Interview with Alexis Scott, November 11, 2011

Interview Summary

Interview with Alexis Scott - Richmond, VA

In this interview, Alexis Scott of Richmond, VA, discusses the conception and birth of her son.She draws connections between her mother's conservative upbringing and subsequent fear of childbirth with her own experience of labor.

She recalls growing up in central Virginia, moving away for part of her college education, then settling near her family to work as a teacher.

She married her high school sweetheart and waited until she completed her Master's program to get pregnant. Once pregnant she found it wasn't as ideal as she hoped.She hired a midwife and a doula and made plans for natural childbirth, but her water broke several weeks early, triggering more medical intervention than she had expected. She talks about multiple post-partum challenges, including breastfeeding, a traumatic car ride and an early doctor's visit that resulted in hospitalization.

Throughout it all, she chronicles her feelings of being unprepared every step of the way and the emotional hardship that resulted. In response, she has become a natural childbirth advocate and a doula. She says if she has another child, she hopes to have a more natural birth experience, ideally one involving a water birth.

Interview Keyword

Virginia

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