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The film intends to bring some transparency to state of birthing in the US. It doesn’t conclude with “doctors and hospitals are evil” yet it also shows that homebirth is not just for hippies living in barns!
The film prompts its viewers to ask tough questions:
Why does the United States have the highest rate of maternal and neonatal deaths surrounding labor and delivery among all domesticated countries? With advances in medical techology and knowledge, why hasn’t this mortality rate decreased in over 20 years?
What are other countries doing differently that is producing less injury and fewer losses of life?
Why do people spend more time researching what type of digital camera to purchase than they do researching the safest way to deliver their child?
Why has birth become such an event that women often anticipate with so much dread, instead of a natural part of life?
Why do intelligent, educated women spend 9 months of their pregnancy avoiding alcohol, caffeine, and even tylenol; but the moment labor approaches, they beg for maximum pain relief and expect this has NO effect on their baby?
Why is the cesarean rate increasing so quickly in our country, and should we be concerned about that?
Why are the majority of baby’s birth certificates showing deliveries on weekdays during regular business hours?
What does an ideal birth look like? A “healthy” baby and a “healthy” mom? Or is there more?
As a culture, are we moving toward better birthing or away from it?
The film is an introduction to many aspects of the home birth and hospital birth discussion, and does a good job of keeping things balanced. I’ve talked to moms and dads, midwives, and OBs who have seen it, and overall it is a thought-provoking result.
For me, I’m a planner/researcher personality, so this film would not be enough to convince me either to have or not have a home birth. I’ve read at least 15 books on the subject now, and that is what has convinced me. However, my husband will never read those books, so this film was a good way to get him involved in the dicussion and decisions that we will make for our future children.
My top booklist if you’re thinking about home birth: “Pushed” Jennifer Block 2007, and “Born in the USA” Dr. Marsden Wagner 2006, for current intellectual research and statistics involving birth. “Ina May’s Guide to Childbirth” Ina May Gaskin 2003 and “Birthing from Within” Pam England 1998, for emotionally encouraging stories and feel-good about anticipating your birth type of ideas.
Hopefully, this film will be to birthing what Supersize Me was to fast food. Yes, we still have McDonalds around, and plenty of people eat there. But maybe more people will eat at home, or make more healthy choices. And McDonalds and other chains are removing transfats and selling salads. Generally speaking, the US population is a bit more aware of the dangers of overindulging in fast food, including the loss of life from obesity and obesity-related diseases.
This film would hopefully have a similar result: Yes, we still have doctors and hospitals around, and plenty of women are delivering in them every day. But a greater percentage of births would happen at home with licensed professionals. Hospitals would stop giving pitocin, epidurals, and other interventions to practically every woman in labor, and they would work to decrease their cesarean rates. Generally speaking, the US population would be more aware of options for birth, and would investigate the subject more before blithely succombing to a birth experience that is resulting in loss of life and permanent damage to women and babies across our country. I’m sorry, did I get on my soapbox just now?
Enjoy the film, and make the best decision you can as parents, for the sake of your unborn children.