Jessica Simpson is just the latest in a long line of glitterati who had their babies via C-section. Babble's list of 20 celebrity moms who delivered by Caesarean section are as varied as their reasons for doing so.
While some (Gwen Stefani, Victoria Beckham, Denise Richards) wanted to control the big event just as tightly as they control their careers, others (Britney Spears, Christina Aguilera) were just plain terrified of the pain of childbirth. But the vast majority (Pink, Kate Winslet, Tori Spelling) planned to go the natural route, only to require emergency surgery to deliver their babies.
So much for the idea of the pampered celebrity. One trooper laboured for a whopping 70 hours before undergoing a C-section. Any guesses?
To Winslet, not delivering vaginally was synonymous with failure. "My whole life, I'd been told I had great child-bearing hips. There's this thing amongst women that if you can handle childbirth you can handle anything. I had never handled childbirth and I felt like in some way I couldn't enter the 'powerful women's club.'"
On the flipside, Angelina Jolie, who went under the knife in a small African hospital to deliver Shiloh, waxed poetical about her C-section, claiming it "ended up being the greatest thing ... I found it fascinating. I didn’t find it a sacrifice and I didn’t find it a painful experience. I found it a fascinating miracle of what a body can do."
But just because you have a Caesarean for a first birth doesn't mean you can't have a vaginal birth for subsequent pregnancies.
"For some clinicians and hospitals, the prospect of offering a trial of labor after a Caesarean delivery is too risky. While risks exist, the possibility of delivering vaginally is still a viable option for many women," says Dr. Christina Marie Davidson, chief of Obstetrics and Gynecology Services at Ben Taub General Hospital. "We believe women should have that choice. We can't guarantee that they'll have a [vaginal birth after Caesarean] (VBAC) delivery every time, but we can certainly plan for it."
Some factors that increase likelihood of a VBAC:
Not facing a similar condition for the previous Caesarean
Successful vaginal delivery or VBAC in past
Previous Caesarean not for cervix complications or infant not descending through birth canal
Labor starts on its own
Younger than 35 years of age
Oh, and the record-holder for a 70-hour birthing marathon? None other than Gwyneth Paltrow, who laboured for forever before having her daughter Apple by C-section. Respect, Gwynie.
If you had an emergency C-section, did you feel disappointed or relieved?
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