Birth in the 21st Century….
Why am I delving into birthing history? What does it have to do with you and your baby? History has shaped everything we think we know about birth, how the general Aussie society views birth, and how we as mums view birth and our bodies. When facing your motherhood journey, it seems poignant to know what to accept as something you wholeheartedly believe, or what to reject as something you have been conditioned to believe. Pregnancy is an amazing time to start doing this, as our brains are open and ready for learning, all whilst our instincts are on high alert…. That’s a great environment for analysing our belief system!
Let’s start with the medicalisation of birth….
Is birth a medical event?
Historically, no! Birth was like most other days, given the time and space to do it’s thing, and medical intervention was only involved if there was an actual problem. And the actual problem would be diagnosed by a midwife or birth companion who KNEW physiological birth, who KNEW you, and who KNEW when to ask for extra assistance. Now though, midwives have to train in hospitals where they see mostly invervention filled, complicated births - so they are not bringing an innate knowledge of physiological birthing behaviour to a hospital birth, because they are not surrounded by it. Of course, there are always exceptions to this, and I applaud those epic Midwives for standing up for birth in conditions that are not ideal for them or for women.
What has been lost in birth?
Connection, community and confidence.
We are taught not to trust our bodies, and so we are not connected to them. We are taught having a baby is dangerous, so we don’t connect with our baby while we grow them. We are taught only medical professionals can save us from the danger of birth, so we don’t connect with our motherly intuition. If you don’t trust your body to birth, your intuition to know what to do in labour or your connection with your baby to know when something is up, then of course how is physiological birth going to work? In saying goodbye to our connection to body, mind and baby we lose everything that is essential in birth flowing “normally”.
In most of our history, women birthed with women - wise women that had attended all the births in village, mothers and grandmothers themselves. Upon birthing our first babies, we would have witnessed several births as helpers - perhaps sisters, aunties, or neighbours. This is not a far reaching history - in most Western worlds this is only a few generations ago!
This of course would give every woman confidence in her ability to birth! Instead of scary stories or news segments about how dangerous birth is, we would have seen it for ourselves and known that it WORKS and is NORMAL. Whilst we have gained so much in the ability to save babies that come early, or women with major health issues, or the various other major risk factors - we have lost so much of what birth is. A NORMAL AND EVERYDAY OCCURRENCE.
So how can you ask for more and where can you find it?
Your care provider is the key to this. Choosing a care provider that is continually there for you through pregnancy all the way to postpartum is a massive key in getting through with connection, community and confidence. This is commonly known as Continuity of Care in the medical field, and the research shows that outcomes (physical and emotional) are far better when this type of care is experienced. Many hospitals have Midwifery programs enabling you to have care from a known midwife for care throughout your baby journey, and some women find this care in a lovely Obstetrician. OB’s that are supportive of their birth choices and are trying to not just be the surgical OB they have trained to be - in Perth we have a few amazing OB’s who are supportive of woman centred care, you just have to look hard to find them.
What to do if my options are limited?
In leiu of a Midwifery Program at your local hospital or birth centre, there are also Student Midwives and/or doulas that can provide continuity of care. Something to remember is that a student midwife won’t have witnessed “normal” birth a whole lot because they are being trained in tertiary hospitals where most women choose to have intervention. Another thing to consider is perhaps feeling like a bit of a study subject when the midwives are trying to teach the student about something and talking about you right in front of you. Sometimes for first time mums this can be confronting as the midwives can sound harsh and medical terminology can sound scary. I personally didn’t feel comfortable having a student midwife present until my 4th birth, when I felt confident in my ability to halt the conversation if I didn’t want to hear it. Fortunately, my private midwife would only teach my student midwife after the session, outside my earshot. In sessions, she was taught to ask for consent and to only offer things instead of “pee in this cup”.
A doula on the other hand, is on the journey with you and for you - whilst we learn a lot from every woman we are with, it’s not the aim of our time together - which makes the time we spend together warm and encouraging and not clinical. We love researching behind the scenes and providing you with the latest evidence on any concerns that arise and always keep in contact between appointments to build a relationship with you. Both have their place, so it’s really up to you to see what fits your family the best.
What we have gained in birth being medicalised is amazing - the ability for mums to have interventions and caesareans when needed saves lives and we applaud that!! But the losses we have had in birth as a full body and mind experience are far reaching into motherhood. Blanket style care for all women has taken the heart out of birth, and it has been put in the hands of mums and their support teams to get it back. Individualised care is not the norm in our maternity system, but it can be a part of your birth if you have great people around you and a great mindset. No matter where you birth, your birth can be joyful, beautiful and even enjoyable!
More listening on this subject… Poddie by The Great Birth Rebellion
Stay tuned for my next newsletter… I’ll delve into pregnancy and birth in the Aussie maternity system, and what consent in a hospital can mean.
Sending love!!
