Working mothers and C sections

[lilwriter85]

Lori did posting today about surgeries and this part stuck out to me. I admit I don't know a whole lot regarding certain health statistics and I know someone who scheduled a c section for her own convenience due to her husband have to deploy overseas. But I had to wonder if the below statement is an another attack of Lori's on working women.

lorialexander.blogspot.com/2013/05/cutting-off-your-breasts.html

The same thing puzzles me about scheduling C-sections for a mother's convenience. Many working mothers do this. This is major surgery! The stomach and uterus are cut open. Then one must live on strong pain killers for awhile afterwards that I am sure are transferred to the baby if one nurses her baby.

[GenerationCedarchip]

Lori did posting today about surgeries and this part stuck out to me. I admit I don't know a whole lot regarding certain health statistics and I know someone who scheduled a c section for her own convenience due to her husband have to deploy overseas. But I had to wonder if the below statement is an another attack of Lori's on working women.

lorialexander.blogspot.com/2013/05/cutting-off-your-breasts.html

I kinda doubt that. Granted I don't know of any studies, but I have read numerous articles detailing medical associations' attempts to lower the C-Section rate in the US because they don't think it's healthy. Given that climate, I just don't see tons of hospitals letting people set up C-Sections just because they want it.

Anecdotally, I know quite a few ebil working women in my law firm have had babies and insurance hates to pay the extra for C-sections so their health insurance often won't let them have a section unless they've: (1) tried regular childbirth and have been in labor for x hours with no progress or (2) there is a medical reason given for the surgery. We had one lady who tried to schedule a C-section because she wanted to have the baby before they moved for her husband's job and the doctor wouldn't do it b/c insurance wouldn't approve.

[kpmom]

And of course she has a negative comment to make about women choosing mastectomies who test positive for the BRCA1 and BRCA2 genetic alterations.

Just eat lots of fruits and veggies and you'll be fine, says Lori.

[Guest Anonymous]

The same thing puzzles me about scheduling C-sections for a mother's convenience. Many working mothers do this. This is major surgery! The stomach and uterus are cut open. Then one must live on strong pain killers for awhile afterwards that I am sure are transferred to the baby if one nurses her baby.

If your stomach is cut open during a C-section then something has gone horribly wrong.

[rward]

My sister in law is, literally, a brain surgeon. She is having an elective c-section so that she can plan her surgical schedule and not go into labor while she has hands in someone's brain.

Now, my sister in law is not a standard "working mom" and is probably paying for it out of pocket if insurance denies it. And, this is the only time in my 37 years of life that I have heard of a woman scheduling a c-section for convenience reasons. I found it very odd, but it's up to her. I don't care.

[lilwriter85]

My sister in law is, literally, a brain surgeon. She is having an elective c-section so that she can plan her surgical schedule and not go into labor while she has hands in someone's brain.

Now, my sister in law is not a standard "working mom" and is probably paying for it out of pocket if insurance denies it. And, this is the only time in my 37 years of life that I have heard of a woman scheduling a c-section for convenience reasons. I found it very odd, but it's up to her. I don't care.

I can understand why your sister-in-law is doing that.

[Drina Adams]

Where I'm from, I've never heard of a woman being able to schedule a c-section for personal reasons. Its always a medical decision. I had a c-section for medical reasons myself, and a high chance of needing another this time. While I'm happy enough to go with the medical advice, its a decision my doctor will make on medical not personal grounds.

I think maternity leave is the real issue. I got six months paid, four months unpaid and the option of extra unpaid leave once I was due back to work. There's other European countries where I'd get even more. I was still recovering after my section six weeks later, so I don't know how its seen as a more 'convenient' route. A vaginal birth will usually mean a faster recovery, I know some mums who were fine to go home after 12 hours post birth. Certainly women who were anxious to get back to work quickly that I know had 'natural' births and worked quite closely to their due date.

[GeoBQn]

Lori's proposed alternative to double mastectomies:

Rather than do all this to prevent cancer, why not eat a lot of fruits and vegetables which are proven to prevent cancer and stay as far away as you can from chemicals and sugar which are proven to cause cancer?

Nobody is getting their beasts removed just because they "might" get cancer. Women who get this surgery do so because they found out they have a BRCA gene mutation that increases the likelihood that they will get breast cancer. Eating fruits and vegetables will not change your gene make-up and will only make so much of a difference. There isn't even any good evidence that a low-fat diet will prevent breast cancer.

[lilwriter85]

I find it very odd that Lori has mentioned that her dad was a pathologist several times. She has posted crazy things about health and medicine and I have to wonder if her dad is reading her blog. I would love if a doctor or someone else in the medical field called out Lori out about some of the stuff she has posted.

[salex]

Lori did posting today about surgeries and this part stuck out to me. I admit I don't know a whole lot regarding certain health statistics and I know someone who scheduled a c section for her own convenience due to her husband have to deploy overseas. But I had to wonder if the below statement is an another attack of Lori's on working women.

lorialexander.blogspot.com/2013/05/cutting-off-your-breasts.html

I don't know any women who had elective c sections but know multiple women who had their labor induced to fit their schedule. It maybe that saying c section relates to her not knowing wtf she is talking about

[sparkles]

My sister in law is, literally, a brain surgeon. She is having an elective c-section so that she can plan her surgical schedule and not go into labor while she has hands in someone's brain.

Now, my sister in law is not a standard "working mom" and is probably paying for it out of pocket if insurance denies it. And, this is the only time in my 37 years of life that I have heard of a woman scheduling a c-section for convenience reasons. I found it very odd, but it's up to her. I don't care.

Well, your SIL is a surgeon--she WORKS, so according to Lori, forget about the C-section, the problem starts right there.

Soooo,

She's a surgeon, and therefore has taken a man's place both in school and in the workplace. Strike One.

She's scheduling her C-section. Strike Two.

She's a woman. Strike Three.

Clearly, she should be locked away.

[EmiGirl]

And of course she has a negative comment to make about women choosing mastectomies who test positive for the BRCA1 and BRCA2 genetic alterations.

Just eat lots of fruits and veggies and you'll be fine, says Lori.

Not only that, but there are quite a few genetic mutations that make most treatments ineffective.

[salex]

I find it very odd that Lori has mentioned that her dad was a pathologist several times. She has posted crazy things about health and medicine and I have to wonder if her dad is reading her blog. I would love if a doctor or someone else in the medical field called out Lori out about some of the stuff she has posted.

this from a woman who just had brainsurgery. Why didn't prayer and a healthy diet work for her .

[GolightlyGrrl]

this from a woman who just had brainsurgery. Why didn't prayer and a healthy diet work for her .

Don't confuse Lori with logic. She may have a brain, but it doesn't work very well.

[SquirrelySquirrel]

If your stomach is cut open during a C-section then something has gone horribly wrong.

You beat me to it. It's amazing how many people need some basic anatomy lessons. Kinda like all the women who have babies in their "stomachs." Abdomen, Lori, the word you're looking for is abdomen.

OBs are pretty careful about what pain meds they're giving you afterwards, too. And FYI: plenty of women who deliver vaginally also require pain meds.

[louisa05]

I don't know any women who had elective c sections but know multiple women who had their labor induced to fit their schedule. It maybe that saying c section relates to her not knowing wtf she is talking about

I know a lot of women who have had labor induced for convenience. One, a submissive stay at home fundie lite mom, did it for all of five kids for the sake of husband's schedule. Her second was induced nearly four weeks early and ended up weighing under five pounds. The grandmother told us how "fortunate" they were to have a "Christian" OB who agreed to it in spite of it being early since the father's work schedule was so very important. I thought they were fortunate that it all turned out okay. :angry-banghead:

At the very same time, my cousin, a single mom on Medicaid, was not able to be induced in spite of her doctor's recommendation and the fact that she had a severe kidney infection. Her son was born at nearly ten pounds and she was also not allowed to have an emergency c-section due to Medicaid restrictions resulting in injury to her.

There are a lot of things wrong with our health care system.

[2xx1xy1JD]

Lori, spare us the ignorance.

BRCA1 and BRCA2 are genetic mutations. Women with those mutations are at far higher risk of cancer, regardless of how many fruits and veggies they eat. Someone close to me died at age 40 from breast cancer. She was relatively young, she ate healthy - but she also had a very strong family history of breast cancer, and her cancer was too aggressive for the treatment.

My best friend with this mutuation recently had her ovaries removed. Her mother died young of cancer. My friend has 4 children, and a strong desire to see them grow up.

The New England Journal of Medicine has documented that preventative double mastectomy and removal of ovaries saves lives when the genetic mutation exists.

As for c-sections - yes, it's major surgery, but if there are no complications you don't take pain meds for long. The main issue with the babies is that they don't get their lungs squeezed during labor.

[Koala]

She may very well be the most ignorant fundie I have ever had the misfortune of running across.

Love this from the comments:

Lori:

I think mammograms are very dangerous and greatly increase a woman's risk of getting cancer. Dr. Marshall believes they will be outlawed one day because they are so harmful.

My doctor went to medical school for 7 years and has practiced for 30. He says I get one. Think I'll take his advice instead of Dr. Lori's

[Jezebel]

I don't know any women who had elective c sections but know multiple women who had their labor induced to fit their schedule. It maybe that saying c section relates to her not knowing wtf she is talking about

My sister had her labor induced because her preferred obstetrician was going on vacation. My sister likes her ob a lot, but did not like her partner in the practice, and didn't want to get stuck with the partner delivering her kid.

It was her first kid, and she was within a week of her due date, so it made sense. Everything went great for both mom and baby. She's having a girl next month, and while she's not planning on an induction, she hasn't ruled it out. Knowing that the kid's coming on a specific date, rather than taking a wait-and-see approach, does have its appeal.

And if Lori's dumb/willfully whackadoodle enough to think the stomach is cut into during a C-section, I wouldn't put it past her to mistake elective induction with having a C-section for "convenience." Frankly, I don't see how undergoing abdominal surgery and the recovery period, while having a newborn to care for, is remotely convenient.

[browngrl]

The vast majority of c sections I have been involved with are done solely for medical reasons. In some cases I have seen women have an elective c section for non medical reasons. It has never been because the doctor had other plans - it has always been because the woman had a specific need/concern. If a woman wants a c section and has no contraindications and fully understands the risks of surgery - then I think it is no one's business but the woman/her next of kin/her doctor. I am more than a little tired of people who feel it is their business to manage other people's health care decisions particularly as it relates to women's health care.

As for Lori - well she is just an uneducated woman who is spouting nothing but "truthiness". She has no acquaintance with facts or common sense.

[rezski44]

Mine was not scheduled but it was expected as my son was a breech baby and my doctor made me wait until I went into labor in case he turned. No such luck!

[frumper-rump]

I was never offered a C-section with my first and I have never heard of anyone I know going in and asking and receiving one on demand. I was point blank told by my Dr that I had to try a vaginal dellivery with my first, despite him being very large and me being petite. Both of mine ended up being "sunroof babies" and with the second it was scheduled 2 weeks before my due date to prevent labor. (VBAC was not an option...for several medical reasons.) I know C-sections on demand obviously happen, but I dont think they happen as much as the fanatics would like poeple to believe. These are the same people who try to shame mothers who can't deliver vaginally. I refuse to allow anyone to make me feel bad about how my babies got here. They got here alive, end of story.

[Coconut Flan]

At the hospitals in our area, all c-sections have a medical review if they are scheduled. Obviously emergency sections don't have time for a review beforehand but are looked at afterward. Doctors who perform questionable emergency sections get counseling and may lose their privileges. "Elective" sections don't exist here now if they ever did. There has to be a medically justifiable reason or the hospital will not admit the patient or schedule the OR. They also will not schedule them before 39 weeks without a lot of additional justification.

[danvillebelle]

I'm a SAHM who had one unscheduled, then 3 scheduled C-sections (dr. felt it was the best route to go, I didn't care one way or the other). I suppose I could have tried a VBAC, but I didn't want to. And yes, knowing the date was nice because for the last two my mother was able to come stay and care for the other kids. So there, Lori.

[argypargy]

Doctors and hospitals are starting to get away from elective c-sections these days. They used to be a big thing in the 80s and early 90s. "Have a c-section. Have your baby when you want to. Save your vagina" was kind of the thought during those times. I was delivered via c-section in 1980 and my mom still has no idea why.