- I had two babies in the US and one in
Australia . - The extensive support and care I received in Australia made it a memorable birth experience.
People say the third time's the charm. Though I would not label childbirth a charm, delivering our third child in Australia was charming and different from the births of our two older children in the US.
My husband and I opted to stay in Australia for the arrival of our third child. In the US Foreign Service, you have the option to return home on "medevac" to deliver your baby or to deliver in the country of your official diplomatic posting.
I delivered our third child without my husband at my side; it was just me, the midwife or nurse attending me, and my OB-GYN. My brother-in-law and sister-in-law, who were going to help out around the time of the birth and visit Australia, landed while I was in the hospital.
With my previous two deliveries, my doula and my husband were by my side. This time, with my husband at home watching our other young kids, it was the epidural that got me through.
Though I had to deliver this baby alone, the extended and supportive hospital stay, the attentive yet lighthearted approach of the midwives, and the special touches the Sydney birthing unit provided left me feeling better settled, rested, and equipped to take on the all-consuming task of caring for a newborn.
The care I received in the hospital in Australia was incredible
In Australia, the mother stays in the hospital for four nights for a vaginal delivery and five nights for a C-section — a significant difference from a two-day stay for births in the US. The Sydney birthing unit offered classes on postnatal physical therapy, bathing your newborn, breastfeeding, and calming and settling your baby.
These were invaluable refreshers for getting through the first few weeks with a newborn.
The hospitals in Seattle where I delivered our first two children did not offer any such opportunities.
Most of the caregivers in the Sydney birthing unit were midwives rather than nurses and OB-GYNs, unlike in the US. I will never forget the crew of mostly Irish midwives at the Australian hospital. One yelled, "Good woman!" when it was time to push out the baby. Another told me she read serial-killer books to offset the "cuteness" of working in a birthing ward.
I will also never forget the special attention paid to me, and our baby, during the postnatal care in Australia. The Sydney hospital's birthing unit provided delicious morning tea to patients and their partners twice a week. Relaxing with our newborn son with a cup of hot tea and a plate full of pastries was restorative after the rigors of childbirth and the first few days of caring for an infant.
They also invited my husband and me to enjoy a candlelit dinner together in the cafeteria on the last night of my stay. While it was standard cafeteria food, it certainly was a special way to celebrate our son's birth.
Our third child was likely going to be our last. Giving birth in a hospital that provided extensive support and very personalized care throughout the experience made this a time to treasure and one that would not have been possible in the United States.
I would not trade this birth experience for anything, and I am so glad I had this opportunity.