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Gretchen Humphries on the BirthLove Site
Compiled by LLM
 Gretchen
Humphries MS, DVM is a doctor of veterinary
medicine, childbirth researcher/educator, and
mother of three. Her first children (twin boys)
were born through a traumatic cesarean section;
her daughter was born ecstatically at home in
a watertub with midwives attending.
Gretchen's medical training allows her to make
sense of scientific literature- and her gift to
women and babies is her breakdown of intimidating
knowledge and research papers into casual, friendly
lay language- allowing women to be the most informed
they can be about what is really going on with
their bodies, their babies and their births. She
brings this same gift into telling women the truth
about what all the birth drugs and interventions
really can do.
Following is a selection of Gretchen's articles.
For more quotes, look through the C-sec/VBAC quotes
page.
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Gretchen's Birth Stories
Maille's
Birth Gretchen's fourth baby is born at
home, with her little son Daniel in joyful attendance.
This story is told with humor and love, and
includes photos as well.
Gretchen's
Beautiful Home VBAC Waterbirth Gretchen
talks about her third baby's waterbirth with
much humor, love and touching honesty. (Her
eldest twins were born by traumatic cesarean.)
This story is very descriptive of what birth
feels like, and is highly recommended for first-time
moms and VBAC moms. Includes amazing photos.
* * *
Click to go to the desired collection of articles
on this page.
Articles about Pregnancy,
Birth and the Postpartum
CPD
and FTP = Bad Practice (or, "there's
no evidence to support a belief of brokenness")
Women are not broken: caregivers' ingrained disbelief
in women's birthing abilities, and their subsequent
routine manipulation, is.
Advice to
a VBAC Mom who is Pregnant with Twins How
to have a full term pregnancy, and help with self-doubt.
Gretchen's
Response to "How to Have a Successful VBAC"
Read it and be empowered!
About
Hospital Birth, to the ICAN Email List Gretchen
talks about some of the cruel myths regarding
the "safety net" that hospital birth
provides, and speaks of how women can really
empower themselves to "keep their power"
in a hospital birth.
Planning
for Birth: Unconscious Assumptions and Compromise
Gretchen talks about who women should think about
serving when they plan their births: their doctors,
relatives, friends- or their babies and themselves.
Bearing
Witness: Amanda's Birth Gretchen acted for
the first time as doula for a friend choosing
hospital birth- and what an intense, emotional
journey that was. This should be read by all women
planning to not give birth at home; it will help
them prepare well in advance for the best possible
hospital birth outcome- it illustrates that finding
good labor support is critical in avoiding a particularly
difficult experience.
Heroic
Birth? Gretchen describes her
love of veterinary medicine; how she enjoys feeling
"heroic" during medical procedures.
Does this same sort of heroism belong in a hospital
labor and delivery room?
Set My Children
Free A compassionate discussion about fear
in pregnancy and birth- and how it manifests itself
in painful, dangerous ways.
Birth Dreams
An empowering and thoughtful invitation to women
into birth power and freedom. Included- how to
deal with and prevent problems from "concerned"
family members about your birth plans.
Question:
What would happen if you intervened in animals'
births? -they would stall and become pathological.
Such a shame OBs don't study veterinary medicine
before obstetrics!
You Should
Be Grateful Gretchen talks about how deeply
women are hurt when they are perpetually told
"at least you have a healthy baby".
This article is a must-read for women who have
been hurt in their births, and feel like no one
on the planet cares. It should also be read by
the people who tell them- "you should be
grateful".
Is CPD Real?
A study shows that CPD is hard to define, very
rare, and way over-diagnosed.
Does
a Dad's Birth Weight Make for Bigger Babies?
Women are sometimes sectioned just because their
husbands were big babies, and doctors are afraid
the babies will be too big to get out. Studies
and personal experience show that this type of
reactivity is needless.
Drugs in
Birth- Just What DO They Do, Anyway? (And
why aren't women warned?) A wide variety
of important topics are discussed- from post-op
itching and "opiates" vs. "opiods",
to why epidurals can be so terrible for babies.
A must-read.
Also by Gretchen Humphries: Childbirth
lessons we can learn from our "lesser"
mammal sisters- here,
and a response to a post about a spinal
anesthetic nightmare.
Articles about Cesarean Section
To a Midwifery
Student about Women and Cesareans A student
whose teacher has a 25% cesarean rate wants to
know what she can do to have a lower cesarean
rate, as well as how to serve women who do end
up with cesareans.
Cesarean
Sections: Lessons, Purpose and Reasons Why
do women have cesareans?- what can women learn
from them, and do women need to learn any "higher
purpose" for them at all in order to accept
them, and heal from them?
Suturing
a Cesarean Wound A discussion of how cesareans
are closed, and if the method of closing determines
if a woman is more likely to have a ruptured uterus
in a subsequent pregnancy. This article is written
in lay language and is highly recommended reading,
especially for those trying to make sense of their
medical records.
Cesarean
Section and Preterm Birth Gretchen provides
and describes abstracts that show that preterm
babies need labor, and that they thrive when born
vaginally. Includes references to breech babies.
Articles about Vaginal Birth
After Cesarean (VBAC)
Gretchen's
Responses to VBAC Dreams Women are afraid
they won't be "allowed" to have their
VBACs; Gretchen instills power and logic into
them. No one can make women have the births
they don't want. As Gretchen says- "You do
not have to climb up on that table and lay down
and let them cut you open again. You always have
options. You just have to be willing to explore
them."
Homebirth
and Hospital Birth: how do they compare for the
VBAC Mom? A woman's husband wants her to have
a hospital VBAC; Gretchen discusses some of the
issues that can typically arise in an obstetrically
managed hospital VBAC.
Question:
"Am I more likely to have a uterine rupture
if I have had more than one c-section?"
Discussed: what may make a woman more likely to
experience a rupture; also- we must make our own
birth choices.
Three Things
to Worry About? Gretchen shares thoughts about
VBAC, macrosomia and postdates- and how they relate
to VBAC women. Includes reference links.
Never
mind what her doctor says- only 31% of women's
babies' heads are "engaged" at time
of birth "Pish posh" says Gretchen
regarding a hoping-for-VBAC woman's doctor saying
that she is a "one and a half time"
mother regarding her pelvis. Includes a medical
journal citation.
Summary
of 4 Studies on VBAC safety An excellent
paper that illuminates the findings, as well as
the failings, of important research documents.
Included: how there is no study about the outcomes
of planned home VBACs.
A Response
to the Statement- "My Doctor Won't Let Me
Have A VBAC!" Excellent research and
wisdom to help women address their doctors' fears
and misconceptions.
Pain
in the uterine incision is common -and what
Gretchen's scar felt like during her home waterbirth
VBAC.
See Gretchen's webpage
for more thoughts on "modern" obstetrics.
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