Birth in America

My poem about my water birth with Zoodle received this comment from Kristen:

"You know--I never thought you for a 'waterbirth type'. That's awesome though!"

Actually, I had two very different birth experiences. I was induced at 40 weeks with Chickie. When the combination of pitocin and artifical rupture of membranes resulted in sudden, very painful contractions, I had an epidural. It worked well, and I had a joyful birth without much pain.

With Zoodle, my prenatal care and the birth were at a midwife-staffed out-of-hospital birthing center. I took Bradley childbirth courses. Zoodle was born in the warm water of a birthing tub, and there was a lot of pain--but less than there would have been if I hadn't had a skilled doula and that soothing water. It was an amazing, joyful, satisfying experience.

Both labors were short--just under 5 hours for my induced labor with Chickie, and just over 5 hours for my labor with Zoodle. Both births were beautiful and meaningful. Both babies were wonderfully healthy. My recovery was okay with both.

So I don't think that medicated, hospital births are evil. I was, however, deeply affected by my unmedicated experience, and by the environment in which I gave birth that second time. Here are some of my thoughts about birth in 21st-century America, based on my experiences.

I don't think that women who choose medicated births, or women who need C-Sections, should be made to feel that they are somehow less worthy than those who go the medicated route. One of the reasons I thought I could get through an unmedicated birth was because I knew my labor had been so short the first time and probably would be the second time too. Who's to say how I would have reacted to a long, extra-hard labor? Every birth is different, and every mother is different too. All I truly know is my experience.

We shouldn't do away with obstetricians and hospital maternity wards. There are plenty of instances in which C-Sections save the lives of women and babies. Also, with my first pregnancy, knowing I had pain relief available helped me get past my fear of childbirth. But women who have low-risk pregnancies should have safe, out-of-hospital options available.

I wish that our society treated birth as a more natural process, as something that doesn't need to be feared. We'd need fewer medical interventions if that was the case. And we could rest easy, knowing that when the interventions were truly necessary, they'd be readily available, either at the hospital where the birth takes place, or nearby for mothers who labor at home or at a birthing center.

I think women should be treated more as mothers and less as patients after giving birth, as long as Mommy and Baby are both healthy. One of the most meaningful parts of my experience two years ago was the environment created by the birthing center staff. We stayed there about seven hours after the birth. The midwife and assistant did all the important medical stuff (taking vitals, weighing Zoodle, helping with breastfeeding, etc.), but I got the feeling that their top priority was to help me, The Engineer, and Zoodle to bond. We were encouraged to all lay in bed together to rest. It was quiet, serene, and peaceful. It was entirely different than a hospital environment, and those hours were a priceless time at the beginning of my relationship with my son. How I wish more hospitals could create that type of environment for families that have just added a tiny new member!

Whether there's an epidural or not, whether the baby is pushed out by the mom or pulled out through an incision, every birth is beautiful and life-changing. When mothers believe that, fear can start to fall by the wayside. When care providers remember that, they can help create an experience that feels truly miraculous.

Proof that I am waaaay less cool than a teenager

Little Sis and I went out of town last weekend to celebrate her 16th birthday. We drove to a city a few hours away, and for most of the trip there and back, we had the radio set to a hip hop/R & B station. Here was one conversation we had:

Little Sis: I love this song.

Me: Yeah, it's a good song. But I don't like that girl's voice. It's annoying. (Pause.) I like this girl's voice though.

Little Sis: That's a guy.

I'm not even going to try to get caught up with the music she likes right now. By the time I accomplished that, I'd be hopelessly out of date again.

Zoodle, you're 2! (Here's a poem about you.)

Two years ago today, I woke up at 2:30 in the morning to pain...quickly followed by excitement.

Just over five hours later, we'd grown into a family of four.

Zoodle's birth was an unmedicated water birth at a freestanding birthing center. To say it was an amazing experience is to trivialize it. Recently I wanted to write a poem about that life-changing day and what it meant to me. The poem is below. (This poem is structured as a villanelle, with its specific scheme of rhymes and repeating lines.)

Birth day
by C. Beth

From water to water, from womb to breast
Indignant young cries join jubilant tears
God’s newest creation, held to my chest

You journeyed on waves of pain, every crest
Nudged you closer—pain brings joy, it appears,
From water to water, from womb to breast

“I did it!” I cry. “I passed the test!”
I kiss my reward for conquering fears—
God’s newest creation, held to my chest

“This labor,” they say, “made you tired. Now rest.”
But my soul dances to the song that it hears!
From water to water, from womb to breast!

The hours pass quickly; the sun travels west
But I’ll grasp this day to my heart, all my years—
God’s newest creation, held to my chest

Sweet son, let’s go home, settle into our nest
Where I’ll whisper joy in your perfect new ears.
From water to water, from womb to breast,
God’s newest creation, held to my chest

Copyright 2010. All rights reserved.





Happy birthday, Zoodle. You bring me joy!