baby

Constance Hall defends caesareans in her book, Like A Queen.

Loveable blogger Constance Hall has all of us cheering with her passionate defence of caesarean births on her Facebook page today.

The post, which features a shot from the first chapter of her book ‘Like A Queen’, slams the mummy-shamers who lay claim to natural births as the superior method of childbirth.

Indeed, the online Mummy Blogger community love nothing more than vocalising their opinion on natural births vs. caesarean births. Earlier this year, HuffPost wrote about the The Secret Birth-Shaming of Mothers, where women who have chosen and/or have been forced into a C-section are being bullied for being ‘too posh to push’.

Well, Constance Hall is having none of it.

Her book, Like A Queen, actually opens with a declaration on birth:

“The definition of giving birth is “the act or extraction of a foetus and it’s membranes.” So just to clarify, if you’ve had a C-section, you have still ‘given birth’. Bravo, you rule.” she writes.

But despite her strong stance on birthing and motherhood, Constance says in the caption that she still is birth-shamed by other mothers – regardless of the fact her C-section was not by choice, but by medical emergency.


“Once at a kids party after having the my C section someone asked “did you give birth or did you have a caesarian?”

I was like “both.”

Nothing breaks my heart more then seeing a friend disappointed in herself for having a C section.
I’ve had women telling me that they feel like they failed, telling me that they feel like they aren’t allowed to talk when “birth discussions” are taking place and some even go through C- section induced depression.

????

Do you know what a C-section is? It’s your motherly instincts kicking in and telling you that medical assistance is now needed to get your baby out, it’s your motherly instincts telling you to put this in the hands of a doctor who know what they are doing.”

Her post resonated with her loyal online fans, with 11,000 likes and almost 700 shares.

“I made a promise to myself about a year ago that I would fight the guilt reflex to explain the reasons behind my two elective C sections,” wrote one mum.

“I always answered questions about my births with ‘Well, I had two elective C sections, but that was because….’ I have decided I don’t owe anyone the ‘but’.”

We love Constance Hall. (Post continues after gallery)

Constance Hall on Instagram.

Another woman agreed with the stigma that comes with having a caesarean.

“After my C section I was told by one family member “I feel so sorry for you that you did not experience real childbirth”. If not for the major surgery I’d just undergone I would have gotten out of bed and drop kicked the b*tch out of the room. I’m sorry, you studied obstetrics where again?”

As Constance writes, your birth and your body are nobody’s business but your own.

“It’s your body.. [You’re] doing everything BUT failing your baby.

“Women have elective and emergency C sections for so many reasons, they are making a decision that is instinctively for the safely of themselves and their babies.”

So birth-shamers? Shove it.

The childbirth questions you were too afraid to ask.

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Top Comments

Sarah 8 years ago

I never bother telling people why I had c-sections anymore. I used to feel the need to justify it but screw it, I have two healthy kids and that's all that matters.


guest 8 years ago

I have never understood when and why women who hardly know each other (possibly men sometimes too, I have no idea) feel it is any of their business to ask how a baby got out of your body.
I mean, do they think it's appropriate to know the details of how it got IN there?

If my sister or a close friend asked (who'd had a difficult birth maybe or was pregnant and researching their options) then I'd share. But a random other mother at a kid's birthday, a random colleague, some bitch on the tram, no none of your business.
Yes I'll tell you boy or girl, their age, if they're my eldest/ youngest, and perhaps their name. That's all you get. That's all you need to know. My vagina or otherwise - is not your business. I mean I'd not ask how your arse, your hemorrhoids, and bowel movements are going.