Thirty years ago this year on December 5, 1983, I gave birth
to my first child. I chose to share this personal birthing experience because
it was a defining moment in my life into motherhood. On a cold winter morning, a few hours after I
woke up, my water broke. I called my
aunt, my birthing coach, and told her to meet me at the hospital. After two hours of observation I was sent
back home. By 4 p.m. we were back at the
hospital. This time I was admitted
because the contractions were too close together. As I was being put on the monitor, the pain
took my breath away with each contraction, but hearing her little heartbeat
gave me the strength I needed to remain calm and stay focused. I was dilating pretty quickly, so before they
could place me on the birthing table, the doctor saw the crown of her
head. With two hard pushes my beautiful
baby girl entered into this world. As
the nurse was cleaning her, I asked, “When can I get the shot of
epidural”? Her and my aunt looked at me
and began to laugh. My aunt said,
“Sweetie, you didn’t need an epidural, you just had a natural childbirth.” I still get emotional thinking about my
first child birthing experience because as soon as they put her in my arms, she
looked into my eyes and took to nursing like a duck takes to water.
Childbirth In Turkey
Childbirth in the European country of Turkey has recently
changed from the past 20 or 30 years ago.
Fewer births are with midwives, but today most women favor ob-gyns. Elective c-sections are the preference among
Turkish women at private hospitals. They
do not have the choice of an epidural. Turkey has the one of the highest
maternal mortality rates in Europe because doctors are untrained in
administering obstetric anesthesia. Learning about child birthing in another
country was very enlightening for me. I
wish birthing mothers everywhere can be afforded the opportunity to choose
whatever method their heart desires without having to be in fear of dying. I am
grateful for the medical practices that we have in the United States because during
my birthing process I never had a fear of dying.
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