I wonder how Kate is feeling. I can remember being at this stage in my pregnancy with my first baby @abglyph, and not feeling at all caught up in the ‘fear of childbirth‘ that now sadly prevails our culture. I often ask myself when did it all happen, this shift in women’s self-belief that they can birth their baby?
I recently asked a 93 year old ex-midwife if she remembered whether women were afraid of childbirth in her days of practise, and she was clear that they weren’t. ‘Oh no, women didn’t seem to be at all frightened of having babies, it was an everyday occurrence. The only thing they worried about was paying the bill!’ That of course was pre NHS, and most babies were born at home. Most women now give birth in hospital, and ironically as medical surveillance increases in the name of safety…
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