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March 01, 2008
stuff
last night we went to see the business of being born. i HIGHLY recommend seeing it if you are pregs, or even thinking about having a baby.
when i first found out i was pregnant i did some reading around and realized that i did not want to go to the regular baby doctor that i had gone to for woman-related things, but instead wanted to go to a midwife.
my experience at the regular doctor was pretty much non-existent...every time i went there and had an appt. with the doctor i would be rescheduled to see the nurse practitioner. not really a big deal or anything, but why not just tell me the 3 months prior when making the appt. that the ob/gyn would be to busy to see me? anyway, after a lot of reading i found out that this could be the same experience i could have if i chose to have a baby there. the doctor might be there.... or they might not, it could be someone you've never met.
another thing that freaked me out about having a baby was that every birth i had ever seen (on tv/movies because that's where everyone finds out about those kinds of things) the woman has been flat on her back, screaming, and seems to be not in control of her own body. some one else is telling her what to do and when to do it. also: lots of strange things strapped on the mother, iv's, needles....that creeps me out.
when i first told peeps i was pregs and told them i wasn't going to a doctor but instead a midwife, i got a lot of raised eyebrows and "why don't you go to a real doctor, in a real hospital?!" types of comments. most of these comments came from people at work and corey says people who work there are ignorant to begin with (true), it still seemed to me that everyone has one idea of how a birth happens. in a hospital. in a bed, flat on your back. being told when to "push". oh, and with lots and lots of drugs. another comment that i got was "are you going to have one of those weird unmedicated births?" what the hell does that even mean? weird. comments like these (pretty much all comments really) came from girls who have never had a baby and really have no idea. sure, i haven't had a baby (yet) either, so do i know more then they do? maybe, maybe not. but they seem to have their minds made up that they can't handle the pain of childbirth, or that childbirth is a terrifying or scary experience.
bah, i could go on and on forever about this subject. but i won't. go see the movie for yourself. you can even get it on netflix right now.
today i woke up with a sore froat. i called in sick to work and hopefully corey will go to the store and get me some cough drops.
school will be over REALLY soon and i can't wait to be done with my english class. jesus f-ing christ. that is the MOST annoying class ever, with the MOST annoying people. EVER. period.
Posted by alison at March 1, 2008 09:41 AM
Comments
I'll put this movie on my queueueue. I want to give birth in a hospital just to be able to have all that medical equipment nearby *incase* it's needed, and at first I thought I'd just use an OB/GYN too, but now I'm thinking that (if/when I get pregnant), I'll use a midwife.
My mom tried to explain to me just how busy doctors are, and that they really don't have time to answer your questions or anything, but I didn't get how bad it could be until I started seeing my new OB/GYN. The first time I spent a good 15 minutes with him which felt like a fine amount of time, but the second time I barely got to say anything AT ALL to him. He didn't even ask me if I had any questions; he just came in, did my pap, and left. I have a third appointment in a couple of weeks, and I couldn't even schedule it with my doctor; it's with a nurse I've never talked to. And a couple of weeks ago he called in a prescription for me (for estrogen; long story) and I had questions about why I was supposed to take it and what it would do to me, etc, because I really don't like taking hormones, and the nurse said that if I wanted to talk to the doctor about it, I'd have to MAKE ANOTHER APPOINTMENT. Because he doesn't answer questions over the phone.
So that pretty much cinched it for me. Once they finally stop getting "unsatisfactory" pap results (doesn't mean "bad," just means they didn't get enough cells), and they give me the go ahead to start trying for le baby, I'm seeing a midwife. Because it sounds like a MUCH better, more involved experience.
I'm tired of this Western medial BS. I want the advice and guidance of someone knowledgeable and experienced, but I still want to feel like *I'm* the one in control of my body, and like I know what's going on with my care.
Posted by: Cat at March 2, 2008 01:53 AM
i think this movie might seal the deal for you. it has a lot of info in it, which may or may not be a lot of propaganda... but i don't really care. it just added fuel to my fire pretty much.
Posted by: alison at March 2, 2008 09:30 AM
I haven't watched it yet, but it's even on "Watch It Now" (Netflix's instant viewing library), so I could watch it now, if I wanted to. My deal is already pretty much sealed though. Sarah (my OTHER sister in law) used a midwife from Swedish, and they really prepped her well for her birth, and if you NEED a doctor, they can always get one for you if/when that time comes.
Posted by: Cat at March 2, 2008 02:45 PM