Episode 2: Labor Pains

In the second episode of The 7-Day Work Week, Em and Liz share their labor stories. They discuss the numerical and cultural values of natural births, inductions, c-sections, and epidurals while unpacking the historical and geographic dichotomy between midwives and doctors.

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Thanks for listening, bye!

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EPISODE REFERENCES

Baskett, T F, and F Nagele. “Naegele's Rule: A Reappraisal.” BJOG : An International Journal of Obstetrics and Gynaecology,  vol. 107, no. 11, 2000, https://obgyn.onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/full/10.1111/j.1471-0528.2000.tb11661.x. Accessed 23 Aug. 2020. 

Boem, Frank H., et al. “The Effect of Electronic Fetal Monitoring on the Incidence of Cesarean Section.” American Journal of Obstetrics and Gynecology, vol. 140 no. 3, 1981, pp. 295-298, https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/abs/pii/0002937881902763#!. Accessed 19 Aug. 2020. 

Christensen, Nicole. “I Had An Epidural And I Was Told ‘I Didn’t Actually Go Through Labor.’” Scary Mommy, 12 Apr. 2019, https://www.scarymommy.com/epidural-still-labor/. Accessed 23 Aug. 2020. 

Donaldson-Evans, Catherine. “Inducing Labor: What Happens When You're Induced?.” What to Expect, 26 Apr. 2019, https://www.whattoexpect.com/pregnancy/labor-induction/. Accessed 22 Aug. 2020. 

Doucleff, Michelene. “The Rate of C-Sections is Rising at an ‘Alarming’ Rate, Report Says.”  NPR, 12 Oct. 2018, https://www.npr.org/sections/goatsandsoda/2018/10/12/656198429/rate-of-c-sections-is-rising-at-an-alarming-rate. Accessed 23 Aug. 2020.

“Epidural.” NHS, 11 Mar. 2020, https://www.nhs.uk/conditions/epidural/Risks and side effects of an epidural. Accessed 20 Aug. 2020.

“Epidural Corticosteroid Injections.” Johns Hopkins Medicine, 2020, https://www.hopkinsmedicine.org/health/conditions-and-diseases/epidural-corticosteroid-injections. Accessed 22 Aug. 2020. 

Evans, Rhiannon. “Epidurals Scandal: Why Are We Still pain-Shaming Mothers?” Grazia, Bauer Media Group, 27 Jan. 2020, https://graziadaily.co.uk/life/in-the-news/epidural-pain-shaming/. Accessed 23 Aug. 2020. 

CORRECTION: In the podcast, Liz wrongly attributed information that came from this article to Christensen. 

“Fetal Heart Rate Monitoring During Labor.” American College of Obstetrics and Gynecologists, 2020, https://www.acog.org/patient-resources/faqs/labor-delivery-and-postpartum-care/fetal-heart-rate-monitoring-during-labor. Accessed 19 Aug. 2020. 

Fuchs, Lynn M. “What Causes Transient Tachypnea of the Newborn?” Kids Health, Nemours, Aug. 2019, https://kidshealth.org/en/parents/ttn.html. Accessed 22 Aug. 2020. 

Gardham, Duncan. “Women 'Should Go Through Pain' in Childbirth, Says Male Midwife.” The Telegraph, 12 Jul. 2009, https://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/health/news/5810342/Women-should-go-through-pain-in-childbirth-says-male-midwife.html. Accessed 23 Aug. 2020. 

“Gestational Hypertension.” Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia, 2020, https://www.chop.edu/conditions-diseases/gestational-hypertension. Accessed 22 Aug. 2020. 

Hill, Amelia. “‘I Asked Three Times for an Epidural’: Why are Women Being Denied Pain Relief During Childbirth?” The Guardian, 4 Mar. 2020, https://www.theguardian.com/lifeandstyle/2020/mar/04/i-asked-three-times-for-an-epidural-why-are-women-being-denied-pain-relief. Accessed 20 Aug. 2020. 

Howell, Charlotte A., et al. “Randomised Study of Long Term Outcome After Epidural Versus Non-epidural Analgesia During Labour.” Birmingham Maternity Journal, vol. 325, 17 Aug. 2002, https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/12183305/. Accessed 23 Aug. 2020. 

“Inducing Labor.” March of Dimes, Sept. 2018, https://www.marchofdimes.org/pregnancy/inducing-labor.aspx. Accessed 22 Aug. 2020. 

“Induction of Labor at 39 Weeks.” American College of Obstetrics and Gynecologists, 2020, https://www.acog.org/patient-resources/faqs/labor-delivery-and-postpartum-care/induction-of-labor-at-39-weeks. Accessed 22 Aug. 2020. 

MacArthur, C., et al. “Epidural Anaesthesia and Long Term Backache After Childbirth.” Birmingham Maternity Journal, vol. 301  7 Jul. 1990, pp. 9–12. https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC1663375/. Accessed 23 Aug. 2020. 

Macdonald, Margaret. “Gender Expectations: Natural Bodies and Natural Births in the New Midwifery in Canada.” Medical Anthropology Quarterly, vol. 20, no. 2, 2006, pp. 235â256. JSTOR, www.jstor.org/stable/3655414. Accessed 24 Aug. 2020.

Oster, Emily and W. Spencer McClelland. “Why the C-Section Rate is So High.” The Atlantic, 17 Oct. 2019. https://www.theatlantic.com/ideas/archive/2019/10/c-section-rate-high/600172/. Accessed 23 Aug. 2020. 

Souter, Vivienne et al. “Maternal and Newborn Outcomes with Elective Induction of Labor at Term.” American Journal of Obstetrics and Gynecology,  vol. 220, no. 3, 2019, https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/30716284/,  doi:10.1016/j.ajog.2019.01.223. Accessed 22 Aug. 2020. 

The Business of Being Born. Directed by Abby Epstein. Prod. Ricki Lake, Barranca Production, 2008. 

“Vaginal Birth After Cesarean: VBAC.” American Pregnancy Association, 25 Apr. 2012, https://americanpregnancy.org/labor-and-birth/vaginal-birth-after-cesarean-669. Accessed 22 Aug. 2020. 

White, Joanna. “But Isn't It the Baby That Decides When It Will Be Born?': Temporality and Women's Embodied Experiences of Giving Birth.” The Cambridge Journal of Anthropology, vol. 34, no. 1, 2016, pp. 72â86. JSTOR, www.jstor.org/stable/26384611. Accessed 24 Aug. 2020.

White, Tracie. “Epidurals increase in popularity, Stanford study finds.” Scope, Stanford Medicine, 26 June 2018. https://scopeblog.stanford.edu/2018/06/26/epidurals-increase-in-popularity-stanford-study-finds. Accessed 20 Aug. 2020. 

Withiam‐Leitch MD, Matthew, James Shelton, and Emily Fleming. “Central Fetal Monitoring: Effect on Perinatal Outcomes and Cesarean Section Rate.” Birth Issues in Prenatal Care, vol. 33, no. 4, 2006, https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/abs/10.1111/j.1523-536X.2006.00120.x. Accessed 19 Aug. 2020.