After he was born, I had a chance to briefly see him to make sure he was okay. He had all his toes and fingers and he looked great. From here is where my experience soured and differs I think from babies delivered in the USA. It was 6 days from the day he was born to the day we left the hospital. My wife was recovering from surgery but she was doing very well. We planned on breastfeeding exclusively, but for some reason the Korean nurses and doctors wouldn't let my wife nurse. They kept him in the nursery and we had viewings twice a day. I did not get to hold him until the day we left. It was only after 3 days that my wife had a chance to go down to nurse. I was very upset by this. From everything I had read, the best chance of long term success in breastfeeding was trying immediately after birth.
I think it is standard operating procedure in Korea to whisk away the baby after even natural births. There is no time for bonding between mother and child. And the child is kept isolated from the parents. Our gentle birth plan allowed for one hour after birth for the baby to rest on his mother's chest to bond and then I was to give him a bath, but the emergency C-section dashed our plans.
I think that the bonding time after child birth is so crucial for the child development. The child has gone through such a traumatic experience to enter the world, I think just by knowing that his mother is close and has survived the process is so beneficial to the baby. Korea is very advanced in many ways. But their child birthing practices are very much stuck in the past.
This is my son just a few days ago. He is now 9 weeks old, and he's doing very well.
Jae Ahn,
ReplyDeleteI must start by saying your son is so adorable!! Congratulation! It is evident that you are very proud father! The child birthing experience for you was very recent, which is very beneficial for you and very informative to me as an on-line member. The child birthing experience in Korea appears to be drastically different from the USA custom. I agree with your concern about having your baby separated from your wife soon after birth, especially sense nursing your son was of great essence to you and your family. What is done within the 3 days separate to an infant? Was the separation a direct result of your wife having a C-section? Thank you so much for enlightens me on the Korean culture in regards to the child birthing process.
Hi Rachel
ReplyDeleteThanks for your kind words. Yes, the 3 days was a result of the C-section, however, babies delivered vaginally are separated as well, but for a shorter time. I believe it is for a day. So unless the mother is really insistent, and I doubt many are in Korea, the baby is not with the mother for at least 24 hours.