One thing about the whole pregnancy and deliery process that's been nagging me and that I've been itching to write about is the confluence of the traditional and the new, the superstitous and the scientific, LONG-believed and trusted methods and new medical methods.

It's really amazing to me that human beings have been having babies for thousands of years, but there is so much speculation and intuition to the whole process.

Also, in the hospital I experience the battling concepts of "Good" and "Bad" babies. Apparently, a baby who cries often is a "Bad" baby, and a baby that is generally quiet and agreeable is "Good". How can you label a newborn infant as bad, though? How? At least come up with a better term for that, huh?

I mean, the technological advancements are positively astounding:

• Ultrasounds
• 3D Ultrasounds (the new hotness)
• Sensors that detect the occurance and duration of contractions
• Infrared heaters
• New drugs
• New ways of performing cesearian sections

But the superstitions:

• If you raise your hands over your head during pregnancy then the cord will wrap around the baby's neck.
• If you have heartburn, then the baby will be born with a lot of hair.
• Babies sitting high or low or to the left or right in the belly indicating sex.

I'm not sure there's a huge point to all of this. I just found it all very interesting and slightly offputting.

The confluence.

Labels: babystuff