Birthing Children Flashcards
21 jan - 23 jan
5 ideas to keep in mind
- (Hyper)Medicalization of birth
- Birth(ing) was seen as a medical problem.
- Birth(ing) experiences might affect early childhood experiences
and parent-child relationships. - Inclusion of non-birthing parents (spouses in heterosexual and
queer relationships) - Gynecological violence Vs. dignified birthing.
(Brief) History of
(hyper)medicalization of birth
Starting late 19C => appropriation and medicalization of pregnancy and childbirth (see: Cahil 2001 on ref.)
- Patriarchal model - women passive,man experts
- Women (seen as):
I. “Abnormal” and passive,
II. Pregnancy = pathological,
III. Laypeople Vs. medical profs.
as experts
Birthing as a medical/pathological problem
- 1910:women were unconsious during birth (drugs started ) used during birthing
- 1950:now birthing most often in hospitals
- after dads started to take more supporting roles
Part 2: Leavitt, Judith Walzer (2009) Ch. 6: Side by Side
1940s and 1950s:
- Husbands being in the delivery room was **NOT an expectation **(
- Women felt that they did not want their husbands to be present. maybe because it was not normalized
Drugs (to give birth) and Drugs (to comply)
- used to give them laughing gas but women didnt know what was happening because they would become unconcious
3 phases of Pharmaceutical Ads:
- 1960 tranquilizers for
married women,
- 1960 tranquilizers for
- 1970 valium against radical feminists,
- 1990 selective serotonin reuptake inhibitor for working women
Blurred lines between marriage,
motherhood, and mental illness
Exclusionary birth(ing) experiences might affect early childhood experiences and parent-child relationships.
- Racism and classism:
Separate experiences(private rooms,less atention to patienst)
Authoritative (or, authoritarian?) role of (male) Physicians
-
(Male) Physicians had the final say, they were “worried”:
a. Possibility of infections & other complications
b. Men might “faint,” require medical attention, and take
resources away from mother and baby (nursing time)
c. Tensions: expectant fathers Vs. medical personnel - Doctors-as-experts V. laypeople (delivering mothers & supportive men
(Imagined) Gendered/sexualized reasons for exclusion:
Birth seen as a “strictly feminine act” but managed by men professionals
- they excluded man from birthing because they would feel revolted by a women who dont look ‘‘pretty’’ and ‘‘proper’’, they would loose their appeal - sexual or otherwize)
- [i]t is inconceivable that a normal male watching the delivery of his wife could experience anything but revulsion (?!) at the vision of these genitalia under the worst and filthiest conditions”
- “[a]s the charm of woman is in her
mystery, it is inconceivable that a wife will maintain her sexual prestige after her husband witnessed the expulsion of a baby”
Very gradually) Introducing the idea of including fathers
[1940-50s]
- Physicians found the presence of fathers to be helpful during delivery (fathers were not seen as
“passive observers” during the process, - Women were still seen as
more passive than active
in labor. - . Slow emergence of “natural child birth” and other ways to increase women’s active role during
birth - men who wanted to abandon
the stork clubs for labor and
delivery rooms in these years did not
see their increased participation as a
challenge to** physicians’
authority”** [Also, unpack
this]
Inclusion of non-birthing parents (spouses in heterosexual
relationships)
One Doctor said: “… the biggest argument in favor of the f ather’s presence in the delivery room is that he should not be cheated of one of the greatest emotional experiences in his life”
Male participation/involvement
become more common
Effects on the couple and beginning of parent-child
relationships
- the presence of their husband doring childbirth helps women feel like people not just objects or roboots-they have someone to confort them in an event of mejor stress
(Gradual) Inclusion of non-birthing parents (first spouses in heterosexual relationships)
Inclusion of men
1. Case-by-case basis
- High social status (like
physicians) - Popularity and publicity
of natural childbirth ->
self-advocate for male
inclusion
Media
I. NYT (new york times) “expectant fathers have fainted in almost every nook and cranny of the maternity
pavilion” (p. 208);
II. On the contrary, [s]tories of
couples happily together in the
delivery room practicing natural
childbirth began to appear in
popular magazines in the
decade of the 1950
1960s
still want 100% normalized for fathers to be in the birthing rooms
as American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists stated thatthe dependent is attending physitians wanted the fathers to stay
Self-Advocacy: Pushing for change
- Fathers in the delivery room
remained a privilege afforded
by the physician
By 1970, men’s presence in
hospital delivery rooms was not
yet routine, but it was no longer
remarkable
Inventing a (new?) male role
-
Prenatal education became
increasingly common - Men became active participants (women too!)
- Hospital policies gradually began
to make exceptions for husbands
under their “no visitors” framework
questions about the article
Abelsohn, Epstein & Ross. (2013) Celebrating the “Other” Parent:
Mental Health and Wellness of Expecting Lesbian, Bisexual, and
Queer Non-Birth Parents
Are we “de-SNAFing” parent-child relationships and family
in general? Yes/No? Where do you see this process going?
What is the mental health and the overall experience of
pregnancy and birth for LGTBQ+ non-birth parents?
How does SNAF-related ideas affect parent-parent and
parent-child relationships among non-SNAF families?
Inclusion of non-birthing parents (in queer relationships)
- Recognizing (queer) parenthood
*
Going back to Smith’s SNAF..
?
In a society that is narrowly structured
around biological relatedness, not being physically and visibly pregnant means that the people around you often assume that you are not expecting a child”
Biology, relatedness, and connection!
“Real parent”: “not being recognized as a parent by law created a major disconnect for participants (non-birth parents)”
Gynecological violence Vs. dignified birthing
- all women have a right to a positive childbirth experiences that includes
-respect and dignity
- companion choice
- clear communication by maternity staff
- pain relif strategies
- mobility in labor and choice
