HW #36: Pregnancy Stories

First Interview: 

Question: How did the experience effect you physically and emotionally?

A: “Physically it was better then one would believe. I am diagnosed with crohns diesese and the process of my pregnancy was the time the disease effected me the least. Emotionally it was a challenge being that got pregnant at the age of 19, I was not ready for a child.”

Question: What was the most significant thing you did to make sure your pregnancy went as smooth as possible?

A: I was very active, I still worked, & walked more then usual. I also would swim alot and even played games with my children being that i was a camp consoler.”

Question: What was the worst part of your pregnancy?”

A: The worst part was that my family did not approve of me having a child and defiantly did not approve of the father of the child at the time. This made things very difficult”

Question: What were you first feelings after finding out you were pregnant?

A: I was scared for my life, I didn't know how i would tell my parents and didn’t know how I would take care of the child, but i knew I would have it.

Interesting, informative, insightful 

1: Immaturity leads to stress

2: Rejection from family is very common

3: Not everyone has a painful and stressful pregnancy

When some people think about birth they look at birth as a burden. Usually the people who look at birth as a burden are people who struggle financially. Maturity factors are significant on how well the process will go. These components of pregnancy and birth connect to the dominate social culture's view that pregnancy can be a burden. When individuals wonder about birth they assume the physical process is stressful and painful. In this case the mother was in a better physical condition while pregnant.


Second interview:

Question: How did the experience effect you physically and emotionally?

A: “I was Huge! I was also anemic at the time because of the pregnancy. Things became very annoying making this more stressful.”

Question: What was the most significant thing you did to make sure your pregnancy went as smooth as possible?

A: “Sleeping, all i did was sleep. I was more lazy then ever and was paranoid about everything so II knew by resting nothing wrong could happen.”

Question: What was the worst part of your pregnancy?”

A: Going back and forth to the doctor because i was anemic. The hospital visits were very irritating.”

Question: What were you first feelings after finding out you were pregnant?

A: Excited, out of my four children this was the only one i planned to have. I couldn’t wait for the her to pop out.”

Interesting, informative, insightful

1: People want whats best for their child so they become very paranoid about the safety of the child.

2: Birth and pregnancy doesn't have to bring stress into your life but excitement.

Pregnancy and birth often brings excitement to a family. People also want whats best for their child and majority of the time its a better life then they had. This is when paranoia kicks in and the mother becomes over protective of the unborn child. Mother's actions are also altered by the pregnancy process, usually excessive eating and excessive sleeping.

Third Interview 

Question: How did the experience effect you physically and emotionally?

A:“Hated it both physically and emotionally, I was a mess.”

Question: What was the most significant thing you did to make sure your pregnancy  went as smooth as possible?

A:“I just did what ever the doctor told me to do.”

Question: What was the worst part of your pregnancy?”

A:“The 18 hours I was in Labor, I never felt so much pain in my life but it was worth it.”

Question: What were you first feelings after finding out you were pregnant?

A:“I was confused about what i should do being that I was still young and did not really have my life together. Also what would my boyfriend think, would he want me to keep it or get rid of it?”

Interesting, Informative, Insightful

1: Concern for partners opinion on the pregnancy 

2: Pregnancy is a long and stressful process

3: Mothers go through pain, frustration, and stress for the satisfaction of having and loving a child they could call their own.

This interview followed the dominant culture's view on pregnancy that it is a painful and stressful process. In this interview the mother was concerned about the father's point of view about the pregnancy. I will like to do further research on how significant the mother believes the father's opinion is on the pregnancy. Also how important the father believes his opinion is on the pregnancy.

After interviewing three woman about the process of their pregnancy I am curious and will like to explore how diseases and illness have an impact on birth and pregnancy?

Hw #35 Interview

For the start of the birth unit I interviewed my close friend(17), older brother(18), and my older cousin(20). The people I interviewed had fairly similar answers to questions such as; “what is the dominant culture’s view on birth?” “What are your first thoughts when you think about birth?” & “How important is the doctor’s role in the birth process?” Overall they all thought that birth is extremely significant and has a severe impact on everyone no matter the culture or social class. When asked “what are your first thoughts on birth?” My brother rapidly responded; “Don’t have a baby” This response helped show the dominate culture's view on birth, majority of people see it as a burden and try to avoid it. Later while asking my older cousin the same question she responded with the same answer but the difference between the two was that she already had a child. It was interesting to hear this because it proved that people tend to stay the same no matter the background and experiences they have.

The interviews helped me come to the conclusion that most people look at birth as a burden unless they are financially stable. These interviews also helped show that most people want a better life for their children then the life they had. I came to this conclusion because of one of the answer’s my older cousin gave. She answered “don't have a baby unless you are ready for one” I believe that she meant financially ready and mentally ready by this. Society can see birth as a burden or a celebration according to the financial situation and maturity situation someone is in. The immaturity and financial problems lead to the idea of birth being a burden. Being that an individual has maturity and financial problems they have much stress to deal with already. The baby will only lead to more stress because of the more financial problems they will create. This idea can completely change if a person is mature and financially stable. Being mature and financially stable will lead to the celebration idea. Money is a key component to baby because of the necessities they have. Being mature is the most significant part, babies need constant and extra care. Immaturity does not go along well with having a child. By being ready in stable in these situations society see’s birth not only as a celebration but as a blessing to the family.

Hw #34 Initial thoughts on Birth

When I hear the word Birth I tend to think about: babies, pain, and a nine moth process. Birth is something that I never put much thought into and was concerned about until now. One of the aspects I am truly curious about is the process of birth itself. We are customarily taught that the process of birth takes approximately nine months. A Question that is captivating to me is; which part of the pregnancy are babies lost the most? Even though Birth is the act of bringing another life into this world, death plays a large role of the process. Not only are babies occasionally lost in the process but the bearer’s are as well. In relation too our previous unit on illness and dying I am curious to figure out finer reasons on how death and birth relate.

In our society today religion plays a huge factor on how we view and interpret things. Being that birth is a one of the most significant elements to maintaining the human population, how does religion affect the process and life after birth? When individuals think about birth a considerable amount think about the physical pain. How substantial is the emotional part of the process and life after birth? I believe this question can lead to many justifications of why babies are put up for adoptions and why there is such an immense amount of abortions performed in our society.

How is pregnancy and birth recognized in other countries and cultures then our own?

How come the partner of the bearer has less of a say in the process of the pregnancy?

Which plays a bigger concern on the carrier’s well-being; emotional or physical pain?