Customer Reviews

Immaculate Deception II: Myth, Magic and Birth

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I'm a midwife and an author of a midwifery memoir, BABY CATCHER: Chronicles of a Modern Midwife. When Suzanne Arms' first edition of this book was released, it rattled the bars of the cage of OB departments everywhere. Nurses, midwives, and women lauded SA and sang her praises, while traditional-minded OBs hid in the corners and prayed their own patients wouldn't get hold of The Book. I believe that S. Arms practically fired the cannon that started the Natural Childbirth and Birth Center wars. Thank god.
But, of course, doctors are far more powerful (not to mention lawyers and the insurance industry), so ultimately they prevailed, with the result that Cesarean rates increased, epidural rates skyrocketed, lawsuits increased, the $$$ amounts of lawsuit awards went out the roof, and patient satisfaction rates plunged. Partly as a result of that and their own culpability in setting up impossible expectations ('just trust me, do as I say, and you'll have a healthy baby'), many OBs now find themselves leaving their specialty because of unaffordable insurance premiums - and whole towns are without the services of an obstetrician.
So this newest edition of this desperately needed book comes out not a moment too soon. Buy it, read it, pass it on to a friend. Women have GOT to take back their birthright before we breed an entire generation of women who don't trust their own bodies intrinsic wisdom of How to Birth.

Upon becoming pregnant for the first time, my heart told me that a "natural" birth was the type of birth that I wanted. I searched the books available and found Immaculate Deception II to be the book that told me *why* my heart felt that way. It is a wonderful combination of personal experiences and medical facts.

She raises awareness as to how the birth process has become a medical condition, the effect this may have/has had on mothers and infants, and helps you realize that the mother should be the decision maker in how she brings her child into this world. She does this with little or no bias by presenting the facts and allowing the reader to draw his/her own conclusions. Most importantly, it provides you with the knowledge that there are options for birth and that you should make informed decisions about birth instead of just following the "standard procedures" that the U.S. medical profession dictates.

This book is a sequel to Arms' Immaculate Deception, published in the 1960s. It is immensely more compassionate and less angry than the original, and so probably more palatable to most readers.

Immaculate Deception (I and II) opened my eyes to the realities of childbirth. It is not by nature a dangerous process -- an illness that modern medicine has only recently learned to deal with adequately. It is, however, a physically and emotionally demanding process for which our culture does not adequately prepare women, much like menstruation, breastfeeding, and menopause. Hospitals are not "safe" places to give birth. Women who are uneducated about and unprepared for childbirth are placing their lives and their children's lives in the hands of chance, luck, and fallible professionals. No place is a "safe" place to give birth for these women.

The original ID had "conspiracy theory" overtones that Arms has eliminated in this second installment. However, both books contain frank and graphic anecdotes of actual births, photographs, and interviews. Please don't read this book if you are pregnant and have already made your healthcare decisions for prenatal care and childbirth. Above all, this book is about respecting women's natual strength and choices, and reading this book during pregnancy might cause you to second-guess yourself in an unhealthy way.

I read this book and the original ID before getting pregnant with my first child. When I did get pregnant, I was absolutely terrified of having to go to an OB and possibly give birth in a hospital. Thankfully, I had a midwife who taught me the valuable lesson of finding the inner and outer strength to cope with childbirth. Now, I am confident that I could give birth anywhere -- hospital or home -- with the right people supporting me. I hope you take this lesson from this book, instead of feeling angry, defensive, or frightened by what Arms has to say.

I read the first edition of this book in 1975, days after the birth of my first child.

I had desperately wanted a homebirth but was unable to locate a midwife during my pregnancy, so after a prolonged labor I reluctantly went to the hospital to "be delivered." I was laid out and draped in the traditional lithotomy position where I received a pudendal block, an episiotomy through the anal sphincter, and the threat of low-outlet forceps (I was able to push my son out before these could be applied to his head). They suctioned him, wrapped him up in a blanket, and gave me a brief glimpse, but when I reached out to touch him the nurse slapped my hands and told me I was contaminating the sterile field. We were essentially separated from each other for three days and nights, other than for brief nursing periods, so the bonding experience never happened and I went home with a stranger. I was told most women aren't capable of successfully breastfeeding, and I found out after acquiring my medical records years later that he had received formula in the nursery around the clock.

I developed postpartum depression and a profound sense of grief and loss almost immediately after the birth. I had a beautiful, healthy child and felt guilty that it wasn't enough to heal my emotional pain. While wandering among the book aisles at a local department store a few days later I came upon Immaculate Deception.

The most intense emotion this book provoked in me was anger. I knew my feelings of loss were valid and that I had been cheated, like millions of women everywhere, out of the most sacred, spiritual and empowering experience one can have. I knew I would not be victimized by medical propoganda again, and I knew I wanted to help other women and babies avoid having experiences like mine.

Yes, this book did change my life. In an instant it brought me to the realization that I wanted to be a midwife. It laid the groundwork for my practice and rekindled my faith when I gave birth again myself. I've read it numerous times over these past 30 years and still believe it should be required reading for every pregnant woman.

I can tell you as well that those reviewers who have questioned Suzanne's expertise are way off base. Although she considered herself a photojournalist, I've known and worked with many midwives, nurses, and even doctors who would choose her as their primary birth attendant!

And now.. I'm here to buy a new copy of Immaculate Deception for my pregnant daughter, who thankfully will have childbirth choices that some of us didn't have. Happy birthing to all of you!

This book was THE most important book I read early in my pregnancy. I am a first time mom-to-be at the age of 36 and would likely be following the 'higher-risk" hospital path to childbirth if I didn't find a way to educate myself fast. This book helps to teach us what our past as pregnant and birthing women, has been like. We often see pregnancy as a medical condition and labor as a medical procedure because of historical reasons and present economic/cultural ones. It does not have to be that way. This is not an easy book to read, it will make you angry but eventually, I believe, it will inspire you. I cannot reccomend this book enough to any woman, pregnant or not. We need to know our history and this book offers a part of it, a very important part.

This book presents a very interesting sociological overview of the medicalization of the birth process. In general, the stories of women, particularly those who have had less satisfying and more traumatic birth experiences, resonated with the experiences that I have heard from people that I know. It really is such a shame that the birth experience has come to be regarded as high-risk and treated as an illness, when in fact, it doesn't have to be. This book is very helpful to present options for birth, correct some of the misunderstanding and fear surrounding natural childbirth, and is definitely a book I would recommend for empowering women regarding what kind of birth experience they want for themselves. As a skeptical and scientifically-minded person, I wondered about some of the claims that are made in the book, but, in looking up the medical research on my own, the information appears to be accurate. I am surprised (and yet not surprised) that so many obstetrical practices (i.e. high rate of episiotomies, use of fetal heart rate monitors) persist despite the fact that empirical research has generally not supported their widespread use, and in fact, has reported that the risks can far outweigh the benefits. Yet these invasive procedures continue to be used with low-risk women, sometimes without the true informed consent the women who are subjected to them, because of the almost paranoid fear that if doctors don't do EVERYTHING during a birth, that they will be sued. All in all, a very interesting book, and a nice counter-balance to the pervasive message that childbirth is something to be feared, medically managed, and endured only with much pain and distress.

This book gave me confidence in my ability to birth, and makes a convincing argument for the idea that childbirth is a natural, normal process, NOT a medical condition! I think everyone should read it, especially moms-to-be. I read it 7 months before conceiving my first child, and I'm so glad. I actually brought it with me to my first prenatal appointment and made it clear that I believe in natural childbirth. I went on to give birth to my 9 lb daughter drug free and episiotomy free, and I'm looking forward to having another pleasant birth experience with baby #2.

Edited 10/21/04
Indeed I did go on to have an incredibly easy, I'd even say fun, labor and delivery the second time, on November 14, 2003, despite being induced due to low amniotic fluid (I was over a week past edd too). Still no pain drugs and I was enjoying chatting with my friend and my doula between contractions all the way up to pushing. Five hours total, and just a few pushes. I may just be lucky to have easy births, but I truly believe a lot of it has to do with being knowledgeable and relaxed, which is Arms' main point.

This is a wonderful book for reminding women that giving birth is something they are powerfully and fully equipped to do! Clarifies myths and questions and puts birthing where it belongs-- with women.

Immaculate Deception II is a fine follow-up to the original. Suzanne Arms writes this book with the same finesse and objective grace offered in the original. As a future Nurse-midwife, I am pleased to find a work that provides balanced facts for the psychology that surrounds westernized medicine and healthcare concerning pregnancy and childbirth. The author does not attack medicine but rather engages the reader in thought provoking facts and fascinating details. The book is well written and is a must-read for anyone who is considering a health care occupation.

If one book were written to convince the world of the medicalization of child birth, Suzanne Arms has done it. I would and have recommended this book to anyone thinking of having a child. This is the truth about birthing. Why hospitals should be avoided, steps the AMA has taken to insure that the mother has a minimal amount of control of the process, why you should make your own choices, what they are, and how to make them. Absolutely wonderful.