Choices in Childbirth: Ideas and Theories in Work by Sheila Kitzinger - Essay Example

Choices in Child Birth Ideas and Theories in Work by Sheila Kitzinger With the increasing population, birth practices have taken a different turn deviating from the traditional practices. In addition, technological advancement has swayed people away from these traditional methods and adopting modern technology. Sheila Kitzinger vividly enlightens the society about the dangers of deviating from traditional birth practices through her well-founded ideas. She observes that the unparalleled technological expansion spells doom for natural methods of childbirth. Kitzinger asserts that the use of technocrats’ methods should only happen in extreme cases where the natural way has failed totally. She is a strong advocate of traditional mode of childbirth. Through her work, she sheds light on the birth procedures, which embraces technology and calls for a critical reflection of the home child delivery. Use of machines is more prevalent in the United States and Europe. She believes that birth should only be under control of woman and a competent midwife but not through monitoring electronic machines. Kitzinger challenges potential mothers to deliver through a natural model. According to her, it is the safest way to bring life to this earth (Kitzinger, 2006). She examines closely the awful language the obstetrics use to the expectant mothers and thus she provides plausible alternative. In the book, Birth in Crisis, Kitzinger bravely explores the stories and conditions of mothers who gave birth at home and in the health centers. Women express their satisfaction in the hands of midwives. She contrasts the home birth care with the pathetic situation in hospitals under obstetrics and massive use of machines. Kitzinger (2006) points out that research shows the hospital environment is the source unnecessary trauma and depression for mothers. Though perceived to conduct their duties in a professional way, the General Practitioners fail to give the right medical diagnosis. This compromises the health of a mother and the child. The nasty experience in the health facilities with its post birth panics attacks scares women from successive pregnancies. It interferes with the sacred role of women to procreate and bring about continuity of life. Kitzinger strongly criticizes the Western culture where parturition is mother and doctor affair. They believe that expectant mothers should be under close observation of an obstetrician. The mother is required to co-operate for birth to occur in a smooth way. Her compliance with doctors’ instruction is crucial to the outcome of childbirth. Kitzinger (2006) asserts this is deprivation of mothers’ birth freedom and unfair instilling of terror to the mothers. According to her, birthing has a lot of meaning to the mothers and not to the outsiders. The mother therefore deserves respect and control in this process. Kitzinger sees that the hospital rules clearly indicate the instructions of the birth procedure and mothers only have to comply blindly with the hospital regulations. This leaves them voices less to the very activity happening right to their bodies. Kitzinger perceives this as victimization in its extreme. According to her, mothers have the right to seek information about the whole exercise and their health, which may be at stake. Kitzinger (2006) candidly presents the images of women who suffer silently after disgusting reality of childbirth in the hospitals. She examines them and discovers that many of those mothers keep their awful experience privately. They contemplate whether to return to the medical centers or just stay at her comfortable home. These mothers finally opt to stay at their place. She sees the doctors will worsen her situation. Kitzinger supposes that it is possible to avoid the distressing events. Her solution is to acknowledge many benefits inherent in the home birth care under safe hands of midwives. The heavy use of medical instruments during delivery deeply torments Kitzinger. She reports that the number of Caesarean births has alarmingly increased. Kitzinger adds that Caesarean troubles the intimidate relationship between the care providers and the mothers (Kitzinger, 2006). She indicates that, the method of induction of labor incapacitates the expectant mothers. Kitzinger argues that the use of modern machines affects the normal functions of hormones in the mothers’ body. She concludes that it is the principle cause of Caesarian births. She alludes that the medical practitioners are quick to go for Caesarian even in obvious cases of normal vaginal parturition. The excessive use of painkillers affects the natural pain, which mothers have to go during delivery. She proposes the therapeutic massage, which decreases labor pains and makes it short. Midwives also provide infant massage. This is advantageous to the infant because it reduces growth complications (Kitzinger, 2000). Kitzinger criticizes the technocratic management of labor using obstetric machines introduced in the year 1960. This machine dilates the cervix and induces labor. Kitzinger perceives that the procedure is unwarranted excruciation of childbirth. This takes away all the powers of a mother exercised during childbirth. Kitzinger provides a solution to this torment. She asserts that traditional massage can work wonders. This is because it improves moods, decreases anxiety, reduces pain at the legs, reduces stress level hormones, and relieves back pain. In addition, Kitzinger reveals that it restores musculoskeletal to its normal after birth (Kitzinger, 2000). She further proposes that mothers should be at liberty to choose either the machinery procedures or the natural way of childbearing. She adds that their decision should be independent enough and not be subject to external factors such as different views of stakeholders in the health sector. To involve mothers in making their birth choices, greatly empower them. In addition, they are in total control of the birth process since they have a well-founded decision. Kitzinger calls for midwives to be in the forefront to advocate the rights of women and to spearhead the campaigns of home birth. She encourages midwifery fraternity to shun away their critics and work to ensure the acknowledgement of home care. She further persuades them to create strong bonds with the child bearers and to embrace transparency. Kitzinger seeks the attention of midwives to refine their approach to both the educated and illiterate mothers. According to her, this is the surest way in which natural birth can gain its roots deeply in any society. The startling rise in figures of maternal deaths perturbs Kitzinger. She attaches their cause to the heavy intervention of electronic instruments in the hospitals. She highlights some examples such as, the effects of labor-inducing drugs on the uterus, which leads to rupture and excessive application of anesthetics. Kitzinger notes that, it is possible to do away with these deaths through strict adherence to proper medical procedures. She discredits the media for its contribution to the premature deaths of mothers. Kitzinger expresses her discomfort on the way the media depicts birth process. According to her, the media presents a scaring picture of childbearing. To them, delivery is a death and life affair and the only hope is in the hands of medical practitioners. Programs, which appear in the televisions and other types of media, paint childbirth process as a hospital responsibility. They intentionally focus on those mothers with child delivery complications and end up in the hospital beds. This to a big extent influences the choices, which mothers make. Mothers change their initial decisions for the home birth and opt for the hospital care forthright. This is mainly because mothers fear they might experience pregnancy complications when they deliver in the home setting. She challenges the media fraternity to live to their ethics, not to instill fears in mothers, not to glorify hospital child bearing as the best option but rather to explicitly report unbiased information. Kitzinger (2000) observes that the manipulative element of childbirth lacks in the hospitals. According to her, this eases complicated labor pains. In the hospitals, it relies largely on electronic intervention and this may endanger the life of child and mother. She points out that scientific invention should not target the natural physiological process of child delivery. The benefit of this method is that the midwives provide compassionate touches on both the infant and its mother. She objects the use of electronic because they can lose important information. This may adversely affect the health of mother and child. Kitzinger (2005) observes the dangers, which are inherent in the fragmentation of maternity care. She notes that efforts have concentrated in creating anti-natal clinics in the hospitals. She fears the consequences of this action spells doom for the community clinics and midwifery fraternity. She observes that there will be a great shift from home childbirth to the hospital delivery. This will destabilize cultures and they will become overdependence on the care provided in the health centers. Kitzinger strongly advocates for education of mothers and midwives in her ideas and theories. She argues that women have little knowledge about scientific technology. She notes that application of electronic instruments in the maternity is on the women yet they have little voice on it. This is because science is patriarchal in its nature and segregates women. She encourages the mothers to question its negative and positive implications on their health. To her it is a threat to the rich social stratification and women should have a chance to make informed choices. She cautions midwifery to uphold their holistic roles of childbirth and to disallow the new wave of technocrat to sway them. According to Kitzinger, the training of competent midwives can only happen away from the hospital settings. She calls for autonomy in midwifery education system. The target of such system is to impart social norms to the midwives. Kitzinger observes that the female bodies have capability to bring forth life and they possess reproductive potentials. They can to produce health babies and therefore they do not require technological interventions whatsoever. She interprets that the use of instruments in childbirth abuses mothers and causes unnecessary harms them. Massive use of technocrats has a variety of risks. They include, excessive breeding, uterine rupture, and injuries emanating from surgical operations. Kitzinger strongly advocates for home childbirth where the mothers can exercise their powers away from the agony of health centers. In the three books Kitzinger publishes, she appears very optimist that the home birth care can prevail in the Western nations. This is achievable through various ways. To start with, mothers should seek relevant information before they make their birth choices. Next, she argues the midwifery fraternity to devise friendly methods to deal with expectant mothers. This is a good strategy to strengthen their bonds, which will enable the mothers to appreciate home delivery care. Lastly, Kitzinger calls for concerted efforts from all the stakeholders in the health sector to consolidate their ideas and thoughts on the delivery system. References Kitzinger, S. (2000). Rediscovering Birth. London: Pinter & Martin Ltd. Kitzinger, S. (2005). The Politics of Birth. Oxford: Elsevier Butterworth Heinemann. Kitzinger, S. (2006). Birth in Crisis. London: Taylor & Francis. Read More