The cost of natural childbirth advocacy

I'm having a very hard day today and coming here to vent.A little over 11 years ago, I was about 34-35 weeks pregnant. I was only 20 at the time, but I felt like things weren't right. I felt like I needed help.I went to the hospital, and the staff assumed I was tired of being pregnant (honestly, I was, but there were other issues too).Then my son had a late decel on the monitor that lasted 10 minutes. If I had understood the significance of that, I would have demanded an immediate c-section.I was 20 and naive. They admitted me for observation overnight, and the prolonged late decels continued. Instead of a morning c-section, they started pitosin as soon as they decided my son was in trouble. The late decels continued for 9 hours until he was delivered.Now, he needs physical therapy, occupational therapy, and speech therapy. He can't tie his shoes, write, or type. He can't play team sports. He has trouble with sitting, standing, walking, and running.Every time there is a new life experience that he misses out on, the wounds are reopened. I try never to show my guilt or sadness in front of him, but it just kills me that he was robbed of so many things because we let him stay in a dangerous situation for too long.The natural childbirth advocates, however, would count that as a success. They rate doctors according to their c-section rates, not the birth complication rates. A doctor who acted immediately to save my son's neurological function would be vilified as "wanting to get to the golf course."Natural childbirth advocates have no medical training, but have created a hostile environment in which there are negative consequences for prudent medical treatment. I was never a proponent of natural childbirth, but our family now pays the price for their pressure and propaganda in a daily basis. via /r/Parenting http://ift.tt/2h6Q0rs