On the lack of birth story-blogging
"When will you be posting your birth story?" my legion of eager readers ask.
Or rather, three people have asked.
The answer is, I won't be. It's not that Anna's birth hasn't already been cemented in my soul as a beautiful memory, a life-changing experience -- as every birth is -- and worthy of note both for me, and my daughter when she grows older and wants to know. It's just that I don't have any desire to put it up on the Internet.
I blogged about Noah's birth only ten days after he joined our little family, and Isaiah's birth, only three days after. But the memory was so fresh and so raw in both instances that I wonder if perhaps I was sharing something prematurely? I absolutely think birth stories need to be shared; it seems every woman has such vivid memories of her births, and has this overpowering desire to share details about them, even with perfect strangers, as often happened to me when I was pregnant. Yet maybe these stories are best shared on a more intimate level than the Internet?
Maybe I'm wrong. I would never tell a woman "don't write about your birth online!" But I know this time around, I would prefer to keep these memories to myself, or friends and family who ask. (So yes, feel free to ask when you call or pop by for tea or what-have-you!).
So while there is no forthcoming birth story, I can share you the wonderful wonderful conclusion of that story: we have a perfectly healthy and beautiful little baby.
And she is a girl. To say that makes me smile and smile.
Really, that isn't a conclusion at all, but a wonderful and awesome beginning.
Or rather, three people have asked.
The answer is, I won't be. It's not that Anna's birth hasn't already been cemented in my soul as a beautiful memory, a life-changing experience -- as every birth is -- and worthy of note both for me, and my daughter when she grows older and wants to know. It's just that I don't have any desire to put it up on the Internet.
I blogged about Noah's birth only ten days after he joined our little family, and Isaiah's birth, only three days after. But the memory was so fresh and so raw in both instances that I wonder if perhaps I was sharing something prematurely? I absolutely think birth stories need to be shared; it seems every woman has such vivid memories of her births, and has this overpowering desire to share details about them, even with perfect strangers, as often happened to me when I was pregnant. Yet maybe these stories are best shared on a more intimate level than the Internet?
Maybe I'm wrong. I would never tell a woman "don't write about your birth online!" But I know this time around, I would prefer to keep these memories to myself, or friends and family who ask. (So yes, feel free to ask when you call or pop by for tea or what-have-you!).
So while there is no forthcoming birth story, I can share you the wonderful wonderful conclusion of that story: we have a perfectly healthy and beautiful little baby.
And she is a girl. To say that makes me smile and smile.
Really, that isn't a conclusion at all, but a wonderful and awesome beginning.
Good on you for coming to this conclusion. Birth is an extremely intimate experience and probably best shared in person.
ReplyDeleteShe is beautiful and I LOVE her name.
ReplyDeleteThanks for this insightful post. I find online birth stories are like crack or something for me! I can't stay away, but I tend to conclude by either feeling inadequate (which is most of the time, since I had all c-sections) or, WAY worse, a little schadenfreude knowing other people go through the same thing I did, which, realistically, I wouldn't wish on anyone. Both bad.
Yikes. That whole comment was about me! Anyway, gorgeous baby, lovely family, and thank you for sharing your thoughts about, well, not sharing your experience.