Dear 60 minutes team, To state that one in four Australian women *choose* caesarean birth is misleading and ill-informed. Currently, one in four women *submit* to caesarean birth - due to complications arising in childbirth; due to advice based on the opinion of their doctors (rather than presenting evidence); or due the lack of institutional support for vaginal birth after caesarean.
The reality is that less than 2 percent of Australian women *choose* primary elective caesarean as your guest Tracy Curro did. She was not representative of the women who are experiencing caesarean birth in our society, many of them traumatised by their surgery and paying the price of their misinformed/uninformed *choice* with post-natal depression or post-traumatic stress disorder. Indirectly, family and society share that cost and it can last for generations. When will we learn that prevention is better than cure? Where were the gentle midwives who allay women's fears and guide them through their transition to family? Mother's choice? What choice? Jodie Miller President Friends of the Birth Centre Assoc Qld Inc -- This mailing list is sponsored by ACE Graphics. Visit <http://www.acegraphics.com.au> to subscribe or unsubscribe.
