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Getting messy
Nov. 30th, 2004 08:23 amI am watching a Today show segment on C-sections. Some women want c-sections because it is more convenient; they can schedule the birth and get on with their lives. Now, I understand that c-sections are vital in most of the cases where they occur. But when words like "convenience" begin creeping into discussions about birth, my back goes up. It had better be damn well convenient for the woman giving birth first and foremost. Husbands, partners, jobs, and doctors are secondary. I find hospitals to be sterile and cold places in which to give birth. Propped up, flourescent lights, etc etc. Giving birth isn't convenient; it's messy, painful, stressful, but it's a cause for celebration. I wish we would treat birthing, in all its phases, as the miracle it is. But we hide anything that is messy, no matter how integral to the outcome. Sweaty? Unsexy, unless you're a football player. Dying? Shuffle 'em off to nursing homes. Old? Get surgery to look young. Even sex is portrayed as slick, clean, and hairless. We have taken the mess out of life. I read an article about a month ago about a woman who went in for a bikini wax before going off to her c-section. Good lord, the nurses might see pubic hair! I'm sure they would've been put off.
Of course, I have never given birth. I've never even been pregnant. There's a good chance I'll feel differently once I'm pregnant. But I like mess, it's in the mess where great things happen.
Of course, I have never given birth. I've never even been pregnant. There's a good chance I'll feel differently once I'm pregnant. But I like mess, it's in the mess where great things happen.