You cannot make this stuff up!
Yesterday I promised that I would update you on the mother who was attempting an HBA4C (homebirth after 4 previous C-sections) and had been laboring for the previous 36 hours. She had ruptured membranes and noticed meconium. She went to the hospital, but left when they advised her to have a C-section.
This is what happened:
…I did not get my vba4c. I’m OK with it though because the reason for the CS was an actual emergency. I had gone in [again] because my contractions were about 3 minutes apart. Plus the meconium was really thick and dark now. Only made it to 2.5, 90%, -1. He had begun having a lot of decels that were taking 4-5 minutes to recover from. At one point they lost his heart beat and when they found it, it didn’t get above 57. So I was rushed to the OR and put to sleep for an emergency CS… [B]oth baby and I are doing great…. We named him Gambit …
What does the word “gambit” mean?
A gambit is a chess move where the player sacrifices a relatively unimportant piece in order to win.
Fitting, no? Perhaps she decided “Afterthought” was too long for a name.
What did this mother accomplish by risking her baby’s life attempting a homebirth after 4 C-sections? As far as I can tell, her only “accomplishment” was waiting until her baby was almost dead in order to convince herself that the C-section was necessary. She put her son through hours of pointless labor that never made any progress, allowed him to become so oxygen deprived that he expelled copious meconium and his heart rate dropped deeply, repeatedly and finally entered a death spiral.
Instead of having a C-section under regional anesthesia (much safer for her), she had one under general. Instead of being awake for her baby’s birth, she missed it. Instead of protecting her baby’s brain function, she risked it.
The comments on her post were inane as would be expected for a group that encourages women to risk their babies’ lives:
You made great decisions during your birth! Sorry it wasn’t as planned, love his name!
Like · 2 · More · 16 minutes agoHe is adorable! Congratulations!!! Good job listening to your body & baby, mama!
Like · 2 · More · 16 minutes agoSorry you didn’t get your dream birth but congratulations! Love his name!
Like · 1 · More · 15 minutes agoCongrats on your baby! Sorry to hear it didn’t go as planned
Actually, she made hideously bad decisions. She did not listen to her body; had she listened she would have had an elective repeat C-section as her body and the baby’s body tried to tell her for hours upon hours. Instead, she came pretty close to killing her baby.
Way to go, Mama!
Gambit indeed.
