>I don't
>understand why women aren't more concerned with their own health (and their
>baby's) and risks related to unnecessary surgery.

How are the risks presented? Are they presented? I don't mean in
a form they sign at the hospital. When the doctor suggests
a C/sec based on size (or schedule or whatever) do they
discuss the risks of surgery. My experience is that people
think the surgery is pretty benign.
The same is true of bf. Are the risks of formula presented
at a time when expectant/new mothers can take it in and
make an informed choice?

I see my job as a childbirth educator is giving people the
tools to ask hard questions to help them make informed choices.
I can't possibly teach all the possible scenarios of birth
and early post partum. What I can do is give them some
idea of what are the range of possibilities and when they
should start asking hard questions. Most c/secs are not
emergencies, inductions are by definition not emergencies.
That means that people have time to ask questions and think
about the answers in making a choice.

In talking about jaundice, I let classes know that some docs
will recommend not bfing in the case of jaundice. I tell them
that, while this is true on very rare occasions, docs recommend it
much more frequently than is necessary. I suggest that if a doc is
recommending that moms not bf, they get a second opinion from someone
else.  I usually recommend that they get that second opinion from
an LC. I explain that LCs know more about this than docs, because
this is their training, and they work with docs on recommendations and
treatment plans.

As a childbirth educator I think my most important job is to
empower people. Ask questions. Make sure that their questions
and concerns are addressed in a way that makes sense to them.
and change practitioners (whether its ob, midwife or pedi) if
it's not working. Changing practioners doesn't mean the doctor
is bad, or that the patient is bad, it may just be a bad chemistry.

Naomi Bar-Yam

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