Silent Knife : Cesarean Prevention and Vaginal Birth after Cesarean (VBAC)

Rating:
Summary: This book might save your (or your baby's) life!
Review: In my ever-so humble opinion, this is the best book available on the safety of Cesarean surgery (C/s) versus Vaginal Birth After Cesarean (VBAC). It's absolutely chock-full of statistics, painful and victorious anecdotes, witty analogies and wise suggestions for having a better birth through VBAC. It is my bible as I plan a Home Birth After Cesarean (HBAC) with a Direct-Entry Midwife (DEM). It's nearly impossible to find a good book about VBAC that does not employ scare tactics, worship obstetrics or at the very least denounce HBAC as an unsafe option for most women (Believe me, I know- I've read them all!) This book has been extremely useful in helping me to fully explore & express my anger & sadness over my iatrogenic (physician-caused) C/s. It can be a difficult read for C/s survivors, especially those of us who may feel that our surgeries were unnecessary or could have been prevented, but it is well worth the emotional upheaval to get through this book and come out on the other side better informed about the reality of C/s than most OBs. I highly recommend this book to anyone involved in birthing- but especially to pregnant women hoping to avoid a C/s & those who are considering an elective C/s or elective repeat C/s.

Rating:
Summary: This book might save your (or your baby's) life!
Review: In my ever-so humble opinion, this is the best book available on the safety of Cesarean surgery (C/s) versus Vaginal Birth After Cesarean (VBAC). It's absolutely chock-full of statistics, painful and victorious anecdotes, witty analogies and wise suggestions for having a better birth through VBAC. It is my bible as I plan a Home Birth After Cesarean (HBAC) with a Direct-Entry Midwife (DEM). It's nearly impossible to find a good book about VBAC that does not employ scare tactics, worship obstetrics or at the very least denounce HBAC as an unsafe option for most women (Believe me, I know- I've read them all!) This book has been extremely useful in helping me to fully explore & express my anger & sadness over my iatrogenic (physician-caused) C/s. It can be a difficult read for C/s survivors, especially those of us who may feel that our surgeries were unnecessary or could have been prevented, but it is well worth the emotional upheaval to get through this book and come out on the other side better informed about the reality of C/s than most OBs. I highly recommend this book to anyone involved in birthing- but especially to pregnant women hoping to avoid a C/s & those who are considering an elective C/s or elective repeat C/s.

Rating:
Summary: don't be afraid to read this book
Review: In reading the other reviews for this book, it is obvious that the content of Silent Knife can be polarizing. There are some who will find the tone too strident and the message too extreme. I happened to read this book and Open Season about 6 weeks before I delivered my second child. It cause me to do a 180 degree turn - fire my MD and switch to a midwife delivery. Six years later, I can say that this was one of the best decisions I have ever made!! My daughter's birth experience was so positive and the strength I gain from the experience nourishes me daily.

Rating:
Summary: Great Expectations -- Very Disappointing
Review: Silent Knife has so much to offer every pregnant woman not only those wanting VBAC. It contains a lot of information that is useful to every pregnant woman especially first time mothers. Reading this book will give you the confidence to insist and instill in your OB that you know what is best and what is not for you and your baby. From conception to birth, it will help you to prioritize what is important to you and your birth experience - from having siblings present at the birth to refusing "routine" procedures such as no food or drink during labor and mandatory IV's. It's a great wake up call to all women that they have the right to choose the birth they want. Don't let the title fool you. It's not for VBACs only.

Rating:
Summary: A Must Read For EVERY Pregnant Woman - Not For VBAC's Only
Review: Silent Knife has so much to offer every pregnant woman not only those wanting VBAC. It contains a lot of information that is useful to every pregnant woman especially first time mothers. Reading this book will give you the confidence to insist and instill in your OB that you know what is best and what is not for you and your baby. From conception to birth, it will help you to prioritize what is important to you and your birth experience - from having siblings present at the birth to refusing "routine" procedures such as no food or drink during labor and mandatory IV's. It's a great wake up call to all women that they have the right to choose the birth they want. Don't let the title fool you. It's not for VBACs only.

Rating:
Summary: Great Expectations -- Very Disappointing
Review: This book has been sited in many of the other books I have read about VBACs and Cesarean Section. So I was very disappointed when I actually sat down to read this book. It had statistics and facts that were grossly exaggerated and blatently untrue, it was very opinionated, one-sided, demeaning, anti-physician, and unnecessarily emphasizing other authors' quotes. Many of the facts are untrue and out of date as I have not seen one statistic in the entire book that wasn't from the 1970's. As a first-time mom who had an unnecessary c-section because of "fetal distress" this book made me feel worthless and like I had been both the victim and the assailant. The victim because this book portrays doctors as being greedy and out to pad their pockets by doing c-sections and blood thirsty "Jack the Ripper" want to be's and I was his prey. The assailant because I "let" such a horrible thing happen to myself and I should have done more to prevent the tearing of my fetus from my womb. This was a HORRID HORRID book and you are better off giving your money away than having to buy and read this long winded editorial written by people who obviously have some personal things to work through with their birth experiences.

Rating:
Summary: A Must Read for First Time Mothers and Cesarean Mothers.
Review: This book is about healing wounds and preventing new ones. If you love your baby and you trust your judgement, please read this book. The most dangerous form of birth is a cesarean section, yet everyday babies and mothers are needlessly subjected to this invasive and painful procedure. Countless studies and FACTS are contained in this book writen by women for women.

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Summary: Groundbreaking revelation of c-sec facts vs. mother wisdom
Review: This book was an incredible wake-up call lambasting the common yet unrecognized brutality in modern obstetrics and bringing to light the knowledge which lies within every woman about giving birth the way nature intended. The way our bodies were designed to. Silent Knife is filled with shocking facts, statistics both dumbfounding and empowering, and chapter after chapter of information on healing from traumatic birth experiences, confidence building in preparation for VBACs, facts about VBAC, and hundreds of personal stories from women all over the country who have had success with vaginal birth after cesareans. This book was so enlightening and answered so many questions. I cried, laughed, raged, and was calmed by its many facets. Silent Knife is not for anybody looking for an easy way out, but is for women and men who know - or even suspect -there is a better way for childbirth to progress for themselves and their babies. Should be required reading for every obstetrician and for every pregnant woman.

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Summary: Silent Knife is a comprehensive guide to VBAC
Review: This comprehensive guide propelled me on my search for the ideal VBAC. I found the book to be extremely helpful in setting guidelines, establishing facts drawn from medical research, and offering the best of support to women contemplating VBAC. It is a must-read!

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Summary: hard to read but oh so important
Review: While one would hope that much has changed since the publication of this book, statistics show that voer 20 of American women give birth by cesearean section. Cohen and Estner write passionately and eloquently about the pain of cesearean section--a pain that, for many women, goes far beyond the physical. Of particualr note are the myriad stories by women who wrote to Cohen fo their experiences. Pay attention! Cohen and Estner write to warn you that it still pays to be an informed consumer. this is, quite literally, the bible of the VBAC movement.