When I was 23 – just two days after my first wedding anniversary – I found myself in labor for the very first time. Over the course of the day, nothing went as I expected. It was a difficult, harrowing, physically exhausting experience. Yet while I was in labor, I heard over and over, “It will all be worth it when she gets here. You’ll forget everything that happened.” How I wish these words were true. (You can read the full story here)
I very nearly died of a postpartum hemorrhage after giving birth to my first child due to the negligence of my midwife. I am half-Mexican, and it wasn’t until many years later that I learned women of color are 2-6x more likely to die during child birth than white women. Of all women of color, African-American women are the most likely to die during or after childbirth.
In our culture, women are encouraged to take control of their birth experience through education before and during pregnancy. Many families choose to sign up for birthing classes to know what to expect during labor and delivery. This education also often covers breastfeeding and parenting to prepare parents for how to care for their newborn
But what happens, despite all the preparations, when there are complications and the birth doesn’t go as planned? Maybe an induction is needed or a long labor turns into a C-section or the mother hemorrhages after delivery. The lives of these women are in the hands of the professionals: nurses, doctors and midwives. The decisions that are made could change the course of their lives forever.
In the United States, April is National Minority Health Month – a month-long initiative to advance health equity across the country on behalf of all racial and ethnic minorities. This week focuses specifically on Black Maternal Health.
The following photos and captions show how the decisions that were made by the staff in charge of these women’s care DID change the course of their lives forever. Everything did not go as planned and there were complications, but these professionals truly listened. Because of this, these women and their babies are alive and healthy.
An induction turned c-section where the mother requested immediate skin to skin with the baby in the operating room, the drape to be dropped when the baby was born, and her entire birth team (midwife, doula, birth photographer) present during the c-section.
Jeida transfers to the hospital from a home birth after many hours of labor and possible complications due to a cervical cerclage from earlier in the pregnancy.Jeida’s midwives chat with the attending OBGYN during the middle of the night while she rests. They have developed a strong relationship and respect for the other and together give women the best care possible when a transfer is needed.Jeida’s birth team (midwives, nurse, OBGYN, husband, and mother) help talk through her options in the middle of the night.Jeida had planned a water birth at home and the physician, hospital, nurses and midwives did everything they could to make her birth experience as close to what she would have had at home as possible despite the transfer to the hospital.
Dominique tries nitrous oxide to help cope with painful contractions.
Dominique wanted to have a natural birth in the comfort of her home. After going past her due date and trying to induce labor at home, she finally made the decision to be induced at the hospital at the end of her 42nd week of pregnancy.A nurse helps encourage Dominique while she pushes to deliver her baby.The pediatrician performs the newborn exam following the birth while the placenta and cord are still intact per the mother’s wishes.Deitra safely delivered her baby in the water at home, but her midwives noticed she began to bleed more than normal just after this photo was taken.Deitra receives attention for bleeding while the baby’s older siblings count fingers and toes.Deitra planned to have an herbal bath with the baby after delivery, but due to bleeding she asked her family to do the herbal bath with the baby instead.Dad and siblings take an herbal bath with the new baby while Deitra rests in bed under the close eye of her midwives.Loriell bears down while receiving oxygen. The baby’s heart rate had suddenly dropped and it was urgent for the baby to be born. The midwives had already called 911 and the ambulance was on the way.Loriell delivers her son just moments before the ambulance arrives. Her midwives made quick decisions to help him arrive safely and had called 911 as soon as complications arose. Thankfully mom and baby did not end up needing to be transported.
