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A case in point is Dr. Kim Warner, 36, chair of the obstetrics and gynecology department at St. Joseph Hospital in Denver. When her first child was due last year, she scheduled her own C-section. Warner had spent the past five years surgically reconstructing pelvic-floor muscles and repairing leaky bladders in women who had experienced difficult natural deliveries. She didn't want to risk a hard labor herself.
On Aug. 22, 2003, Warner and her husband arrived at St. Joseph, where about 15 of their closest friends and family members were waiting. Within half an hour, Warner was in recovery holding a baby girl named Kiah; the next day mother and child were home. "Everything was just smooth as silk," says Warner. "I wouldn't think twice about having another C-section." But, she adds, "I'd think twice about having another baby. It's hard work."
--With reporting by Andrew Downie/Rio de Janeiro, Helen Gibson/London, Kristin Kloberdanz/Chicago and Jeanne McDowell/Los Angeles