C-section Versus Normal Delivery: Which Is Safe?

Giving birth is the most wonderful event in a woman's life. Getting to see your baby finally after 9 months of waiting is truly rewarding.

The joy of holding your little one in your arms after hours of pain brings a level of contentment and satisfaction - like as if you just won the greatest war and got the best possible reward.

As much of a blessing as it seems, the process of giving birth can give nightmares to expecting mothers as well. All of us have come across various stories of how much painful the whole process is.

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Women have to go through hours of painful labour. The thought of labour itself has made a lot of women opt for the other method of delivery, commonly known as a caesarean section.

Normal delivery is the process of giving birth through the vagina. It is the most natural way of delivery, which the female body is completely equipped for.

A caesarean delivery is pre-planned, where there is an incision made near the stomach and the baby is delivered. The use of anaesthesia during the procedure makes it completely painless. A lot of women nowadays are opting for a C-section, as they are scared of the pain that they have to go through during a normal delivery.

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It has long been a topic of debate as to which is a safer method of delivery. Although both have their pros and cons, doctors have always been recommending the normal route of delivery, as it is healthy for both the mother and baby.
Here are a few advantages of normal delivery to support the claims.

1) Babies are said to be a lot healthier if they are delivered vaginally. Also, they receive the protective layer on their skin, which keeps them away from infections.

2) After a normal delivery, a mother can soon starting breast-feeding her baby, as the milk starts flowing immediately after birth.

3) Infants that are born vaginally have less chances of suffering from a health condition called tachypnea of the neonate. This is the condition where the newborn's lungs are filled with fluid. The pressure that the infant experiences during vaginal birthing squeezes away all the fluid from the lungs.

4) The time for recovery of both the mother and baby is less when there is normal delivery.
Although there are a few disadvantages of normal delivery, they are still debatable.
On the other hand, a caesarean delivery can cause a lot of complications during the procedure. Though it is painless, the recovery time is more.

Problems like blood loss, blood clot may put the life of the mother at risk. Also, the incision of the caesarean section takes longer to heal. It may also hamper the everyday activities. Sometimes, the incision is known to require re-stitching.

There are also chances of the baby being born pre-mature, as there is no labour pain to let you know that the baby has developed completely and is ready to arrive. The baby has to be fed with bottle milk till the breast milk starts flowing.

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Some women choose to have a caesarean delivery due to many factors. Apart from feeling that they may not be able to endure the intensive labour pains, they feel that a normal delivery will damage their pelvic floors.

This leads to urinary and faecal incontinence. Also, their vaginal muscles lose their shape, causing sexual dysfunction. While it is true that vaginal muscles do loosen after the delivery, they come back in shape with the help of a few exercises.

Studies have found that women who have gone through a caesarean delivery develop health complications later on in life. Also, the newborn baby may also be at the risk of pre-mature delivery and may need to be kept in observation.

Remember that a woman's body is completely equipped to handle the labour pains. A caesarean delivery should only be opted for in case of any emergencies. Otherwise, the safest way of delivery is vaginally, as it poses a less risk of life to both the mother and the baby.