Am I Allowed?: What Every Woman Should Know BEFORE She Gives Birth

Can I choose where to give birth to my baby? Why do I have to have an ultrasound examination?Induction of labour –do I need one?Can I decide who will be with me during my labour? How do I complain about the care I received? This book focuses, primarily, on the maternity rights of women in the UK. Much of the information is also appropriate for those in other high income countries. It sets out to help you to understand your options and rights through all stages of pregnancy, birth, and postnatally. It has been written by Beverley Lawrence Beech an author, birth activist, international speaker and is based on 40 years’ experience challenging the over-medicalised, hospital-based, model of childbirth. Most women, trust the system to provide them with the best of care, 'What is must be best' (Macintyre 1984) and discover, too late, and to their cost, that the care was often based on routine and rules to which they were expected to conform. Although women are often told that ‘every birth is different’ there is within the hospital system an expectation that every birth will fit a specific set of rules or guidelines. If your pregnancy or birth is not conforming to the guidelines then you can find yourself at odds with the staff or agreeing to something with which you are not comfortable. This book explains the issues and what choices you have. It is your body, your baby, and you are the one who makes the decisions. The current fashion is for ‘joint decision making’ a subtle phrase that still suggests that the professionals are the ones to make the decision when, indeed, their role is to discuss with the woman the risks and benefits of any particular intervention so that the woman can then make a decision. Even if the woman’s decision is ‘you do what you think is best doctor’. That is a decision. It is not a ‘joint decision’. Most women expect to have a happy and normal straightforward birth, but there is a possibility that this may not include you, in which case it is better to be forewarned and forearmed so that you are well-placed to make a decision that is best for you and your baby. In which case, this book is a must read for every woman.