--- title: "1 Birth Affect Quotes By Ina May Gaskin" description: "1 Birth Affect quotes by Ina May Gaskin. Plus more from Ina May Gaskin and more Birth Affect sayings from other authors." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/8e1/ina-may-gaskin-10809_giving-birth_this-means-that-most-of-the-births-they_2540869.jpg" --- > [“This means that most of the births they have seen were to women on epidurals lying still during labor, waiting for it all to be over. Seeing this kind of birth over and over again causes a subconscious imprint on…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ina-may-gaskin/this-means-that-most-of-the-births-they-have-seen-were-to-women-on/) [Ina May Gaskin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ina-may-gaskin/) [Image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/8e1/ina-may-gaskin-10809_giving-birth_this-means-that-most-of-the-births-they_2540869.jpg) ## More by Ina May Gaskin > [The way a culture treats women in birth is a good indicator of how well women and their contributions to society are valued and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ina-may-gaskin/the-way-a-culture-treats-women-in-birth-is-a-good-indicator-of-how/) [Ina May Gaskin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ina-may-gaskin/) > [“The techno-medical model of maternity care, unlike the midwifery model, is comparatively new on the world scene, having existed for barely two centuries. This…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ina-may-gaskin/the-techno-medical-model-of-maternity-care-unlike-the-midwifery-model/) [Ina May Gaskin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ina-may-gaskin/) > [The best a health care system can do is to equip itself to meet the needs of each individual woman and birth. Those needs…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ina-may-gaskin/the-best-a-health-care-system-can-do-is-to-equip-itself-to-meet-the/) [Ina May Gaskin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ina-may-gaskin/) > [Why do we, then, continue to treat women as if their emotions and comfort, and the postures they might want to assume while in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ina-may-gaskin/why-do-we-then-continue-to-treat-women-as-if-their-emotions-and/) [Ina May Gaskin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ina-may-gaskin/) > [I had to learn not to let anyone push me around, to be brave and to say things I knew might make people mad.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ina-may-gaskin/i-had-to-learn-not-to-let-anyone-push-me-around-to-be-brave-and-to/) [Ina May Gaskin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ina-may-gaskin/) > [When we as a society begin to value mothers as the givers and supporters of life, then we will see social change in ways…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ina-may-gaskin/when-we-as-a-society-begin-to-value-mothers-as-the-givers-and/) [Ina May Gaskin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ina-may-gaskin/) > [“I have felt incredible energy and life force through my body, and I have really been reborn a happier, healthier, and more confident person.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ina-may-gaskin/i-have-felt-incredible-energy-and-life-force-through-my-body-and-i/) [Ina May Gaskin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ina-may-gaskin/) > [“Remember this, for it is as true and true gets: Your body is not a lemon. You are not a machine. The Creator is…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ina-may-gaskin/remember-this-for-it-is-as-true-and-true-gets-your-body-is-not-a/) [Ina May Gaskin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ina-may-gaskin/) > [Simply put, when there is no home birth in a society, or when home birth is driven completely underground, essential knowledge of women’s capacities…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ina-may-gaskin/simply-put-when-there-is-no-home-birth-in-a-society-or-when-home/) [Ina May Gaskin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ina-may-gaskin/) > [A society that places a low value on its mothers and the process of birth will suffer an array of negative repercussions for doing…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ina-may-gaskin/a-society-that-places-a-low-value-on-its-mothers-and-the-process-of/) [Ina May Gaskin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ina-may-gaskin/) > [I know of no country in the world that has passed a law specifically denying a woman's right to choose where she intends to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ina-may-gaskin/i-know-of-no-country-in-the-world-that-has-passed-a-law-specifically/) [Ina May Gaskin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ina-may-gaskin/) > [“Many midwives work as employees in large hospital practices, where the techno-medical model of care is still the rule. In practices like these, midwives…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ina-may-gaskin/many-midwives-work-as-employees-in-large-hospital-practices-where-the/) [Ina May Gaskin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ina-may-gaskin/) > [I have never observed even the slightest laceration in a woman who used clitoral stimulation as a relaxation method during birth. Clitoral stimulation seems…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ina-may-gaskin/i-have-never-observed-even-the-slightest-laceration-in-a-woman-who/) [Ina May Gaskin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ina-may-gaskin/) > [I dreaded having a boring life when I grew up. And I certainly can't complain about being bored.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ina-may-gaskin/i-dreaded-having-a-boring-life-when-i-grew-up-and-i-certainly-can-t/) [Ina May Gaskin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ina-may-gaskin/) > [There is no other organ quite like the uterus. If men had such an organ they would brag about it. So should we](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ina-may-gaskin/there-is-no-other-organ-quite-like-the-uterus-if-men-had-such-an/) [Ina May Gaskin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ina-may-gaskin/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "ItemList", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/birth-affect/ina-may-gaskin/#itemlist", "name": "1 Birth Affect Quotes By Ina May Gaskin", "numberOfItems": 1, "itemListElement": [ { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 1, "item": { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "“This means that most of the births they have seen were to women on epidurals lying still during labor, waiting for it all to be over. Seeing this kind of birth over and over again causes a subconscious imprint on the mind, and many women develop enough fear of the pains of childbirth that they block the messages their bodies give them about other positions they might take in labor. Others may simply fear diverging from the norm. A woman in the first stage of labor may find it beneficial to try several upright positions: standing, perhaps leaning on a counter or tray table; slow dancing with her partner; sitting while leaning forward or propped up with pillows; squatting; or sitting in a rocking chair. Sometimes one position suffices, but laboring women usually like to change from one position to another as labor progresses. One of the most effective labors I ever witnessed was that of a first-time mother giving birth to a very large baby. She moved through the first part of labor very efficiently by belly-dancing while putting as much of her weight as possible on a long staff she was holding to steady herself. She then pushed her baby out while leaning on the bed in a kneeling position. A woman’s position during labor and birth may affect her ability to breastfeed in a couple of ways. Dr. Roberto Caldeyro-Barcia, an Uruguayan obstetrician, was one of the first to scientifically investigate the effects of maternal position on labor. In 1979 he published a study now regarded as a classic, which demonstrated that mothers in a “vertical” position had thirty-six percent shorter opening stages of labor than “horizontal” women; the “vertical” women also reported less pain than the “horizontals.” Walking helped labor progress as well, because it brought the pressure of the baby’s head against the cervix, helping it to thin and open. And the “vertical” mothers’ babies’ heads were less apt to be extremely molded just after birth, indicating a somewhat smoother passage through the mother’s birth canal. Equally important, the babies of women who gave birth in upright positions had less fetal distress at birth.5 These factors all increase the chances that a woman will have a good early breastfeeding experience. 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