The personal birthing experience that I choose to write about is the birth of my five year old grandson Joshua. Joshua was born August 25, 2006. He is the second child of my youngest daughter who is now 26. Juanita had a normal pregnancy, and she received prenatal care during the months of her pregnancy. Joshua was born at a hospital in Mississippi. The delivery went well. After the baby arrived, our pediatrician went to examine the child. She noticed that the child’s color was not normal he was too blue. After the examination, the doctor told us that the baby was not receiving enough oxygen, and that his valves to his heart were not arranged right. So she recommended that he be sent to the University hospital in Jackson to the neonatal unit immediately. Upon arrival, we met with the doctor and he told us about the procedure he had to perform. Joshua has to be put to sleep and all the blood drained from his body, so that the valves to his heart could be reconstructed. Once the surgery was over, the doctor said that once they reconstructed the heart valves and put the blood back into his body, the heart was beating strong and he never missed a beat. Joshua was born with a defected heart. There was no detection during the prenatal period, nothing until the birth.
Chapter four of our text talked about the “bluish and pinkish blood color, visible beneath the skin” (Berger, 2009), as oxygen begins to circulate once the baby leaves the vagina(pg.114, par 1). Joshua’s color let the doctor know that something was wrong with his breathing. I thank God and the doctors for the use of the Apgar scale which quickly alerted them of the problem. Joshua still has to undergo periodic check with the heart specialist in Jackson, but his visits are only once or twice a year now. He is growing just fine.
I choose this example because I think that prenatal care and child development are crucial to the developing child. Without the proper research and technology having been done my grandson may not be alive today. I think it is important to know how the baby develops during pregnancy and beyond in order to make the proper informed decisions about the baby’s birth and development throughout life. I learn about attachment and how important it is during those first year of an infant’s life to receive nurturing from the mother and to bond with her, what about those infants in the neonatal unit who miss out on those precious moments trying to survive. I wonder if that would have any long term effects on the child’s development?
I read several article’s and one that struck me as interesting was one that I read about a postpartum beliefs and practices among Non Western Cultures. I found that in some countries women have little or no control over pregnancy and its outcomes. Some are centered about customs, and taboos they practice during pregnancy and the prenatal periods. One particular article was about a Korean woman who was also a registered nurse who came to the United States as an adult. She married and became pregnant, after deliver the American practices brought about many cultural conflicts and beliefs of her native culture. About thirty minutes after giving birth, she was told to take a shower and refresh herself. This was a conflict of her culture, as well as the consumption of cold liquid after birth. Her culture requires that no cold liquids be consumed and for about a month the mother was to only restore her health and family members can in to assist with everything else.
Reference:
Godwin-Kim, Yeoun Soo (2003) Postpartum Beliefs and Practices Among Non-Western Cultures, The American Journal of Maternal/Child Nursing, retrieved from:http:www.nursingcenter.com/prodev/ce_article.asp?tid=408218
Berger, K.S. (2009). The developing person through childhood (5th ed.) New York, NY; Worth Publishers
