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Having a baby here


Wendy
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Well, I arrived here already four months into the pregnancy. Id read alot of the glowing stories of the experiences that other women had had in the hospitals/clinics here all gave a very positive view that I'd be well looked after here. I was also looking forward to spending a few days after the birth in one of those hotel-like places they call maternity clinics here. My experience of the system here has left me vowing never to knock the NHS again!. Vital tests I needed, and routinely received before with previous babies, were not done and after DEMANDING they be done at 7 months I was diagnosed with pregnancy diabetes. Thank god for a womans instinct. We were, by the way, with a 'top' specialist here.  Not once during my appointments did he ever check my blood pressure or weight and any concern I had was considered 'normale'. On our visit to the clinic, I was booked into a private clinic, to have a look around, I was informed that the only form of pain control on offer was the epidural. No pethidine, or gas, or anything else. It was a needle in the spine or suffer!. I have never had an epidural as I dont like the idea of them and was shocked that women here have no other choices. I have only ever used a bit of gas in the past and, silly me, assumed that gas and air was routine in modern day hospitals...but then, this is France isn't it?.

Fortunately John was born very quickly with only a bit of yelling to alleviate things. My partner wanted to cut the cord and the midwives stood back with their hands on their hips and faces like thunder. Me and bub were put in a private room...and left to our own devices until the next day. 24 hours until anyone came near me other than a meal person with a salad for my lunch and god-knows what it was for dinner. Im really curious about those other mums Id read about who apparently chose their meals from menus...I never chose my meal or saw a menu. Actually, the meals I think were designed for rapid weightloss. Breakfast:one small dry breadroll, one pat of jam, lukewarm coffee. Hardly a hearty start to the day!  Lunch: a slice of undercooked meat, one potatoe and a baked endive. No coffee/tea or beverage offered at all. Dinner: as for lunch as equally as horrible. No variation at all. Once again, no drink.  After 3 days of this I was starving,  I was not taking in anywhere near enough calories to produce milk so my partner was supplementing my 'meals' with outside food. Oh yes, there was a coin vending machine containing  junk food in the visitors room. I was amazed/appalled at how the other mothers were permitted to smoke in their rooms alongside their babies. Opposite my room I watched as women, still attached to IV drips leaned out their windows and puffed away with their free hand. There was no surveillance at all of who entered the wing as no monitors existed and I frequently strolled past rooms with unattended babies in them...mum was out for a smoke I assume. Anyone could have helped themselves to a baby or two if they wished.   No, after five kids now and plenty of experience to compared this with, give me an NHS midwife-run maternity clinic anytime.

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Wen

Sorry  you had such a bad experience. I have to say the care you received was dangerous - I say that with some knowledge of the subject. Not taking blood pressure during pregnancy is unforgivable - you could have developed pre-eclampsia and no one would have known until things got really bad. Similarly, not checking a woman for 24 hours after childbirth is negligent and dangerous.

But this doesn't sound normal for France. From what I have heard, the routine is normally extremely medicalised, with tests galore.

I was always glad I had mine in the UK as I had the privilege of two home births - not available in France.

Jo

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Hi Wen,

I'm sorry you had such a horrid time here having a baby, but I have to relate my tale just to balance things out, my experience was the opposite, although as it is my first I haven't got anything to compare it with. 

My GP suggested two gynacologists for me to choose from and recommended I go to them straight from the start, she merely wrote out an enormous list of blood tests I needed to have done at the local clinic straight away.  I visited the gynacologist every month for a consultation, 3 extra visits to him for scans and then the local clinic every month for blood and urine tests.  All this is standard and fully reimbursed from the 5th month.  The gynacologist was fantastic and on every visit offered me a scan to say hello to baby and I came away with endless pictures to keep.  I was weighed, blood pressure taken, with constant chats to find out what was going on - although most of my worries were considered normal - I imagine that is the way it is with first time pregnancies.  My husband was even entitled to a medical to ensure he was healthy.  A couple of months before the birth I was given an apointment at the hospital with the anesthetist to chat about any pain relief I might want and for him to ensure there was nothing in my medical history to cause concern, I was amazed at the medical care I received in the run up to the birth.

The prenatal course I attended with the only midwife (liberale) in town was a different matter, her only useful advice was to take some cereal in with you so you could supplement the poor breakfast on offer in hospital.  She did say the food was not enough for new mothers trying to breastfeed their new baby, but on the subject of what happened if you couldn't breastfeed, her only response was that everyone can breastfeed, it's only natural.

Once in the hospital the care was extemely clinical, in our local hospital there are no options, just a surgical bed -  bean bags, birthing pools etc are not convenient for medical care.  I was attended by the same midwife throughout my 10 hours in the delivery room and at the birth you would have thought I was having a party there with the number of medical staff there - unfortunately my husband wasn't there as when the doctor came in with the ventouse, he was sent out as medical procedures take precedence over anything else.

After the birth I would have loved a private room and a modicum of privacy but I had to share and again the medical care given was superb although I actually got very little rest due to the continous checking of the midwives on me and my baby.  I would have been very grateful for curtains round the bed during some of the examinations - but this is France and their ideas are different to the Brits.  My mum told me many years ago that when you go into hospital to have a baby you leave your dignity on the doorstep and collect it on the way out, that may have changed in the UK but over here it hasn't.  You were not allowed to leave baby unattended and if you needed to take her out of the room then she had to be pushed in a crib, you were not allowed to wander the corridor with her in your arms whatever the reason.  The 5 days stay in hospital is a good idea because visitors are kept to a minimum and you can not get up and do the housework , shopping etc which you would if you went home .

The first day was more difficult than the others because initially the midwives thought I didn't speak french so they didn't speak to me but once they realised I had only forgotten how to speak french during the birth they were a lot friendlier.  Much friendlier actually, as I live in a region where there are many Brits and most of them don't speak french. 

The worst part is when you leave hospital as the system assumes you are going home to family and friends, so there is no official follow up.  I had a few problems but after I visited my GP in tears she helped me no end (she is a mother of 2 small children).  Medically speaking, on the french system all new mothers are entitled to 10 sessions of pelvic floor physiotherapy and 10 sessions of abdominal physio, 3 months after the birth, all fully reimbursed.  My physio also decided my back wasn't strong enough to cope (I have had back problems prior to pregnancy) with the abdo sessions so sent me back to the GP for a prescription for 20 sessions on my back - believe you me that was a fantastic aid to recovery when I was stressed out with having a new baby and lack of sleep etc.

So, it's just like the UK - not the same everywhere and if the biggest problem is food (which it is in my region), it's a good kick start to losing all that extra weight - and our hospital is across the road from MacDonalds!!!!!

Tracy

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I, too, had been told how medicalised the care was here. And I was looking forward to spending five days in hospital as I had spent my pregnancy here setting up our business, making beds, breakfasts, etc. However, the hospital was a 70km round trip for my partner to make and so regular visits were going to be a problem as the baby was born in the high season and business was busy. I lasted 3 days and told them I was leaving. They were aghast! I was very shocked at the smoking mums though, even with drips in their arms and in the rooms!
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One of my closest friends over here is a midwife and she says that birthing proceedures differ enormously from hosptital to hospital even within department.  She works in a hospital all the time, they do no home visits before or after the birth and unless the birth is very complicated, they deliver the baby, not the doctors.  In her hospital they avoid epidurals and they have a very low caearean rate connected, she claims, to the fact that they avoid induction and epidurals where at all possible.  There are no birthing pools etc but she and her colleagues have started training in yoga and other breathing techniques to help their patients. 

However, if you check in the the other large maternity unit in the area, you will get a very very different kind of care....as Tracey says, just like in the UK  

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Thanks for that advice, and, if theres a 'next time' ( I must be a masochist) I'll certainly explore what other options are available to me. When we arrived we went to a doctor that was, supposedly, highly recommended but he certainly didnt suit us. I think midwives are the way to go though.
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I had my first and only baby here in August 04 and the care I received

was second to none.  After suffering a previous miscarriage and

having bleeding in this pregnancy at 6 weeks, I was sent for scans

every other day, had blood tests, extra scans just to put my mind at

rest.  I had my weight, bp and general well being checked

regularily.  The doc did assume because I am vastly overweight

that I would develop diabetes and sent me for a day of monitoring, only

to be shocked that 1, I am not and wasn't during pregnancy diabetic, 2,

my blood pressure was textbook througout and 3 that I was able to walk

quite happily. 

During delivery I had an epidural and 15 people in the room as I was

giving birth to the biggest baby born in the hospital that year. 

not huge either just 4.03 kilos, unfortunately had to have forceps and

the worst part was being stitched up after the epidural had worn off.

The food was good, room good for a learning hospital and apart from my

mothers concerns that anyone could walk off with a baby (no security at

all) my experience of childbirth in france was favourable.

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im 26 weeks at the mo and have heard good reports of the hospital i will be going to, yes they like epidurals over here but gas and air is available, i go to my doc rather than a gyno and he checks bp, weight ect every month, i have my blood rtests every month and so far 2 scans will be having my 3rd in 3 weeks, i have recieved a letter from my local sage femme inviting me to aquanatel lessons and will eb going along to see her soon to arrange home visits which she done for a feriend who gave birth last year, i want to be out of hospital way b4 the 5 days just as i am dreading the stay way from my 2 year old but again the hospital i am going to allowed the husband of a friend to stay with her in another bed i the private room, i have had experiance of the hospital when my son was 6 months old and in with dehydration, they were excellent then, i was breastfeeding andf they would come along and make sure i was having yogurts, milk and good food so i could give him the supply he needed and also we were given menus to pick our meals, we both stayed for  2 days with him in the room.

i think it is awful what u went through and recomend finding out about the hospital first from others who have been there is pos

 

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Im glad to see you're being well looked after. I think, though, that hospitals here have to learn a thing or two about nutrition for new mothers. The diet was very bad and unhealthy.  Stay well and keep us posted on how you're doing!. My next will be child no.6 so the hospital care will have to be in the 5star range for me to even contemplate it!. I deserve it don't you think?. 
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I was wondering what you were given to eat Wen that you considered not well balanced for a nursing mother. I was in a private clinic for the birth of both my kids. My friend has used it in the recent past and the food was as it always was and that fine.

I looked forward to meal time, and there was always sufficient and ranged from really nice to quite adequate. I can't remember asking for food to be brought in, in fact the only thing I missed was my cups of proper tea.

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After having four kids I remember having a choice of meals for a start, I was never given a choice at all. The breakfast - always considered important - was 'a' small dry breadroll (that was very hard on the teeth), 'a' tiny portion of jam and 'a' lukewarm coffee. Served at 7.30 am.

Nothing mid-morning at all. Lunch, served at 1.30pm, 'a' slice of meat, half an overcooked endive and one of those stringy palm vege things. No beverage/drink offered at all.  Nothing mid-afternoon. Dinner, served at 7.00pm, same as for lunch. Again, no drink with the meal. The food was barely warm. After four kids previously I knew the importance of calorie intake as well as plenty of fluids for producing milk. The tap water in the room was awful. I requested a bottle of water and it later appeared on the bill.

Nothing else until 7.30 the next morning. Like I said, after nearly three days I was starving. My partner, when he could visit, after 2 days brought me a thermos of tea and extra food from home. my only other alternative  in the clinic was the vending machine with crisps and chocolates. No way could I hack five days of that!. They should sack the nutritionist...if there was one. Too much time between meals and too little food, and even less fluids, when mealtime did arrive.

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In truth I have never heard of hospital meals like that, and you are right it sounds dreadful.

 

A wry grin though about the dry bread for breakfast,  me thinks there is a very good reason why the french dunk their bread in their bol of cafe au lait isn't there. I can't manage to eat french bread for breakfast without dunking. My gums need to be awake for a good couple of hours before they are up to the assault of french crusts proper.

 

I have never heard of a hospital before that did not have a comprehensive choice of menu or give a warm drink just after lunch or nearer gouter time. In fact the meals times I know of are always too early for me.

 

 

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