My heart goes out to you and your friend. I have witnessed many a birth of
that sort and for that reason prefer to offer homebirth services. One
thought that stood out in my mind as I was reading your post is that your
friend chose *with whom* she would give birth and *where* she would give
birth. She consented to the scheduled c-section. She made these choices.
Many oppurtunities exist for a positive and empowering pregnancy and
childbirth according to a woman's wishes in the U.S.A. Sometimes it is
*survival despite the odds* in one birthing situation that propels a woman
to chose a birth environment and situation that encourages her to flourish
and grow through the process rather than survive  the next birth.

Enough ranting and off my soapboxI go,

Lisa Boisvert-Mackenzie, Mom, Midwife, CCE, breastfeeding enthusiast
Pohnpei, East Caroline Islands, Micronesia

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[log in to unmask] wrote:

They survived:   the OB who performed the elective c-section two
weeks early since the baby was a whopping 8 1/2lbs (even though an older
sibling born two weeks early by c/s also had breathing problems at birth),
the
NICU nurses who told her she was "allowed" to nurse only every three hours,
the Neonatologist who told her to go home and rest and let the nurses bottle
feed the baby (ABM of course), the husband who told her she should not "rock
the boat", the father who told her to listen to the "experts"..............