During these 7 informative, though very short weeks, I have learned a lot that I will carry into the future, as well as my career. The thing that will stick with me the most will definitely be the medicalization of birth and its transformation in Western medicine. This had made a huge impact on me because I am so used to the understanding that birth is a medical emergency and that many people who live a more “natural” life are typically the only people who considered at-home births, when in fact it is very normal and that at-home births probably occur more than in-hospital births. I think that this stuck with me because it definitely made me question my future career. I began to question myself whether my career would be a bad decision, and if I should look into midwifery, but I decided that I would use the information that I learned into my career as an Obstetrician and create awareness about hospitalized births.
I enjoyed the content that was paired with the lectures every week. I typically do not enjoy many of the classes that I am forced to take at MSU (general required classes), and all of my Women’s Studies courses have been enjoyable and so worth it.
If I could suggest one thing for the improvement of this course, I would definitely say that I would ask for less reading amounts. The readings were definitely enjoyable, but there were times where I would blank out because after a certain amount of reading, I personally become less motivated to finish.
I’m thrilled that this class had such a big impact on you! I also think you are making a very good decision, while you could easily get a license to be a midwife or a doula, you would be subjected to more scrutiny by hospitals/doctor’s, and possibly have to deal with rediculous legal barriers to practice since medical boards are known to lobby congress and state governments to prevent or restrict midwife and doula practices . As a OB you would have more power to directly influence medical practices, and advocate for your patient’s wants and wishes. I wish you luck in your future studies, it was a pleasure to have you in class, and I hope you take more anthropology courses in the future.