12 Ways Hospital Birth Can Surprise You
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How well are you prepared for childbirth? You must have already read and heard enough (even if you didn’t want to) about the do’s and don’ts just before and after birthing. But here are things you will most likely not find in the books, nor will your midwife mention much about it. Read on to know what the intense moments in the hospital will be followed by:
1. The Newborn Photography
I’ve never liked the idea of photographing a newborn – even if it were through our own cameras – let alone a professional photographer. While we could be more gentle, I dislike the idea of a professional photographer exposing the baby to some flashes, asking you to hold the baby this way and that way, upside down and all the angles possible. What’s worse is, the best ones don’t come in the complimentary sets! Be wise before you go ahead and spend a fortune on the professional pics. Perhaps your personal camera might capture even better moments.
2. Hospital Visits Are For The Strong
If you have visitors or the next of kin at the hospital, make sure they have no health troubles or let them discuss with your doctor before you are rushed into the delivery room. The fact that some people are too overcome by emotion or can have something as basic as a gastric trouble will leave them rush out before you are rushed in to the delivery room.
3. Moreover, You Would Like To Have Visitors At Home
It isn’t too good to have a crowd at the hospital. Nor are you happy with visitors seeing you with wearing no make-up, tired, worn-out face. And it might not be too good for your baby to have his visitors get all coochie-coo right at the hospital. Declare beforehand that you’d rather have them at home.
4. Your Baby May Not Cry Instantly
I remember my doc saying, “It’s a boy,” and yet I didn’t hear a cry for few seconds! It is normal to hear the first cry a minute later and yet that moment of ‘waiting’ to hear will seem like ages to the mom.
5. You Will Be Bothered By The Staff
All the courtesies seemed nice at first, not so much after delivery. Yes, the staff is trying to make you feel at home, but even at home you would have wanted to catch up with some sleep, some quiet time for yourself, instead of knocking doors, nurses coming in with pills, cafeteria staff coming with meals or taking away the empty tray, housekeepers coming to change the sheets or clean the bathroom, and the staff popping in to ask you how you and your baby are doing,
6. You Will Feel Awkward As A New Mom
Honestly, unless you have handled a newborn before, you really don’t know what to do. You might need help during ‘rooming-in’, you might need help even while changing your baby’s diapers, you might have a lot of hidden questions in your eyes.
7. You Will Be Sweaty Most Times
It’s understandable if you are sweaty soon after delivery. But unless someone told you that it is normal to be sweaty for days after delivery, you would think that the temperatures have been up. Actually not. It is the work of the hormones in your body that are normalising and helping you to eliminate all the retained water. Feel free to ask the staff to change the linens often, so you don’t have to recline on a sweat-soaked bed.
8. Contractions After Birth
You will not be relieved of the contractions even after birth! That’s a bizarre truth, but then it’s normal for women to go through it once again. The post-birth contractions help the uterus shrink back to its normal size. Therefore, it is no surprise that you will be hit with contractions even after birthing.
9. If You Are Allowed To See What’s Happening
Yes, most of the times you don’t know what is happening down there from the nether regions. Everyone but you can see what’s happening. But in the midst of your focus on the pushes, if you are given a chance to see – imagine your doc bringing a mirror and setting it an angle that you can see – you will want to faint there! You will want to slap the doc for making you watch anything gross happening in your body.
10. You Will Hate The Fact That Your Partner Can See Everything
And it will scare him. The worse is even if he thought he would be by your side to give you the required moral support, he would end up watching closely the inevitable.
11. The Paperwork Could Be Exhaustive
Apart from filling in the forms that are lengthy enough and time-taking, you will have booklets coming alongside that you might want to read through for the terms and conditions. You will need to sign the documents. So reading between the lines is wise rather than simply signing them off.
12. That Hospital Bill
If you’ve got insurance, well and good. But I can tell you, you will still have to pull out thousands from your pocket. There will always be overheads. Consider packing as much as possible before going into the hospital. You might save on a large number of things that way.
You might be at the best hospital in the town and might have the best medical staff to help you through it all, but surprises at hospitals are unavoidable. Be prepared financially and emotionally in the first place. Then think about the extreme courtesies.
Write to us what your experience was at the hospital. We are always interested to hear from you!
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