When we arrived here in New Delhi, most people took one look at me and told us that we should definitely head back to the states in the fall. Why would we ever stay here? People told us horror stories about the hospital that they had not personally experienced. It's all part of the rumor mill. Stewart has it worse than I which is interesting given he's not the one physically showing. He had strangers walking up to him who had heard about our situation and warned him about the horrors awaiting him. We could only take so much, and I had a breaking point about 4 days after arriving (yes, this all happened that quickly). I broke down into tears wondering what the heck we had done. Why had we been lied to back in the states when we were told so many people were having babies here? And then we become resolved to find people who actually had personal experiences they could share with us. One person led to another and soon I was reading emails from 7 different women. None of them were scary. None of them had horrific experiences. We were relieved but knew that we still needed to make the final call by making an appointment with a doctor and touring the hospital.
That happened today. We drove out to a hospital that all the women had used and met with the same doctor that they all had used. The hospital itself was unlike any I have ever seen. From the outside, it looks more like an upscale hotel complete with valet and a doorman. The lobby was also like a hotel and very unhospital-like. We met with Dr. C. who at first had a stern appearance about her. I was afraid she wouldn't be willing to work with us in terms of helping us have the birth experience we want. All the changed during the actual exam. She was very pleasant and friendly. When she commented on our last ultrasound, I told her that the doctor told us that the baby was "very long and very round". She said by looking at us, she could understand the very long part but not the very round! At the end, we asked her some of the questions we had regarding whether or not she would be willing to support some of our decisions. We were relieved to hear that she's not going to rush into an induction since everyone in my family has been late. She doesn't believe in being continuously hooked up to monitors and is very supporting of moving around and not staying on the bed. She even suggested using the ball they have available! She arranged for us to have a tour of the hospital after our appointment (which by the way cost us $19 out of pocket!).
We had heard some things about the hospital from the women and were prepared for a dirty, dusty place. That wasn't the case. Yes, we'll be bringing lysol wipes and cleaning the bathrooms ourselves but overall, our impression was very good. The recovery rooms are more inline with older hospitals in the states. They offer different "categories" depending on how much you want to pay (we're opting out of the shared room...) and the best room they have available is a suite that has a separate bedroom and bathroom in case you have your mother with you in the hospital (family is VERY big here)! We're not sure what our insurance will cover but all the rooms seemed nice. They weren't cramped and had a sofa available for Stewart to sleep on.
And the best part happened on our way out, the patient advocate wanted to take us to the "Mamma Mia" section which offers prenatal classes. Oh boy. That is a very small part of what they offer! They just started this program two months ago but they have THREE doulas on hand for labor support! We got sooo excited and they did too (we're the first people to know what a doula does!). They also have prenatal massages and fitness classes. Stewart and I really want to use a doula, and it would be great to use one that is part of the hospital. They offer birthing classes as well. We're very excited to hear all about their services.
On the way home, we asked the taxi driver to swing by the house that we've been offered. We saw it from the outside last week but Stewart really wanted to see the inside. They were still working on it but we were able to get in to see it. Stewart had told me that he was worried that it wouldn't be nice. The place we are right now is super nice and the other house is older. I was unsure just from what I saw last week. Luckily, being able to go inside was a huge help. It's further away from the embassy but closer to the hospital. I told Stewart that I believe everything happens for a reason. Maybe we were meant to be in our flat in the beginning so we could meet John and not starve and then move to a new house. The inside of the house was very nice. I can't wait to go back when the "make ready" is done. We left there feeling very optimistic about our future here.
That happened today. We drove out to a hospital that all the women had used and met with the same doctor that they all had used. The hospital itself was unlike any I have ever seen. From the outside, it looks more like an upscale hotel complete with valet and a doorman. The lobby was also like a hotel and very unhospital-like. We met with Dr. C. who at first had a stern appearance about her. I was afraid she wouldn't be willing to work with us in terms of helping us have the birth experience we want. All the changed during the actual exam. She was very pleasant and friendly. When she commented on our last ultrasound, I told her that the doctor told us that the baby was "very long and very round". She said by looking at us, she could understand the very long part but not the very round! At the end, we asked her some of the questions we had regarding whether or not she would be willing to support some of our decisions. We were relieved to hear that she's not going to rush into an induction since everyone in my family has been late. She doesn't believe in being continuously hooked up to monitors and is very supporting of moving around and not staying on the bed. She even suggested using the ball they have available! She arranged for us to have a tour of the hospital after our appointment (which by the way cost us $19 out of pocket!).
We had heard some things about the hospital from the women and were prepared for a dirty, dusty place. That wasn't the case. Yes, we'll be bringing lysol wipes and cleaning the bathrooms ourselves but overall, our impression was very good. The recovery rooms are more inline with older hospitals in the states. They offer different "categories" depending on how much you want to pay (we're opting out of the shared room...) and the best room they have available is a suite that has a separate bedroom and bathroom in case you have your mother with you in the hospital (family is VERY big here)! We're not sure what our insurance will cover but all the rooms seemed nice. They weren't cramped and had a sofa available for Stewart to sleep on.
And the best part happened on our way out, the patient advocate wanted to take us to the "Mamma Mia" section which offers prenatal classes. Oh boy. That is a very small part of what they offer! They just started this program two months ago but they have THREE doulas on hand for labor support! We got sooo excited and they did too (we're the first people to know what a doula does!). They also have prenatal massages and fitness classes. Stewart and I really want to use a doula, and it would be great to use one that is part of the hospital. They offer birthing classes as well. We're very excited to hear all about their services.
On the way home, we asked the taxi driver to swing by the house that we've been offered. We saw it from the outside last week but Stewart really wanted to see the inside. They were still working on it but we were able to get in to see it. Stewart had told me that he was worried that it wouldn't be nice. The place we are right now is super nice and the other house is older. I was unsure just from what I saw last week. Luckily, being able to go inside was a huge help. It's further away from the embassy but closer to the hospital. I told Stewart that I believe everything happens for a reason. Maybe we were meant to be in our flat in the beginning so we could meet John and not starve and then move to a new house. The inside of the house was very nice. I can't wait to go back when the "make ready" is done. We left there feeling very optimistic about our future here.
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