Schmaltz on wry

Maybe many women don’t feel comfortable with a home birth for whatever reason (it’s outside of their cultural norms, they can’t afford a doula, they don’t have a home suitable for birthing, they don’t have a supportive partner to help with the birth and recovery, they prefer a hospital out of safety concerns, etc.) These women still deserve to have options and autonomy in their birthing choices, and when we turn the debate into HOME=”NATURAL” HOSPITAL=MEDICATED and then focus all our energy on deciding who is “right” in that debate, we lose sight of (in my opinion) the real goal: getting ALL women, regardless of their socioeconomic status and regardless of where they give birth, autonomy over their bodies, access to information, and the right to birth without fear and coercion.

- Balancing Jane: Home Births vs. Hospital Births: Who Gets Lost in Dichotomizing Rhetoric