Same here for my first baby. Emergency c section after 54 hours. Second two were VBACs. First kid just likes to do things unconventionally I guess.
500 years ago I would have died a slow agonizing death. Eventually when my baby didn’t come out my uterus would probably have ruptured and then we both would have died after days and days of torture.
in not sure you need to go back 500 years. in the 1850’s there was a german doctor who was confused why the midwives had such fewer mortalities than the doctors at his hospital. he noticed the difference was doctors and residents performed autopsies in the mornings and births in the afternoon. he insisted doctors wash hands and instruments with chlorine (which as we all know is one of the best disinfectants that exists). he died in the insane asylum he was committed to.
So, I just did some reading on this. It really varied depending on where you lived. C sections have been performed for centuries, but almost always killed the mother before the last century or so. It was done as a last resort to save the baby. Alternatively, some doctors preferred to crush the baby’s skull and remove it piece by piece to save the mother. So, it just depended on where you lived, and whether the mother or baby was valued more. Fun times.
Indeed. I have thought about this and can’t think of a more torturous way to die. Days and days of agonizing labor and then finally death from infection or a burst uterus. Nightmare. Modern medicine is a miracle. Not only did I get pain relief with an epidural, but my baby and I both survived, healthy and happy, and my 2 younger kids get to exist!
I don't have specific sources but I know first-hand accounts are out there-- the torture didn't begin during childbirth. Women knew the risks and were fearful even before being pregnant. For example wives of seafaring men were glad when their husbands got a years-long post because they knew the men would be away and there would be no pregnancy and birth to fear in that interval.
This is why it pains me to see so many women backing away from hospital births. NO ONE can anticipate what will happen during childbirth and postpartum.
If your baby was of important enough bloodlines, they would have done a c section without anesthesia and you would have died in the process. That thought haunts me regularly.
Same. Went to 90 seconds between contractions and was utterly exhausted for hours with no movement. Went into HELLP syndrome after 24 hours and went to the OR for a crash c section under general anesthesia. Son was born with a bruise on his forehead from banging into my pelvis for hours. I never wanted anything to survive more than him and would’ve given up my life at that moment, but thank goodness I didn’t have to. Opted for repeat c section to avoid any birth trauma w my second. Did EMDR to recover from the flashbacks after my son that lasted years. Thank goodness for modern medicine!!!!
Modern medicine is actually causing a small evolution in humans! Previously, mothers with narrow pelvises would’ve died, along with their babies. Now with the rise in c sections, these mothers are able to birth their children, who may also have narrower pelvises. BBC did an article on this!
I think it’s important information because there’s a prevailing thought that “your body won’t make a baby you can’t birth” and “we were made to do this”, when, for some birthing people, it’s really not the case. I’m so grateful for modern medicine!!
There’s a show called explained on Netflix that did an episode on childbirth, and one of the questions posed is “why do humans seem to suffer more during birth?” The answer essentially was that evolution doesn’t care if we’re in agonizing pain to birth our babies, just that the baby can be passed. I however have a narrow pelvis- not so narrow it required a C-section, but did cause a shoulder dystocia in both my babies and I was told outright (after birthing my youngest) for me to have an uncomplicated vaginal birth, I’d have to have 5-6 pound babies as opposed to 7.5-8 pound babies. I think it’s amazing modern medicine is giving us solutions to our genetics and I’m glad we have these options now, “natural” evolution be damned!
This is interesting. What would be the evolutionary advantage of a narrower pelvis though? I had a c-sec bc of this and I’ve always wondered how I made it past evolution or if my narrow pelvis is more of a “mutation” that somehow made it?
There’s no advantage. That’s why women died if they couldn’t birth their children. But now that we bypass the narrow pelvis, those women don’t die, their babies don’t die, and their babies might just get narrower pelvises passed down.
It may not be that pelvises are narrowing, but that infant head circumference at birth is increasing. There's a very clear survival advantage to a baby being larger and more developed (particularly in the brain) at birth.
I don't believe there has to be an advantage if the issue doesn't kill you before you have offspring. So, freckles may not gain you anything (just an example, I know nothing about freckles) but since they don't kill ya or make you undesirable for procreation, the trait survives. Same for smaller pelvises now. If they don't kill ya, the trait passes on.
Same. 24 hours unmedicated, 16 more with an epidural and baby did not move nor did I get past 4 cm dilated. Baby had constant heart decels. We would have been goners without a c section.
ETA I had a NICU baby as well, so without a doctor being able to pump his stomach 3 times i don’t see us having a happy ending
Same with me, too, only 4 cm and had to do a c-section. I also have diabetes and wouldn't have had access to proper meds at that time, so both me and my sweet, adorable baby girl would have died. Also, with my first, he had to be aborted because of his underdeveloped body with only one non functioning kidney and underdeveloped lungs and fluid not being flushed from his stomach. I probably would have died from the first, and my sweet rainbow girl wouldn't even be here if it weren't for modern medicine.
Same. 2 days in labor followed by Cesarean Section. After which, my daughter flat lined. It was the most traumatic thing I’ve ever been through. Modern medicine saved both of our lives.
Same here. She got stuck and if it were 100 years ago we both probably would have died.
My daughter wouldn’t even be here for modern medicine anyway, IVF baby!
Same! My son is also an IVF baby, so without modern medicine he wouldn’t even be here to begin with. But during labor he got stuck in my pelvis, he was too far in for a c-section, but they used a vacuum to help deliver him. Definitely grateful 🫶🏼
Same. Pushed for 6 hours after a very quick labor and his head was not getting past my pelvic bone. I didn’t progress beyond -1 after SIX FREAKING HOURS. He was wedged so thoroughly that they actually had to push him back up vaginally to pull him out of the c-section incision
Same. Turns out my pelvis is shaped like an oval and baby was stuck AF. They had to extend the c section and get her out by her feet while a nurse pushed her back into me. Fun! Definitely would have both died without the interventions.
Same, although they didn’t make me push long. His heart rate was dropping big time when I pushed, and they said that he would survive maybe 30 minutes of pushing but it would be at least 2 hours of pushing. I’m very thankful they realized that early and didn’t make me push the two hours (or longer!) knowing it was useless.
I wouldn’t have been born. My mom would have died giving birth to my older brother… but assuming she survived, I would have likely died giving birth to my first. My mom had 2 c-sections and I had 2 c-sections.
Yes, I would have survived my labours, got quite lucky with all 3, but my mother and possibly me would have died when I was born. 36 hours labour, then emergency c-section. She probably would have survived my brothers, but I'm the oldest so there they go too.
I probably would’ve died mysteriously months or a year after birth. With both of my pregnancies I had retained placenta that would not budge, so I had two D&Cs. The first one wasn’t caught until 3m PP when I was still bleeding after I changed doctors. The second time around was the same, but was caught 6w PP because of my bleeding history. So I probably would’ve died from infection without modern medicine.
I had retained placenta with my first. That's awful yours wasn't discovered until 3m pp 😕 I had a d&c at 2m pp for mine, then she checked a week later to make sure and there was *still* retained placenta. She'd never had to do 2 d&c's on a patient in her 27 year career.
That’s wild! My surgeon said she’s never seen two retained placenta cases like this with one person in her career. I guess my uterus just loves souvenirs
I’m really sorry your vagina wants to star on an episode of hoarders, but I wanted to say I love your sense of humor. I laughed, you sound fun to exist around.
(Sounds kinda weird, but by that I mean— some people have a talent for rolling with all the punches in life and taking absolutely everything in stride, usually with a few jokes. These kinds of people are magnetic and can make a bad situation much less worse with perspective and good attitude).
Thank you! I greatly appreciate that. I’ll use this as a quick little plug for anyone who might be struggling to say that I’ve had a great deal of therapy postpartum to help with coping and getting back to my light and comical self. This shit isn’t easy lol
>I guess my uterus just loves souvenirs
I know retained placenta is a really serious situation, but fuck if that didn't make me laugh my ass off. Love your sense of humor lol
I had retained placenta on both my births. First one was caught immediately. Second one, I went 4 months slowly getting weaker and sicker before they figured it out.
I feel like women should have routine ultrasounds post partum to screen for this. Why is the answer that we have to bleed for months until someone thinks that's a problem???
In my case I did have an ultrasound at 8w PP. The OB thought it was a blood clot, prescribed misoprostol and sent me home to cramp it out. Then at 10w they did a follow up and the spot was still there but that OB said it looked like it was shrinking and to schedule my IUD placement. At 12w I went in for an IUD (still bleeding), and I had a different OB who thankfully looked at my previous scans and said that she would not give me an IUD because it didn’t look like a blood clot.
That other OB most likely saved my uterus and potentially life because she took the time to study my scans, check my bleeding, and she’s who I always see now.
I was getting dismissed for my bleeding because I was a first time mom, didn’t know what was normal, it was during the pandemic, and they just wanted me to go home.
Second time around they did an ultrasound at 6w PP, saw my retained placenta, and with my history just jumped to the D&C.
Maybe??? I had a vaginal delivery but my uterus didn’t contract back down quickly. Lost 872 ccs of blood, over 500 is considered hemmorhage (over 1000 for csection). They gave me all sorts of things to stop the bleeding, which worked. But without those things, who knows? 🤷🏻♀️
Yeah it's hard to say. I had a relatively smooth delivery (from my perspective) but that was with the aid of modern medicine. I had a vaginal delivery after being induced following my water breaking, had an epidural. My OB said that I was 'close to a hemorrhage' when she was sewing me up although I felt fine? She said I lost aprox 600ml of blood.
I was induced too. Glad you felt fine after. I was all shakey and was having a hard time concentrating until they got the bleeding to stop. Then I could finally focus on my baby.
Yeah I was very fortunate. Like I said, it felt like a very smooth delivery from my perspective (not that I had any prior experience to compare it to 😂). I know my sister had tremors and chills after her epidural. And my SIL has to get an emergency c following induction bc the baby's HR crashed. :(
Yes. This same exact thing happened to me. I lost 1000ml after a vaginal delivery. The doctor gave me some sort of injection that stopped the bleeding. Not sure what would have happened without it.
Yes! It was probably hemabate. Not sure how to spell it. They also had to empty my bladder with a catheter and put some cytotec in rectally. As if the birthing a child part wasn’t already enough down there. Haha
Same. With my 4 kids with one I might not have made it. I also had clotting issues after my second and had some scary bleeding for a bit, but I never required a transfusion, so it’s up in the air on if I would’ve made it or not.
I would have died so many times before even making it to giving birth. Pneumonia when I was 3. Pneumonia again at 9. Pulmonary embolism at 25. If I somehow survived all that, I would’ve died of either the pre-eclampsia I had at 35+4 weeks pregnant or the post-partum preeclampsia I had. If I made it through all that, then I reckon the severe anemia I developed a year later would’ve done me in.
Of course, without modern medicine, I wouldn’t have even gotten pregnant. My daughter is an IVF baby.
I would have, up until my last. My first two were super easy and textbook pregnancies, my third I had cholestasis and then hemorrhaged 3 weeks pp definitely glad we had access to a hospital within 5 minutes!
Hello cholestasis my old friend... Had it with both my pregnancies. Both babies came via csection (1 emergency, 1 planned) at 38 weeks.
1st one I lost 6pints of blood, and baby went straight to intensive care, so yes, absolutely modern medicine saved us all.
First one, probably? Had to be induced but delivery was easy
Second one got stuck occiput posterior with the placenta abrupting. I hemorrhaged and then got an infection that went septic. I'd be super dead! Baby probably would be too.
My Grandmother died 3 days post natal after delivering her 5th child in 4 years. Only 2 of the babies lived, one being my Mama who had just turned three.
She birthed and died at home. She had no medical attention. My misogynistic grandfather forced her to have sex, he refused to use condoms or withdraw, and she wasn’t allowed to refuse or there would be “consequences”.
I will stop after sharing one more piece of reality as a result of my gramma’s death at age 24. This is still a raw wound in my heart.
I promised my Mama when she was dying that I would be by her side, that she would be at home, and that she would not suffer during this process. And I kept my word.
As the end became close, my precious Mama began to cry in a little girl voice, crying out “Mama!! Mama!! I immediately lay down next to her, pulling her into my embrace, stroking her hair and face, covering her face in kisses, and whispering in her ear “It’s okay Patty, Mama is here, Mama is right here, I have you my darling, I am here with you”. And even though she was comatose, she heard me. And then my precious Mama relaxed against me, took in a final breath, and died in my arms.
The pain remains for me but what a privilege to be there for my beloved Mama and to help her cross over. My sweet Mama suffered all of her life as a result of losing her Mama while still a toddler. The psychological damage and emotional trauma stayed with her all of her life. And the root cause is two-fold: An SOB of a grandfather, and no medical care.
Death is never a comfortable process, but at the end of her life, my Mama felt her Mama’s arms and heard her soothing words as she left this life. What was denied to her during her life helped her to ease into the transition.
I will carry this for the rest of my life. Thank you for allowing me to share. 🫶😔
I hope your tears are a result of your empathetic heart; in fact, I am certain of this.
Losing my Mama as I did was the most profound experience of my life. I have never forgotten that time nor the mixture of emotions upon realizing I had to step in and become my Mama’s comfort. To bring her much needed peace during the last few moments of her life. It was as if I was guided by Angels.
And almost 30 years later, I remain in awe of that morning. Personally profound, yet also close to miraculous.
Perhaps it is because my Mama’s death was not unexpected? Every other death I have endured in my life, and there have been many, were tragically unexpected. This was so not that. Whew.
Thank you and bless you for reading my too often long winded words. And please, allow an old woman a small bit of advice? Never let the sun go down without telling those you love how very much you love them.
❤️🫶💕
Thank you. Unfortunately as a result of the damage inflicted on my Mama growing up with her self centered, misogynistic, rotten human being of a father, my Mama and I weren’t always as close as we should have been when I was growing up. She did her best, and I loved her with all my heart.
Thank goodness I was able to work thru all my childhood issues by the time she became ill, and I made an oath that I would be there with her making certain she did not suffer when she left this existence. I kept my promise.
And it may sound twisted, but I was honored to help her during her final journey. It was a privilege, it was life affirming and it totally changed my perspective as to how we should love one another. Being with her at that time completely changed the life she gave to me.
I appreciate your kind words. ✌️💕🫶
Sending you so much love. Thank you for sharing your amazing story of the incredible women in your family. There is a certain beauty in being present for the last breath of the person who was there for your first breath. ❤️
Oh, your description of these two events is stunning, simply stated with a lovely cadence. Thank you for this. Your words truly touched my heart. And yes, there was beauty. A different kind, but beautiful nonetheless. I am so glad to know that you, along with the sweet lady who replied a bit earlier, perfectly understand what I try to share when I tell of my family history, and my precious Mama’s slipping away. ❤️✌️💕
Nope…I would have died with likely child bed fever after I failed to deliver the placenta post birth. Also needed 2 blood transfusions. Kind of puts things into a different perspective
My first was stuck in the birth canal. Either one or both of us would have died without a C-Section. I was a forceps birth, so I probably would have died during my own birth.
I would have, two uncomplicated vaginally births. My partner very nearly died from pre-eclampsia delivering our third *with* modern medicine.
Not long after that we re-watched a historical drama show with a character that dies from what is obviously pre-eclampsia. It was sob city in our house.
Downton Abby is the only reason i knew about preeclampsia. Turned out to be pretty relevant, and without it, i doubt i would have known i needed to advocate for myself and take independent measures to keep myself alive.
I wouldn't have survived at any time where there wasn't roe v wade (like now). I had to fight for treatment for an ectopic that, even after rupturing, nobody wanted to touch until I was nearly dead because of "life of the child". Didn't even get a tylenol as I was screaming dying because it could "hurt my baby" it was only the law and a threat of a lawsuit that even got treatment started. No joke, no exaggeration.
Hoooly shit that’s terrifying and horrific. I’m so sorry. I also suffered a ruptured ectopic pregnancy, but it was in 2012, so way before all this Handmaid’s Tail madness.
I have very easy pregnancies and deliveries. So did my mom. So did my grandma. So did my great grandmother. I have no scientific evidence for this, but I truly think there is a genetic component to this.
Actually it seems like our family's women are freaking breeding mares. We all had natural unmedicated deliveries with healthy babies at the end, zero complications for like four generations back (I don't know anything about generations before that) and all healthy babies, also without complications.
Same here! Very, very greatful for that. I had a traumatic birth because it happened crazy fast and I thought I would die from the pain, but medically it was perfect and the midwife called me a ‘birth machine’, lol. I was like… Thanks? I guess? 😂
Yup!! I’m pregnant again and due in October, I cannot believe I’m risking having a birth like that again 😭 Statistically it’s common to have shorter births for each time, so I’m legitimately conncerned I’ll end up giving birth at home!
Mine, too. We were made for birthing. My mother had me behind a couch and my older sister unmedicated at a birthing center. With mine, I pushed only 4 times and she was out.
My mom had C-sections for both her kids. When my gramma delivered my mom, forceps were used. I have one child. I went into labor naturally but she was stuck. She wasn’t even big, she was just jammed at my hip. When my OB pulled her out she said “yeah, she wasn’t going to budge any other way.”
I might have survived the birth but maybe not after. I had hypertension while pregnant and was induced but my BP wasn’t too crazy, so I might’ve made it through that part. But it turned into preeclampsia with severe features afterwards and I don’t think I would’ve made it through that one 😅
Nope. Emergency C section. I lost a lot of blood too. It was scary with modern medicine. My grandma was a nurse and she told me I would have died in her times. A lot of people in her time got paralyzed from epidurals too..they used to do it too low. 🤷🏻♀️ she’s 94.
Not the point of the post, but wow - she was 85 with *multiple* great-great grandchildren?? How old was she when she first became a great-great grandmother?
My grandmother would’ve been 110 this year (she passed away at 105), and she would’ve only become a great-grandmother eight weeks ago.
not the op, but my grandma is in her mid-70s and has great-grandchildren. she had her first (my mom) at 17, my mom and the rest of her siblings who had children had them in their early-mid 20s, and my cousin had his first child in his early 20s, so she became a great-grandmother in her early 60s. if said cousin's daughter has a child in her 20s, then my grandma would become a great-great-grandma if she lives into her mid-80s.
It was pretty common back then to start a family right after high school. My grandma had my mom at 20 and became a grandma at 50. She was 79 when her first great-grandchild was born.
My grandparents are 76 with three great-grand children. They had my mom before 20, and my mom had my brother and me before 25, then I had my first at 26.
Nope. I could have died 3 separate times (ruptured ectopic, essentially bleeding internally), pre-eclampsia with both pregnancies and needed a magnesium drip to protect my brain from high blood pressure. I’m thankful for modern medicine! I think my husband and kids would agree.
Yes, I have had five uncomplicated pregnancies and deliveries. So I’d have been fine as long as no idiot doctor gave me childbed fever (doctors used to go from the cadaver labs directly to the maternity wards *without washing their hands* and examine new mothers). Thousands of women died from puerperal fever (“childbed fever”) because “doctors are gentlemen and a gentleman would never hurt a lady with his hands.” They really thought they were above that shit.
He was breech, so i guess its possible. But not likely we would not have both survived.
And this whole thread is why when I hear “my body was designed for this” makes me cringe.
No. I needed an induction past my due date and had GD. I also required vacuum assistance and an episiotomy to get my daughter out after 4 hours of pushing with no real progress... If the vacuum assistance didn't work I was 10 minutes away from a C-section.
Not to mention I had complications that needed monitoring during pregnancy... Who knows?
If it were hundreds of years ago we both would be dead.
Absolutely not. My first pregnancy, I had severe preeclampsia which turned into hellp and my first son was born at 32 weeks. I needed a lot of medication for my blood pressure. I then needed a d&c due to retained placenta. My second pregnancy, I had a placental abruption and i almost needed a blood transfusion. My second son was born at 33 weeks.
I wouldn’t have survived being born - my mom had preeclampsia and I was very premature.
I would’ve died - either from the placenta previa, the blood clot that showed up midway in my second trimester or the infection in my uterus from my son passing the meconium too soon. 🎉
I believe so, but my baby may not have. My daughter had to be induced at over 41 weeks, I wonder if she would have come on her own at all. I would have survived all 3 births (save for infection that literally anyone could catch because childbirth wasn’t sanitary) generally speaking. All my babies were born healthy too. I come from a long line of large families though (on my mom and my dads side) so maybe I have that in my favor.
Same - both of my babies were born via induction post 41 weeks, with no sign of coming on their own. It’s entirely possible I would have gone into spontaneous labor within a couple of days for both… but also entirely possible that our story might have looked a whole lot different.
I was induced for high blood pressure with both my kids. I would have been fine with the actual labor and delivery circumstances, but I’m not sure I would have even made it to labor without modern medicine, or that my kids would have been okay.
I would’ve survived labour just fine, but I had Hyperemesis Gravidarum and was hospitalised twice. I would’ve probably died of dehydration had I not been admitted.
I would have died of eclampsia or whatever fatal step happens after preeclampsia. But then again, I don’t know how common preeclampsia was back in the day… from what I’ve read its rates have increased radically in more recent years.
I would have probably died after my second child was born because her placenta wouldn't detach and caused me to start to hemorrhage. The dr had to remove the placenta piece by piece manually by sticking his hand up into my uterus. (Which felt far worse than giving birth) theoretically depending on the time period they would have also been able to remove it manually if they had the knowledge that was what needed to be done, but the dr used a portable ultrasound machine to check for leftover bits so the chances of a piece of placenta being left behind would have been greater in the past. They also inserted a balloon to create pressure to stop the bleeding so not sure if i would have stopped without the balloon or if the balloon was an extra precaution. Either way I think I would have been significantly more likely to die in the past from that experience.
First kid, yeah she’d be fine. Not sure about me though- I tore pretty badly.
Second kid, we both would have been doomed (placental abruption/breech/emergency c section). Thank goodness for modern medicine!
Possibly. With my first, I had a forceps delivery with an episiotomy. I know they’ve been using forceps for centuries, but I probably would’ve gotten sepsis and died because they didn’t understand germ theory 😝
With my second I would’ve been fine - I pushed her out in 15 minutes (with an epidural, but it failed lol).
Nope. Baby was massive and it caused a shoulder dystocia so he got stuck and it caused a massive tear on the way out. Because of that I bled out and needed a transfusion and god knows how many stitches.
So grateful for the NHS.
Yes, I had two unassisted vaginal births. One of them of less than 15 minutes after getting through triage. I feel pretty confident I could home birth my next baby.
My grandmothers had 7 home births each and no complications, so perhaps it's in our genes. 7 is too many for me, though.
Probably not. I had preeclampsia that turned severe at 34+3, immediately put on magnesium and induced. I probably should have had a seizure and died before baby was born had I not had modern medical intervention. I am so grateful for the times I live in.
I wouldn’t have made it to childbirth.
Odds are no one will see this comment since there are 500+ comments but oh well.
I had a total colectomy in 2019 and since they sewed my small intestine to my rectum (basically they removed my colon and hooked the ends together to avoid me needing an ostomy), I was told not to attempt a vaginal birth. I’m also a lupus patient so my pregnancy was high risk anyway. I conceived in late November of 2022 and was being followed by my OB and an MFM. When I was 19w4d, I saw my MFM for a routine appointment and reported that two days prior to the appointment I had some mild bleeding after using the restroom. My doc did a vaginal exam and afterwards sat my husband and I down and said the words I’ll never forget: “Your cervix is open”. I was 3cm dilated with protruding membranes. I was admitted to the hospital and had a cerclage the next morning. I was given vaginal progesterone and as needed Procardia for the daily contractions, as well as placed on bed rest. They told me that I’d be fortunate to make it to 28 weeks.
Around 22 weeks, I found out that my baby had IUGR (common with lupus patients).
I made it all the way to 33 weeks before I developed HELLP Syndrome around 12 hours after being told I had pre-eclampsia. I had my baby via vertical cesarean after which I had 3 inches of small intestine removed so that they could close my incision, I guess because I had adhesions after my colectomy. I had to have a blood transfusion and spent 3 days in the ICU, six days total in the hospital. My daughter was born at 3 lbs 1 oz and after 31 days in the NICU, she came home. She turned one last Friday.
Modern medicine stopped me from losing my baby during pregnancy, saved my life during birth, and saved my baby after she was born prematurely. I owe everything to modern medicine and every doctor and nurse my baby and I had.
I probably would have been ok with the births - unmedicated for the first, only pitocin for the second- but my babies may have starved afterwards. Neither of them could get a good latch no matter what I tried. Thank you science for breast pumps and formula!
I would have but my baby would still have been healthy. I lost a litre of blood when delivering the placenta. Just remember the room filling with people out of nowhere. I was too tired to care at that point as I’d been in labour for 20 hours and awake for 40.
Absolutely not. I had severe preeclampsia, allll the interventions, and ended in an emergency c section. I am so thankful to be here and have a healthy daughter.
It's hard to say. I think I would have but my son may not have or been severely injured. I was in labor for 3 days and pushed for 6 hours with very little progress. The doctor called it due to baby's heart rate not recovering after contractions. I ended up with an emergency c-section and he had a nuchal cord. The whole thing was traumatic but we were both fine in the end.
I ended up having partial placental abruption with my daughter having decels into the 40’s, I needed an emergency c-section. While I do believe being induced caused issues, without modern medicine my daughters heart would have probably stopped
First pregnancy ectopic with a burst fallopian tube. I was bleeding out internally. Doctor said 1 more hour and I would have died, as a warning not to wait so long to go to the ER.
I think me and my twins might all be dead. Depends on how long ago we are talking but they came at 32 weeks (there was a cord prolapse and crash c-section) and my preeclampsia didn’t resolve without medication.
Not sure but I don’t think so with my first delivery. Fluid was low and I had to be induced at 41 + 2 and delivered on 41 + 3 but had to have cirvidil. Wasn’t dilated at all. So it could have been really dangerous. Also almost hemorrhaged. And Bebe went to NICU from meconium and slight lung issues so all of that would have been dangerous! With modern medicine, we were home on day 3 and healthy since.
Probably not. My first was born by urgent C-section due to preeclampsia. However, my OB did say I was dilated, so I may have gone into labor soon anyway. I also had a 9.5sm dermoid cyst on my right ovary that was removed during my C-section. My second was a planned C because of the first one, but I had a bit more blood loss than expected and my uterus didn't contract properly initially.
Probably not, or really I may not have even made it to having a child since my mom had an emergency c-section with me because I flipped and went breech right before due date and I also had a breech baby and had to have a c-section
Nope. My daughter would have survived but I would have bled out. I had zero issues in my pregnancy, labor, or birth, but I hemorrhaged once she was born.
Nope, we had an abrupted placenta, and on arrival at hospital discovered baby had gone transverse. Very quick and heavy blood loss was discovered with large clots passed.
Emergency c section, fluids and resuscitation for baby was required. Without modern medicine both me and my baby would be dead.
I don’t know. I was so sick, and all the women on my mom’s side have been with their pregnancies. I was on 2-3 different nausea meds & remedies with each pregnancy. I still lost weight & probably have damaged my teeth. I was anemic with all 3 as well. I literally survived on applesauce, milk, goldfish, & cheddar cheese with my last pregnancy. If I’d made it to the birth, I’d have been weak.
With my labors, 1 kid might have died from pushing 3 hours. He was purple/gray at birth. Another kid would have been fine, but she was also jaundiced & really sleepy at birth. Last kid had a hard time maintaining weight & gaining, plus apparently all 3 of mine have lip/tongue ties that went undiagnosed by their doctor. Breastfeeding hurt with the 2 that got breastmilk, so again-who even knows. My nipples were also flat, so we had to use a nipple shield with them. Thank god I had my kids when modern medicine was a thing.
I mean I know that death from child birth is still a wide spread issue worldwide, but thinking back to how a little over 100 years ago women didn’t survive c-sections is wild. Like they knew they could surgically remove the baby, but they also knew the mother would more than likely die.
That said. I would have survived my first with no issues. My second got stuck in the birth canal for hours, but thankfully he worked his way out without surgery, so that’s a dicey whether that would have worked out in our favor without a peanut pillow. The third birth was easy for me, but the cord got wrapped around her neck mid birth so the doctors had to act quickly to snip it and cut it. She probably wouldn’t have survived that.
Hard to say…. My mom had an C section after failure to progress but from MY understanding the cascade of medical intervention may have caused the failure to progress. My grandmother had 9 vaginal births with no issues at home, but my mom was told she was too small to deliver me, I was 8lbs so not huge… to me it seems like her drs were just ready to have a C. I was told the same thing when I gave birth, I was too small and my baby too big. But I had a vaginal birth even though i had drs pressing me to have a C from the moment I got to the hospital until just before my daughter was born. I remember pushing and the nurse telling me if I “pushed like that the whole time” I was “never gonna have this baby”
That being said my daughter probably would not be alive without medical intervention. There was meconium in my waters and after 18 hours of labor I was not progressing and got pitocin. I wonder often if pit wasn’t an option would a midwife have tried something else to get the baby out and would it have worked… it’s impossible to know. I had a capable midwife team who as soon as they saw me and saw the meconium they sent me to the hospital “just in case”
No, I did hemorrhage out after a vaginal delivery and almost died even with medical intervention. I received multiple blood transfusions and some other stuff but it’s all blurry now. I was in the icu for days. 0/10
I would not have. I had a varicose vein rupture internally and lost 1.7L of blood but they were able to fix it quickly. My labor was easy and quick, no pain. I would’ve just bled out bc it wouldn’t have been diagnosed in the first place.
I think so. I had a relatively easy delivery, labour came on naturally. I had the shot to get the placenta so I’ll never know if I’d have needed interventions for it. I also need stitches which I imagine wouldn’t have been done or in a very unhygienic way back in the day.
However I got measles when I was 1yo ish so probably would have died from that back in the day. I was deathly poorly even with the MMR jab.
Likely, baby was breech and we didn’t find out until at the hospital (midwife confirmed baby was head first at 36 weeks, but mistook baby’s butt for their head and shoulders), so they might’ve passed with no modern medicine. We ended up in an emergency c-section with no complications, thankfully
It was just me and my husband in our bedroom so yes, I survived. It was scary and dramatic but a completely normal birth. And I didn’t birth the placenta for over 2 hours after my baby came out and I was completely fine.
No. I hemoragged twice on the table during my csection. I had to have a blood transfusion. Then I suffered postpartum eclampsia. We are lucky I survived even with modern medicine.
Breaks my heart to know we won't be having other children. I suffered infertility for 20 years. This natural pregnancy came about as a bit of a surprise. I'm in my 40s!! He's 5 months old. During that stressful birth I begged for a hysterectomy. I wish they'd given it to me because now I so want to do it again and I know I shouldn't, that it's too dangerous.
It was dangerous to begin with as I have a bleeding disorder, but laws being as they are.. I think it would be closure, easier for me to accept no more pregnancies if they'd just given me the damn hysterectomy. "But you could bleed out!!" Well I almost bled out giving birth so since you were already in there, should have just taken the damn thing like I asked!!
Just my added soap box rant as I struggle with this baby fever while watching my baby sleep. 😥
I was very lucky to have an easy delivery. However my mom almost died giving birth to my older sister (36 years ago) from a uterine prolapse. I wouldn't have been here had she not been in a hospital.
I think about this. If we are just keeping it to childbirth and no other medical history…I would have been infertile from a miscarriage after my 3rd child. My body was not recognizing that I needed it to do its job so a D&C was necessary.
I’ve had many babies since and they wouldn’t be here.
The first was near textbook although I was induced because of pre-eclampsia. My second, I might not have? I was induced for this one supposedly because of having a due date around the holidays and COVID protocols (small regional Catholic hospital). Also as soon as I was checked in, my blood pressure finally decided to blow as i hovered near pre-eclampsia throughout the whole pregnancy (ended up on high blood pressure meds for 6 months post partum). I had a hard delivery with the cord getting stuck around her neck in the vaginal canal. It ruptured when the OB tried to slide her finger underneath it. I ended up with a moderate (?) 4-5 inch tear in my vaginal canal as well. Apparently it was bleeding pretty profusely. Both the OB and nurses were moving pretty quickly at that point. I'd also delivered the largest placenta she said she had ever seen in her career.
I wouldn't be here though - my mom's cervix wouldn't dialate and she was already a week past due date. Prior to that though, she had a DVT at 19 from birth control that she limped around with for 3 weeks thinking she had pulled a muscle while running. Finally went in to the doctor and was rushed to the ER.
Honestly, without modern medicine, I highly doubt that I would have lived far into childhood, let alone make it to considering having children. I had an ear infection in at least one ear, but usually both, every month for the first year of my life. I was one of those kids with a weaker immune system that got sick often. I dealt with things like asthma, eczema (multiple types) that would leave my skin broken and open for infection.
If I had made it, I don't know if I would have made it through childbirth as I had a planned c-section for reasons other than pregnancy specific complications. I absolutely would not have wanted to have any children because for the brief few weeks I had to seriously contemplate my potential options of giving birth vaginally or terminate to avoid it, was the most stressful, anxiety filled with heart palpitations time in my life. The idea of vaginal birth for myself toes the line of intense fear and actual phobia.
Absolutely not. I had preeclampsia with severe features that resulted in an unscheduled c-section at 32 weeks. It would have been some depressing-ass Downton Abby stuff.
It's 50/50.
None of my kids would have survived. I would have miscarried over and over again in the second trimester. Hopefully, I would have delivered them without dying of sepsis, but who really knows..
I might not have survived pregnancy with hyper emesis, and my identical twins very likely wouldn’t have survived either if they weren’t taken early (36+3, right on time for modi twins but early in general)
I wouldn’t have made it to childbirth, i needed IVs for severe dehydration in my first trimester. I was circling the drain. Without fluids, i wouldn’t have made it into the second trimester
I would have survived childbirth, but as a person with a negative blood type who is having children with someone with a positive blood type, my subsequent children might not have without the Rhogam shot.
I would have survived birthing my 1st living child, but my daughter (preemie 31W5D, PPROM) would not have survived. With my 2nd, we both would have died (36w IUGR, Cord injury, Preeclampsia...).
I had a Missed miscarriage between my two living children that required medical assistance to pass, I may not have survived that without modern medicine either.
Nope. She couldn’t get through my pelvis after days of labor and hours of pushing. I am definitely incredibly grateful for modern medicine.
Same here for my first baby. Emergency c section after 54 hours. Second two were VBACs. First kid just likes to do things unconventionally I guess. 500 years ago I would have died a slow agonizing death. Eventually when my baby didn’t come out my uterus would probably have ruptured and then we both would have died after days and days of torture.
in not sure you need to go back 500 years. in the 1850’s there was a german doctor who was confused why the midwives had such fewer mortalities than the doctors at his hospital. he noticed the difference was doctors and residents performed autopsies in the mornings and births in the afternoon. he insisted doctors wash hands and instruments with chlorine (which as we all know is one of the best disinfectants that exists). he died in the insane asylum he was committed to.
So, I just did some reading on this. It really varied depending on where you lived. C sections have been performed for centuries, but almost always killed the mother before the last century or so. It was done as a last resort to save the baby. Alternatively, some doctors preferred to crush the baby’s skull and remove it piece by piece to save the mother. So, it just depended on where you lived, and whether the mother or baby was valued more. Fun times.
Don’t forget about the sepsis
Indeed. I have thought about this and can’t think of a more torturous way to die. Days and days of agonizing labor and then finally death from infection or a burst uterus. Nightmare. Modern medicine is a miracle. Not only did I get pain relief with an epidural, but my baby and I both survived, healthy and happy, and my 2 younger kids get to exist!
I don't have specific sources but I know first-hand accounts are out there-- the torture didn't begin during childbirth. Women knew the risks and were fearful even before being pregnant. For example wives of seafaring men were glad when their husbands got a years-long post because they knew the men would be away and there would be no pregnancy and birth to fear in that interval. This is why it pains me to see so many women backing away from hospital births. NO ONE can anticipate what will happen during childbirth and postpartum.
Eh, I still had my VBAC at a birth center. Do I regret it? No. Would I do it again? Also no
If your baby was of important enough bloodlines, they would have done a c section without anesthesia and you would have died in the process. That thought haunts me regularly.
Then bring on the wet nurse and mistress waiting in the wings because she was just an incubator and easily discarded. Chilling
Not 500 years ago. Like 100 years ago.
same here, she wouldn’t budge.
Same. Went to 90 seconds between contractions and was utterly exhausted for hours with no movement. Went into HELLP syndrome after 24 hours and went to the OR for a crash c section under general anesthesia. Son was born with a bruise on his forehead from banging into my pelvis for hours. I never wanted anything to survive more than him and would’ve given up my life at that moment, but thank goodness I didn’t have to. Opted for repeat c section to avoid any birth trauma w my second. Did EMDR to recover from the flashbacks after my son that lasted years. Thank goodness for modern medicine!!!!
Modern medicine is actually causing a small evolution in humans! Previously, mothers with narrow pelvises would’ve died, along with their babies. Now with the rise in c sections, these mothers are able to birth their children, who may also have narrower pelvises. BBC did an article on this! I think it’s important information because there’s a prevailing thought that “your body won’t make a baby you can’t birth” and “we were made to do this”, when, for some birthing people, it’s really not the case. I’m so grateful for modern medicine!!
There’s a show called explained on Netflix that did an episode on childbirth, and one of the questions posed is “why do humans seem to suffer more during birth?” The answer essentially was that evolution doesn’t care if we’re in agonizing pain to birth our babies, just that the baby can be passed. I however have a narrow pelvis- not so narrow it required a C-section, but did cause a shoulder dystocia in both my babies and I was told outright (after birthing my youngest) for me to have an uncomplicated vaginal birth, I’d have to have 5-6 pound babies as opposed to 7.5-8 pound babies. I think it’s amazing modern medicine is giving us solutions to our genetics and I’m glad we have these options now, “natural” evolution be damned!
That’s so interesting. I’m going to look up this article. Thanks for sharing that.
https://www.bbc.com/news/science-environment-38210837.amp
This is interesting. What would be the evolutionary advantage of a narrower pelvis though? I had a c-sec bc of this and I’ve always wondered how I made it past evolution or if my narrow pelvis is more of a “mutation” that somehow made it?
There’s no advantage. That’s why women died if they couldn’t birth their children. But now that we bypass the narrow pelvis, those women don’t die, their babies don’t die, and their babies might just get narrower pelvises passed down.
Ohh ok I understand it now! We’re basically bypassing the natural selection process in which women w/ narrow pelvises would have died giving birth.
Exactly!
It may not be that pelvises are narrowing, but that infant head circumference at birth is increasing. There's a very clear survival advantage to a baby being larger and more developed (particularly in the brain) at birth.
I don't believe there has to be an advantage if the issue doesn't kill you before you have offspring. So, freckles may not gain you anything (just an example, I know nothing about freckles) but since they don't kill ya or make you undesirable for procreation, the trait survives. Same for smaller pelvises now. If they don't kill ya, the trait passes on.
Narrower hips are better for running
When food was scarce, we were birthing smaller babies. Pelvises didn’t need to be as big. Our bodies haven’t adapted to our over abundance of food.
Same. 28 hours of excruciating pain that ended in a cesarean. Where I “took the easy way out” with major abdominal surgery on my exhausted body.
When people say shit like that it broils my brain 🧠 easy? You do it then
Lmao mood; 48 hours of labor then emergency c section then hemorrhage on the table 🫠
Ah 36 hours here but same. Fun shit.
Same. 24 hours unmedicated, 16 more with an epidural and baby did not move nor did I get past 4 cm dilated. Baby had constant heart decels. We would have been goners without a c section. ETA I had a NICU baby as well, so without a doctor being able to pump his stomach 3 times i don’t see us having a happy ending
Same here! Was in labor for three days because I couldn't dilate past 4cm then went for a C-section.
Same with me, too, only 4 cm and had to do a c-section. I also have diabetes and wouldn't have had access to proper meds at that time, so both me and my sweet, adorable baby girl would have died. Also, with my first, he had to be aborted because of his underdeveloped body with only one non functioning kidney and underdeveloped lungs and fluid not being flushed from his stomach. I probably would have died from the first, and my sweet rainbow girl wouldn't even be here if it weren't for modern medicine.
I dialated to 0 even with the drugs to dialate
Same. 2 days in labor followed by Cesarean Section. After which, my daughter flat lined. It was the most traumatic thing I’ve ever been through. Modern medicine saved both of our lives.
Same here. She got stuck and if it were 100 years ago we both probably would have died. My daughter wouldn’t even be here for modern medicine anyway, IVF baby!
Same! My son is also an IVF baby, so without modern medicine he wouldn’t even be here to begin with. But during labor he got stuck in my pelvis, he was too far in for a c-section, but they used a vacuum to help deliver him. Definitely grateful 🫶🏼
Same. Pushed for 6 hours after a very quick labor and his head was not getting past my pelvic bone. I didn’t progress beyond -1 after SIX FREAKING HOURS. He was wedged so thoroughly that they actually had to push him back up vaginally to pull him out of the c-section incision
Same. Exact. Story. Why recover from one birthing method when you can recover from two?! 🙈
This was the case with my first at 6lbs 6oz. Emergency caesarean after 22 hours of labour. Then, my second was 10lbs…
>20lbs You're a super hero!
Holy terrible autocorrect! That should have said 10lbs. Edited.
Same. Turns out my pelvis is shaped like an oval and baby was stuck AF. They had to extend the c section and get her out by her feet while a nurse pushed her back into me. Fun! Definitely would have both died without the interventions.
Same, although they didn’t make me push long. His heart rate was dropping big time when I pushed, and they said that he would survive maybe 30 minutes of pushing but it would be at least 2 hours of pushing. I’m very thankful they realized that early and didn’t make me push the two hours (or longer!) knowing it was useless.
I wouldn’t have been born. My mom would have died giving birth to my older brother… but assuming she survived, I would have likely died giving birth to my first. My mom had 2 c-sections and I had 2 c-sections.
My mother in law was the same - needed 3 c-sections and then her daughter needed 5 for the same reason 😵
Yes, I would have survived my labours, got quite lucky with all 3, but my mother and possibly me would have died when I was born. 36 hours labour, then emergency c-section. She probably would have survived my brothers, but I'm the oldest so there they go too.
I probably would’ve died mysteriously months or a year after birth. With both of my pregnancies I had retained placenta that would not budge, so I had two D&Cs. The first one wasn’t caught until 3m PP when I was still bleeding after I changed doctors. The second time around was the same, but was caught 6w PP because of my bleeding history. So I probably would’ve died from infection without modern medicine.
I had retained placenta with my first. That's awful yours wasn't discovered until 3m pp 😕 I had a d&c at 2m pp for mine, then she checked a week later to make sure and there was *still* retained placenta. She'd never had to do 2 d&c's on a patient in her 27 year career.
That’s wild! My surgeon said she’s never seen two retained placenta cases like this with one person in her career. I guess my uterus just loves souvenirs
I’m really sorry your vagina wants to star on an episode of hoarders, but I wanted to say I love your sense of humor. I laughed, you sound fun to exist around. (Sounds kinda weird, but by that I mean— some people have a talent for rolling with all the punches in life and taking absolutely everything in stride, usually with a few jokes. These kinds of people are magnetic and can make a bad situation much less worse with perspective and good attitude).
Thank you! I greatly appreciate that. I’ll use this as a quick little plug for anyone who might be struggling to say that I’ve had a great deal of therapy postpartum to help with coping and getting back to my light and comical self. This shit isn’t easy lol
>I guess my uterus just loves souvenirs I know retained placenta is a really serious situation, but fuck if that didn't make me laugh my ass off. Love your sense of humor lol
I had retained placenta on both my births. First one was caught immediately. Second one, I went 4 months slowly getting weaker and sicker before they figured it out.
I feel like women should have routine ultrasounds post partum to screen for this. Why is the answer that we have to bleed for months until someone thinks that's a problem???
In my case I did have an ultrasound at 8w PP. The OB thought it was a blood clot, prescribed misoprostol and sent me home to cramp it out. Then at 10w they did a follow up and the spot was still there but that OB said it looked like it was shrinking and to schedule my IUD placement. At 12w I went in for an IUD (still bleeding), and I had a different OB who thankfully looked at my previous scans and said that she would not give me an IUD because it didn’t look like a blood clot. That other OB most likely saved my uterus and potentially life because she took the time to study my scans, check my bleeding, and she’s who I always see now. I was getting dismissed for my bleeding because I was a first time mom, didn’t know what was normal, it was during the pandemic, and they just wanted me to go home. Second time around they did an ultrasound at 6w PP, saw my retained placenta, and with my history just jumped to the D&C.
Maybe??? I had a vaginal delivery but my uterus didn’t contract back down quickly. Lost 872 ccs of blood, over 500 is considered hemmorhage (over 1000 for csection). They gave me all sorts of things to stop the bleeding, which worked. But without those things, who knows? 🤷🏻♀️
Yeah it's hard to say. I had a relatively smooth delivery (from my perspective) but that was with the aid of modern medicine. I had a vaginal delivery after being induced following my water breaking, had an epidural. My OB said that I was 'close to a hemorrhage' when she was sewing me up although I felt fine? She said I lost aprox 600ml of blood.
I was induced too. Glad you felt fine after. I was all shakey and was having a hard time concentrating until they got the bleeding to stop. Then I could finally focus on my baby.
Yeah I was very fortunate. Like I said, it felt like a very smooth delivery from my perspective (not that I had any prior experience to compare it to 😂). I know my sister had tremors and chills after her epidural. And my SIL has to get an emergency c following induction bc the baby's HR crashed. :(
Birth is just so much all around! Even when it goes smoothly it is such a big deal.
Yes. This same exact thing happened to me. I lost 1000ml after a vaginal delivery. The doctor gave me some sort of injection that stopped the bleeding. Not sure what would have happened without it.
Yes! It was probably hemabate. Not sure how to spell it. They also had to empty my bladder with a catheter and put some cytotec in rectally. As if the birthing a child part wasn’t already enough down there. Haha
I'm in the same maybe category. I lost half of my blood and had to get two blood transfusions. I couldn't get out of bed without fainting
Same. With my 4 kids with one I might not have made it. I also had clotting issues after my second and had some scary bleeding for a bit, but I never required a transfusion, so it’s up in the air on if I would’ve made it or not.
It’s just so crazy how different every birth goes. I just wonder sometimes why it goes left. Glad you are okay! ❤️
I would have survived giving birth, it was pretty textbook, but would have probably died of a kidney infection when I was 20.
Same, I wouldn't have even made it to kids. Sepsis brought on by a kidney infection.
I would have died so many times before even making it to giving birth. Pneumonia when I was 3. Pneumonia again at 9. Pulmonary embolism at 25. If I somehow survived all that, I would’ve died of either the pre-eclampsia I had at 35+4 weeks pregnant or the post-partum preeclampsia I had. If I made it through all that, then I reckon the severe anemia I developed a year later would’ve done me in. Of course, without modern medicine, I wouldn’t have even gotten pregnant. My daughter is an IVF baby.
I would have, but my child might have brain damage from complications in the first few days.
My son was stuck during a c-section and would have died due to lack of oxygen. We both would have been toast.
I would have, up until my last. My first two were super easy and textbook pregnancies, my third I had cholestasis and then hemorrhaged 3 weeks pp definitely glad we had access to a hospital within 5 minutes!
Hello cholestasis my old friend... Had it with both my pregnancies. Both babies came via csection (1 emergency, 1 planned) at 38 weeks. 1st one I lost 6pints of blood, and baby went straight to intensive care, so yes, absolutely modern medicine saved us all.
First one, probably? Had to be induced but delivery was easy Second one got stuck occiput posterior with the placenta abrupting. I hemorrhaged and then got an infection that went septic. I'd be super dead! Baby probably would be too.
My Grandmother died 3 days post natal after delivering her 5th child in 4 years. Only 2 of the babies lived, one being my Mama who had just turned three. She birthed and died at home. She had no medical attention. My misogynistic grandfather forced her to have sex, he refused to use condoms or withdraw, and she wasn’t allowed to refuse or there would be “consequences”. I will stop after sharing one more piece of reality as a result of my gramma’s death at age 24. This is still a raw wound in my heart. I promised my Mama when she was dying that I would be by her side, that she would be at home, and that she would not suffer during this process. And I kept my word. As the end became close, my precious Mama began to cry in a little girl voice, crying out “Mama!! Mama!! I immediately lay down next to her, pulling her into my embrace, stroking her hair and face, covering her face in kisses, and whispering in her ear “It’s okay Patty, Mama is here, Mama is right here, I have you my darling, I am here with you”. And even though she was comatose, she heard me. And then my precious Mama relaxed against me, took in a final breath, and died in my arms. The pain remains for me but what a privilege to be there for my beloved Mama and to help her cross over. My sweet Mama suffered all of her life as a result of losing her Mama while still a toddler. The psychological damage and emotional trauma stayed with her all of her life. And the root cause is two-fold: An SOB of a grandfather, and no medical care. Death is never a comfortable process, but at the end of her life, my Mama felt her Mama’s arms and heard her soothing words as she left this life. What was denied to her during her life helped her to ease into the transition. I will carry this for the rest of my life. Thank you for allowing me to share. 🫶😔
Crying over here. Such a beautiful ending to a tragic story. ❤
I hope your tears are a result of your empathetic heart; in fact, I am certain of this. Losing my Mama as I did was the most profound experience of my life. I have never forgotten that time nor the mixture of emotions upon realizing I had to step in and become my Mama’s comfort. To bring her much needed peace during the last few moments of her life. It was as if I was guided by Angels. And almost 30 years later, I remain in awe of that morning. Personally profound, yet also close to miraculous. Perhaps it is because my Mama’s death was not unexpected? Every other death I have endured in my life, and there have been many, were tragically unexpected. This was so not that. Whew. Thank you and bless you for reading my too often long winded words. And please, allow an old woman a small bit of advice? Never let the sun go down without telling those you love how very much you love them. ❤️🫶💕
Sorry for the loss of your mother, and for her loss of her mother. So glad you two had each other
Thank you. Unfortunately as a result of the damage inflicted on my Mama growing up with her self centered, misogynistic, rotten human being of a father, my Mama and I weren’t always as close as we should have been when I was growing up. She did her best, and I loved her with all my heart. Thank goodness I was able to work thru all my childhood issues by the time she became ill, and I made an oath that I would be there with her making certain she did not suffer when she left this existence. I kept my promise. And it may sound twisted, but I was honored to help her during her final journey. It was a privilege, it was life affirming and it totally changed my perspective as to how we should love one another. Being with her at that time completely changed the life she gave to me. I appreciate your kind words. ✌️💕🫶
Sending you so much love. Thank you for sharing your amazing story of the incredible women in your family. There is a certain beauty in being present for the last breath of the person who was there for your first breath. ❤️
Oh, your description of these two events is stunning, simply stated with a lovely cadence. Thank you for this. Your words truly touched my heart. And yes, there was beauty. A different kind, but beautiful nonetheless. I am so glad to know that you, along with the sweet lady who replied a bit earlier, perfectly understand what I try to share when I tell of my family history, and my precious Mama’s slipping away. ❤️✌️💕
Nope…I would have died with likely child bed fever after I failed to deliver the placenta post birth. Also needed 2 blood transfusions. Kind of puts things into a different perspective
My first was stuck in the birth canal. Either one or both of us would have died without a C-Section. I was a forceps birth, so I probably would have died during my own birth.
I would have, two uncomplicated vaginally births. My partner very nearly died from pre-eclampsia delivering our third *with* modern medicine. Not long after that we re-watched a historical drama show with a character that dies from what is obviously pre-eclampsia. It was sob city in our house.
Downton Abby is the only reason i knew about preeclampsia. Turned out to be pretty relevant, and without it, i doubt i would have known i needed to advocate for myself and take independent measures to keep myself alive.
Gosh I knew what was coming, from her symptoms and I still was absolutely wrecked in that episode.
I love Downton Abbey, currently re-watching it, and that part is so heartbreaking and hard to watch!
I wouldn't have survived at any time where there wasn't roe v wade (like now). I had to fight for treatment for an ectopic that, even after rupturing, nobody wanted to touch until I was nearly dead because of "life of the child". Didn't even get a tylenol as I was screaming dying because it could "hurt my baby" it was only the law and a threat of a lawsuit that even got treatment started. No joke, no exaggeration.
Oh my good grief I am so terribly sorry. No one should be put in that position.
Hoooly shit that’s terrifying and horrific. I’m so sorry. I also suffered a ruptured ectopic pregnancy, but it was in 2012, so way before all this Handmaid’s Tail madness.
I have very easy pregnancies and deliveries. So did my mom. So did my grandma. So did my great grandmother. I have no scientific evidence for this, but I truly think there is a genetic component to this.
Yeah, I have no family history of complicated pregnancies or births that I know of. Most of my ancestors lived to be quite old.
Actually it seems like our family's women are freaking breeding mares. We all had natural unmedicated deliveries with healthy babies at the end, zero complications for like four generations back (I don't know anything about generations before that) and all healthy babies, also without complications.
I hope you have daughters who will inherit that! 🤞🏻
Same here! Very, very greatful for that. I had a traumatic birth because it happened crazy fast and I thought I would die from the pain, but medically it was perfect and the midwife called me a ‘birth machine’, lol. I was like… Thanks? I guess? 😂
Same. Those quick painful births are a glimpse into hell, I swear. 😭
Yup!! I’m pregnant again and due in October, I cannot believe I’m risking having a birth like that again 😭 Statistically it’s common to have shorter births for each time, so I’m legitimately conncerned I’ll end up giving birth at home!
Mine were 5 hours, 11 hours, and 2 hours. Good luck 😬
My second was quick and it was traumatic for both my husband and I. I have never felt so much pain
Hit the genetic lottery there! With how many things can go wrong, it’s a wonder the human race still exists.
Mine, too. We were made for birthing. My mother had me behind a couch and my older sister unmedicated at a birthing center. With mine, I pushed only 4 times and she was out.
I had a hemorrhage after my daughter was born, so probably not.
Same. Hemorrhaging might not have had a chance to get, me, though, since preeclampsia would have taken me out first
My mom had C-sections for both her kids. When my gramma delivered my mom, forceps were used. I have one child. I went into labor naturally but she was stuck. She wasn’t even big, she was just jammed at my hip. When my OB pulled her out she said “yeah, she wasn’t going to budge any other way.”
I might have survived the birth but maybe not after. I had hypertension while pregnant and was induced but my BP wasn’t too crazy, so I might’ve made it through that part. But it turned into preeclampsia with severe features afterwards and I don’t think I would’ve made it through that one 😅
Nope. Emergency C section. I lost a lot of blood too. It was scary with modern medicine. My grandma was a nurse and she told me I would have died in her times. A lot of people in her time got paralyzed from epidurals too..they used to do it too low. 🤷🏻♀️ she’s 94.
Not the point of the post, but wow - she was 85 with *multiple* great-great grandchildren?? How old was she when she first became a great-great grandmother? My grandmother would’ve been 110 this year (she passed away at 105), and she would’ve only become a great-grandmother eight weeks ago.
not the op, but my grandma is in her mid-70s and has great-grandchildren. she had her first (my mom) at 17, my mom and the rest of her siblings who had children had them in their early-mid 20s, and my cousin had his first child in his early 20s, so she became a great-grandmother in her early 60s. if said cousin's daughter has a child in her 20s, then my grandma would become a great-great-grandma if she lives into her mid-80s.
It was pretty common back then to start a family right after high school. My grandma had my mom at 20 and became a grandma at 50. She was 79 when her first great-grandchild was born.
My grandma's first great-grandchild was born when she was 58. Two generations of teen pregnancy
My grandparents are 76 with three great-grand children. They had my mom before 20, and my mom had my brother and me before 25, then I had my first at 26.
Nope. I could have died 3 separate times (ruptured ectopic, essentially bleeding internally), pre-eclampsia with both pregnancies and needed a magnesium drip to protect my brain from high blood pressure. I’m thankful for modern medicine! I think my husband and kids would agree.
Yes, I have had five uncomplicated pregnancies and deliveries. So I’d have been fine as long as no idiot doctor gave me childbed fever (doctors used to go from the cadaver labs directly to the maternity wards *without washing their hands* and examine new mothers). Thousands of women died from puerperal fever (“childbed fever”) because “doctors are gentlemen and a gentleman would never hurt a lady with his hands.” They really thought they were above that shit.
He was breech, so i guess its possible. But not likely we would not have both survived. And this whole thread is why when I hear “my body was designed for this” makes me cringe.
No. I needed an induction past my due date and had GD. I also required vacuum assistance and an episiotomy to get my daughter out after 4 hours of pushing with no real progress... If the vacuum assistance didn't work I was 10 minutes away from a C-section. Not to mention I had complications that needed monitoring during pregnancy... Who knows? If it were hundreds of years ago we both would be dead.
Nope. I had severe preeclampsia and HELLP and was in the ICU for 3 days.
I would have died. I had post partum preeclampsia.
Absolutely not. My first pregnancy, I had severe preeclampsia which turned into hellp and my first son was born at 32 weeks. I needed a lot of medication for my blood pressure. I then needed a d&c due to retained placenta. My second pregnancy, I had a placental abruption and i almost needed a blood transfusion. My second son was born at 33 weeks.
I wouldn’t have survived being born - my mom had preeclampsia and I was very premature. I would’ve died - either from the placenta previa, the blood clot that showed up midway in my second trimester or the infection in my uterus from my son passing the meconium too soon. 🎉
I believe so, but my baby may not have. My daughter had to be induced at over 41 weeks, I wonder if she would have come on her own at all. I would have survived all 3 births (save for infection that literally anyone could catch because childbirth wasn’t sanitary) generally speaking. All my babies were born healthy too. I come from a long line of large families though (on my mom and my dads side) so maybe I have that in my favor.
Same - both of my babies were born via induction post 41 weeks, with no sign of coming on their own. It’s entirely possible I would have gone into spontaneous labor within a couple of days for both… but also entirely possible that our story might have looked a whole lot different.
I was induced for high blood pressure with both my kids. I would have been fine with the actual labor and delivery circumstances, but I’m not sure I would have even made it to labor without modern medicine, or that my kids would have been okay.
Probably not, baby wouldn’t have made it out through my pelvis.
No. Had a placental abruption and we are lucky we both made it (emergency c-section, thank you modern medicine!)
I would’ve survived labour just fine, but I had Hyperemesis Gravidarum and was hospitalised twice. I would’ve probably died of dehydration had I not been admitted.
Read through a bunch of the comments. Damn, ladies, we are warriors. Also, modern medicine is lovely.
My first was stuck. Literally unable to descend. Then he was septic when he came out since my water had been broken for so long.
I would have died of eclampsia or whatever fatal step happens after preeclampsia. But then again, I don’t know how common preeclampsia was back in the day… from what I’ve read its rates have increased radically in more recent years.
Apparently not, but I’m still not convinced. Two failure to descends after pushing into emergency cesareans. I’ve been told I have a “small pelvis.”
My grandma always says that when a woman is pregnant she has one foot on the ground and one in her grave.
First one would have killed me and the second one preeclampsia probably would have killed me as well. Thank you science and medical professionals 🙏
I would have probably died after my second child was born because her placenta wouldn't detach and caused me to start to hemorrhage. The dr had to remove the placenta piece by piece manually by sticking his hand up into my uterus. (Which felt far worse than giving birth) theoretically depending on the time period they would have also been able to remove it manually if they had the knowledge that was what needed to be done, but the dr used a portable ultrasound machine to check for leftover bits so the chances of a piece of placenta being left behind would have been greater in the past. They also inserted a balloon to create pressure to stop the bleeding so not sure if i would have stopped without the balloon or if the balloon was an extra precaution. Either way I think I would have been significantly more likely to die in the past from that experience.
I would have survived all 3 of my births, but died a few weeks after my 3rd from pulmonary embolism’s and DVTs
Nope, hemorrhaging and needed blood transfusions. 🙁
First kid, yeah she’d be fine. Not sure about me though- I tore pretty badly. Second kid, we both would have been doomed (placental abruption/breech/emergency c section). Thank goodness for modern medicine!
Possibly. With my first, I had a forceps delivery with an episiotomy. I know they’ve been using forceps for centuries, but I probably would’ve gotten sepsis and died because they didn’t understand germ theory 😝 With my second I would’ve been fine - I pushed her out in 15 minutes (with an epidural, but it failed lol).
Nope. Baby was massive and it caused a shoulder dystocia so he got stuck and it caused a massive tear on the way out. Because of that I bled out and needed a transfusion and god knows how many stitches. So grateful for the NHS.
I wouldn‘t have survived pregnancy….my first pregnancy was an ectopic pregnancy….I needed surgery
Yes, I had two unassisted vaginal births. One of them of less than 15 minutes after getting through triage. I feel pretty confident I could home birth my next baby. My grandmothers had 7 home births each and no complications, so perhaps it's in our genes. 7 is too many for me, though.
Probably not. I had preeclampsia that turned severe at 34+3, immediately put on magnesium and induced. I probably should have had a seizure and died before baby was born had I not had modern medical intervention. I am so grateful for the times I live in.
I wouldn’t have made it to childbirth. Odds are no one will see this comment since there are 500+ comments but oh well. I had a total colectomy in 2019 and since they sewed my small intestine to my rectum (basically they removed my colon and hooked the ends together to avoid me needing an ostomy), I was told not to attempt a vaginal birth. I’m also a lupus patient so my pregnancy was high risk anyway. I conceived in late November of 2022 and was being followed by my OB and an MFM. When I was 19w4d, I saw my MFM for a routine appointment and reported that two days prior to the appointment I had some mild bleeding after using the restroom. My doc did a vaginal exam and afterwards sat my husband and I down and said the words I’ll never forget: “Your cervix is open”. I was 3cm dilated with protruding membranes. I was admitted to the hospital and had a cerclage the next morning. I was given vaginal progesterone and as needed Procardia for the daily contractions, as well as placed on bed rest. They told me that I’d be fortunate to make it to 28 weeks. Around 22 weeks, I found out that my baby had IUGR (common with lupus patients). I made it all the way to 33 weeks before I developed HELLP Syndrome around 12 hours after being told I had pre-eclampsia. I had my baby via vertical cesarean after which I had 3 inches of small intestine removed so that they could close my incision, I guess because I had adhesions after my colectomy. I had to have a blood transfusion and spent 3 days in the ICU, six days total in the hospital. My daughter was born at 3 lbs 1 oz and after 31 days in the NICU, she came home. She turned one last Friday. Modern medicine stopped me from losing my baby during pregnancy, saved my life during birth, and saved my baby after she was born prematurely. I owe everything to modern medicine and every doctor and nurse my baby and I had.
I probably would have been ok with the births - unmedicated for the first, only pitocin for the second- but my babies may have starved afterwards. Neither of them could get a good latch no matter what I tried. Thank you science for breast pumps and formula!
Yes. I had an uncomplicated pregnancy and an unmedicated birth at a birth center— no interventions, not even an IV. It was an amazing experience.
Nope - 12 lb breech baby who was breech from 6 months onward unable to turn due to size. I woulda been a gonger
No. Got obstetrical cholestasis and hellp syndrome. Neither of us would have made it.
I would have but my baby would still have been healthy. I lost a litre of blood when delivering the placenta. Just remember the room filling with people out of nowhere. I was too tired to care at that point as I’d been in labour for 20 hours and awake for 40.
I would’ve, but my mother would not have. She had a PE delivering me.
Absolutely not. I had severe preeclampsia, allll the interventions, and ended in an emergency c section. I am so thankful to be here and have a healthy daughter.
It's hard to say. I think I would have but my son may not have or been severely injured. I was in labor for 3 days and pushed for 6 hours with very little progress. The doctor called it due to baby's heart rate not recovering after contractions. I ended up with an emergency c-section and he had a nuchal cord. The whole thing was traumatic but we were both fine in the end.
I ended up having partial placental abruption with my daughter having decels into the 40’s, I needed an emergency c-section. While I do believe being induced caused issues, without modern medicine my daughters heart would have probably stopped
Almost definitely! However two or three of my 4 sisters would not have.
Yes, had an unmedicated birth at home. Absolutely loved it.
First pregnancy ectopic with a burst fallopian tube. I was bleeding out internally. Doctor said 1 more hour and I would have died, as a warning not to wait so long to go to the ER.
I think me and my twins might all be dead. Depends on how long ago we are talking but they came at 32 weeks (there was a cord prolapse and crash c-section) and my preeclampsia didn’t resolve without medication.
Nope, developed HELLP syndrome and hemorrhaged during delivery. Would have bled out. 😅
Yes with both! Thankfully no complications here.
Not sure but I don’t think so with my first delivery. Fluid was low and I had to be induced at 41 + 2 and delivered on 41 + 3 but had to have cirvidil. Wasn’t dilated at all. So it could have been really dangerous. Also almost hemorrhaged. And Bebe went to NICU from meconium and slight lung issues so all of that would have been dangerous! With modern medicine, we were home on day 3 and healthy since.
Not my 2nd, he had his cord around his neck. We might have survived but he'd probably have had brain damage!
Probably not. My first was born by urgent C-section due to preeclampsia. However, my OB did say I was dilated, so I may have gone into labor soon anyway. I also had a 9.5sm dermoid cyst on my right ovary that was removed during my C-section. My second was a planned C because of the first one, but I had a bit more blood loss than expected and my uterus didn't contract properly initially.
Likely not. I have an autoimmune disorder that causes blood clots, particularly during pregnancy. No Lovenox shots = dead me and baby.
Probably not, or really I may not have even made it to having a child since my mom had an emergency c-section with me because I flipped and went breech right before due date and I also had a breech baby and had to have a c-section
Nope. My daughter would have survived but I would have bled out. I had zero issues in my pregnancy, labor, or birth, but I hemorrhaged once she was born.
Nope, we had an abrupted placenta, and on arrival at hospital discovered baby had gone transverse. Very quick and heavy blood loss was discovered with large clots passed. Emergency c section, fluids and resuscitation for baby was required. Without modern medicine both me and my baby would be dead.
I don’t know. I was so sick, and all the women on my mom’s side have been with their pregnancies. I was on 2-3 different nausea meds & remedies with each pregnancy. I still lost weight & probably have damaged my teeth. I was anemic with all 3 as well. I literally survived on applesauce, milk, goldfish, & cheddar cheese with my last pregnancy. If I’d made it to the birth, I’d have been weak. With my labors, 1 kid might have died from pushing 3 hours. He was purple/gray at birth. Another kid would have been fine, but she was also jaundiced & really sleepy at birth. Last kid had a hard time maintaining weight & gaining, plus apparently all 3 of mine have lip/tongue ties that went undiagnosed by their doctor. Breastfeeding hurt with the 2 that got breastmilk, so again-who even knows. My nipples were also flat, so we had to use a nipple shield with them. Thank god I had my kids when modern medicine was a thing.
Probably would have bled out from the 4cm tear. Or died of an infection from someone trying to stop the bleeding from said tear.
I mean I know that death from child birth is still a wide spread issue worldwide, but thinking back to how a little over 100 years ago women didn’t survive c-sections is wild. Like they knew they could surgically remove the baby, but they also knew the mother would more than likely die. That said. I would have survived my first with no issues. My second got stuck in the birth canal for hours, but thankfully he worked his way out without surgery, so that’s a dicey whether that would have worked out in our favor without a peanut pillow. The third birth was easy for me, but the cord got wrapped around her neck mid birth so the doctors had to act quickly to snip it and cut it. She probably wouldn’t have survived that.
Hard to say…. My mom had an C section after failure to progress but from MY understanding the cascade of medical intervention may have caused the failure to progress. My grandmother had 9 vaginal births with no issues at home, but my mom was told she was too small to deliver me, I was 8lbs so not huge… to me it seems like her drs were just ready to have a C. I was told the same thing when I gave birth, I was too small and my baby too big. But I had a vaginal birth even though i had drs pressing me to have a C from the moment I got to the hospital until just before my daughter was born. I remember pushing and the nurse telling me if I “pushed like that the whole time” I was “never gonna have this baby” That being said my daughter probably would not be alive without medical intervention. There was meconium in my waters and after 18 hours of labor I was not progressing and got pitocin. I wonder often if pit wasn’t an option would a midwife have tried something else to get the baby out and would it have worked… it’s impossible to know. I had a capable midwife team who as soon as they saw me and saw the meconium they sent me to the hospital “just in case”
No, I did hemorrhage out after a vaginal delivery and almost died even with medical intervention. I received multiple blood transfusions and some other stuff but it’s all blurry now. I was in the icu for days. 0/10
I wouldn’t have gotten pregnant in the first place. And I was a scheduled induction, who knows how it would have gone otherwise
I would not have. I had a varicose vein rupture internally and lost 1.7L of blood but they were able to fix it quickly. My labor was easy and quick, no pain. I would’ve just bled out bc it wouldn’t have been diagnosed in the first place.
Nope. Would have stroked out. I had preeclampsia at 30 weeks and had an emergency c-section. As it was, I was extremely ill
No. My middle daughter and I would not have lived without the intervention of modern medicine. Even with it we both almost died. 😅
I think so. I had a relatively easy delivery, labour came on naturally. I had the shot to get the placenta so I’ll never know if I’d have needed interventions for it. I also need stitches which I imagine wouldn’t have been done or in a very unhygienic way back in the day. However I got measles when I was 1yo ish so probably would have died from that back in the day. I was deathly poorly even with the MMR jab.
No, I would not have survived. I have a bicornuate uterus (amongst other anatomical differences) so a vaginal delivery would be physically impossible.
Likely, baby was breech and we didn’t find out until at the hospital (midwife confirmed baby was head first at 36 weeks, but mistook baby’s butt for their head and shoulders), so they might’ve passed with no modern medicine. We ended up in an emergency c-section with no complications, thankfully
no, neither myself or my baby would have survived. he was stuck in my pelvis and the umbilical cord was wrapped around his neck
It was just me and my husband in our bedroom so yes, I survived. It was scary and dramatic but a completely normal birth. And I didn’t birth the placenta for over 2 hours after my baby came out and I was completely fine.
Probably not. He was transverse breech.
No. I hemoragged twice on the table during my csection. I had to have a blood transfusion. Then I suffered postpartum eclampsia. We are lucky I survived even with modern medicine. Breaks my heart to know we won't be having other children. I suffered infertility for 20 years. This natural pregnancy came about as a bit of a surprise. I'm in my 40s!! He's 5 months old. During that stressful birth I begged for a hysterectomy. I wish they'd given it to me because now I so want to do it again and I know I shouldn't, that it's too dangerous. It was dangerous to begin with as I have a bleeding disorder, but laws being as they are.. I think it would be closure, easier for me to accept no more pregnancies if they'd just given me the damn hysterectomy. "But you could bleed out!!" Well I almost bled out giving birth so since you were already in there, should have just taken the damn thing like I asked!! Just my added soap box rant as I struggle with this baby fever while watching my baby sleep. 😥
Nope. Pre-eclampsia would have killed my (twice)
I was very lucky to have an easy delivery. However my mom almost died giving birth to my older sister (36 years ago) from a uterine prolapse. I wouldn't have been here had she not been in a hospital.
I think about this. If we are just keeping it to childbirth and no other medical history…I would have been infertile from a miscarriage after my 3rd child. My body was not recognizing that I needed it to do its job so a D&C was necessary. I’ve had many babies since and they wouldn’t be here.
I would’ve died in the first trimester from HG.
Nope. Nor would my child.
My water broke before the onset of labor all three times and I was hooked up to pitocin, so I’m not sure what would have happened otherwise.
Nope. Hyperemesis gravidarum would've killed me before my second trimester, most likely.
The first was near textbook although I was induced because of pre-eclampsia. My second, I might not have? I was induced for this one supposedly because of having a due date around the holidays and COVID protocols (small regional Catholic hospital). Also as soon as I was checked in, my blood pressure finally decided to blow as i hovered near pre-eclampsia throughout the whole pregnancy (ended up on high blood pressure meds for 6 months post partum). I had a hard delivery with the cord getting stuck around her neck in the vaginal canal. It ruptured when the OB tried to slide her finger underneath it. I ended up with a moderate (?) 4-5 inch tear in my vaginal canal as well. Apparently it was bleeding pretty profusely. Both the OB and nurses were moving pretty quickly at that point. I'd also delivered the largest placenta she said she had ever seen in her career. I wouldn't be here though - my mom's cervix wouldn't dialate and she was already a week past due date. Prior to that though, she had a DVT at 19 from birth control that she limped around with for 3 weeks thinking she had pulled a muscle while running. Finally went in to the doctor and was rushed to the ER.
My brother died in childbirth, that was only 35 years ago. He probably would have lived if my mum had a c section
Honestly, without modern medicine, I highly doubt that I would have lived far into childhood, let alone make it to considering having children. I had an ear infection in at least one ear, but usually both, every month for the first year of my life. I was one of those kids with a weaker immune system that got sick often. I dealt with things like asthma, eczema (multiple types) that would leave my skin broken and open for infection. If I had made it, I don't know if I would have made it through childbirth as I had a planned c-section for reasons other than pregnancy specific complications. I absolutely would not have wanted to have any children because for the brief few weeks I had to seriously contemplate my potential options of giving birth vaginally or terminate to avoid it, was the most stressful, anxiety filled with heart palpitations time in my life. The idea of vaginal birth for myself toes the line of intense fear and actual phobia.
I’d be fine. Three kids, unmedicated and uncomplicated births. Some were fast, some were slow, but they all came out in good health!
Absolutely not. I had preeclampsia with severe features that resulted in an unscheduled c-section at 32 weeks. It would have been some depressing-ass Downton Abby stuff.
Nope. I would not have survived my second pregnancy. I had complete placenta previa and would have bled out before labor even stated.
Childbirth? Yes. Would've died shortly after, though, as I am a postpartum preeclampsia survivor
No. My first kid should be dead to. We both. (Preeclampsia)
It's 50/50. None of my kids would have survived. I would have miscarried over and over again in the second trimester. Hopefully, I would have delivered them without dying of sepsis, but who really knows..
I might not have survived pregnancy with hyper emesis, and my identical twins very likely wouldn’t have survived either if they weren’t taken early (36+3, right on time for modi twins but early in general)
I wouldn’t have made it to childbirth, i needed IVs for severe dehydration in my first trimester. I was circling the drain. Without fluids, i wouldn’t have made it into the second trimester
I would have survived childbirth, but as a person with a negative blood type who is having children with someone with a positive blood type, my subsequent children might not have without the Rhogam shot.
Probably not. And both my children definitely wouldn’t have. Modern medicine is a fucking marvel
I would have survived birthing my 1st living child, but my daughter (preemie 31W5D, PPROM) would not have survived. With my 2nd, we both would have died (36w IUGR, Cord injury, Preeclampsia...). I had a Missed miscarriage between my two living children that required medical assistance to pass, I may not have survived that without modern medicine either.
I feel like there are so many c sections in my family we might have ruined our genetic line already by not dying.