I've never had the pleasure of giving birth myself yet and unfortunately was away at school when my niece's were born. I've never had the opportunity to be involved in a birth, but rather arrived at the hospital after the birth had already taken place. I know from my what my mom has told me about my own birth that my father was allowed in the delivery room for the first time when I was born. My brothers were born in the 60's and 70's and according to her experience with my brothers, the father was not allowed in the delivery room during that time. She also remembers staying in the hospital longer with my brothers than with me. It seems that nowadays hospitals are looking to discharge new moms and newborns a lot faster than years ago. To compare health care during pregnancy, I feel today Dr.'s have a tendency to order more tests and be more cautious than years ago.
Upon researching countries and their birthing rituals, Holland caught my eye. Women in Holland do not see an obstetrician, rather they are referred by their family doctor to a local midwife practice. Doctor's will only intervene if there are complications during delivery. Women are the ones who decide if they are giving birth at home or at the hospital, and they are even to purchase a kraampakket, all of the medical supplies necessary for a home birth. If the decision is made to have a hospital birth, an epidural is only given at the connivence of the anesthesiologist. The vast majority of moms do give birth naturally in Holland due the scheduling issues. If the baby is born early in the day and there are no complications, then the mom and baby may go home in as little as 2 hours. When home the unique Dutch system of kraamhulp (maternity home care) takes place. For seven days a nurse comes to the home, a benefit covered by insurance. She provides medical care, cleans the home, cooks, and instructs the new parents in basic parenting skills.
Whether in Holland or the U.S., prenatal care during pregnancy is so important to the healthy development of the child. There is a tremendous amount of information out there that is accessible to new and soon to be parents. Knowing the goods and bads during pregnancy is a must.
Kristen,
ReplyDeleteI enjoyed hearing about your experiences. Understanding that you are young and not given birth yourself listening to your parent's stories of your birth would be the only experience you have had. Child birth in the United States sure has changed over the last thirty years. During my recent experience the midwife and doctor encourage my fiance to be more involved than he had originally planned. Learning about Holland's birthing rituals was interesting. I can't believe they discharge new mothers as early as 2 hours after giving birth. I could barely walk that soon after having my daughter.
Once you do have the opportunity to give birth or witness a birth it will be life changing. I have never had the opportunity to witness a birth and I hope one day that I get to. My husband was amazed when he was in the room. The look on his face was priceless... I do not know what I would do if they wanted to discharge me as soon as two hours. When they came in the next day and talked about releasing me I was amazed. I was thankful to stay an extra night and get a good nights rest. It is intriguing to know about the differences around the world when it comes to childbirth.
ReplyDeleteKristen,
ReplyDeleteI hope that you will soon have the pleasure of having a baby. If you ever have the opportunity to witness a birth you will be able to see the miracle of life. It is a wonderful feeling when you see a little life coming to a new world. Now you get to stay for at least 24 hours if it is a natural birth or 48 hours if it is a C-section.