I want to start by saying that my birth experience was amazing! That said, it is also private. I know, why write a blog about it then, right?! Well, I want to communicate my opinion about natural child birth. Firstly, I have actually experienced natural childbirth. To me, natural childbirth means vaginal delivery without medication or intervention. I make this explicit because, having spent many a night reading birth stories and browsing Pinterest when I was pregnant, everyone seems to have an opinion on this, even with no experience. I am no expert by any means but at least I can speak from personal experience. WHY? Honestly, I chose natural child birth because I was terrified by the thought of a needle in my back, and the probable interventions that typically follow such a procedure. Now, I know many people who have had the epidural and loved it, regretted nothing. However I also know people who have hated their birth experience because of their decision to medically manage the sensation of birth. Or had to have a cesarean as a result of multiple medical interventions. HOW? I got a midwife. Having experienced pregnancy care from my G.P. and a specialist during my failed pregnancy, a cousin recommended I look into alternate care. She had experienced multiple miscarriages and found the midwife team extremely helpful and supportive in her subsequent losses and pregnancies. I do know that midwife care is hard to secure in my area, I was very lucky. So if this is not possible for you, I would recommend looking into a Doula. I spoke with one and found that her services overlapped too much with my midwife`s to justify the cost, but if I had to use a doctor to deliver my baby, I absolutely would have had a Doula. They advocate for you and support you when you need it most. I read birth stories to get a solid idea of what to expect. Though I was initially grossed out, as my pregnancy progress I starting watching birth videos. Once I accepted that the baby had to get out of me somehow, this was a logical step. I watched many women push out babies naturally and with epidural. I also watched hospital and home birth, doctor and midwife assisted births. What I noticed was that doctor assisted births were very "medical" while the midwife, natural, and home births were more, well, natural. I.e. less beeping and scary looking instruments around. Read The Thinking Woman`s Guide to a Better Birth. It was very informative and helped me decide that natural birth was for me. And watch The Business of Being Born.(It`s on Netflix). I took a prenatal yoga class to help prepare my body and mind for birth. Honestly, I signed up because a pregnant friend kept bugging me about it. I did not feel like doing it, but once I got there I enjoyed the experience. My class was taught at the Rebirth Center, and included information sessions and yoga. There was even a class where your partner came along to learn techniques for supporting and relieving pain during the birthing process. |
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