THEY HAVE BIRTHED ... BEFORE ARRIVING AT MATERNITY

The so-called "unannounced" deliveries are those that occur at home or elsewhere and have not been so planned. In particular, it can take place on the way to a maternity ward that women do not always have time to reach because of longer distances since the grouping of establishments. For example, in Norway, the number of unannounced births increased from 4/1000 to 7/1000 in just a few years after the closure of more than half of the birth centers and is 4 times more likely than scheduled deliveries. home.

Ten testimonialsHow do women experience such an event? About ten of them testified and highlighted three points: the difficulty in finding the beginning of work without the advice of the "gatekeeper" (from the delivery room, that is to say The midwife), then the fear of giving birth, which gives way to mastery, and finally the special experience of childbirth, which health professionals do not always recognize.

In the face of irregular contractions, not as painful as expected, different from those of the first childbirth, women struggle to convince themselves that work has begun; Some seek information on the internet or contact a midwife and often they have been encouraged to stay at home until regularization / intensification of contractions. Sometimes they do not want to go too early to motherhood as in the first childbirth, or it is the management of the children that delays the departure.When they realize that nobody will be there to help them, women are desperate, terrified of potential complications, feel guilty but soon they take their responsibilities and possibly use the advice given to them during a previous childbirth. Birth is generally described as a good experience that makes them proud of themselves and their partner and if most know it could have been dramatic, are not traumatized.
A normal situation ... for midwivesThen the women complained that the paramedics talked about everything except childbirth and had to instruct them to keep the child warm. They do not understand why they could not be delivered from the placenta, describe a stressed and insufficiently competent team but behind these criticisms, they admit they were relieved at the arrival of the ambulance.On arrival at maternity, the main concern of midwives is the placenta, the amount of blood lost and the presence of a perineal tear. Most conclude that the situation is normal, whereas for the patients it is anything but normal and finally they feel that no one asked them how they felt, how they had experienced it.Diagnosing the beginning of work is not always an easy task, let alone by telephone, but listening to the sensations of women is fundamental, as well as empathy at the time of the arrival at the maternity.