Close Menu
    What's Hot

    CNY Preschool and Pre-Kindergarten Guide

    May 1, 2025

    How to Develop ‘Momfidence’

    April 30, 2025

    Helping Your Child Cope with Seasonal Allergies

    April 29, 2025
    Facebook X (Twitter) Instagram
    Trending
    • How to Develop ‘Momfidence’
    • Helping Your Child Cope with Seasonal Allergies
    • Fostering Healthy Sibling Relationships
    • How to Find the Right Summer Sitter
    Facebook X (Twitter) Instagram YouTube
    Family Times Family Times
    • Community Guide
    • CNY Events Calendar
    • Things to Do in CNY
      1. Activities
      2. Treat Yourself
      Featured

      Treat Yourself: Mark your calendar for Disney’s “The Lion King”—and the other Broadway shows coming to Syracuse in 2025

      By Courtney KlessNovember 26, 20240
      Recent

      Treat Yourself: Mark your calendar for Disney’s “The Lion King”—and the other Broadway shows coming to Syracuse in 2025

      November 26, 2024

      Ride the Rails: Scenic Train Rides for Families

      October 1, 2024

      Treat Yourself: Spend a day—or a weekend—exploring Inlet

      October 1, 2024
    • Parenting
      1. Pregnancy
      2. Babies
      3. Kids
      4. Preschoolers/Toddlers
      5. Special Needs
      6. Teens
      7. Pets
      8. View All

      The Power to Save a Life: Cord blood is being used to treat more than 80 diseases

      January 30, 2020

      It’s Not What It Looks Like: Reflections on motherhood’s changes, outside and inside

      July 29, 2019

      In Search of Sleep: 8 Strategies for coping with wakeful babies

      July 29, 2019

      A Surgical Birth: Many pregnant women are likely to deliver by cesarean

      July 29, 2019

      Strangers Bearing Advice: New babies bring out the expert in everyone

      August 1, 2021

      Hand to Mouth: How to help babies start to sample solid food

      August 1, 2020

      315 Bulletin

      August 1, 2020

      Name, Please? Expectant parents face another momentous decision

      August 1, 2020

      Prep Work: Keep your family’s food safe this summer

      June 1, 2022

      A Blooming Craft: These homemade flowers make a great centerpiece

      March 1, 2021

      Rainbow Snowflakes: A colorful craft even little ones can make

      November 24, 2020

      DIY Critter Magnets: Make cute clips for hanging reminders and more

      September 1, 2020

      DIY Critter Magnets: Make cute clips for hanging reminders and more

      September 1, 2020

      Allergy Adjustments: Parents can support their food allergic child

      September 3, 2019

      Calming Commotion: How to deal with car sickness and more

      June 27, 2019

      Introducing Riff Rockit: Kindie artist to play jingles at Leon Fest

      June 1, 2017

      What Is ABA Therapy for Autism? How To Find a Provider for Your Child 

      September 9, 2024

      A History of Inclusion: The Jowonio School marked 50 years in 2019

      March 30, 2020

      Reaching a Milestone: Now the largest chapter in the country, Special Olympics New York is celebrating 50 years

      March 30, 2020

      Come Out and Play: Move Along offers adaptive sports for youth, adults

      March 30, 2020

      Freedom on Wheels: How E-Scooters Empower Teens and Support Family Routines

      November 4, 2024

      Prep Work: Keep your family’s food safe this summer

      June 1, 2022

      A Little Jolt: Caffeine’s risks for kids and teens

      March 1, 2021

      A Blooming Craft: These homemade flowers make a great centerpiece

      March 1, 2021

      Is Puppy Financing Right For Your Family? Pros And Cons Explored

      April 22, 2024

      Furry Friends: What it takes to adopt a pet for the first time

      July 1, 2020

      Tail Wagging Fun: Lights on the Lake Dog Walk 2019

      November 14, 2019

      Uncommon Companions: Local pet store sticks to its niche

      May 30, 2019

      Helping Your Child Cope with Seasonal Allergies

      April 29, 2025

      College Savings 101

      April 29, 2025

      Fostering Healthy Sibling Relationships

      March 28, 2025

      The 8 Best Sunscreens for Kids: Top Picks for Every Need

      March 3, 2025
    • Education
      1. Educator of the Month
      2. Class of the Month
      3. Education News
      4. Reading
      5. Teaching
      Featured

      Girl Scouts of NYPENN Pathways

      By Courtney KlessApril 29, 20250
      Recent

      Girl Scouts of NYPENN Pathways

      April 29, 2025

      Tom Meier, Program Manager and Camp Director at Baltimore Woods Nature Center

      March 28, 2025

      Danielle Maciorowski, PharmD, Manager of Hematology-Oncology Associates of CNY’s Patient Rx Center

      February 27, 2025
    • Crafts & DIY
      • Create
      • Holiday Crafts
    Family Times Family Times
    Home»Pregnancy»Complications»A Surgical Birth: Many pregnant women are likely to deliver by cesarean
    Complications

    A Surgical Birth: Many pregnant women are likely to deliver by cesarean

    Christy Perry TuoheyBy Christy Perry TuoheyJuly 29, 2019No Comments6 Mins Read
    Share
    Facebook Twitter LinkedIn Pinterest Email

    Pregnant women in the United States have a nearly 1 in 3 chance of having their baby by cesarean section.

    Given that no one can be in complete control of her birthing experience, you can take steps in the prenatal months toward having a non-surgical labor and delivery. If the unexpected happens—or expected, if you plan your cesarean ahead of time—there are ways to ensure that you and baby bond beautifully, even in the operating room.

    Syracuse mother Leila Dean had hoped to have a natural childbirth experience. She and her husband attended childbirth classes before her due date and educated themselves on labor and vaginal delivery. But their plans were not to be.

    “I was almost a week late, and I was induced and was in labor for like 40 hours before they finally said, ‘Okay, the baby’s in distress, it’s time to have a C-section.’”

    Her baby, born healthy, is now a teenager. Dean admits to feeling angry that her health care providers made her wait so long before deciding a surgical birth was necessary. Recovery time was tough. “Very painful and frustrating,” she said. “And to this day, I’m really upset about what it did to my body.”

    Richard Waldman, M.D., chairman of the Obstetrics and Gynecology Department at St. Joseph’s Hospital Health Center, has great sympathy for new mothers recovering from cesarean surgery.

    “Anytime there’s major surgery, there’s a delay in recovery,” he said. “You have a baby and you’re trying to breastfeed and you’re recovering from a major incision; you’re uncomfortable, but there’s no room for recovery because you have to be a mother at the same time.”

    Over the years he practiced obstetrics, Waldman says he advocated for his patients to take the lead in decisions about their labor and delivery. “A patient-centered approach means the patients are educated and make their own choices going forward,” he explained.

    Under his care, a woman in labor who did not plan on having a cesarean section would be encouraged to remain active, walk around, use hot tubs for pain relief, and avoid epidural anesthesia unless the pain became too great. “We encourage the woman to be as active and mobile as they can, and to try and take a natural path, to avoid the epidural”—anesthesia delivered to a woman’s lower body via a needle inserted near the membrane surrounding the spinal cord—”as long as they can, but if they need it, they can have it.”

    According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, the U.S. cesarean delivery rate increased in 2017, from 31.9 to 32.0 percent. The target cesarean rate established by the U.S. Office of Disease Prevention and Health Promotion (HealthyPeople.gov) for low-risk women with no prior caesarean births is 23.9 percent, a goal the office hopes will be reached in 2020.

    Cesarean rates vary among hospitals and geographic locations. According to a January 2019 policy paper from the National Rural Health Association, for example, more and more rural women who face long travel distances to health care service providers are having C-sections.

    The CDC breaks its cesarean statistics down by low-risk, primary, and vaginal birth after previous cesarean deliveries. Low-risk cesarean, defined as a woman’s first birth of one fetus, head-first, at 37 or more completed weeks, increased in 2017. U.S. primary cesarean deliveries, which are a woman’s first section but may not be the first baby she’s had, were up slightly (21.9 up from 21.8). Vaginal births after previous cesarean deliveries increased by 3 percent.

    A vaginal birth is much safer for women and babies in most cases. However a C-section may be the only safe alternative if the baby’s position in the womb is not optimal for vaginal birth, if the placenta is blocking the cervix or if other complications arise. In some cases, cesarean section delivery can save the life of mother or baby.

    The most obvious benefits of planned C-sections are the lack of labor pain, lower anxiety or fear about labor, and less worry about the baby’s health. The risk of urinary incontinence, a common postpartum problem for women who deliver vaginally, may be reduced with cesarean section, according to an article in the Canadian Medical Association Journal.

    But there are very real negative aftereffects associated with cesareans. “C-sections are invasive surgery,” Waldman said. “You can have severe complications during a C-section. Every once in a while you have a really severe problems with bleeding.”

    Other complications can include a mother’s bad reaction to general anesthesia. As far as the baby’s future health is concerned, C-sections have been linked in medical studies to childhood obesity and asthma.

    Childbirth educators and care providers are key in teaching pregnant women and their partners how to lessen the risk of a cesarean section. Chris Herrera, a certified birth doula, leads free monthly birth basics meetings. Doulas are non-clinical support professionals who assist women before, during and after childbirth.

    “We have tips for low-intervention birth,” she said. “Anything that’s out of the spontaneous natural birth is considered an intervention, for instance, epidural or pain management. Even though it can benefit your labor, it may also negatively impact your labor.”

    Herrera also teaches expectant mothers how to plan for what’s called a “gentle cesarean.” “We talk about different options they have to make it a more compassionate, family-centered cesarean.” A gentle C-section may occur after labor naturally begins and involves having support people like doulas, midwives and partners in the operating room when the baby is born. Women also have the option to bring the babies to their chests for skin-to-skin contact immediately after birth.

    Doulas provide mothers with physical, mental and emotional support. Unlike midwives, they do not perform any medical tasks. Recent studies suggest doula assistance may reduce the incidence of cesareans, according to DONA International, the world’s largest doula certifying organization.

    How do doulas help women avoid cesareans? “One is that physically we’re helping them get into different positions throughout the labor and helping them cope through the labor physically but also emotionally and mentally,” Herrera said.

    Herrera recommends that the first step for pregnant women should be to educate themselves through childbirth classes on how natural birth progresses.

    If you do end up giving birth by C-section, whether planned or unplanned, Leila Dean has a recommendation. “My biggest advice is to be patient with the healing process,” she said. “That was the hardest part about the whole thing for me.” 

    Resources

          Local Birth Basics classes: http://www.cnydoulaconnection.com/

          Lamaze tips for a “gentle cesarean”: https://www.lamaze.org/Giving-Birth-with-Confidence/GBWC-Post/tips-for-a-gentle-
    cesarean-or-family-centered-cesarean

          CDC birth data: https://www.cdc.gov/nchs/fastats/delivery.htm

          Leapfrog Group C-section rates by hospital:
    https://www.leapfroggroup.org/ratings-reports/rate-c-sections

          Mayo Clinic cesarean section video:
    https://www.mayoclinic.org/tests-procedures/c-section/
    multimedia/c-section-video/vid-20121040

     

    Share. Facebook Twitter Pinterest LinkedIn WhatsApp Reddit Tumblr Email
    Christy Perry Tuohey

    Related Posts

    Play ‘A New, Growing Sport’ at the Erie Canal Pickleball Center

    April 1, 2025

    The 8 Best Sunscreens for Kids: Top Picks for Every Need

    March 3, 2025

    The Misunderstood Child: What parents need to know about Sensory Processing Disorder

    February 27, 2025
    Flip Through Our Latest Issue!
    Stay In Touch
    • Facebook
    • Twitter
    • Instagram
    • LinkedIn
    Top Posts

    2025 Summer Camp Guide

    April 1, 2025751 Views

    DIY: Make your own vibrant, paper fans in only a few easy steps

    July 1, 2020536 Views

    Host a Kid-Friendly Friendsgiving Party

    November 1, 2024407 Views

    CNY Day Camp Directory

    March 31, 2023355 Views

    Family Times Magazine publishes a digital magazine highlighting events, businesses, and content to inform and entertain families here in Central New York. Sign up for our twice monthly newsletter to have the magazine and other featured content.
    ____

    Email Us:
    [email protected]
    Publisher:
    [email protected]
    Contact: 1.315.422.7011

    Facebook X (Twitter) Instagram LinkedIn RSS
    Our Picks

    Fall Activities Guide

    October 1, 2024
    Most Popular

    2025 Summer Camp Guide

    April 1, 2025751 Views

    DIY: Make your own vibrant, paper fans in only a few easy steps

    July 1, 2020536 Views

    Host a Kid-Friendly Friendsgiving Party

    November 1, 2024407 Views
    © 2025 Family Times, CNY. Designed by Crossroads Marketing.
    • Our Authors
    • Archives
    • Things to do around Syracuse and CNY: Local Events Calendar
    • Advertising

    Type above and press Enter to search. Press Esc to cancel.