Childbirth in My life and Around the World

My Birthing Experience in the U.S.

Thankfully I have had the opportunity to give birth to two beautiful little girls. My second experience with giving birth was very planned out, the doctor told me he would be doing a caesarean at 6am Sept, 28. My first experience giving birth was not as systematic as the second time. During my first birthing experience I was induced at 6am and by 1pm the doctor was ready to get things moving along so he gave me a caesarean. My expectations were disappointed, I thought that I would be allowed to go through this birth on my own but it did not turn out that way. I thought I would be able to say when and if I needed medication for the pain and that did not turn out as I expected. Medication was administered based on what the intensity readings of my contractions were on the monitors regardless of if I was feeling any pain, which I wasn't. As I researched other birthing experiences around the world I am now so thankful to have had a doctor who would not let me go through pain. :)

Birthing Experiences in Northern Thailand

Following information is from a journal article titled Birth and social class: Northern Thai women's lived experiences of caesarean and vaginal birth printed in Sociology of Health & Illness v.27(2) March  22, 2005

"The birth was not long but it was torturing. As it was my first birth, it was so painful. I had great pain on the lower abdomen. And the pain, it was difficult to say what it was like. All I could say was it was like being tortured."

"I gave birth with my legs separated apart, just as what women have to do in hospitals. The doctor would tell us to lie on our backs and our legs are separated on the metal stuff. Even our arms, they will be tied up so that it would prevent us moving around too much."

"I gave birth lying on my back. When I felt the pain I lifted my bottom and the nurse told me not to do so. I think we all have to give birth only in this one position. I think it is for the convenience of the doctor. This is a private sector that I am talking about. What would it be like if you give birth in a public section!"

The three birthing experiences are based on Thai women giving birth within a country that operates out of a social class system. Within this country if you have the means you can deliver your baby within a private sector hospital or maternity hospital with your own doctor being present at the birth. If you are without monetary means you would have to have your baby delivered in a public hospital where there were a considerable amount of diseases, and it was highly likely that the baby would contract those diseases in this public hospital setting. Regardless of the social standing of the women in this country the one of the medical procedures they all had in common was having to have their legs and arm strapped down during the birthing process so they would not be able to move around when they had contractions.

The difference in my birthing experiences and the women in Thai are like night and day. In my birthing experience having pain was not an option, I was free to move around if I so desired, and  I was not concerned about my newborn catching a disease based on which hospital I was in. Unfortunately,  in Thai women are not as enabled as women in the U.S. are when it comes to birthing options (being bound to a particular hospital based on social standing), birthing positions (only being allowed to lay down to give births), and demeaning (by being strapped down to a metal table during birth).

The impact birth has on child development is both frightening and exciting. Frightening for the newborn due to the many lights, different voices, strange faces, being rushed from mother so the nurses or doctors can check them and sometimes not having contact with the mother for several hours if the mother is in recovery for quite some time, as in my case. It is exciting in the sense that now the newborn is exposed to many different new experiences that will help it to grow and learn.