The medicalisation of childbirthEmotion, care, coping

Narratives of pregnancy and birth

Birthing and trauma

‘Natural birth’ and empowerment

Women’s accounts

…I felt afterwards sort of powerful... I felt that I’d done something really powerful, and wonderful, and she was so alert when she was born, I knew I’d done it right (Mother who had a home birth and natural delivery).

…a really empowering experience (Natural birth in hospital after attempt at home birth suspended because of bad weather).

....I pushed and pushed and pushed, and out he came, and I was just like so proud of myself (mother discussing second birth by vaginal delivery after first with forceps).

Consequences of birth experiences for early motherhood

Women’s accounts… I think I had a lot of unresolved stuff though about perhaps feeling that I’d failed, or, urm, that if only I’d, if only I’d tried harder, or, or done it better, that I would have had a normal delivery (Mother describing aftermath of birth which was painful labour, C-Section and hemorrhaging).

…I had extreme anxiety and I think what was post-traumatic stress…I no longer knew who I was, what I’d been, that I was competent and capable. I kept on saying that I’d died (Range of medical procedures under induction and emergency C-Section). ...the weeks afterwards I felt he was really unsettled, I think a lot of people think that, everyone talks about colic don’t they but he was, he really cried a lot and I think that was to do with the ventouse...(Son born under induction).

...I felt like my body had let me down…(Induced at 10 days overdue).

Women’s accounts

I always felt that having such a easy positive start made the first few weeks so easy... We weren’t really, I mean we were tired because we had a baby crying all night, but it seems to be a different level…

…we tried in those first couple of weeks to do all the things that a lot of the milestones, like going on the tube with her, and going in the car, and both of us driving with her in the back, so it was done, and we were ready for the next bit…

…she’s been a very, very easy relaxed kid. And I think I mean you don’t know, one plays against the other, but it certainly helps.. (Short labour and natural birth).

Medicalisation of childbirth?