Giraffe Birth:
Labor-2 feet emerge
3 hours till birth
Lots of liquids
Umbilical cord breaks
Wild-newborns are up on their feet in 30 minutes
My Reaction:
I thought the giraffe birth was slightly disturbing seeing how there were two legs sticking out of the giraffe’s butt. I was surprised to hear that the labor process was only 3 hours long before the baby giraffe was born. It’s a lot shorter than the labor process of a human giving birth. I was also surprised to learn that a baby giraffe would stand up in the matter of 30 minutes in the wild to get away from predators because it takes a human baby months to be able to stand up on our own. That just goes to show how the food chain is in our society, humans are way up higher than giraffes since we don’t have to be up and running away from predators in 30 minutes.
Dolphin Birth:
Baby tail sticking out
Actual birth looked really smooth and fast
Blood
Lots of murky liquid
Baby dolphin immediately started swimming alongside mother
My Reaction:
I kind of liked/ enjoyed watching the dolphin birth more than I did the giraffe birth. The dolphin made it look so easy; it was just swimming around and around the tank with the baby tail sticking out until the baby dolphin came out. The giraffe birth and the dolphin birth were very similar. A part of the baby was sticking out, the actual birth looked smooth and fast, and there was a lot of liquid. When the dolphin gave birth, it looked like there was just blood at first but then it because a murky orange/ yellow color, it thought it was nasty that the dolphins were swimming in their own blood.
Human Birth:
Many people comforting woman
She was more comfortable in a squat
Lots of breathing
Husband delivered
Birth was slow
Ended up sitting up for birth
Looked painful
Baby came out really easily after its shoulders came out
My Reaction:
I expected the human birth to be grosser than it actually was. The environment in the video was rather soothing. Everyone in the video were talking in low voices trying to direct the birth and trying to comfort he woman. Everything seemed as though it ran smoothly without any complications. The woman kept changing positions to get comfortable and there wasn’t a doctor to tell her she couldn’t do what she wanted to do. It was basically a much more comfortable environment compared to that of a birth played out on the big screen. When the head emerged and a woman held up a mirror for the mother to see, I thought it was quite nasty because if I were giving birth I do NOT want to see what is going on down there; I would just concentrate on getting the baby out without any further distractions. I also thought it was nice that the husband delivered the baby with the guidance of an experienced woman. The mother must have felt she was safe and there was no need to be scared of anything that might happen because there was someone she trusted most delivering her baby.
C-Section:
Lots and lots of blood
Putting pressure at top of stomach made baby pop out
Head just popped out
Doctor looked like he was yanking the baby out by the head
My Reaction:
You were right to say that people who had a weak stomach should not watch this video. It was truly disgusting. There was SOOOO much blood. I didn’t know someone had so much blood in their stomachs. I was surprised when I the baby’s head literately just popped out. In c-sections, I thought that the doctors could just reach in and take the baby out of the stomach I didn’t know they had to put pressure on the stomach so the baby would slide out. I was interested in seeing what happened to the lady after the baby came out. I did not like how the doctors were laughing when the baby came out and were so calm when there is a woman losing a massive amount of blood on the operating table.
Monty Python: Hospital sketch:
Hahaha
All machinery
Care more about the machinery that the patient
Portrayed as fast
It was all rushed
The doctors and nurses all left really fast
Lots of people
Bright lights
Whole room was filled with machinery
Casual conversation about machinery while woman was suppose to be giving birth
My Reaction:
I thought this was really funny. I felt they did a good job portraying how the minds of doctors work. They care a lot more about machinery thinking that the machinery is going to help make the patient more comfortable. Instead the patient looked nervous or scared that there were so many machines in the room and hooked up to her. She looked especially scared when the doctors told her that the beeping noise made sure that the baby was still alive, I would have been high stung if I heard that from my doctor. I would be on the edge waiting for the next beep and if it took too long I would definitely freak out and lose focus on getting the baby out. Everything was really rushed and it related back to what you said about how doctors don’t want to spend all their time delivering a baby therefore they inject many medications into the mother and hook her up to many machines to speed up the process.
Saturday, February 21, 2009
Thursday, February 12, 2009
Analysis on the AWOB
One big thing that I really do not like about the AWOB is the fact that doctors seem selfish. They seem as though they want to rush births just to get them over with so they they go on with their own lives. I do not feel that it is fair that pregnant women have to suffer more excruciating pain just because the doctor wants to "play golf" as in the example from class. Why should pregnant women have to go through the ordeal of several injections into their bodies because doctors want too speed up the birthing process so they can go enjoy their personal time? Multiple injections are also harmful for the baby because they are born intoxicated with all the medicine that the doctor decided to inject into the mother during labor.
I do not like the idea that doctors want to rush the process and induce more pain onto the woman but i do understand why they do it sometimes and women would agree to have the multiple injections. Since there is more technology int he world now, "the labor process has been alienated from the woman." In the AWOB women scream in pain for the doctors to take away that pain and get the "thing"(not even baby) out of their stomach as fast as possible.
As a woman and someone who aspires to be a doctor(not necessarily an OB/GYN), i kind of understand the two different sides of the story. As the woman i would want as little pain as possible and the baby to be born as soon as possible but i would also want the baby to be born healthy but the idea that it will potentially come out in danger because of intoxication it would be a hard choice for me. But from a potential doctor's point of view, if an angry pregnant woman was screaming at me to relieve the pain and get the baby out ASAP i would speed up the labor process the best i can without endangering the mother or child.
Money-wise, the cost of an AWOB is extremely high. Now that concept i really do not understand. I know the doctors, nurses, medications and hospital care cost money but the difference between the AWOB cost and the NWOB cost is a gigantic difference. There is no reason for the medical bill from a hospital birth to be at least $10,000 when compared the the approximate price of $300 for a natural birth.
I do not like the idea that doctors want to rush the process and induce more pain onto the woman but i do understand why they do it sometimes and women would agree to have the multiple injections. Since there is more technology int he world now, "the labor process has been alienated from the woman." In the AWOB women scream in pain for the doctors to take away that pain and get the "thing"(not even baby) out of their stomach as fast as possible.
As a woman and someone who aspires to be a doctor(not necessarily an OB/GYN), i kind of understand the two different sides of the story. As the woman i would want as little pain as possible and the baby to be born as soon as possible but i would also want the baby to be born healthy but the idea that it will potentially come out in danger because of intoxication it would be a hard choice for me. But from a potential doctor's point of view, if an angry pregnant woman was screaming at me to relieve the pain and get the baby out ASAP i would speed up the labor process the best i can without endangering the mother or child.
Money-wise, the cost of an AWOB is extremely high. Now that concept i really do not understand. I know the doctors, nurses, medications and hospital care cost money but the difference between the AWOB cost and the NWOB cost is a gigantic difference. There is no reason for the medical bill from a hospital birth to be at least $10,000 when compared the the approximate price of $300 for a natural birth.
Tuesday, February 10, 2009
Q&A (Focus - in the U.S.)
Percentage of teen pregnancies:
Over forty percent of adolescents will become pregnant before reaching age twenty(41 percent of whites and 63 percent of nonwhites). By age 18, one in four young women(24 percent) will have a pregnancy.
Of the total number of teen pregnancies, approximately half occur with eighteen & nineteen years old.
The United States has the highest teen pregnancy rate of any developed country. It is twice as high as England, France & Canada, three times as high as Sweden and four times as high as The Netherlands
(http://www.teenshelter.org/data.htm)
Average age of first childbirth:
The average age of childbirth in the U.S. is 24.9 years old.
(http://www.nationmaster.com/graph/hea_age_of_wom_at_fir_chi-health-age-women-first-childbirth)
Percentage of abortions:
INCIDENCE OF ABORTION
• Nearly half of pregnancies among American women are unintended, and four in 10 of these are terminated by abortion. Twenty-two percent of all pregnancies (excluding miscarriages) end in abortion.
• Forty percent of pregnancies among white women, 69% among blacks and 54% among Hispanics are unintended.
• In 2005, 1.21 million abortions were performed, down from 1.31 million in 2000. From 1973 through 2005, more than 45 million legal abortions occurred.
• Each year, about two percent of women aged 15-44 have an abortion; 47% of them have had at least one previous abortion.
(http://www.guttmacher.org/pubs/fb_induced_abortion.html)
Percentage of male circumcision:
Whites, about 80% , and blacks about 45%. In some hospitals, more than 90 percent of boys were circumcised.
(http://www.cirp.org/library/statistics/USA/)
Percentage of maternal deaths:
The historical level of maternal deaths is probably around 1 in 100 births. Mortality rates reached horrible proportions in maternity institutions in the 1800s, sometimes climbing to 40 percent of birth giving women. At the beginning of the 1900s, maternal death rates were around 1 in 100 for live births. The number today in the U.S. is 11 in 100,000, a decline by orders of magnitude.
(http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Maternal_mortality#Maternal_death_rates_in_the_20th_century)
Percentage of pregnant women with STDs:
About 25 to 30 percent of pregnant women have the herpes virus. In the U.S., as many as 16 percent of pregnant woman have Bacterial Vaginosis (BV). An estimated 2.8 million Americans are infected with Chlamydia each year -- including 200,000 pregnant women. Estimated to affect 80,000 pregnant women each year, trichomoniasis is the most common STD among women.
(http://www.parents.com/pregnancy/my-body/complications/pregnancy-and-stds/?page=1)
Percentage of premature births:
Some 12.3 percent of all babies – 499,008 infants -- were born prematurely (less than 37 weeks gestation) in 2003, according to the report released by the National Center for Health Statistics (NCHS). That's up from 12.1 percent (or about 480,000 babies) in 2002 – and an increase of more than 30 percent since the government began tracking premature births in 1981. The prematurity rate was 9.4 in 1981; it has increased every year since then except for slight dips in 1992 and 2000.
(http://www.futurepundit.com/archives/002997.html)
Percentage of c-section births:
Nearly three in 10 babies born in the United States are now delivered by C-section.
(http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=5311258)
According to the Public Citizen Health Research Group, certified nurse-midwives have a cesarean section rate of 11.6 percent compared with a national average of 23.3 percent.
(http://www.medicinenet.com/script/main/art.asp?articlekey=51188)
Percentage of adoption:
In the 1990s, there are approximately 120,000 adoptions of children each year. This number has remained fairly constant in the 1990s, and is still relatively proportionate to population size in the U.S.
104,000 children were adopted in 1986, 53,000 of whom were related adoptions and 51,000 of whom were unrelated. In addition, approximately 10,000 children were adopted from abroad, bringing the total number of unrelated adoptions to 61,000. (Bachrach, London, Maza, 1991)
The estimated total number of adoptions has ranged from a low of 50,000 in 1944 to a high of 175,000 in 1970. The number of adoptions by unrelated petitioners declined from a high of 89,200 in 1970 to 47,700 in 1975, while the number of adoptions by related petitioners remained constant between 81,000 and 89,000 during this period.
(http://statistics.adoption.com/information/adoption-statistics-numbers-trends.html)
Most fertile race in the U.S.:
Could not find answer.
Percentage of stillbirths:
Stillbirth is a relatively common, but often random, occurrence. The mean stillbirth rate in the U.S. is approximately 1 in 115 births, which is roughly 26,000 stillbirths each year, or on an average one every 20 minutes.
(http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Stillbirth#Prevalence)
Percentage of natural births:
Midwives attend 6 percent of all births in the United States.
Of midwife-attended births, 95 percent occur in hospitals, 3 percent occur in birth centers, and 1 percent occur in private homes.
According to the World Health Organization, 90 to 95 percent of the entire world's births are normal.
(http://www.medicinenet.com/script/main/art.asp?articlekey=51188)
Average time that baby stays in hospital:
Depends on mother and wellness of the baby. Usually, vaginal births stay for 2 days and c-sections stay for 3 days. Premature babies stay much longer. If it was a great birth and there were no problems, the family went home a few hours to 24 hours after birth.
(http://answers.yahoo.com/question/index?qid=20090130203907AACwM33)
Most of the questions i answered were based on the wellness of the child and mother. I was somewhat surprised to find the statistics to the answers. The numbers are pretty high for the negative questions such as teen pregnancies, abortions and premature babies. As for teen pregnancies, i deem it a negative factor because i do not think teenagers should be having children. Not even if they say they are totally ready. In my opinion, i think women should at least finish school and find and a stable job before having children. A teenager cannot achieve both those things at such a young age. I saw an episode of the Tyra Banks Show once and it was on the topic of of teenagers starting families. I am all for the idea of teenagers falling in love and getting married and what not but i don't think they should be having children. They have their whole lives ahead of them and i don't think they should jump the gun in life. Tyra interviewed a young couple of late teens with 2 children and they said they hated having started a family so soon. They were under extreme pressure and stress on how to support the premature family that they have created.
Over forty percent of adolescents will become pregnant before reaching age twenty(41 percent of whites and 63 percent of nonwhites). By age 18, one in four young women(24 percent) will have a pregnancy.
Of the total number of teen pregnancies, approximately half occur with eighteen & nineteen years old.
The United States has the highest teen pregnancy rate of any developed country. It is twice as high as England, France & Canada, three times as high as Sweden and four times as high as The Netherlands
(http://www.teenshelter.org/data.htm)
Average age of first childbirth:
The average age of childbirth in the U.S. is 24.9 years old.
(http://www.nationmaster.com/graph/hea_age_of_wom_at_fir_chi-health-age-women-first-childbirth)
Percentage of abortions:
INCIDENCE OF ABORTION
• Nearly half of pregnancies among American women are unintended, and four in 10 of these are terminated by abortion. Twenty-two percent of all pregnancies (excluding miscarriages) end in abortion.
• Forty percent of pregnancies among white women, 69% among blacks and 54% among Hispanics are unintended.
• In 2005, 1.21 million abortions were performed, down from 1.31 million in 2000. From 1973 through 2005, more than 45 million legal abortions occurred.
• Each year, about two percent of women aged 15-44 have an abortion; 47% of them have had at least one previous abortion.
(http://www.guttmacher.org/pubs/fb_induced_abortion.html)
Percentage of male circumcision:
Whites, about 80% , and blacks about 45%. In some hospitals, more than 90 percent of boys were circumcised.
(http://www.cirp.org/library/statistics/USA/)
Percentage of maternal deaths:
The historical level of maternal deaths is probably around 1 in 100 births. Mortality rates reached horrible proportions in maternity institutions in the 1800s, sometimes climbing to 40 percent of birth giving women. At the beginning of the 1900s, maternal death rates were around 1 in 100 for live births. The number today in the U.S. is 11 in 100,000, a decline by orders of magnitude.
(http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Maternal_mortality#Maternal_death_rates_in_the_20th_century)
Percentage of pregnant women with STDs:
About 25 to 30 percent of pregnant women have the herpes virus. In the U.S., as many as 16 percent of pregnant woman have Bacterial Vaginosis (BV). An estimated 2.8 million Americans are infected with Chlamydia each year -- including 200,000 pregnant women. Estimated to affect 80,000 pregnant women each year, trichomoniasis is the most common STD among women.
(http://www.parents.com/pregnancy/my-body/complications/pregnancy-and-stds/?page=1)
Percentage of premature births:
Some 12.3 percent of all babies – 499,008 infants -- were born prematurely (less than 37 weeks gestation) in 2003, according to the report released by the National Center for Health Statistics (NCHS). That's up from 12.1 percent (or about 480,000 babies) in 2002 – and an increase of more than 30 percent since the government began tracking premature births in 1981. The prematurity rate was 9.4 in 1981; it has increased every year since then except for slight dips in 1992 and 2000.
(http://www.futurepundit.com/archives/002997.html)
Percentage of c-section births:
Nearly three in 10 babies born in the United States are now delivered by C-section.
(http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=5311258)
According to the Public Citizen Health Research Group, certified nurse-midwives have a cesarean section rate of 11.6 percent compared with a national average of 23.3 percent.
(http://www.medicinenet.com/script/main/art.asp?articlekey=51188)
Percentage of adoption:
In the 1990s, there are approximately 120,000 adoptions of children each year. This number has remained fairly constant in the 1990s, and is still relatively proportionate to population size in the U.S.
104,000 children were adopted in 1986, 53,000 of whom were related adoptions and 51,000 of whom were unrelated. In addition, approximately 10,000 children were adopted from abroad, bringing the total number of unrelated adoptions to 61,000. (Bachrach, London, Maza, 1991)
The estimated total number of adoptions has ranged from a low of 50,000 in 1944 to a high of 175,000 in 1970. The number of adoptions by unrelated petitioners declined from a high of 89,200 in 1970 to 47,700 in 1975, while the number of adoptions by related petitioners remained constant between 81,000 and 89,000 during this period.
(http://statistics.adoption.com/information/adoption-statistics-numbers-trends.html)
Most fertile race in the U.S.:
Could not find answer.
Percentage of stillbirths:
Stillbirth is a relatively common, but often random, occurrence. The mean stillbirth rate in the U.S. is approximately 1 in 115 births, which is roughly 26,000 stillbirths each year, or on an average one every 20 minutes.
(http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Stillbirth#Prevalence)
Percentage of natural births:
Midwives attend 6 percent of all births in the United States.
Of midwife-attended births, 95 percent occur in hospitals, 3 percent occur in birth centers, and 1 percent occur in private homes.
According to the World Health Organization, 90 to 95 percent of the entire world's births are normal.
(http://www.medicinenet.com/script/main/art.asp?articlekey=51188)
Average time that baby stays in hospital:
Depends on mother and wellness of the baby. Usually, vaginal births stay for 2 days and c-sections stay for 3 days. Premature babies stay much longer. If it was a great birth and there were no problems, the family went home a few hours to 24 hours after birth.
(http://answers.yahoo.com/question/index?qid=20090130203907AACwM33)
Most of the questions i answered were based on the wellness of the child and mother. I was somewhat surprised to find the statistics to the answers. The numbers are pretty high for the negative questions such as teen pregnancies, abortions and premature babies. As for teen pregnancies, i deem it a negative factor because i do not think teenagers should be having children. Not even if they say they are totally ready. In my opinion, i think women should at least finish school and find and a stable job before having children. A teenager cannot achieve both those things at such a young age. I saw an episode of the Tyra Banks Show once and it was on the topic of of teenagers starting families. I am all for the idea of teenagers falling in love and getting married and what not but i don't think they should be having children. They have their whole lives ahead of them and i don't think they should jump the gun in life. Tyra interviewed a young couple of late teens with 2 children and they said they hated having started a family so soon. They were under extreme pressure and stress on how to support the premature family that they have created.
Monday, February 9, 2009
What Medical Professions Are Due to Pregnant Women?
What percentage of people die after giving birth?
What type of instruments are used during childbirth?
What happens to the baby after birth?
What are the most common drugs used during, before and after pregnancy?
What percent of women get diabetes during pregnancy?
When do doctors determine a c-section is necessary?
How do they treat pregnant women that give birth to babies with STDs?
What percent of women abort their children?
what is the abortion process?
How do abortions affect women in the long run?
How many people are actually needed for births?
What complications arise from pregnancy/ labor?
What percentage of male babies are circumcised?
Can doctors force you to have an abortion if the child is disabled?
If the baby is a hermathodite (i tried too look up the spelling on dictionary.com but i couldn't find the right word that fit the definition), can the doctor choose the sex?
Can the baby be taken away from the mother right after birth if the mother has taken non prescribed drugs during the pregnancy?
What happens to the doctor when there is a malpractice?
How much does the doctor/ midwife get paid per birth?
How much insurance do doctors get for malpractice lawsuits?
What happens when the mother can't pay for the medical bills?
What type of instruments are used during childbirth?
What happens to the baby after birth?
What are the most common drugs used during, before and after pregnancy?
What percent of women get diabetes during pregnancy?
When do doctors determine a c-section is necessary?
How do they treat pregnant women that give birth to babies with STDs?
What percent of women abort their children?
what is the abortion process?
How do abortions affect women in the long run?
How many people are actually needed for births?
What complications arise from pregnancy/ labor?
What percentage of male babies are circumcised?
Can doctors force you to have an abortion if the child is disabled?
If the baby is a hermathodite (i tried too look up the spelling on dictionary.com but i couldn't find the right word that fit the definition), can the doctor choose the sex?
Can the baby be taken away from the mother right after birth if the mother has taken non prescribed drugs during the pregnancy?
What happens to the doctor when there is a malpractice?
How much does the doctor/ midwife get paid per birth?
How much insurance do doctors get for malpractice lawsuits?
What happens when the mother can't pay for the medical bills?
Thursday, February 5, 2009
Birth Stories
Birth Stories
(Mom)
Me: Hospital birth. (She, once again, started off by saying that I didn’t have a birth story, she picked me up off the street.) A hospital called Downtown Hospital now it’s NYU Bickman or something like that. (It was hard to ask her the questions and communicate with her smoothly with everything I wanted to ask because I had to do everything in Chinese and not everything translates easily from English to Chinese.) Car service. She was still working in the factory back then with no maternity leave.
7 pounds 12 ounces September 13th, 1992 approximately 12:30PM Third child.
How was it?
A big stomach ache.
Worst part?
Did not dislike anything. Doctors and nurses treated her good. She had an Asian doctor.
Expected?
Natural birth. It was as expected because I am her third child.
Best part?
Waited fro 5 hours in hospital before I was born. Wanted me out of her stomach ASAP. So 5 hours was “regular time” for her so she was glad I came out “fast.” My dad was with her, it was his choice to wait outside of the room but she had no preference. There was no one else at the hospital.
Technology?
She had a single epidural shot.
Process?
The process of the birth was fine, she doesn’t think anything could be changed, she deemed it a normal birth.
Sister: Hospital birth. Sat on the back of a bike to go to the hospital in China. She was still working on the farms while pregnant. Hard labor. Poor country-side. Small village.
Approximately 7 pounds October 10th, 1977 approximately 12:30PM First child.
How was it?
A big stomach ache.
Worst part?
No dislike. Doctors were good. Hospital was good.
Expected?
Natural birth. Painful. Thought it was going to be an immediate birth. 6 hours in hospital before birth.
Best part?
Nice doctors. My aunt was with her (an aunt in china whom I’ve never met.) She waited outside of the room; the hospital did not allow people to be inside with my mom. There was no one else at the hospital.
Technology?
There was no technology what so ever in a small village in China. No epidural. VERY painful.
Process?
She wouldn’t have wanted an epidural shot to make things better.
Brother: Same hospital as my sister. Same bike situation. Same working status.
Approximately 8 pounds July 6th, 1979 12:55PM
How was it?
A big stomach ache.
Worst part?
No dislike. Good help.
Expected?
Natural birth. Things went as expected.
Best part?
Waited for 5 hours, not too long. Good doctor.
Technology?
No technology, no epidural = great pain.
Process?
The epidural shot would have mad things run smoother.
I don’t have a fourth birth story but I know someone who is currently pregnant and she was way easier to communicate with since we were speak English.
My pregnant sister in law: 2 months
How does it feel?
She doesn’t feel alienated yet, but it’s possible for her to feel alienated later on in the pregnancy when her stomach gets bigger and things get harder. She’s glad to be pregnant. Her taste buds change to the likes and dislikes of the baby.
Worst part?
The worst part for her is waiting. She hates waiting. She is currently waiting for all the tests to come back to make sure everything is ok.
Expectations?
She expects the pregnancy to get harder, uncomfortable and a little stressful. She expects to drive herself to the hospital all through the pain. (I was extremely surprised; I don’t think it’s safe. The due should be before school starts again for me so I’m planning on getting my permit soon so I can stay home with her when it’s late in the pregnancy. Haha I also thought to myself, “dam this girl got guts but when the time comes I don’t think she would be able to bring herself to the hospital.”) She expects it to be a long process when she gets to the hospital. Nurses will admit her right away and how long she stays depends on how her contractions (or rushes) are. When she is dues to give birth, she expects someone to help her right away. She hopes that her regular doctor that she is seeing now for the pregnancy will be there but if not, any doctor will do as long as they get the baby out healthy. She definitely expects her husband (my brother) to be in the room with her but she does not want anyone else to be at the hospital because it will put more stress on her with people she knows around.
(Mom)
Me: Hospital birth. (She, once again, started off by saying that I didn’t have a birth story, she picked me up off the street.) A hospital called Downtown Hospital now it’s NYU Bickman or something like that. (It was hard to ask her the questions and communicate with her smoothly with everything I wanted to ask because I had to do everything in Chinese and not everything translates easily from English to Chinese.) Car service. She was still working in the factory back then with no maternity leave.
7 pounds 12 ounces September 13th, 1992 approximately 12:30PM Third child.
How was it?
A big stomach ache.
Worst part?
Did not dislike anything. Doctors and nurses treated her good. She had an Asian doctor.
Expected?
Natural birth. It was as expected because I am her third child.
Best part?
Waited fro 5 hours in hospital before I was born. Wanted me out of her stomach ASAP. So 5 hours was “regular time” for her so she was glad I came out “fast.” My dad was with her, it was his choice to wait outside of the room but she had no preference. There was no one else at the hospital.
Technology?
She had a single epidural shot.
Process?
The process of the birth was fine, she doesn’t think anything could be changed, she deemed it a normal birth.
Sister: Hospital birth. Sat on the back of a bike to go to the hospital in China. She was still working on the farms while pregnant. Hard labor. Poor country-side. Small village.
Approximately 7 pounds October 10th, 1977 approximately 12:30PM First child.
How was it?
A big stomach ache.
Worst part?
No dislike. Doctors were good. Hospital was good.
Expected?
Natural birth. Painful. Thought it was going to be an immediate birth. 6 hours in hospital before birth.
Best part?
Nice doctors. My aunt was with her (an aunt in china whom I’ve never met.) She waited outside of the room; the hospital did not allow people to be inside with my mom. There was no one else at the hospital.
Technology?
There was no technology what so ever in a small village in China. No epidural. VERY painful.
Process?
She wouldn’t have wanted an epidural shot to make things better.
Brother: Same hospital as my sister. Same bike situation. Same working status.
Approximately 8 pounds July 6th, 1979 12:55PM
How was it?
A big stomach ache.
Worst part?
No dislike. Good help.
Expected?
Natural birth. Things went as expected.
Best part?
Waited for 5 hours, not too long. Good doctor.
Technology?
No technology, no epidural = great pain.
Process?
The epidural shot would have mad things run smoother.
I don’t have a fourth birth story but I know someone who is currently pregnant and she was way easier to communicate with since we were speak English.
My pregnant sister in law: 2 months
How does it feel?
She doesn’t feel alienated yet, but it’s possible for her to feel alienated later on in the pregnancy when her stomach gets bigger and things get harder. She’s glad to be pregnant. Her taste buds change to the likes and dislikes of the baby.
Worst part?
The worst part for her is waiting. She hates waiting. She is currently waiting for all the tests to come back to make sure everything is ok.
Expectations?
She expects the pregnancy to get harder, uncomfortable and a little stressful. She expects to drive herself to the hospital all through the pain. (I was extremely surprised; I don’t think it’s safe. The due should be before school starts again for me so I’m planning on getting my permit soon so I can stay home with her when it’s late in the pregnancy. Haha I also thought to myself, “dam this girl got guts but when the time comes I don’t think she would be able to bring herself to the hospital.”) She expects it to be a long process when she gets to the hospital. Nurses will admit her right away and how long she stays depends on how her contractions (or rushes) are. When she is dues to give birth, she expects someone to help her right away. She hopes that her regular doctor that she is seeing now for the pregnancy will be there but if not, any doctor will do as long as they get the baby out healthy. She definitely expects her husband (my brother) to be in the room with her but she does not want anyone else to be at the hospital because it will put more stress on her with people she knows around.
Wednesday, February 4, 2009
The Idea of Birth
As of right now I think the idea of birth is disgusting. It seems like it's a lot of work and it sounds extremely painful. Being on the woman end of the whole pregnancy shenanigans I do not think I will be willing to have children until I am truly ready for it. I want to make sure that I am finished with school, have a steady job and a husband before I decide to have children. I want to be sure that I am sure that I want to and am ready to bring a helpless child into a chaotic world. I do not want to have to bring a child into the world and not be able to care for it. As of right now, RIGHT THIS SECOND, i have a one year old nephew pulling at my arm trying to get me to go with him somewhere. Hes starting to whine and pull harder. He brought me to the living room and let go. From that little distraction there I don't think I can give a child all the attention it needs. I do not feel that i have the patience for that. Maybe later, way later, in my life but not anytime soon. My sister in law is pregnant right now. Its only been 2 months and she can't stand it. She never has an appetite and is very moody and nauseous a lot. I don't think I can deal with that for a long while neither haha. I love to eat. Well my final thought on birth as of right now is that it's a nasty process and i definitely do not see it as a miracle of life. There is a lot of science behind it.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)
