Natural childbirth in France - Page 2

[IsaFrench]

thanks for the update, I've been wondering how things were going for you pregnant ladies

... so glad you were able to find what you wanted after all

(I know how it feels to be in a foreign country, I gave birth to my 3rd in the US and the hospital I was referred to at first didn't appeal at all & I too had to ask around who knew of people doing the type of birthing approach I knew then I wanted ...)

[winter singer]

Any news from cytogal? Hoping it all went well for her!

[linchi]

Just reviving this thread as I'll soon be headed down the same path as you brave mothers who have gone before me and given birth in Lyon! Cheers to you.

My situation is slightly more complicated as we have yet to move. We are currently in Stockholm and should be in Lyon near the beginning of December to start our new life in France. Also, we aren't fluent in French. My husband (a Spaniard) will be establishing an office for the company he works for in Lyon, so we have a lot of work ahead of us as there won't be anyone there for direct support.

I just thought I'd see if anyone cared to check-in and tell me how their birthing experiences went in Lyon.

Oh, and this was the thread that introduced me to this site. I just thought I'd say thanks and !

[chocolatefish]

Many months on I thought I would bring this one up to date...

I am currently 38 weeks pregnant, still in Lyon and still working towards as natural birth as I can. I engaged a sage femme liberal who I have met with all through my pregnancy. It appears though that of the three SFL in Lyon only Phillippe Cyrille still does births. My sage femme has pretty much stopped actually delivering babies though she will do all the ante natal care and haptonomy etc, and the other SFL has moved away from the area I believe.

So I will be having my baby at the maternite in Givors. This will mean at least a 30 minute drive to the hospital when the time comes but it will ensure a far better chance of a natural birth than any of the big hospitals here in Lyon. I have been seeing a gynaecologist at Givors (seems there is no way to avoid them in France!) and will be meeting a MW there to discuss my birth plan this week - a bit late, mostly because we didn't understand the system. The babe is measuring big for dates (anything over 4kgs is considered 'big' here) which started him murmuring about induction at term. But he seems to have backed off on that at recent appointments, depending if I continue to make good progress over the next week or so (had a show and am slightly dilated - only 1cm though).

General impressions.. it's hard to get a natural birth in France and especially so if you are anything outwith the norms! My MW told me that even if she did deliver babies still, she would be required by law to refer me to a gynae as soon as the scans showed him to be 4kgs or above. And at Givors, because they have a reputation for the natural approach and try to bend to rules on certain cases, they are kept a very close eye on by 'the authorities'. And they still have to abide by all the national protocols of foetal belt monitoring and IV line fitted on arrival etc.

The other bit I am slightly struggling with is feeling kind of alone. None of my mummy friends have pursued a natural birth to 'this extent' (which is crazy as I am only looking for something that is the standard in the UK and NZ!). But such is life as a pioneer in a conservative nation I guess!

Will keep you all posted.

[IsaFrench]

thinking of you .....you may well feel alone, I understand ....
especially if none of your close friends are expecting, nor any from the expat crowd you know & and/or if they don't make the same birth choices as you are making ....

but on the other hand, and I don't want to discount your feelings, but ... if there is such a nice maternity in Givors (opening up the plateau technique for an external midwife ?? whaou, this is neat, it doesn't exist in my part of France ...) it's because over the years, there has been a constant stream of expectant mothers who have been looking for such an environnement to give birth in .... things are changing in France, slowly but surely

(some day-care centers where I live now accept expressed breast-milk whereas 10 years ago they were very annoyed about me carrying my baby in a baby carrier, nearly calling on the in-system psychologist since they believed I had a problem separating from my child, I helped THEM change and see for themsleves that baby carriers are good, and that it' s ok to choose child led weaning -that one I didn't have as much chance, they DID get the psychologis to talk to me, I was really annoyed/upset ... but it was my chance to educate them a bit & they didn't have a choice, they just HAD to learn fast because I didn't let it drop ... showing them that their behavior was borderning on discrimination in regards to my child as well as no respect of my parenting choices etc ....)

since you might not know right now people doing what you are doing & you feel alone, ... maybe you can gather strenght for the birth that is ahead of you by the knowledge that quite a few women coming to Givors have had the same approach to yours (except it's over the years and you don't know them personnaly) & that you are bringing your little "stone" to that edifice & helping mentalities change for the better in the Lyon area concerning better birthing conditions !!!!!

talking positively all around you about the place for the 6 months after the birth would also help a lot in changing mentalities .... you never know who might be pregnant later on and will have heard you saying such nice things that they will seek to have a more natural birth and not just act like a lamb being told how the system would prefer them to give birth .... (that was totally me for my first birth ....)

[AC.NICE]

Hi,
I moved to France this summer from the States and I'm pregnant. It's been a world wind of discouraging information, but I've found a midwife who does home births and I've found a doula, so I'm feeling positive. I understand your frustration with the negative vibes around natural child birth in France. I've been flabbergasted to learn how medicalized and disrespected midwives are. I thought that French women were the example in liberation!
I just wanted to recommend a book that I have found to be reassuring "Attendre Bébé autrement". What's really good is it outlines exactly what your rights are. From talking to different midwives and doctors, I've gotten so many different opinions. It's nice to have some facts and understand exactly where things stand in France.
I hope you find what you're looking for, stay strong and positive. You can have your baby any way you like!!!!