[bydesign]

Does anyone do this? I am reading a midwifery textbook, and there are various recommendations about how frequently a midwife should be checking heart tones. It also talks about how to get the mom to move into a position that makes this monitoring possible.

This is where it rubs me wrong. What is the purpose of interfering in labor this way? (I mean, I KNOW the purpose, to determine fetal well-being) Does this change the outcome? Does the interference itself actually lengthen labor, thereby off-setting the benefit that might exist from finding out that baby is not doing as well with uterine surges as she should? What if something abnormal is discovered? What is the course of action? Midwives don't usually transport at the first sign of decelerations. Sometimes all it takes is a position change to get things right. Perhaps it is the very position in which the woman was placed for monitoring that caused the problem in the first place?

Usually when I'm birthing, I just get into that "zone" and I'm focusing on the surges and visualizing my cervix and the baby. I'm doing what I can to be in a good position, to try to intuit whether there is a problem and adjusting my position if I feel led. I think trying to actually count fetal heart tones would be a huge distraction from my main business and I can't see that it would contribute anything useful. Not to mention it feeds fear and worry. Why would the baby NOT be doing well if I'm doing well?

What do you think?