We do A LOT of thinking and discussing birth around here.
Ethan just made a wonderful point. Having a man deliver a baby is like The Sword in the Stone. When the weird tries to teach the boy how to fly. We love that scene. A man, tried to teach a bird how to fly while an experienced bird is standing there watching, waiting its turn to do the real teaching. The wizard goes on to explain the mechanics of flying, even showing the boy-bird how a model airplane works. The plane crashes and the owl then insists, "I happen to be a bird." The wizard reluctantly passed his pupil along to the one who promises to teach according to instinct, rather than theory.
A non-woman trying to the mechanics of labor will always pale in comparison to that of a woman who has actually experienced birth and honors its instinctive nature. Let's call the man a fish. Fish are amazing at swimming, OBs are awesome at surgery and managing other medical emergencies. But they are not birds who can teach/manage a woman how to 'fly'.
Studying the history of birth, I have learned that many interventions had precedence in the convenience of the male doctor, not the comfort+health of the women and child.
Ethan just made a wonderful point. Having a man deliver a baby is like The Sword in the Stone. When the weird tries to teach the boy how to fly. We love that scene. A man, tried to teach a bird how to fly while an experienced bird is standing there watching, waiting its turn to do the real teaching. The wizard goes on to explain the mechanics of flying, even showing the boy-bird how a model airplane works. The plane crashes and the owl then insists, "I happen to be a bird." The wizard reluctantly passed his pupil along to the one who promises to teach according to instinct, rather than theory.
A non-woman trying to the mechanics of labor will always pale in comparison to that of a woman who has actually experienced birth and honors its instinctive nature. Let's call the man a fish. Fish are amazing at swimming, OBs are awesome at surgery and managing other medical emergencies. But they are not birds who can teach/manage a woman how to 'fly'.
Studying the history of birth, I have learned that many interventions had precedence in the convenience of the male doctor, not the comfort+health of the women and child.
Humorously enough, my midwife is married to an MD who delivers babies.
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