One of our most popular recent articles was Anastasia’s story of being pregnant in Peru. We will now continue her story as she takes us through her experience of giving birth in Peru.
How did my happy pregnancy end? In the most absolutely unpredictable way possible. The most important thing is that I was blessed with a healthy, cute baby as a result, nevertheless giving birth for the first time was not what I expected. It was much faster and much more stressful; I expected it to be a long challenge and it turned out to be a marathon, which consumed every part of my mind and body. The main point of advice I would have given myself six months ago would have been to start reading about what starts happening to your body and the baby in the last few days of pregnancy.
But on a practical note here are some things that you should organize carefully, taking into account that I had only been living in Peru for a year and a half prior to my pregnancy and I had poor Spanish and no medical insurance.
Firstly, look for hospitals that are closest to where you live, otherwise you’ll need to forget about trying to deliver during peak hour, due to Lima’s congested and chaotic traffic. To get stuck in your car in traffic during contractions is not a positive start to the experience. Many drivers do not respect ambulances and I was unpleasantly surprised to learn that it is not uncommon to keep women in hospital with false contractions in order to control the timing of the birth.
It is advisable to have an extra doctor just in case; my doctor was very unhappy that I went into labor late at night, my contractions were every five to seven minutes however I was still able to walk between each one. When I arrived at the hospital in San Isidro the obstetrician sent me home and asked me to come back at nine o’clock in the morning, being a more respectable hour.
Make sure you have someone, and preferably more than one person if possible, who can stay with you throughout the entire process. My bed was moved without even removing the drip from my hand, no one ever asked me if I was comfortable and I was left alone for quite a long time. Half of the work which you’d expect to be carried out by a nurse had to be taken care of by my husband, which also turned out to be the case post-delivery.
Try to maintain contact with a second doctor during labor in order to give you a second opinion. You will not be given much room to make your own decisions, however it may be something urgent in which a second opinion is incredibly valuable, for example deciding when to go to hospital. The sanitary and health care rules of the hospital will be far from your expectations; my husband and I were never asked about HIV, hepatitis or other infectious diseases. I was shocked that during the delivery, and right up until the umbilical cord was cut, that the attending staff entered the room dressed in their normal clothes. This was also the case post-delivery and when they had contact with my newborn baby. Allow me to remind you that this was in one of the wealthiest suburbs in Lima, in a hospital that claimed top quality and service standards.
You will need extra cash, food, water, drugs and clothes on hand, my doctor did not provide us with a list of things that we should’ve taken to the hospital. The hospital provides almost everything however there was never enough and it wasn’t very good quality. I ended up being hungry, thirsty and using my own painkillers and night dress. You are also charged for every single extra thing you ask the nurse for.
Push your doctor to discuss the contract and possible extra costs prior to delivery and be prepared to repeat your personal details ten times. I was lucky that I had my husband to deal with the non-stop bureaucracy, as contractions tend to make you less willing to constantly spell your name or explain your profession.
Last but certainly not least, be prepared to give your baby a name before it is even born. I was very surprised to be asked this a few hours before my daughter was born. Giving birth may be the hardest thing you’ve ever done in your life but just know that your baby is working just as hard as you are, in a rush to meet you!
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About the author: Ellie Ryan is an Aussie expat working and living in Peru. She is the Founder of TEFL Zorritos, a TEFL training institute which trains people to become English language teachers and places them in positions in Peru and abroad. She is also the Founder of TEFL Zorritos English Institute, the first ever English institute in the small northern town of Zorritos. This article was originally published on the Living in Peru website as part of her Expat Ellie blog series.
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