Mary. Surely the ultimate birth story – right?
Whatever your take on religion, the birth story of baby Jesus has some interesting bits we can look at in more detail.
The birth environment
A stable, right? With just Joseph, the birth partner, as far as we know. Travelling on a donkey, now that is next level, the discomfort must have been at a peak!
An ideal birth environment is warm, safe and private – free from too much observation or intrusion. The stable had all of these – right? In certain parts of the world, women are giving birth right now in much the same conditions.
So when it comes to deciding on the right place for you to have your baby, make sure those three things are top priority for you.
The birth partner
Joseph was by Mary’s side in the birth, as far as we know, the only person with her.
It seems Mary didn’t have much choice given the distance they had travelled. I imagine so many years ago it would have been more likely for women to support women through birth and men would be in another room.
Your birth partner needs to be someone you fully trust, someone you can wholly rely on and who knows your birth preferences inside out. They must be capable of holding the space for you so you can fully go within and concentrate all your energy on relaxing and birthing your baby as comfortably as possible.
Postpartum
Who and how did that afterbirth get delivered? How did Mary feel giving birth like she did with the pressure of this being the son of God?
Those days, weeks and months after you give birth are very precious, as much for you as the new life you’ve brought into the world. However your birth experience went, recovery is essential and allowing yourself to adjust, being kind to yourself as your hormone levels rebalance and as you find your way with feeding and being a parent!
The first visitors
It seems Mary barely had time to draw breath before the shepherds were upon her bringing gifts for the new baby.
Thinking forward to your birth, please respect your own time and settling into your new norm. There is no rush for people to visit, despite how enthusiastic people may be. Here is another role for your birth partner, kindly but firmly ensuring that visitors take their place in the list of priorities, with you and your baby occupying number one spot!
And so the ultimate birth story maybe has more in common with our birth experiences than we first thought….
Leave a Reply