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Childbirth Education So many first time moms and dads go into labor with excitement ...and fear and uncertainty. They have a complete dependence on their care givers despite the prenatal education classes offered by the hospital or doctors' office. I did. My husband and I went to our Lamaze classes religiously and learned the breathing. We watched the videos wide eyed and then covered our eyes when caesarean section was shown because I just wasn't going to have one. We were riding on a wave of surreal possibility. I didn't learn patience. I didn't learn to tune into the baby growing inside me. I didn't learn how to prepare for unexpected outcomes. I didn't learn that I could trust my body...my innate mothering instincts. All I knew is that the Dr. was driving this birth wagon and I would experience the ride as a passenger and be given a baby at the end. When the time was counted down closer and closer I became impatient and enlisted the doctor's sympathy. What could be done to get this show on the road? I didn't want to ride the roller coaster I wanted to strap myself on the vertical drop! Being a mom with two birth wagon rides on my resume I have become especially burdened for the preparation of birthing. How can we learn the things we really need to know to drive the birth wagon instead of being just a passenger? They say practice makes perfect. True but how practical is that in this situation? Childbirth may well be the most important experience in a woman's life. What if she only has one chance or two? What if by this sort of practice for the perfect birth she is robbed of any future practices? What if she doesn't know what her definition of perfect (or at least acceptable) birth is until she has done it at least once? What are we talking about anyway? Isn't everything just as well and good as it can be if you have a healthy baby and mom? Is healthy as good as just saying "live?" If you have a live mother and baby shouldn't you just smile and say everything is as perfect as it can be? The truth is that childbirth is such an impacting experience that many women with beautiful, perfect, healthy babies are in pain over an imperfect experience of bringing their babies into the world. What has gone wrong? How can they feel pain as if they have suffered a tremendous loss when they have a wonderful new baby to proudly present? Many women struggle many years trying to resolve their birth "loss." Some women who have a loss don't recognize it for what it is. They push their birth experiences in the depths of their memories and just say, "I never want to do that again." In most cases they do end up doing it again and have anxieties surface from their previous experience that inhibit the process and cause more distress. In trying to resolve my own birth "loss" I found that it isn't one or two things that happen in common with women who experience such a loss. It is a different issue for each woman. Looking at these issues I caught myself thinking, "How can she feel that way? She didn't go through what I did." But the very real fact is that the severity of the issue doesn't make the loss more or less significant. How can we possibly protect ourselves from unexpected potholes that may cause the birth wagon a bumpy ride? I believe the help may come in a better education. Parents need to have experiences to draw upon that can be connected to what they may go through in childbearing. They must be immersed in the subject. Educators must provide this immersion by "expanding the quantity and quality of ways in which a learner is exposed to content and context.... The learner needs to be engaged in talking, listening, reading, viewing, acting, and valuing. " (Cain & Cain 1991) Birthing families need to have reserves supplied by learning that will support them during this right of passage...this personal journey through the initiation of parenthood. How can we possibly provide an education that will give them this support? By providing " 'compelling experiences' which are immensely varied and contain both unpredictable and predictable elements." (Cain & Cain 1991) Consider the arts. The arts including painting and drawing, sculpture, improvisational drama, dance, and music can be utilized for experiential learning in childbirth education. Ohio's Model for Comprehensive Arts Education states that: * The arts represent the most telling imprints of any civilization, serving as records of history, expressions, and beliefs. * The arts are basic symbol systems by which people communicate, express, and acquire understanding. * The arts represent forms of thinking and ways of knowing and participating with the world through cognitive and sensory experiences. * The arts embody the deepest expressions of our humanity. The arts provide a unique tool for participating in the educational and emotional and spiritual preparation for childbirth. Pam England, a Certified Nurse-Midwife and Art Therapist, has offered an excellent guide in using art in childbirth education through the book Birthing From Within. "The response from parents who've made birth art is overwhelmingly positive. Over and over I hear mothers say that before making birth art, they had never thought about how they envisioned birth." (England & Horowitz 1998) It is the way a woman connects with her concept of birth that determines how she will birth. This concept must be examined to help the mother and family adjust to unexpected potholes on the road of birth. If she does not connect with her envisioned birth and explore feelings of expectation and ways of embracing the unexpected she may find herself seeking to resolve a birth loss that can affect her self-image and her relationship with her baby. England also relates, "during the quiet, reflective process of making birth art, mothers become more aware of their unborn baby. They report more maternal feelings and a greater sense of bonding." (England & Horowitz 1998) Childbirth education classes need to provide a deeper connection to what parents may actually experience in their childbearing. Coming to birth with a way of counting breathing and knowing what medication you will be given is not sufficient education for such a life changing event. Parents need to be able to actively participate in their birth experiences and posses the ability to embrace that experience as it unfolds. I challenge educators and parents to seek means to provide better education and childbirth preparation. Cain, Renate Nummela and Cain, Geoffrey (1991). Making Connections p. 6, 115. New York: Addison-Wesley Publishing Company. England, Pam and Horowitz, Rob (1998). Birthing From Within p.34-35. Albuquerque, New Mexico: Partera Press. Ohio Department of Education (1996). Comprehensive Arts Education: Ohio's Model Competency-Based Program p.13. Columbus, Ohio: State Board of Education. |