Can an Obstetric Brachial Plexus Injury Be Prevented?
Ina May Gaskin, a world renowned midwife, said
EVERY BIRTH HAS ITS MOMENT OF SHOULDER DYSTOCIA
Shoulder dystocia = difficulty at the shoulder. This is the moment where the baby's shoulder is right under the mother's pelvic bone and can either bypass it with ease or it can get stuck under it.
The professionals who published about this say that this happens mostly with mothers who may have a little extra in weight and a little less in height, to those who haven't had a child in many years, or to those who had this situation in other births. And then there is gestational diabetes which, they say, grows a baby with larger shoulders. The mother is always the easiest target.
But the TRUTH is that the cause for these specific injuries can be found in the MINDS, in the HANDS and in the CHOICES of the birthing practitioner. AT THE MOMENT THAT THEY REALIZED THAT THE BABY WAS STUCK, WHAT DID THEY DO NEXT?
There are plenty of babies born WITHOUT injury to mothers who have a little extra in weight, or a little less in height, a little older in time. Even very large babies are born without injuries in the hands of birthing professionals who showed up for the class on Shoulder Dystocia and were able to practice that training until they achieved expert level to keep mothers and babies safe.
Hear about it from the mouth of Ina May Gaskin herself and other doctors from this exceptional documentary that was created by UBPN for the purpose of prevention.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IIIKHtOOQ2c
It is said that it takes 40-100 pounds of pressure with lateral traction on the baby's head to injure a nerve. Just imagine what that means in a physical sense. 40 pounds for the simplest of stretched nerves that sometimes resolve in time to 100 pounds for the most destructive injuries where the nerves may be pulled out of their spinal "sockets" (avulsion) leaving one or both arms completely flail.
A specialist told me many years ago that it's a percentage of birthing practitioners who are doing all the injuring and they just continue injuring.
In the big corporate practices, there are multiple practitioners. A mother may not get to meet them all and may not get to choose who will be in the birthing room. With insurance controlling what a doctor earns, some doctors choose to come at the very last moment, so they have no idea what's happened in the labor room until then. Many community birthing educators leave out information about emergencies because the hospitals who refer patients to them dictate what they will teach.
This is why you have to educate yourself, take control, be assertive, learn everything you have to learn and make the choices that you feel are best for your health and the health of your baby.
"EDUCATE ONE WOMAN, SAVE ONE BABY"
Let's begin:
POSITIVE BIRTHING CONSIDERATIONS
DEFINE your personal choices for the birthing experience. Are you willing to learn, practice and be committed (as best as possible) to medication-free pain relief? The reason this is important is because as soon as you get an epidural, you are bed-bound and usually position-bound as well. The usual position being on your back, which we know decreases the size of your pelvic outlet by about 30%.
If you are truly committed to birthing without pain relief medication, then I highly suggest that you take hypnobirthing classes or other "birthing without meds" education. This will give you the structure to learn and practice so that you are ready when the time comes. Start working on this as soon as you know you are pregnant and practice daily.
FIND an experienced, birth educator or doula whose focus will be on uterine forward, pelvic opening positions and natural pain relief without medication. A birth doula can be with you at the birth.
CHOOSE a practice and birthing practitioner who has a good track record and is expert at dealing with birth emergencies with safe deliveries for mother and child especially for mothers who fall into that higher risk group that I mentioned earlier. This person must have an expert knowledge base and experience level with all the maneuvers. This practice should be mostly women who birth without medicated pain relief because they are the ones with the experience level of having women that move around and change their positions with ease. Is this practitioner expert at delivering a baby where a woman is on all fours? Ask the question, if they can't show up, who will? Dig deep and ask as many questions as you can muster. This person will have your life and your baby's life literally in their hands. Dig even deeper, if you are able to, and find out what their malpractice history is. If it is possible, talk to the labor and delivery nurses in that hospital.
DAILY PRACTICE with your birthing partner which will include active and passive pain relief activities, birthing practice, positioning practice is a must. Practice verbal advocacy/assertiveness by role playing through different scenarios. What do you say to the nurse who won't let you get out of bed? What do you say to the nurse who starts pressing down on the top of your belly during labor?
Discuss the birth actively with your baby daddy/partner. Determine if this person is the correct person to be the main "in-your-face birthing partner" for you. This person has to commit to daily practice with you and being able to assertively advocate for you. If you determine that this person is not the best support person for you -- and good for you for being so honest about it -- hire a professional doula for the birth and choose someone else in your life who you can do daily practice with. Please also practice your techniques with your birth doula a few times prior to the birth so that you are in sync.
SHOULDER DYSTOCIA BIRTH MANEUVERS
These are the maneuvers that every birthing practitioner should be expert at. You and your birthing partner should be practicing getting in and out of all of the different types of positions. You should know these by heart and understand the benefits and risks of each. Your birthing partner should be able to verbally advocate for you in all types of scenarios including if the practitioner wants to move to step 10 without trying steps 1-5. Your birthing partner needs to actively advocate for you if someone decides to jump on your belly and do fundal pressure.
- CALL For Help!
- MCROBERTS MANEUVER - mother on back, knees to chest at a specific angle
- SUPRAPUBIC PRESSURE - pressure just above the pubic mons and NEVER on or above the belly itself.
- WOODS SCREW MANEUVER- a rotational maneuver with no hands on the baby's head
- SWEEP THE POSTERIOR ARM - move the non-stuck arm out into the vagina so that there is more room to dislodge the stuck arm.
- GASKIN MANEUVER - roll patient to be on all fours
- MODIFIED GASKIN MANEUVER - (epidural patients) roll patient onto left side, with birth partner holding the right leg up
- SUPRAPUBIC RESSURE with deliberate clavicle fracture of the baby
- ZAVANELLI MANEUVER with C-section - pushing the baby back up and delivery through the tummy
- HYSTEROTOMY - turn the baby from an incision in the abdomen and birthing through the vagina
- SYMPHYSIOTOMY - fracture the cartilage that connects the two sides of the mother's pelvic outlet
Our book list and list of great sites is found below. They are linked to Amazon but purchase them anywhere -- I don't get any financial benefit from your purchase nor do you get it any cheaper because it's linked here.
Feel free to contact me for some personal support.
Best of luck with the birth of your precious.
May God bless you and your family.
OUR BOOKLIST (linked to Amazon)
All About Uterine Forward Positions
All About Uterine Forward Positions
All About Uterine Forward Positions
For Your Person Who Will Be There
All About Uterine Forward Positions
All About Uterine Forward Positions
You CAN Do This!
All About Uterine Forward Positions
World Renowned Midwife Ina May
World Renowned Midwife Ina May
Ina May Shares Birth Experiences
World Renowned Midwife Ina May
Ina May Shares Birth Experiences
Ina May Shares Birth Experiences
Ina May Shares Birth Experiences
Whole Foods for Whole Babies
Ina May Shares Birth Experiences
Ina May Shares Birth Experiences
MOST HELPFUL SITES (linked)
Bridget Teylor's Birthing Channel
Bridget Teylor's Birthing Channel
Bridget Teylor's Birthing Channel
Bridget Teylor's Birthing Course
Bridget Teylor's Birthing Channel
Bridget Teylor's Birthing Channel
World Renowned Doula P. Simkin
Bridget Teylor's Birthing Channel
World Renowned Doula P. Simkin
Facing the Pain With Calm
Protect Yourself From Pre- Eclampsia
World Renowned Doula P. Simkin
Protect Yourself From Pre- Eclampsia
Protect Yourself From Pre- Eclampsia
Protect Yourself From Pre- Eclampsia
Find a Doula In Your Area
Protect Yourself From Pre- Eclampsia
Protect Yourself From Pre- Eclampsia
A SHARING FROM A MOTHER WHOSE BABY WAS INJURED
One Minute
Our minutes fly by so fast. Hundreds of them. Thousands of them. Millions of them!
It said that one minute passed between the time her head came out and the time she was completely born.
One minute it said.
ONE MINUTE!
What happened in that person's head in that one minute?
What was it that flew in there and crowded the thought that should have been in there during that one minute?
One minute passed through like a tornado.
Permanent damage left behind in its path.
It all happened in just one minute.
ONE minute.
One
minute.
one
one
1
Shoulder Dystocia & Birth Injury Prevention
TRANSLATING THE WEBSITE TO ANOTHER LANGUAGE
( 1 ) translate.google.com ( 2 ) click on "website" ( 3 ) FROM English TO your language ( 4 ) website: "injurednewborntoadult.com"
Copyright © 2022 injurednewborntoadult - All Rights Reserved.
The information in this site is written by a layperson whose baby was injured at birth.
The words here are OPINION ONLY and not to be misconstrued as medical advice.
ALWAYS CONSULT A LICENSED MEDICAL PRACTITIONER FOR MEDICAL ADVICE
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