Week 6- Tony Tran

Society has changed how to perceive the importance of delivering a baby from a mother. Some think the fact that the baby is the most important because it has a vast future ahead of him/her that could be terminated prematurely through abortions and actions of a pregnant woman. Additionally, because of the advancement of healthcare modern world, the mother is usually safe from any serious/lethal conditions such that they are the individual that is of less concern. Modern childbirth practices tend to focus more on the baby. In my opinion, that is fine. However, for societies that still practice traditional beliefs, it seems to me that they focus more holistically on not just the baby, but the mother as well. This can be seen in the article “Spiritual Healing Practices Among Rural Postpartum Thai Women.” Instead of the hospital practice of restoring the physical body, cultural practices also include healing of the mental aspect of the mother that just gave birth. They recognize childbirth as “ a tear of the energy that binds the body and mind together.” I personally think that this is a significant part of the whole process that modern medicine is slowly forgetting because they take such a priority on making sure the child is in a perfect environment. In Thai culture, spiritual healing is needed to balance the mind, heart, and body. One change in lifestyle postpartum is having a strict diet. Although seemingly limiting, I felt that this ensures that the mother is eating food that is surely going to be nutritious and will not pose any side effects. This cultural rule ensures new mothers that may have postpartum depression don’t simply feel like they are done and are able to eat junk food or alcohol. Another Spiritual healing practice is Lying by the Fire. A healer helps the mother “enter, suppress, and exit the fire”. I feel like this process helps transition back the mind and soul of the mother back into the world after undergoing the traumatic experience of pregnancy and childbirth. In the modern world, the mother would be stressing over when to go back to work, social events, and other things that may depress the mental health of the mother. Thus, I just stress from these readings that the mental health of the mother should still be of utmost concern which is satisfied through spiritual healing.

Question: For women in the developed world, how long are they allowed to stay and recuperate after giving birth to a child? Are they asked to leave before they have fully recovered? How much interaction do they have with other people? Is there usually a mental impact on the mother during the 1st week after having a child? Is this an actual issue that is suppressed due to the concern about the “greater” concern for the baby?

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