The first words that come to mind when I hear the word birth are pain & drugs. I picture a woman going into labor and she begs for an epidural, but they tell her it's too late and the baby is coming. This scene that just played in my head is probably way off of what it's really like. I don't have much experience with birth, other than being born. I really don't have any memories relating to "birth". All I can think of when I'm racking my brain are the women on trains and buses who are offered seats because they're pregnant. Yes, I've offered my seat on numerous occasions...it probably is a habit I picked up from my parents when I used to travel around the city with them. They would almost always get up for a pregnant woman and if they didn't, someone else already offered their seat, or they simply couldn't figure out if the woman was pregnant or overweight.
I've watched part of the film The Business of Being Born. I fell asleep part way through, but I watched enough to get a general idea of what the filmmakers were trying to say. They basically challenge hospital birth with the growing number of women who are choosing to give home-births. They point out that home-birth is cheaper and can be less dangerous than hospital birth. But I still wonder which is better.
Questions I still have:
- When did birth get a price tag put on it? (How did the "industry" around hospital birth come around?)
- Are all women presented with options relating to the birth of their child when they become pregnant?
- What validates someone as a good potential mother? (Are children given unfair beginnings because of the choices their parents make?)
No comments:
Post a Comment