OT: Shoulder dystocia - when the baby’s collarbone hangs up on the mother’s pelvic bone after the head is delivered - can result in a broken collarbone, especially if someone inexperienced or panicked is in attendence. The Gaskin Maneuver, essentially getting the mother on all fours to widen the pelvic space, can resolve shoulder dystocia in almost all cases, but it is not always used, especially in hospital settings where “flat on the back” is the enforced position. /OT

Anyway, it’s a sad case. Since we don’t know what really happened, I have a hard time painting this woman as an evil baby murderer out of hand. There are reasons other than being fat for not knowing one is pregnant - irregular cycles, some other illnesses, a previous diagnosis of infertility - just as there are reasons for concealing pregnancy. Just because they don’t make sense to us, it doesn’t mean they aren’t valid. I don’t know about the help available in Scotland, but it is a fact that there are far too many ways for pregnant women in the U.S. to fall through the cracks and not get the help and support they very much need.

-Scott