Let it be known that instead of writing a posts or getting caught up on emails, I should be getting some rest. Why you ask? As I type this post, my cousin/God daughter (also my first baby girl) is at the hospital waiting to give birth to her first-born. Doesn’t she look amazing!?
You’re probably wondering why that means that I am the one that should be getting the rest. Well, my answer is actually the reason why I wanted to write this post. In our family, giving birth to a child is a family affair. That means that while the baby is being born, all of us are in the room cheering the mommy-to-be on, turning our head away to not see anything inappropriate or to scarring and we are welcoming the newest member to our family into the world.
When I gave birth to my daughter the welcoming committee included my husband, my mom, my mother-in-law, my aunt (who is more like my sister), my cousin/God daughter (the one who is now at the hospital about to give birth herself), my step mom, my grandma and my best friend. Not to mention the doctor and the wonderful nurse who opted to stay past her shift to see me through it. Plus, my dad, brother-in-law, sister and brother were in the lobby.
**I should add that I told everyone to turn their heads while I was pushing and although I am not sure if they actually followed my instructions, in my mind they did and that is how I can still look my family in the face.
If it wasn’t for the fact that I had an emergency C-section with my son they would have been in the hospital room with me as well. Even though they weren’t inside the room, they were all in the hospital lobby anxiously waiting for his arrival.
The interesting thing is that when I share this with my friends, that doesn’t seem to be the norm. Apparently, the family gets notified after the fact and they come and visit.
Some may actually think of it as odd and I don’t blame them. While I can understand why you would want that to be a private moment, there is something so incredible about knowing that my family was there cheering me on and sharing one of my greatest moments with me.
So now you know why I should be sleeping. I am almost scared to fall asleep because I don’t want to miss the call to head on over to the hospital.
Inquiring minds want to know…is birth in your family a private affair or a family affair?
I think it should be a family affair. For a couple different reason. The first being sometimes others can give you support in ways that your spouse can not at times. Second you are welcoming a new addition to the family. And third if it’s a long delivery as my second one was the spouse may need to get some rest at some point. This is just my opinion but I was thankful for all the extra support and love that I was blessed with.
I notice that aside from your husband it was all women in there with you! I had my husband, my mom, and my mother-in-law in there with me for both of my girls’ births. I probably would have let my best friend in there too, but the hospital only allowed 3 people in the room. I really didn’t care who was in there, but there was NO WAY I was letting my dad or my father-in-law watch! I even made the male NICU doctor turn his head!
You are quite observant! I would not feel comfortable with guys in the room besides my husband.
For me personally, it’s more private…only my hubby is in the room! Of course with our son, this was the only option anyway, we lived across the country from all of our friends and relatives…even now, while we live much closer, they are still 3 hours away, so I’m not entirely certain who will be able to make the trip right away this time either! But anyway, I am an extremely modest/self conscious person- my hubby is truly the only person I’ll even change in front of…so needless to say, I’m not a fan of the idea of a room full of people during birth either…but that’s just me, I think its wonderful for people who are comfortable sharing that moment with their loved ones!!! Such a special time regardless!!