Hwk 39

Wagner, Marsden. Born in the USA: How a Broken Maternity System Must be Fixed to put Women and Children First. University of California Press, 2008. Print.

I would say most of the content discussed in Born in the USA is similar to what is being viewed in Business of Being Born. The main argument is what type of birth the mother should choose; which one is safer for her and her baby? As read in the text and seen in the film we can state the obvious: hospitals are basically factories that are being paid to unnecessarily drug and perform surgeries on females to make way for a new addition to this world. Wagner discusses part of this earlier in the book talking about how many times doctors are not even present at the actual time of delivery. He talks about the good and the bad of having a home birth vs. a hospital birth; Wagner takes his side with the midwives. Later on he discusses parts of the human body such as the nervous system and the role it plays while a woman is giving birth. Both the movie and the text are trying to get the same idea across, but try to approach it using different methods. Business of Being Born lets the viewer decide what sets apart wrong from right. It keeps jumping off from showing a home birth vs. showing a hospital birth. In Born in the USA, Wagner decides to take a side and stays with that side throughout the book. He tries to prove that having a birth in a hospital will only fund a dangerous and sometimes deadly cause.

Where should you plan to have your baby? at the comfort of your home or in the midst of all the hustle and bustle of a hospital? Wagner discusses midwifery in America, then merges into the topic of where a baby should be born. When it comes to giving birth, the mother usually tends to worry about where she wants to have her birth causing her to forget about what matters the most; the actual process of giving birth. I think this is all because of our society; they make pregnant females fear about the unthinkable by forcing unnecessary information into their systems. All this unnecessary information distracts them from what they really need to be caring about.

- The (actual) role of a midwife (pg. 101)
- “Childbirth is not under the conscious control of the woman giving birth...” (pg. 104)
- The legal rights of women (pg. 172)
- Giving birth at home vs. at the hospital, at home the mother-to-be is well aware of her surroundings where as in a hospital it is as if she is being cured for an illness. (pg. 187)
- Cytotec is a deadly drug commonly used to induce labor (discussed throughout the book)

Wagner states: “Fear and anxiety stop intestinal mobility, stop any chance of orgasm. And stop labor. Any intervention that increases a laboring woman’s fear or anxiety will interfere with, slow down or even stop the birth process.” (pg. 104) After doing some research I was able to further prove true to myself what Wagner had stated. There is a limit to how anxious a pregnant female should be; but when this anxiety reaches a certain height, it is not considered the most beneficial for her and the baby. Most women have anxiety because they are not able to share their worries with their partners or care givers. Having high levels of stress can cause a higher chance of delivering an underweight baby or going into pre-term labor. A study shows that because anxiety is a form of arousal, it means that it is able to influence hormone levels which in return cause complications. There are certain types of anxiety such as psychosocial stress or fear of childbirth which have shown connections with complications such as C-section or prolonged labor.