Birth In Pakistan

I chose to learn more about pregnant women in Pakistan and understand what there experiences are in giving birth. In traditional Pakistani families, the influence of cultural beliefs and values on birthing is highly visible. Especially in rural areas due to a lack of accessible, affordable, and quality health care services.   Home deliveries are preferred over hospital deliveries.  Because of this probability of mortality among children under five years is 97 per 1000 live births.  The home deliveries are done by Traditional Birth Attendants (TBAs) or mothers in laws, who themselves are not trained.  As a traditional practice, the baby’s birth the cord is cut with blades or knives, and many times cow dung or ash is applied on the baby’s cord for healing purpose. This practice sets many newborns up for neonatal tetanus and serves as a factor for child mortality. Many families in Pakistan have experienced the anguish of losing a child, but little was being done to deal with the country's high infant mortality rate. Now Organizations are discouraging traditional practices by initiating training programs.  The Pakistan Initiative for Mothers and Newborns (PAIMAN) was established to address the country's lack of obstetric care.  PAIMAN collaborates with community-based organizations all over the country to renovate and establish clinics, distribute medical supplies, educate the public, and train traditional birth attendants and midwives.  However, in the regions where the community is mistrustful of health care or where health care services are not available, potentially harmful practices for cord handling are still common.

The Birth Of My Son

I have a 3yr old son and the experience of his birth was the most rewarding yet exhausting event of my life.  I counted down the days getting closer to his arrival.  Finally at 1 week over due my Dr. called and said it’s time to induce.  So my husband and I anxiously and nervously checked in to the hospital.  It was 8 am when we checked in and the process was much slower than I thought.  The Dr. broke my water at about 3 pm and from there the contractions grew unbearable.  I did choose to receive an epidural and am so thankful for the medication because it was easy until time to push. After the epidural I rotated positions in the bed until fully dilated.  My mom had arrived at the hospital around 4 or 5 pm but need to leave at 2:30 am for work.  So it was 2 am when I finally was given the ok to push.  I only had 30 min to get him out before my mom had to leave.  I didn’t take any birthing classes but I was so determined to have my baby with my mom in the room.  I focused all my thoughts and energy in to pushing as quickly as possible and it worked.  My son was born at 2:35am, mom was there to see him born, my husband cut the cord, and we had a healthy 9 lb 12 oz baby.  My husband and I stayed awake for hours and hours just holding our son and staring at him.  I know some may not agree with epidurals but I believe I made the right choice for myself and my son.  It was a very stress free labor and delivery although not completely without pain.  I chose not to breast feed because I am a working mother and wanted to be consistent with feeding methods from the beginning, knowing that I would be returning to work in 2 months.  I do not feel that my choices have affected my child’s development in an unfavorable way.  He has met his mile stones thus far and I am pleased with his, social, emotional, and cognitive skills.