I would qualify the last two birth preparation classes as five hours of my life that I will never get back.
The instructor, a trained and experienced midwife at Hadassah Hospital, has a teaching style which caters to the lowest common denominator; she assumes that women not only don't know anything about their body, but that - as health consumers - don't want to know all the important details. In the last class, she glossed over the potential harmful side-effects of an epidural, and then incorrectly taught stretches to help with back pain during pregnancy. When I pointed out (as a Chiropractor) possible alternative directions in her approach, she glared at me, and seems to forget on a regular basis that this is what I have been doing for a living for the last 13 years. In fact there are several women in the class with medical backgrounds, and we don't need the fifth repetition of the basic anatomy of the female pelvis.
Throughout my life, I have never appreciated teachers who took the easy way out, who dumbed down material because the students were deemed to be "stupid" or "uninterested." I have always believed that if you respect an individual and assume that they have a natural human curiosity and interest in learning, they will rise to the challenge. At one point at the class this week a woman, who had been meek about speaking up until now, asked a legitimate question: she asked if it was true that as we get close to the birth, the baby will naturally have less movements, as there is less space inside and the body is saving energy for the contractions. (True and true.) The midwife's response? "We don't tell people that." Not acceptable ladies and gentlemen.
With three classes to go, and me learning less and less each week, I can only hope for some breakthrough as the practical aspects of the birth itself have yet to be addressed.
2 comments:
You seem overly harsh about the birthing classes and the instructor who you say is " trained and experienced midwife at Hadassah Hospital." While it's true you and several others in the class are well educated in the field of medicine, she needs to teach to those who don't know. Perhaps if the whole class was filled with doctors and others in the medical field she might tailor her class differently. We went to see a dr recently who spoke to me and my husband as if we knew nothing about medicine although my husband is a nephrologist and I by now am an expert on the subject matter we were discussing. Perhaps she glared at you b/c she felt you were trying to take over her class and perhaps your remarks would be better done privately. She also may give different answers to people if they asked her privately;she may not want to scare people who are nervous about birth with information like "potential harmful side-effects of an epidural" when she knows the anesthiologist will when the time comes. Just look at these classes as a chance to relax and not think so much. When the baby comes you will be so busy and have so many questions that you do not know the answers to that you may wish you were back in class knowing more than the teacher.
I would agree with your statements, except that she had dumbed down the most basic material and has purposely glossed over information that is important for a woman to know. It is an issue of teaching philisophy more than anything else.
I have not tried to take over the class, but when someone asks a questions that deserves an answer, "We don't tell people that" is not acceptable. In most cases, they could get that information from the net as easily as from me, I just happen to be sitting there.
I trust these midwives to help me deliver my baby, otherwise I would not have chosen that hospital. But my expectations from this class have barely been met.
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