Was it really an emergency, or did they just call it that?

Emergency denotes action must be taken immediately - the situation is dire - something needs to happen NOW to avoid harm.

If there was time to fill out paperwork, it wasn’t an emergency.

If there was time to wait around for the OR to be perfectly prepped, it wasn’t an emergency.

If there was time to wait for an anesthesiologist to arrive, it wasn’t an emergency.

In a true emergency c-section, also known as a “crash” c-section, the baby needs to get out fast. In this case you will most certainly be wheeled straight to the OR, given general anesthesia (as there is no time for a spinal), and your baby will be born within minutes.

So many women are told their cesarean was an emergency, but I’m willing to bet the vast majority of those women both had their “emergency” caused by the interventions done to them AND weren’t actually in an emergency situation at all.

If you’re told something is an emergency, you’re much more likely to hand over agency and let someone else make choices for you.

Almost every “emergency c-section” story I’ve ever heard starts with, “so I went in for an induction…” and the cascade of interventions follows.

Did you have a c-section that you were told was an emergency? If so, do you think it truly was?