'Pushed Birth' - new website & book

[fai firinne]

Hi Bubhubbers, for those seeking alternatives in birthing practices, here's a new resource from USA I just heard about:

What To Expect. Really.
pushedbirth.com

Contact: Jennifer Block, journalist, author, and now blogger
917-848-0205 / jennifer@jenniferblock.com

PROVOCATIVE NEW WEB SITE & BLOG TELLS WOMEN WHAT TO
REALLY EXPECT WHEN THEY GIVE BIRTH
August 30, 2007, New York — Just in time for Labor Day, Pushedbirth.com offers a source of
candid, uncensored, must-know healthcare information not just for women who are pregnant or
thinking about becoming so, but for anyone who's interested in how American women are giving
birth today.
The U.S. may be known for its advancements in medical technology, but according to a 2006
survey, just 2% of pregnant women receive optimal care when they go to have the baby.
Instead, most women have what author Jennifer Block calls a “pushed birth”: they are induced
into labor or sped up with artificial hormones, labor and deliver lying flat on their backs, or, in
nearly one-third of cases, give birth by major abdominal surgery.
Block, author of 'Pushed: The Painful Truth About Childbirth and Modern Maternity Care' (Da
Capo, 2007), launched Pushedbirth.com as a resource for women who, she says, “aren’t being
told what to really expect when they get to the hospital. If they’re like most women, they’ll be
rushed through labor, confined to a bed, and more often than necessary, leave recovering from
surgery or preventable injury. According to research, this treatment is not only unnecessary, but
a detriment to mothers’ and babies’ health and well-being.”
Recent news that the U.S.’s maternal death rate rose for the first time in decades underscores
the need for better maternity care practices. Says Block, “Women can and should seek out
more optimal care.”
Pushedbirth.com was created to help women do just that. The site answers such questions as,
“What’s a ‘Pushed Birth’?” “How can I avoid it?” and “Why not just schedule it?”
Pushedbirth.com is a must-read for a better birth. Best of all, it’s a quick read. With so many
pregnancy guides beckoning at the bookstore, Pushedbirth.com provides an eye-opener in
minutes. After viewers click through six content pages, they can follow links to other resources
or scroll through the blog, which is updated daily with news, expert tips, and birth stories.
At Pushedbirth.com, women will learn that...
• Scheduling labor can put a baby at risk
• Epidural anesthesia can put a vagina at risk
• Electronic fetal monitors can do more harm than good
• Induced labor is more painful than normal labor
• Women should not be birthing flat on their backs

Praise for Pushed, the book:

“Quietly deft storytelling...Excellent” –Chicago Reader

“A wry and pointed writer...No woman who is pregnant, has been pregnant, or plans to be pregnant should set foot inside the office of her ob/gyn before reading” –Women's Review of Books

“With extensive field research and thorough historical
contextualization, Block reveals some disturbing statistics in this country's birth management and shows how medical views of birth are as subject to change as the whims of fashion.” –Kirkus (starred review)

“This provocative, highly readable exposé raises questions of great consequence for anyone planning to have a baby in U.S., as well as those interested or involved in women's health care.”
–Publishers Weekly

“An eye-opening, distressing, and ultimately empowering look at the very sorry state of contemporary maternity care.”—“Block has fearlessly pulled back the hospital curtain on the truth of what's really happening in the world of childbirth today... A must-read for anyone hoping to make an informed choice about bringing life into this world, Pushed is a fact-packed page-turner that will affix new meaning to the word 'birthright.'“—Bust magazine

[~Emmylou~]

That's fantastic Julie, thanks...have added it to my resource links

[moonblossom]

Julie, where would I be without you pointing me in the right direction, you are a legend...I'm still sooking about not being able to see Sheila

Oh but yesterday, I went OP shopping looking for any books relating to pregnancy etc, and you wouldn't believe it, came across Mayes Midwifery, A Texbook for Midwives...for the mighty sum of 20 cents

On the inside cover is says 60 dollars

As you would be able to tell...it made my whole day LOL

[fai firinne]

Hi Moonblossom, I hear ya, I would love to hear Sheila Kitzinger too! Sounds like an interesting book you found, let us know what you think of it. I have 'Heart and Hands - A midwife's Guide to Pregnancy and Birth' by Elizabeth Davis which is great too.

This new website put me onto another helpful resource that I did not know about, called Coalition for Improving Maternity Services - it is the USA equivalent of our Maternity Coalition. It has excellent printable hand-outs etc, like this one (below). The link plus a few other good links are there on the Pushedbirth website.

(Actually I'll put this in a new post because it's too long for here)

All the best with your training, Moonblossom!