Upset.

[marliah]

That would bother me too, maybe a midwifery practice would work for you? Haven't met a man midwife yet I am still bothered by the fact the my dd was born in an ambulance en route to the hospital, without my husband and with a man paramedic. I pray the new baby will be born at home with my husband and midwife here.

[this_mel_rocks]

Can I ask another question?

What would you do if you had a male nurse on the maternity floor?

I hope you find a comfortable solution.

[MuffinMania]

What do you mean?

[lissa~K]

I would be upset as well and I am not even Christian. I would just be uncomfortable. If it were me, I would switch practices. As for the previous question of a male ob nurse, I would ask for a different nurse. I have been at other people's births with male attendants and while they were perfectly nice, it is just different in my experience than the sisterly vibe that is happening with all women. The only male energy I want is my husband's.

ETA: the very first gyno appt I ever had was with this young attractive male doctor, so maybe I have never gotten over the mortification of that experience

Sent from my iPhone using DS Forum

[this_mel_rocks]

Originally Posted by MuffinMania What do you mean?

You said you will not allow a male DR to perfrom OB duties but a male nurse has to see you naked too. So if you were to deliver in the hospital would you demand a nurse change if you showed up and a male nurse was assigned to you?

[Holly dolly]

I guess I'm the oddball here. I LOVE my OB and he's a man. I was very nervous at first and very uncomfortable with a man seeing that "down there". My dh went to most of my appts and even he felt comfortable.

However I totally understand having to follow your personal beliefs.

[raisingcropsandbabies]

I was very uncomfortable with the thought of having a male doctor and avoided them at all cost. I had a female midwife with my first (a homebirth), but ended up needing stitches so bad the midwife wasn't able to do it. We went to her backup doc to get stitched up... a male doc. By that point I was so exhausted, just been through a really hard birth, and didn't even blink when HE walked into the room. Hubby was there holding our baby while he stitched me up and talked to me about hemmrhoid care (yay, 4 hours of pushing!). ha. I've had him see my kiddos for appts. and it's never been weird.

Then when we knew I had to have hospital births with my subsequent pregnancies, I began the search for an ob/nurse midwife who would have me. I tried meeting with a lot of women docs/nursemidwives, but oddly enough the ONLY ob willing to let me have a trial of labor was a WONDERFUL male doctor! Talk about shocking. So I made the switch at 34 weeks pregnant. He is the most natural minded, open, willing to let mama take lead, doctor I've met. I ended up needing c-sections and he does them... My husband and I both love him and are so thankful that we ended up being seen by him since homebirths are no longer an option. It was just so strange because I never felt at peace with any of the women care providers I met during my 2nd pregnancy, but when I met him God gave me such a peace in my heart/mind and I finally started bonding with my unborn baby.

If the birth center you are now considering going to would transfer you to the hospital where the male ob works if the need arose; I would say to just meet with him and have an appt. That way if he ended up being the one to catch the baby, you would at least know what he's like and it may be less nerve-wracking for you. Like a "just in case". There are only 2 appts. when I have to be checked vaginally by my male doc (the early u/s and the gbs test swab). There is a sheet draped over me, he keeps his eyes away from my area and tells me ahead of time what he's doing. I would say to ask for just a regular check up with the male doc (the pee in a cup, measure your belly, listen to the heartbeat one). Nobody is naked and it's win/win!

Edited to add: I am also a Christian. And a very modestly dressed one.

[mysticmomma1879]

We have a male midwife at our local birth center in arnold, md.

[MuffinMania]

Originally Posted by this_mel_rocks You said you will not allow a male DR to perfrom OB duties but a male nurse has to see you naked too. So if you were to deliver in the hospital would you demand a nurse change if you showed up and a male nurse was assigned to you?

Absolutely! My body. My birth. My way.

[MuffinMania]

I'm sorry, I'm not trying to question anyone's Christianity. I know all of us interpret the Bible differently, so I hope I'm not offending anybody. If I have, I apologize.