As long as Maple Baby and I remain healthy and he doesn't decided to come too early or too late, I am planning on a birth center birth. What does this mean exactly? Well, a birth center is run by midwives and does limited interventions (no pitocin, no epidural, low episiotomy rates, no C-sections, etc.). Obviously if there is a problem, like I end up needing a C-section, I can easily and quickly be transported to a hospital. In my case there is an ambulance two doors down and the hospital is 7 minutes away - so very easily accessible.
I decided I wanted a birth center birth years ago, way before I was pregnant. It was actually when my sister was pregnant. I bought her Our Bodies, Ourselves: Pregnancy and Birth by The Boston Women's Health Collective and ended up reading the entire thing.
It had a section on birth centers and the benefits and things like that so I did a little research and found a birth center near me that looked really nice. I decided then that if I were ever to have children I'd like to birth in a birthing center as opposed to a hospital.
My sister's births solidified that idea. Not that my sister had horrible births, she was quite happy with them and both her children were healthy. I was just disappointed with how she was treated while at the hospital and the interventions they used. Nurses would just walk in and out of her room and look at all the machine print-outs, etc. They never really explained much to her and when asked a question they would give a really quick, simple answer. I, a person who likes an abundance of knowledge, wanted more information. And I felt like my sister deserved more attention and care than she was given. This is just my opinion because my sister didn't feel like that at all. We are just very different, which is completely fine. I support my sister's decisions to have her children at the hospital 100% - I think people should give birth wherever and however they are most comfortable.
I knew that for me, being able to birth in a bedroom setting, with different birthing positions and less hospital-like style would work best. I wanted to be able to move around freely, hop in a bath for a few hours, listen to music, and things of that nature. Most of the time you can't do that in the hospital (although you can in some). And to me, hospitals are a place for sick people - and a healthy pregnancy isn't a sickness. Obviously, many health conditions can lead to the necessity of a
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| This is one of the birthing rooms - looks much more like a B&B than a hospital! |
Really, I think I choose an un-medicated birth because my mom had un-medicated births. When my mom talks about giving birth to me and my older sister she never talked about being in huge amounts of pain or laboring for hours and hours. She had really easy births with us (or so she says) and we both just "popped" out - no medication, no screaming in labor, nothing really scary at all. And I think that that is what resonated with me. The idea that birth wasn't necessarily as scary as they portrayed it on TV or in the movies - that it could really be something quite natural and pleasant. I think growing up not having this huge fear of childbirth or thinking it was the worst pain in the entire world had a profound effect on the way I wanted to deliver my children. If I had grown up with stories of fear and pain and torture, I might be terrified to give birth without any type of pain medication. I guess we'll never know though.
So, that's my plan. I definitely don't think it's the plan for everyone. People have different reasons for choosing to birth the way they do, and those reasons should be respected. I don't think there is a right or wrong answer to birthing a baby. I do think that women aren't informed enough about their choices (I had to do all my research on my own and read a bunch of books, etc. - it's not something I ever learned in school or heard from a doctor) and about childbirth in general. Most people take a class that just goes over hospital policies and then shows a video with a naked women screaming and giving birth and that's it. I don't think that that is quite enough information for anyone. However, I do work in the health field and I am very interested in making good health choices for myself and researching medications and treatment plans rather than just taking a doctor or nurses word for it (or pop culture, mainstream media, or friends). So, that is how I approached birth.
Now I just have to see whether Maple Baby will cooperate. If I go into labor before 37 weeks or after 42 weeks then I won't have too much of a choice - I'll have to go to the hospital. I am pretty flexible though - my main goal to have a healthy baby and you won't see me fighting tooth and nail to make sure I have the baby the way I want to have him. I am ultimately at the mercy of him and when he decides to make an appearance and how (he could be breached, etc.).
I do realize that a lot of people have really strong opinions on these topics - and some people feel it is their right and duty to let me know. Many people say that I will be begging for an epidural or that it isn't safe to give birth outside of a hospital, etc. However, people really seem to be forming a lot of opinions on pregnancy, birth, and childrearing these days and there is no way to please everyone. Breastfeeding vs. bottle feeding, caffeine or no caffeine during pregnancy, exercise during pregnancy, attachment parenting vs. whatever the opposite is called, vaccines vs. no vaccines, etc. There are so many different philosophies and there is no best answer for every parent and his or her child.
I am just doing what I feel is best for me and my baby - and I'm trying to to read too many "Mommy Wars" articles - especially the comments section!
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What are your thoughts on childbirth?
Did you have an un-medicated birth?
Did your mom ever talk about your birth story?
I really did have very easy births with you and Elizabeth, and even Melissa's too. I'm not saying it was pain-free, maybe its true that the the definition of amnesia is a woman who goes thru childbirth, then turns around and gets pregnant again! But my pain was manageable, and only severe at the very end. But every woman, and every baby's birth is very different, and you'll be in awe of what you and your body are capable of during this powerful time. Every mommy and baby are amazing not because of the way they go thru several hours of childbirth, but because of the miracle of growing that cell over months and months into a beautiful new person you will bond with over your whole lifetime.
ReplyDeleteThanks Mom! Ivan is completely in awe of the baby in my belly - he loves to see him move from side to side. It's even strange to me that there is actually another human being inside of me! Can't wait to see you next week!
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