-sections, when medically necessary. What I am not in favor of is the ROUTINE use of interventions. What I am not supportive of is scheduled c-sections for the convenience of mother or doctor. There is no scientific test telling us when a baby should be born. We have due dates (or "guess dates" as a friend of mine called it), but we have to remember it is an ESTIMATED due date, which is why it is written on charts as "EDD". Dr. Bradley compared a baby's gestational time to apples ripening on a tree. They do NOT all ripen and fall at the same exact time. They each ripen and fall at the time unique to their development. Babies are the same way. I believe there are reasons that babies are born when they are, some maybe even beyond all of our medical and scientific understanding. We should not be deciding when babies are "done" or "due". Babies will come when babies are ready. This is a VERY HARD lesson that I wish I had learned before trying to hurry my son out with natural induction methods.

Patience is a virtue, a very difficult one at that and one (which I'm sure many of you have seen) that I struggle with continuously. I *know* how hard it is to be patient, especially when you are nine months pregnant and big and fat and tired and aching. I *know* how much you want that baby out of you by the end of it all. I *know* how easy it is to believe that baby does not need any more intrauterine time. But the truth of the matter is that we do not know how long each individual baby needs inside its mother's womb. Some only need 37 weeks...some need 45 weeks. (IF that second number has shocked you, rest assured, I have a close, personal friend who went a little bit over 45 weeks with her third child. She was born at home...perfect, healthy and beautiful without any complications.)

I would urge you to give the issue of birth another look. How do you view childbirth? What kind of images stir in your head? Are you scared of it or do you embrace the unpredictability that this life process brings? Do you trust that womens' bodies and their babies know how to be born without help? Do you trust that 95% of the time things will be fine? What fears do you have surrounding childbirth? What memories of childbirth impact your view? How do you view obstetricians? How do you view midwives? All of these are just food for thought. In this month of April, I ask you to take a few minutes to remember all the women you know who are mothers. Take a minute to honor all they have done for their children and families. Take a minute to remember all the women who have undergone c-sections, those you know and those you don't. Honor their journey and pray for their healing. Take a minute of gratitude for your own mother, who at the very least carried you in her womb and birthed you into this crazy world. And finally, take one last minute to think about how your own beliefs/stories/anecdotes/fears are currently shaping the beliefs/stories/anecdotes/fears of childbearing women you know in your own life.

Cell Phones

Just a note of warning to our cell-phone-using friends below . . . I'll blog more extensively on why I despise cell-phones at a later date.



Mobile phone use 'linked to tumour'

By Nic Fleming


Long-term users of mobile phones are significantly more likely to develop a certain type of brain tumour on the side of the head where they hold their handsets, according to new research.

The results seem to suggest health risks in people who have regularly used mobiles for over 10 years
A large-scale study found that those who had regularly used mobiles for longer than 10 years were almost 40 per cent more likely to develop nervous system tumours called gliomas near to where they hold their phones.
The new research, to be published later this year in the International Journal of Cancer, is the second study to suggest increased risks of specific types of brain tumours in regions close to where mobile phone emissions enter the head.
However, a number of other studies have found no increased health risks associated with mobile phone use.
Prof Lawrie Challis, the chairman of the government-funded Mobile Telecommunications Health Research (MTHR) programme, said last week that most research had shown that mobiles were safe in the short term but that there was a "hint of something" for longer-term users.
advertisement
Prof Challis, who is negotiating funding for a long-term international study, said last night: "I agree with the authors that this is a hint that needs further exploration. It's further reason why a long-term study is necessary."
Louis Slesin, the editor of Microwave News, a US newsletter on radiation and health that reported the new study, said: "We now have two tumour types found among people who use mobiles for more than 10 years shown by two different research groups. That is compelling evidence."
Researchers from the Radiation and Nuclear Safety Authority in Finland compared the mobile phone use of 1,521 people with gliomas with that of 3,301 people without the cancers.
Before separating out long-term users or looking at the different risks of developing tumours on the side where users held the phone, the scientists found no link between mobile use and gliomas.
However when they looked only at people who had used a mobile for 10 years or more, they found that they were 39 per cent more likely than average to get a glioma on the side of their head where they held their handset.
Prof Anssi Auvinen, an epidemiologist involved in the study, said: "It seems credible as it was after long-term exposure — which makes sense in terms of the length of time it takes for tumours to develop — and it is localised to the side of the head where the handset is held."
A spokesman for the Mobile Operators Association said: "The overall results of this study do not show increased brain tumour risk in relation to mobile phone use.
"The findings related to tumour location are difficult to interpret."

Alive and well!

Friends and family,

Many apologies for the long absence; the last few weeks have been very hectic with Lent, Holy Week, a class final, a class paper, and the regular duties of husband and father. Things have finally settled down though, so I hope to post a big more regularly in the coming weeks (no promises, though :)

To recap the last few weeks:

--Holy Week was quite lovely at St. John's. We do liturgy so well here and I was extraordinarily pleased with the music. A lot of singers came together and did a tremendous job for all the Easter Triduum services. I couldn't believe how much work it was though; I felt completely overwhelmed the two weeks leading up to the Triduum. What a relief when it was all over!

--I started playing for an 8 AM Sunday mass at a small parish outside of Champaign last weekend. It seems to be a nice parish and really reminds me of my childhood church; small, rural, gracious parishioners. The instruments there leave much to be desired but I'm sure I can manage. The only negative is the fact that I'll be getting up every Sunday at 6:30 AM for the foreseeable future! What an ungodly hour!

--The kids are doing well, though Cavan's been feeling a bit ill yesterday and today. Cavan is obsessed with starfall.com, a neat little site that helps youngsters learn the alphabet and other foundational things. He's almost to the point where he can move the mouse arrow arrow proficiently by himself; boy, it will be nice when he can since we won't have to sit and listen to animal sounds for half-hour stretches :) His vocabulary is progressing quite well, though he it's still difficult to comprehend his speech at times.

Kellyn is on the verge of walking. Her balance is there, and she's always eager to walk when we're holding her hands; she's just pretty uneasy when we let go of her hand! Just a little confidence and she'll be good to go. She seems to be a bit more verbal than Cavan wa s at her age. She can parrot a few sounds and we're convinced she can say the word "happy."

--Shannon is in the midst of her inaugural Bradley class. She seems to like teaching, though she's felt overwhelmed at times since she has to prepare a weekly 2-3 hour class. It will be much easier when she has one round under her belt.


Hope you are all relishing this weather and enjoying this Easter season!