The Business of Being a Mother

Last night, Joel went bowling with his dad and I treated myself to a movie called The Business of Being Born¹. It's a documentary about birthing in the United States and how it has been medicated and institutionalized to the detriment of moms and babies, contrasted by the ideal of a natural birth in the comfort and safety of a woman's home.

I thought the movie was excellent—it made me excited and angry at the same time. Excited for the next time I have a baby (no news yet!) and plan for a natural birth, and angry that so many women have overmedicated, damaging, and traumatizing births. I myself had a "complicated" birth (and I am convinced that it did not need to be so), and when I think of my birthing experience, it's a very emotional and somewhat painful memory: the drugs, the pressure from the health professionals, and having my baby taken away after birth are all feelings that surround a time that could have been less complicated, more joyful, and just plain better for both me and Lucia. Despite my disappointments,  the outcome was a miracle: a beautiful baby girl²!

I recommend this film, The Business of Being Born, for women who may become pregnant, and (with reservations) for their husbands too. My caviats in recommending the film, however, are as follows. There are four instances of the f-word (one flippant usage; the other three were from a woman during labor) and at least one instance of unnecessary nudity (towards the beginning a late-term pregnant woman is shown posing for a picture, ostensibly to document how her body looks, but no explanation was given for the scene). Additionally, there are some moments which may be objectionable for Catholics—overtones of new age elements, radical feminism, and apparent acceptance of non-marital unions—but these can be overlooked by those who would not be confused by these issues. There are several instances of birthing nudity and of women breastfeeding after birth—in my mind this is not a viewing issue for females but may cause difficulty for the men. Some men are not bothered by birthing nudity, but others may struggle with those images. I recommend women watch the movie first and take note of any scenes that would not be appropriate. The movie is so interesting that I'm excited to watch it with Joel (so we can discuss it) and will let him know when it's time to sheild his eyes!