Birthing stories

The birth of our first child, Thomas, was very interesting.  My husband and I were living in Atlanta, Georgia at the time.  My due date was also our moving day back to Virginia.  The obstetricians in both states said, "No Way!"  I flew to Virginia on May 27, and the baby was due on June 20.  I was staying with my parents in Virginia when on June 2 at 2:30 a.m., my water broke.  I went down to tell my mom and she said, "We'll call the doctor in the morning."  I let her know that we needed to go to the hospital.  She was concerned because she hadn't even started to read the coaching book.  I called my husband who was still in Atlanta.  He had been out with friends of ours and had gone to bed only an hour earlier.  He said, "Call a plumber in the morning and shut off the water valve."  I explained that the baby was coming.  We arrived at the hospital about 4:30 a.m.  The baby was breech so I had to have a c-section.  This was disappointing to me because I was hoping to have natural childbirth. Thomas was born at 6:30 a.m that morning.   Unfortunately, my husband was not able to be in the delivery room because Delta was not ready when he was.

Thomas at 2

My husband, Bob was able to spend almost a week with us before he had to go back to Atlanta.  I was glad to have him there because I suffered with some postpartum depression.  As I look back on it, I think it was because I was unable to give birth naturally.  At first, Thomas would not latch onto my breast either.  I know now that it is normal.  Thomas and I spent the next two weeks at my mom's home.  Then my husband moved up on the 20th.  It is a great birth story, and I tell it to my son every year on his birthday.

Elizabeth at 2

I was fortunate to be able to participate in the birth of his daughter, Elizabeth, two years ago.  His wife, Misty, had a natural birth with no stitches, and Elizabeth was 9 lbs. 15 oz.!!!  That was amazing to me.  Both sets of grandparents and Thomas were there for the birth.  Her brother and sister came up later as well as aunts, uncles, and cousins.  What a joyous celebration!



I chose to read about childbirth in Guatemala because we have friends living there and I wanted to view birth from a totally different perspective.  Women giving birth are highly revered there.  In rural areas women go to birthing centers if one is available and they have transportation there.  Otherwise they give birth at home.  Before the baby is born, whenever people gather for a meal, the pregnant woman is invited to eat first.  As the pregnant woman works in the home, she talks to the baby about the jobs that she is doing so that the baby will be comfortable in their surroundings when they enter the world.  She wears a necklace that explains her menstrual cycle.  The husbands make decisions about when the mother will go to the doctor.  When it is time for the baby to be born, the mother can choose a birthing pool, a birthing stool or she can just squat.  Many communities have a trained mid-wife to help with the birth.  The father and the children are not allowed in the room where the birth will take place.  The father buries the umbilical cord in the yard.  After the baby is born, their hands and feet are bound together.  The children cannot see their sibling for 8 days.

The mortality rate is very high because a hospital is too far away or the family does not have transportation to the hospital.  Things are improving because more and more people in the village are being trained as mid-wives.  The only higher mortality rate in the Latino-Caribbean countries is in Haiti.

Maderazo, Jennifer W. (2007, October 25).  Giving Birth in Rural Guatemala. Retrieved from  vivirlatino.com/2007/10/25/giving-birth-in-rural-guatemala.php

WIN News. (2002, Spring). Guatemala:  Too many women die in childbirth. WIN News. Retrieved from http://findarticles.com/p/articles/mi_m2872/is_2_28/ai_86049667/?tag=content;col1

www.youtube.com/watch?v=ytjcQYL7Sb0Nov 27, 2010 - 9 min - Uploaded by eyebearah
This is a video project for nursing school. It depicts the pregnancy and birthing practices of the indigenous women