Childbirth in My Life and Around the World

My first pregnancy was uneventful.  I worked up until the day before my daughter was born at 37 weeks. After I was admitted to the hospital, I had a shower, a light meal and a sedative to help me sleep. The next morning at 6am I was given pitosin because my contractions were irregular, given an epidural, and then by 11am had a beautiful 6lbs, 3oz baby girl. We went home 24 hours later. 

 This example shows how pleasant childbirth can be.  I had good medical care while in the hospital. A nurse came to my house the next day to complete a check of me and my baby. With good support systems, during and after childbirth, families are able to form those crucial initial bonds with their children.  However, most South Africa women have very different experiences in childbirth.    

In South Africa, there is a wide gap between birth choices and facilities available to the haves and have not’s (Birthworks 2010).  There are two types of medical plans:  Private and public.  The private plan is equivalent to the type of medical plan I had when having my children. The public plan provides basic care.  With the public plan very few epidurals are given because of the risks involved.  Cesarean sections are on the rise because of the risks vaginal births represent.  It would appear with the public medical plan birthing experiences would be traumatic due to the pain of childbirth.  This trauma could possibly effect bonding with the baby initially.

  

 Birthworks, (2010)  www.birthrworks.co.za