Childbirth, in my life & around the world



Adam, who is now 24



The only personal birthing experience that I have been a part of (except my birth, which, obviously, I do not remember).  My husband froze, and I probably was screaming a lot (although I don’t remember that either).  Before we left, we called my mom to assist with delivery.  She arrived at the hospital before us, although she hid in the bathroom whenever I screamed (which was most of the time).  From the statistics that I’ve heard, I gave birth rather quickly, especially for a first baby.  My labor lasted less than three hours.

I thought quite a bit about my birthing experience and its impact on my newborn.   I did NOT want an epidural.  I believed that having one might have a detrimental effect on either/or mom and baby.  I was careful not to take medications (even Tylenol) during the pregnancy, so I was not about to start right before birth.  Besides, selfishly, I did not want to be out of commission once our baby was born.  Call me crazy, but I had my husband and my doctor promise not to give me an epidural unless it was a health issue.  I delivered my son in a birthing room without medication. 

You need to keep in mind that I am the biggest baby in the world.  I look at blood, and I get sick.  OK… I think of blood and get sick.  I cannot stand pain, and by pain, I mean a simple cut on my finger.  My mom and husband were worried about how I would make it through the birth (no, they never mentioned this fear to me).  But, I was a trooper… why?  The health of my unborn child was important.   I had a responsibility to this little person.  I was determined to give this child a good start developmentally. 

Let me add this… through an ultra sound, I was assured that my little one would be a girl.  I had everything pink picked out, including a girl’s name.  There was no doubt that I was carrying a girl.  The doctor assured me of this.  So, when my little one was a boy, I was in shock.  That’s when I lost it!!!!  Do I think my initial reaction affected his immediate development… nope!  Why… because once I held him, I didn’t care if he was a boy or a girl, I was just thankful that he was healthy and the birth went smoothly.  The pain went out the window, and even now, I only think of the birthing experience as positive. 

I chose to read about birthing experiences in China.  Recently, there has been a lot written about the limitation of one child per family in China.  I wanted to learn more about how these women were giving birth.  In the past, may Chinese births took place in the home; in addition, the rate of newborn deaths was quite high.  Currently, China is promoting hospital delivery.  Almost all births, except in the poorest regions, take place in hospitals.  This is a way for the Chinese to keep records on the number of children born in each family.  It has, also, limited newborn deaths tremendously.

Although the rate of newborn death has gone down tremendously, it might not be totally the credit of hospital birth.  “Women who gave birth in urban hospitals might come from privileged socio-economic backgrounds and have better nutrition during pregnancy” (Hospital Births Move, 2011). This is an important factor in neonatal mortality.  There is definitely more to the lowering of China’s infant death rate than location.  “Findings showed that babies born in hospitals in the poorer rural areas were almost four times more likely to die than babies born in hospitals in urban areas” (Hospital Births Move, 2011).  Hospitals need to have neonatal care available in the crucial first few days after delivery.  Having this care available provides a safer environment than in the home.  In addition, some feel that the rise in hospital births may “have encouraged unnecessary medical interventions, such as cesarean sections, which account for 65 percent of births in China.”

Personally, I never questioned where our son would be born.  I wanted medical equipment (and yes, medications) available if needed.  But, as mentioned above, I was able to have quality care throughout my pregnancy.  I think the hospital birth was just the end result.  In China’s case, there is, also, more to safe births than the location.

Hospital births move has halved newborn deaths in China. (2011, September 15). BBC News. Retrieved from http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/health-14930747?print=true

Oleson, Alexa. Hospital births saving babies in China, study says. (2011, September 16).  Associated Press. Retrieved from http://news.yahoo.com/hospital-births-saving-babies-china-study-says-032630607.html