A Utah mother has shared her “traumatic” experience of being in labor for more than a month after being denied care due to her state’s abortion laws.
Shelby Gambrell said she went to the hospital seven times on the advice of her care team because of the agonizing pain of contractions.
But doctors refused to induce her because under Utah law, doctors cannot induce labor on a woman until she is 39 weeks pregnant (considered full term), unless the life of one of them is in danger.
Gambrell was forced to endure contractions every four to six minutes until her baby was born more than a month later.
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Gambrell finally gave birth in April 2022. Her daughter weighed seven pounds, 14 ounces.
“Her nails were incredibly long and she was covered in hair all over her body,” he explained.
“I was told a long time ago that this baby was ready to come out.”
Under Utah law, which prohibits abortion after 18 weeks of pregnancy, a doctor cannot induce an abortion on a mother before she is full term (39 weeks) because that is considered inducing an abortion.
Since Roe v. Wade was overturned, the state is currently litigating a near-total abortion law.
Practitioners who violate abortion law will be found guilty of “performing or inducing an abortion,” according to the state. abortion law.
Gambrell’s nightmare began on March 16, 2022 when she started feeling contractions and went to the hospital on the advice of her midwife.
And Utah’s mom just recently shared her birth story.
Speaking in a TikTok videoGambrell said: ‘I started experiencing regular contractions.
“I had a baby before and I also had Braxton Hicks contractions. These were contractions.”
After 72 hours of pain, she went to the hospital where doctors also confirmed that she was experiencing contractions.
“But since there was no progress, there was nothing they could do,” Gambrell explained.
During her first pregnancy, Gambrell discovered that her body had an excessive amount of amniotic fluid, the fluid that surrounds and protects a developing fetus.
She experienced the same thing in 2022, which hindered the baby’s ability to move into the cervix and Gambrell was not dilating.
Dilation is when a woman’s cervix begins to expand, allowing the baby to move into the birth canal.
The cervix should be at least 10 centimeters long, more than triple the size when not in labor, which can take 12 to 20 hours, but some women have experienced longer.
Gambrell’s only option for giving birth at age 34 was to have her waters broken, she said.
“I was sent home seven times without a baby. I never went (to the hospital) on my own, I was always sent for pain management,” Gambrell continued.
‘I was given morphine six times. One time I chose not to because I didn’t like the way…’
Gambrell paused in the middle of his statement, on the verge of tears, and turned off the camera.
In Utah, doctors are not allowed to induce labor until a mother reaches 39 weeks gestation unless her life or the baby’s life is in danger.
She came back to explain that the reason for the refusal was that her daughter stopped moving the last time she took morphine.
“My midwife swept my membrane three times, but she didn’t want to do it anymore because it wasn’t doing anything,” the mother said.
The process can sometimes help induce labor by separating the amniotic sac from the cervix.
It is performed by the midwife or doctor, who inserts a finger inside the cervix and makes a circular sweeping motion to separate the membranes.
Studies have shown that 86 percent of women who went into labor after the procedure needed no more than two passes. Only 14 percent needed more.
Gambrell went on to explain that she and her husband begged doctors to give them a reason why she needed to stay pregnant for the full 39 weeks if she was having pain from contractions.
“They couldn’t do it. There was no reason,” he said, explaining that the devices operated every four to six minutes for 34 days.
Gambrell said she is passionate about reproductive rights because “it’s none of my business what other people do,” but also because of what she endured two years ago.
‘My problem was not a legal problem. It was a medical problem and my doctor was unable to take the necessary measures due to the laws in force.
‘The care I received was not tailored to me. It was tailored to this idea of what equates to a healthy baby and a healthy pregnancy. I will never get pregnant again.
“My therapist told me I can use the word ‘trauma.’ This was a traumatic event.”
