Motherhood is a blessing. A rigorous pregnancy, prolonged labour and finally childbirth are life changing events in a woman’s life.  Pregnancy & Normal Delivery - not only does her body undergo tremendous physical change, even she matures to grow into a new being who packs a punch from day one when it comes to caring for her little one!

Misconceptions / myths during pregnancy:

Once a woman is pregnant she will begin to receive well -meaning advice from every nook and cannery. Its’ important however that she filters this information overload and does a reality check to break under mentioned pregnancy myths:

• Stress during pregnancy is not always bad, on the contrary moderate levels of stress help in toning and developing a fetus’s nervous system.
• Chocolates eaten during pregnancy are actually good for the baby as they make happy fearless babies and reduce the risk of preeclampsia in the mother too.
• The fetus is not inert in-fact it is an active being and mother can positively influence him each day.
• Moderate exercise does no harm but instead helps in fetus’s cardiovascular and mental development.
• Fetus is not nestled away inside the mother’s uterus unaware of the world outside. On the contrary through mum he encounters the real world even while in the womb.
• Development of lifestyle diseases depends not only on our choices as adults but it starts right in the womb on the mother’s food and lifestyle choices
• Children are overweight not only because of their genetic predisposition but their weight also depends on their mother’s weight gain during pregnancy.

Labor and delivery

As the due date of delivery nears a pregnant woman gets concerned on whether she can deliver normally or she will require a C-Section. A normal vaginal delivery has its own set of advantages over a C-section chiefly offering a quicker recovery time to a mother. In these times, in addition to the woman’s health even the preference of her hospital/gynecologist towards the form of delivery plays an important role.

The Sitaram Bhartia Institute of Science And Research, New Delhi is a multi -specialty hospital with a strong focus on following evidence –based and ethical medical practices. The hospital offers a Maternity Program and its’ designed to help the parents to be and their families to make safe and healthy choices both during pregnancy and delivery. In consistence with the WHO norms, pregnancy and child birth at the Hospital are treated as normal physiological events and unnecessary medical interventions are unwelcome.

The hospital has made conscious efforts to encourage women to try for a normal vaginal delivery. The statistics speak here for itself, as in the year 2016, the hospital has achieved an 88%normal delivery rate for low-risk, first-birth mothers, who had crossed 37 weeks of pregnancy and had a single baby in the head down position.

In addition to this the hospital has also achieved a success rate of 84% by supporting vaginal birth after cesarean (VBAC) and is one of the very few to be trusted by mothers with VBAC.

In effect, the hospital has managed to achieve one of the lowest caesarean rates amongst Delhi’s private hospitals at 12% (for first- birth low-risk mothers).

All of this is possible with the help of a dedicated team of doctors and nursing staff who provide one on one labour support and round the clock obstetric and pediatric expertise. The maternity team at the hospital strives hard to provide holistic care to birthing mothers and their partners. The end result being, the maternity program prepares women to face labour and delivery with confidence. This is accomplished through a series of antenatal classes, physiotherapy sessions and consultations with gynecologists and women health educators.

C – Section:

A C-section is a major surgery and women need to understand not to opt for one when it is possible to have a normal vaginal delivery. Like every other major surgery C-Section also comes with its set of risks. However a C-section sometimes becomes an inevitable tool to deliver a child in cases such as breech baby, placenta previa/abruption, 2 prior C-sections, any invasive uterine surgery, fibroid in mother, baby has a known malformation, HIV –positive mother or baby’s heart rate is concerning. While some hospitals are very commercial in their approach, some Maternity Hospitals still offer services in the best interest of their patients & push for a normal delivery despite complications. Also read-Cord around the neck: Is C-Section necessary?

It is to be understood that a pregnant woman and her family members must relax to ensure a trouble free pregnancy and smooth delivery.