In 1957, my mother gave birth for the first time in a US army Hospital in Frankfurt Germany, she was all alone in a foreign country. Oddly they allowed her to smoke all through her labor but she was not allowed to drink or eat! She was not allowed to get up and move or to change her position as she felt she wanted to. She had a hard time and so did I, her baby. Contrast this with the fact that my mother herself was born in 1923 at home in the bed she was conceived in, as was my father in 1916. Human beings have only been giving birth in hospitals for about 100 years or less. This means that for millions of years our species gave birth freely and spontaneously for the most part without medical intervention. What has happened to human women that they now NEED medical intervention to do what nature intended them to do for the survival of our species?
Today, I want to explore the important question; How does the environment you choose to give birth in shape the outcome of your birth? Once you have developed your philosophy of birth the next step is to decide where you want to give birth. The environment you choose is critical to getting the birth you want. If you feel comfortable, you can relax and allow the energy of birth to move through you. If, on the other-hand, you feel scared and afraid of the environment your giving birth in it could slow your labor and make your birth harder. Women today have choices and you need to make a smart informed choice, that will give you the
outcome you want. Where you give birth will have a huge impact on your birth experience so make sure you make a smart choice. One of the key factors to look at is the position you want to be in to give birth. Also is water birth available in the place you choose, can you freely walk around? Can you eat and drink? Can you rest and be undisturbed when you want quiet?
Hospital Birth, this is the most common place to give birth in the United States. In the USA the hospital has become the default place to have a baby, with 98% of all births occurring in this institution. But before you automatically assume it’s the best place, take a tour and see if it feels right to you. Most hospitals provide an excellent safety net in case anything goes wrong. However, the equipment and the procedures used in most hospitals can inhibit labor. When a woman feels like she has no control over what’s happening to her during childbirth, she may tense up and that could slow her labor or even halt it, and result in a cesarean delivery. The maternity practices that can lead to a cascade of intervention include: Using various medications to induce labor. Artificially breaking the membranes surrounding the baby and releasing amniotic fluid before or during labor. Using synthetic oxytocin medicine (“Pitocin”) to make labor move faster. There are lots of pros and cons to a hospital birth. Generally, they have high tech equipment and skilled professionals. The problem is that interventions often follow this setting. If you want to avoid interventions, you need to do a lot of research on hospitals in your area.
If you want to make natural childbearing choices without restrictions, consider giving birth at home or at a birthing center. Choose an environment that makes you feel safe and relaxed so you are able to give birth naturally. Home Birth, this is the second most common place to give
birth in the United States. Women have been giving birth at home for thousands of years and up until about 1960, it was the most commonly place for women to give birth. It can be a wonderful, fulfilling experience but it certainly is not without some concerns. If you do develop a complication that needs medical attention you need to research medical options. It is wise to have a trained professional, who regularly attends births, available to help you. This along with a backup plan if things become complicated, is a wise precaution for a planned homebirth.
A Birth Center birth is another option, Birth Centers are rapidly growing in popularity. They offer many of the benefits of home birth while still having access to some of the interventions and technology of a hospital setting close by if necessary. This can be an optimal choice for many women seeking an out-of-hospital birth but wanting more options than home birth alone offers.
As you can see in 2022 you have choices and it is important to look at all your options. Go back to your first exercise, when you explored and found your WHY, and make sure that your choice of birth locations and resources will give you what you want to get the birth experience you desire. The more you study about your body, baby and birth the more you will come to realize that “the fear of the unknow” is really just that! A fear, you can learn and understand how your body works and how labor and delivery of your baby will either empower you or make you weaker and a victim of a process that appears out of your control.
Human reproduction is ancient it is very normal, and it works most of the time. But in the USA human reproduction has become a big business. The average hospital makes most of its
income off labor and delivery. In 2008, the movie The Business of Being Born explored the rapid movement of human birth into hospitals. This documentary, directed by Abby Epstein, examines the ways that the American health care system approaches childbirth. The traditional form of U.S. birth involves hospitals, drugs and obstetricians, while births in many other countries utilize midwives. Interviews with parents and medical experts explain the realities of maternity care. When Epstein discovers that she is pregnant herself, the discussion becomes less theoretical, as she must decide which form of birthing, she will choose for herself. I highly recommend all First time Moms (FTM’s) take the time to watch this movie early in their pregnancy. It is highly informative and will help you to separate the propaganda around birth from the facts.
In conclusion, the place you choose to give birth will shape your experience and outcome of labor and delivery. This choice will also to some degree influence who you choose to attend your birth and the tools you will have available to create the birth experience you want. Therefor this is a important decision every woman needs to investigate and know her options. Not all areas of the country have the same choices and not all insurance plans will cover all options, but all options are available to all women who make an effort to find them. Remember all the effort you put into choosing your college or wedding venue…well this choice is even more important to getting the outcome you want. Once you have developed your philosophy of birth the next step is to decide where you want to give birth. The environment you choose is critical to getting the birth you want.
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