Childbirth––In Your Life and Around the World

Hi Everyone.  I would first like to apologize for the book :0).  Being a writer has that effect on me.

The birthing experience that I have selected to write about is my own. Unlike many children, I was not born under normal circumstances. Because her doctor was about ready to go on vacation it was recommended to my mother that she induce labor two weeks early.  My mom heeded the advice of her doctor and was promised that it would be a smooth transaction. This was not the case. After a day and a half of labor, I reluctantly made my way into the world. I began my decent in a dangerous manner. In other words, I was breech and got stuck. After finally making it into the world under violent and dangerous circumstances for me and my mother, we were separated for urgent care. My mother never got to hold me as most mothers do after birth as the doctors and nurses were too busy saving both of our lives. We both made it of course, but it did have an impact on my development throughout my life; although I did not realize this until I was an adult. How did I remember such an event at a very young age? I do have an excellent memory on my own and often remember many things from a very young age. However, about 10 years ago I began having anxiety attacks. I went to a hypnotist (a very good one) and he helped me recall the event.

My mother or father never told me of the event and were surprised (to say the least) when I questioned them about it in my adult life. It was more difficult for my mother than my father, but both confirmed the memories recovered through the hypnotherapy session. The therapist also cured me of my anxiety as well :0). Strange enough, my birthing event did have a huge impact on my life and development. For some reason (Now I know why) I always had to be early for everything and plan ahead. I also had and still do on occasion,  the feeling of not being ready or catch myself saying “I’m not ready for that yet”. I also have always been an overachiever and try to be the best that I can be. Additionally, I also feel as though that I am younger than what I really am. As if that was not enough, I found that I learn some things better in reverse. You may laugh, but when I was learning to crawl, I crawled backwards before crawling forward. When I learned to drive, in order to understand the concept, I had to learn to drive backwards before I could drive forwards. I have often wondered if this was because I was born breech.  Finally, because my mother never got to hold me, I was always more bonded with my father instead of my mother growing up. That of course, is different now.

Ultimately, I chose this example because I can personally relate to how much impact one’s birth can and will have on the growth and developmental process.

The region of Scandinavian, more specifically Sweden, has been selected for the second portion of my blog assignment.  I selected this country because I have friends that live there and one would assume that the birthing process would be similar to that in the United States. However, that is not the case. Unlike the United States and my birthing experience, as little intervention as possible is used (Bergman, 2008). Instead of having a child under the care of a physician, most births involve a mid-wife throughout the pregnancy and delivery process (Bergman, 2008). Mid-wives are also involved heavily in post-natal care (Bergman, 2008). Based on the perception of mid-wives in the United States, one would think that this could be extremely dangerous for the mother and the child. However, Bergman (2008) insists that Sweden is one of the safest and healthiest places in the world during the pre-natal and post-natal process. Unless a situation occurs, similar to my birth; most births do not require an OB-GYN (Bergman, 2008). It can also be argued that my situation or one like mine would not have occurred in Sweden. This is because they do not believe it is healthy for the child or mother to rush a birth and participate in forced labor for the convenience of a doctor. Many insights were gained from this comparison. Although medical intervention seems like a necessary process, it could have negative impacts on the birthing and development process. Another insight gained is how dependant we are in the United States on drugs, conventional medicine, and medical interventions. Maybe the Swedish people do have it correct. It is a possibility that a baby will be safer and healthier with limited intervention that allows nature to take its course.

References

Bergman, L. (2008). Giving Birth in Sweden. The Scandinavian Insider. Retrieved January 8, 2011 from

 http://sosmag.se/index.php/living-here/comments/giving-birth-in-sweden/.