Having a baby in Japanese Hospital

I sit here my my mind going crazy.  My thoughts are all over the place.  Yesterday I witnessed the birth of my son Noah.  He was just shy of 7 pounds and came out kicking like a kung fu fighter.  He has jet black hair, dark eyes, and big hands.  I want to say he is a cute and handsome little critter, but he is not.  My opinion is that all newborn babies resemble the likes of ET.  I was hoping with my son my opinion would change and I would look upon him and see how wonderfully beautiful he is.  Although extremely miraculous he still looks like an alien.

My wifes water broke around 130am in the morning and I rushed her to the local hospital which about 40 minutes away.  We were ushered into a room and some kind of contraction measuring machine was strapped onto her.  The big contractions really didnt start until about 5 hours later.  We were then lead to the delivery room where all aspects of privacy were left behind.  Legs spread,
gloves on, and blood everywhere.  Unfortuantely baby Noah was sideways in the uterus his head not in the right position so the doctors gave an increased dose of medicine to make contractions stronger.  After about an hour of this my wife could not take anymore and started screaming at the nurses, doctors and pretty much anyone that would listen.  She wanted Noah out and the pain to stop.  Our nurse just kept shaking her head and telling my wife that she was doing a great job and it would be just a little longer, in Japanese.

She must have been used to pleading because not once did she even try to go get the doctor or respond to my wifes pleas.  Finally I was fed up and went to look for the doctor myself to see if he would be able to perform a C-section.  The doctor came in and confirmed that the baby hadnt moved any
closer to the hole and something needed to be done.  The nurses all rallied my wife to give it one last shot and push Mr Noah out.

As she pushed and screamed with all her might a nice thick stream of fluid came out spraying everyone in its way.  Seconds later Mr. Noah’s head was out and the nurses were pulling the rest of him out quickly.  For those who have already seen this sight you already know and for those of you who have not experienced this sight its an incredible and incredibly scarring image that will never leave your mind for the rest of your life.  WOW!  Is all I can say.

Not exactly sure the process in other countries or even other places in Japan but this hopsital the baby is pulled out and automatically placed on the woman chest just the way he came out.  Our hospital put on a Disney soundtrack and gave us about an hour to bond and relax.  After about an hour the nurse checked if all the limbs and digits were there and put us back in our room.  There we stayed for the next day trying to keep the baby from crying his head off.

Let me explain a few things about where we live and this hospital which i should have stated earlier.  We live in the middle of the mountains in one of the most traditional and country places in Japan.  There is also no other hospital within 75km that delivers babies.  So we didnt have many choices…it was this hospital or give birth at home.

This hospital requires you to bring EVERYTHING….we had to bring clothes, diapers, towels, chopsticks, blankets, thermometers, and pretty much everything needed for birth and the next few days for both mom and baby.  Which is ridiculous because the average cost for a baby in this hospital is close to US $6000.  There are a few good and unique things that this hospital gives that others dont.  Luckily our town gives about US$4500 subsidy for having a baby which helps cut down the costs.  Also this hospital allows you to be with the baby and stay with the baby the whole time.  This is both good and bad!  Let me explain.  This is the most natural way of giving birth and allows the baby and mother to bond immediately which is great.  However this also doesnt give the mother who is exhausted from hours of labor to have a rest.  They also dont do any tests, checks or anything of the sort.  There is no formula given which makes for a hard first few days as you desperately try to start lactating to feed your baby.  You are required to
stay in the hospital for about a week which is both good and bad and probably is why the cost is so high.  My feelings about the way the hospital here in
Gujo handles birth, is summed up like this….Its a close to all natural birth that costs more than it naturally should!

That being said I am an extremely happy and proud new father and wouldnt have had it done any other way.  We were given a decent size room with a bathroom and shower, bed, TV, to folding chairs that make a bed, refrigerator and a wonderful view of the rolling mountains of Hachiman.  My wife is served a traditional Japanese meal for breakfast, lunch, and dinner which almost always includes a fish, rice, and miso soup.  The nurse stops by once a day just to check and see if everything is OK.  And other than that we are pretty much left in peace.  Visitors can come and go whenever.  I am spending the nights and using all the facilities.

Although the Japanese birthing experiences differ greatly, I am pleased with our country hospital and thank them very much for theirs hands
off approach in bringing Noah into this world.