Episode 02: Giving Birth in a Foreign Country
What it's really like to have a baby in a new country, in the middle of a global pandemic.
This week Emma and Laura talk about having a baby in a country that isn't home. Between them that's three births: Laura's first son in Australia, then both their COVID babies here in Portugal, born a couple of months apart.
They start with proper introductions. A few of you pointed out they skipped those in episode one, which is fair. Then they get into their stories. Laura compares the public system in Australia with going private in Portugal, including a scare at 13 weeks that ended with her at a 3D baby scan clinic. Emma went through the public system here at the height of the pandemic, and her birth didn't go to plan. Her husband spent most of her labour sitting in the car park.
They also talk about leaving hospital with a newborn and very little idea what to do next, and how much the friends who'd been through it just before them kept them going in those first weeks.
Then they answer your questions:
Is private healthcare in Portugal worth the money if you're still learning Portuguese?
My mum wants to fly in for the birth, but we clash when things get stressful. Do I let her come?
My partner's local family want to be much more involved after the birth than I'm comfortable with. What do I do?
And they finish with an anonymous confession about a C-section that they had plenty to say about.
Content note: this episode discusses pregnancy complications, an emergency C-section and difficult hospital experiences.
