For most of my life, I thought childbirth – unless in an emergency situation like giving birth in a car on the way to a hospital – involved drugs like epidurals. Kind of like I thought most babies drank formula from bottles.
But once I reached a childbearing age and watched how my friends dealt with births and their newborns, I began to understand that there were a lot of different options available to parents. A lot of natural options.
It certainly made a lot of sense to me that if God created women, of course He would give them the ability to labor and deliver babies without the need for medication. (And, since God created women’s breasts to produce the most nourishing food that is perfect for babies, breastfeeding was an obvious choice.)
Once I was pregnant with my first child, I began looking into childbirth choices. I didn’t know much about midwives or doulas, so I chose an obstetrician based on my insurance coverage. (I later switched physicians within the same practice and was pleased with my choice – until the third trimester of my second pregnancy.) I enjoyed quiet nights reading many, many pregnancy and childbirth books books while I watched my belly grow. I learned how many women choose epidurals, some end up with Cesarean sections and others opt for home births. From water births to analgesics like morphine, there are a lot of choices for moms.
Not every birthing option is healthy for mothers and babies, though. (Think epidurals or analgesics don’t include many complications? Guess again.) Over the next two weeks, I’ll delve into childbirth. I already covered epidurals last month. On Friday I’ll cover C sections, on Sunday I’ll present a biblical perspective, then next week I’ll discuss unmedicated childbirth.
By the time my first child was born, I discovered there’s so much unexpected that happens in childbirth – each birth is unique and there’s no way a mom can ever truly be ready for what she’ll face. You may be as prepared as you possibly can, hoping that a birth plan can dictate the experience – but it won’t. There’s always a surprise.
Next week I’ll share my two very different birth experiences, and I’d love to share reader stories, too. Please e-mail your birth stories to accidentallygreen@gmail.com by Thursday, November 10. I’ll post them next weekend.
Photo credit
arzts amui/freedigitalphotos.net
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