CHILDBIRTH IN MY LIFE AND AROUND THE WORLD

A PERSONAL BIRTH STORY

I will be recounting the birthing experience of my sister-in-law with her first child. In my country Nigeria, it is very common for a pregnant woman's mother or any other motherly figure to be with the future mother before she gives birth and also after the birth of her child. In this case, it was my mother who was with her and my mother helped prepare her for the birth. My sister-in-law's water broke in the early hours of the morning, she laboured at home up until dawn and then she was taken to the hospital with her hospital bag that contained all she would need for the birth and after birth as well. According to her, she was not offered any epidural and so she went through it all without any pain relief which she said was very difficult. To put it in her words "her life flashed before her eyes". I arrived at the hospital just after she had birthed my nephew and I was able to see her soon after she was cleaned up and checked out by the doctor. It was a very special feeling for me to see her and her baby because she was excited and we were relieved that it had gone so well, without complications. However, it also got me thinking of what the entire process could have felt like.
She stayed in a private room and was fairly comfortable but then had to stay for some extra days because the doctors discovered that my nephew had jaundice and so he had to undergo phototherapy for some days until his bilirubin levels dropped. My mother helped take care of her and gave her some relief when she needed some rest by taking care of the baby.
I chose this birth experience because this was my first time being around a loved one and being a part of the amazing journey to parenthood.
I think the birth experience a mother has a huge effect on the child's development. If a mother is able to have a stress-free pregnancy and birth experience, the baby is more likely to thrive after birth because the child is able to share in all that goes on with the mother while still in the womb.


BIRTH STORY IN FRANCE

I have a friend who gave birth to her last child in Paris. She told me that her maternity care leading up to her due date was very easy and she was confident in her medical team. Upon finding out she was pregnant, she was entitled to have 7 ultrasound scans for the duration of her pregnancy. She was given the choice of being managed by a mid-wife or a gynaecologist. She chose to use a gynaecologist attached to her hospital of choice for the delivery. In France, you are supposed to bring all your essentials with you to the hospital as it is not usually provided by the hospital. Something that was different for her was that no matter what type of delivery a mother has, she/ her spouse or a family member is required to care for the baby (not by a paediatric nurse), that is change of diapers or over all clean up and this is done in a room set aside for that. This is done because some maternity wards have shared rooms unless in a situation where one pays more in order to secure a private room if there is any available.
She expressed that the birth was easy and this may be attributed to the fact that it was her third pregnancy and she was offered an epidural. After the birth of her child, she was discharged a couple of days after and received home visits by a mid-wife as a follow up for her and her baby to ensure that she was settling in well with her new role. In all she said it was not a bad experience for her and her baby.

I see a similarity in both birth experiences because both mothers were expected to care for their baby and I think this foster a bond between them and also it makes breastfeeding easier for both of them. Also, they were required to provide all the care essentials they and their baby would need. A clear difference is that in France, my friend was offered pain relief to ease the birthing process unlike the case with my sister-in-law who was not given the option. Another difference is that my sis-in-law did not get a follow up visit maybe because in the Nigerian culture, a new mother is never alone. She always has her mother or an experienced woman with her sometimes before delivery up until 3 months after childbirth to care for her and the baby, also to show her the ropes in the journey of motherhood.
The two birthing experience were both uncomplicated but I think my sis-in-law had more care because she had more support from people who cared about her.