Miranda Kerr has also waded in as a natural childbirth advocate, saying that babies are more likely to go straight to their mother’s breasts if they have not been exposed to drugs. These types of comments really don’t help women who experienced immense pain or complications. We have enough guilt to contend with over our various parenting decisions that the last thing we need is to be made to feel like a failure from the off.
However, having said all of this, I do think there is a flipside to Gisele’s argument. Many women are seeing hardcore pain relief as the norm – some even electing for c-sections because they are too afraid of the ‘natural’ option. So hearing positive stories about Gisele’s blissful birth are a good thing. I just wish she would balance her argument a little better. Yes, it’s great if women can have a natural, beautiful birth experience. But sometimes, things are out of our control and don’t go the way we planned. Women should not be made to feel guilty if they opt for pain relief – this is the modern world and we don’t need to be martyrs.