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Of course it's up to each person to
make that decision for themselves, but if a person feels their diabetes is under control and is controllable,
and if they're comfortable with taking that responsibility onto themselves and have a good back-up plan, I'd say UC could
be a viable option to consider.
Ultimately, each person must make
the best decision they can in this regard, based on their individual circumstances.
~Carrie
UC Board cL
I'm not a medical professional, but my gut feeling would be "why not?" Again, you need to decide what you're
comfortable with. Working with a doctor, or even a midwife, you're more likely to be pressured into interventions than a woman
with a "low risk pregnancy." You may feel more comfortable having UC if you feel you've gotten medical clearance for birth,
or the medical focus may cause you to doubt your own body. Every woman is different.
I can see how persistent high
blood sugar can cause complications. I personally can't understand how diabetes poses ANY extra risks if it's properly and
consistently controlled.
I also agree with your daughter about diabetic women having UCs "in the olden days" but feel
compelled to add that many of them may have had complications. Babies didn't always make it, and neither did mothers.
I'd
suggest doing lots of research, find out the "what ifs" specific to diabetes (large baby, etc.) and see how you'd feel handling
those things at home. Also, look into what kinds of interventions diabetes will almost guarantee you in a hospital. A birthing
center or homebirth midwife may not be willing to work with you.
I think it's important to really do your homework on this one. Yes, I think a regular diabetic person can UC,
but you may want to research the ins and outs of it all before deciding what to do. If your blood sugars are very high, it
can be very dangerous for the baby. Without pursuing a hospital birth you may not be able to get adequate medical help with
your diabetes. I was dx'd with gestational diabetes, I'm not diabetic, and I was threatened with CPS taking my children if
I didn't allow them to induce me. I had perfect control of my blood sugars, and believe I could have UC'd far more safely
than the horrible birth my son and I were subjected to. My subsequent birth was UC, and was wonderful.
If you can
keep your blood sugars healthy, I personally don't think there is any reason not to UC. If you can't, you may want to think
about more medical options. Of course it's all your choice. You can choose whatever risks you feel comfortable with. Yes,
your baby could be very large and born with low blood sugar, and still be just fine UC'd, but it could also be more dangerous.
I recommend reading up and thinking through it very seriously, and making the choice YOU feel most comfortable with.
Best
wishes!
Kiley
You can answer this better than we can, as you know what your health status is. The usual problems cited for
diabetics being "high risk" are: premature labor, maternal blood sugar problems during labor, baby being larger than average
at birth, baby possibly having breathing trouble at birth, baby having blood sugar problems at birth. If you are in very good
control of your blood sugar, and are well educated about diabetes, taking good care of yourself, etc., then I really don't
think that there would be much difference between you and any other mama giving birth, wherever you are. Most of the problems
diabetic mamas run into are caused by not taking proper care of themselves, and letting their blood sugar go wild-- this can
cause the baby to grow too large, which can increase its chance of being born early, which can increase its chance of breathing/blood
sugar problems, etc. Another major problems you might face by *going* to doctors, is the much higher rate of interventions
you will receive, from conception on. There are still a number of doctors that insist on doing a c-section a few weeks before
your official "due date", to be sure the baby doesn't get "too big"-- but, um, doesn't this then lead to a preemie with breathing
and blood sugar problems? Looks to me as if the DOCTORS are causing some of the problems they say diabetics have....
The
fiasco of my friend's (she has Type I diab.) birth was shocking. After the hospital did a c-section for his being breech,
they took the baby away immediately and started pumping him full of glucose, "in case" he had blood sugar problems-- at which
point he of course did, and needed supplemental oxygen from all of the stress he was under (when we arrived at the hospital
shortly after he was born, he was ALL ALONE on a warming table, totally naked, and filled with wires and IVs, screaming his
poor head off-- they wouldn't let his father be with him, and there weren't even any nurses near him!!!). After all of this,
they kept him away from his mother for "observation", and by the time they got together, she was all doped up with morphine,
and baby was shut down, so nursing got off to a bad start, so he got sleepier, and then jaundiced, so the doctors separated
them EVEN MORE, by putting him under bili lights all day, with breaks every three hours to nurse, and breaks every HOUR to
stick his heel for blood sugar tests.... Because he wasn't able to nurse often enough, he got more jaundiced, and had to spend
more time under the lights, being bottle fed formula! They finally escaped a week after he was born-- though the hospital
tried to kick mama out after 3 days (she refused)-- and went home to nurse in peace (he nursed until he was 2 1/2 years old)...
I tell you all of this as a cautionary tale of what can happen to "high risk" diabetic moms and babies in the hospital-- keep
your guard up and demand to take care of your baby yourself. The problems your baby might have are directly caused by what
the doctor's are doing to him!
Beatrice-- mama to Max (6, CNM hospital birth), William (4, LM home waterbirth), Dora
(2, family UC), Wee One (in belly, arriving late-Winter, UC)
*Bee's Official Disclaimer: All of my answers express my
own personal opinion, and as I am not a trained birth professional, but better, an experienced mother, none of it ought to
be construed as medical advice.*
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