For this assignment, I interviewed my mom, my best friend's mom, and my cousin. When I interviewed my mom, she went into a whole lot of detail that I feel are not necessary for online text. Most of her answers were brought out with feelings of joy and happiness. However, at some points there were hinted feelings of negativity like when remembering being locked in a private room following the information that her baby might be in stress. She also said that one of the hardest parts was the actual pushing. Another negative aspect was when my large head caused a hematoma. I guess it says something about me doesn't it. Although there were some minor negativities, her overall answers were similar to "incredulous, ecstatic and just overall jubilant at every moment." From this interview, my main reaction is that no matter how painful or negative the one moment might be, the entire experience is completely worth it. I think that the main reaction when first presented with one's own newborn is complete love and adoration.

My second interviewee was my best friend's mom who had two very different experiences with her two children. Her first child was when she was still in college and it was unexpected. She got kicked out and relied on her best friend's support throughout the pregnancy. She went into labor on a Thursday evening and didn't actually give birth until Sunday. She used doctors and went to a hospital but felt held down and trapped when the doctors wouldn't let her go anywhere or even walk around. She actually punched a nurse in the face. Another difficulty was that the umbilical cord got wrapped around her son's neck so they had to use forceps to push him back in order to unwrap it. However, all of these negativities were forgotten for the moment when she held her son for the first time and experienced great joy. Her second birth experience was a bit less stressful. With midwives and more family around her, she was able to have an easier time giving birth. Her daughter actually came out so fast that she didn't have time to make the expected preparations. I think that out of all of this, it shows that pregnancies aren't always happy and cuddly but almost always result in a beautiful baby that just brings back all of that happiness.

My third interviewee was my cousin who had to deal with being pregnant at 16, keeping a job, and staying at school. She told me that she wouldn't have been able to do it without the support of her parents. Another struggle was having to deal with judgments from the people around her such as teachers and fellow students. But she didn't let them get her down. She said that throughout the pregnancy, she was very emotional and sensitive; she often cried. She also said that when remembering the actual experience, all it was was PAIN. However, similar to my other interviews, her overpowering reaction to both kids was love at first sight. I think that even in the worst situations, having even one or two people there to help can make the whole experience worth it. Another thing is that if you don't let other people's thoughts bring you down, it can make the whole birth worthwhile.

From listening to these women describe their experiences, I want to look further into how doctors deal with the pregnancies that don't go according to plan. What are the procedures for dealing with problems with the baby or mother during labor and how do they compare to how midwives deal with them?