I believe that prom is a want, and not a need. Though it seems that prom is categorized as "a rite of passage" into adulthood, I do not believe it is necessary. I understand why it is a "dominant social practice", in which generations of teenagers grew up with the idea of the fairytale stanza of prom as a necessity to experience in order to proceed into adulthood.
I believe that we live in a hypocritical backwards kindergartenized country where "If you can dream, it will come true." A majority of children grew up watching Disney, believe that girls are some damsel in distress who need to be saved by some handsome prince. We see through prom that it comes true. A girl waits to be asked to the prom by a boy. She sends money on dresses and makeup while he sends money on their date.
Questions:
1. After MLA citation list several topics/areas the book has taught you about that the "Business of Being Born" either ignored or treated differently or in less depth. Well with what I read, and the part I'm up to in "Ina May's Guide To ChildBirth", the movie didn't talk about the spiritual connection between the mother, the child, and the deliverer which can be beneficial during delivery which Western medicine has seem to forgotten with the choas of the advances the the modern world. Plus with what we watch and what I read, the connection between the mind and body and what that does to affect the process of labor and birth.
2. The major insight the book tries to communicate in the second 100 pages (1-3 sentences) and your response to that insight (2-4 sentences).
3. List 5 interesting aspects of pregnancy and birth discussed in the second hundred pages that you agree deserve wider attention (include page number). Page 137: "What can be more liberating to an expectant father than to know that his loving words to his partner may give her strength and energy to make her birth crossing easier..." Page 154: "Occasionally, the father of the baby experiences more pain than the laboring women herself." Page 165: "Labor pain is a special type of pain: It almost always happens without causing any damage to the body." Page 183: "Out of these very different conceptions of women's bodies and the meaning of birth have come two separate models of maternity care: the midwifery or humanistic model of care and the techno-medical model of care." Page 185: "Mind and body are considered to be separate within the techno-medical model model of birth. Because of this, emotionial ambience is of importance only when it comes to marketing the service."
4. Independently research one crucial factual claim by the author in the second hundred pages and assess the validity of the author's use of that evidence.
The book is organized by little short stories that are in little font that take up 1/2 to 2 whole pages. In the beginning the book has an introduction to start with.
2. The major question the book tries to answer and some responses you have to that question.
Why are women giving birth on 'The Farm' instead of hospitals?
'The Farm' creates a sense of a loving and caring environment, surround by people who encourage women to give birth the 'natural way' to get a sense of real power and pleasure, instead of fear and pain that hospitals tend to do.
3. The major insight the book tries to communicate in the first 100 pages and your response to that insight.
Giving birth naturally doesn't seem all thjat scary anymore. Births on television and stories you hear from others create a sense of fear of giving birth, the doctor is the only one who knows what to do, and a one-sided view of what is best for the baby. The stories in the first 100 pages shows that the body knows the right time to deliver, not the doctor, that embracing the pain will show a feeling of empowerment, not weakness, and that the baby can come out just as healthy in a birthing center or at home as a hospital.
4. 5 interesting aspects of pregnancy and birth that you (and the author) agree deserve public attention.
Birth in Hospitals is like being in an assembly line
One exciting part of birth is the pushing
Feeling is better then thinking when dealing with contractions
The word 'rush' is a calmer and more beneficial word then 'contractions'
Let the body naturally do what it was made to do
5. The author's use of evidence - what support does the author build for her/his arguments, how reliable do you find the evidence, how deftly does the author use the evidence without stalling the progress of the book?
The stories that the women shared, from giving birth in the 70's up to 2000's, is that it is a better emotion, physical, and mental experience for the mother when giving birth. To let the body do what it was made to do and not to fear pain, but embrace it. Women are strong, never forget.
Fetus, the unborn child that grows within the mother's womb. In which we see as new life forming, the final tie in a relationship between two people, the future of our nation and either a mistake or a miracle. Is the fetus considered a living being? What types of situation of the conceptions would shape the thought of the fetus?
Hormones, the chemical signals in the body that control the person's physical appearance and mental and emotional state of being. When considering a women pregnant, it is known that her hormones will change; but her hormone changes also affects those around her, like the father of the child, and the soon to be grandparents. Mood swings are the most common symptom of pregnancy, besides the weight gain and the food cravings. Does the emotional changes in the pregnant women's behavior affect the families' behavior too? What specific hormones are changed during pregnancy?
What's most nightmarish about our culture's practices around illness & dying? That the insurance commercials are just ploys to suck citizens in to an economy of lies. That a percentage of Americans can not get health insurance because of a preexisting condition, or a physical 'flaw' that would affect the companies financially. I never new what I took for granted, being about to go to any hospital as a kid, and getting treated for my kidney problems. I now see how spoiled and ignorant I was when I use to complain that my mom and I were waiting in the waiting area too long.
What alternative practices offer the most positive re-orientation in illness & dying? People say that 'it is all in the mind.' I would have to say that spiritual healing is one alternative that we could at least try once. That fact that we can regenerate ourselves, like a computer automatically resetting when detecting a virus, fascinates me, and saddens me that people are so dependant on technology that we forget that our bodies are machines themselves.
What might you do or address differently as a result of what you've learned this unit, individually and with your family?
If you want the truth, I really don't put in enough effort to keep myself health, but I do have a few ideas. When getting cafeteria food, take a fruit cup and regular instead of chocolate milk. Because I love to listen to music while walking my dog, make the excuse that I want to hear more songs on the walk, resulting in longer walks, keeping me and my dog healthier.
How do dominant social practices (DSP) around illness & dying connect to DSP around food in our culture? The fact that we are blinded by the truth. We grew up thinking that the food we ate came from healthy animals and happy workers on clean, roomy farms in the middle of the country. We grew up believing that every American is treated equally, that the health insurance companies and the government had our best interest in mind.
Lina: Wow, I like how you started off with a joke. I love the way you described your grandfather, it could actually picture him. I always thought there was only one type of polio, I'm pretty shocked to find that there are three types of it. Really awesome job
Michelle:
I really liked your post, and the evidence you used was useful, but I have to say it didn't really...'capture' my interest. Maybe if you 'spice' it up, I believe it will spark interest in the reader, other then that, great job!
Receiving Quadruple Bypass Surgery Over the Age of 60: The Survival of Martha Ryan and Death of Virgina Caroccio
Quadruple Bypass Surgery is cardiac surgery which requires the heart to be surgically open to repair any defects of the heart such as repairing damaged blood vessels. While under anesthesia the patient is hooked up onto a heart-lung machine to deliver blood to the body, because the heart is stopped. (Robin Parks, MS)
In 1989, at the age of 71, Martha Ryan suffered from four 'silent' heart-attacks, which soon resulted in a 'major' heart-attack. That same year she went to receive a Quadruple Bypass surgery at New York University. With the comfort of a large, caring family she was able to heal properly at the hospital and was later released 4 weeks after the surgery took place. After being released Martha was put on blood-thinner medication, Coumadin, different antibiotic medication to prevent infections, and different types of pain killers. "She went from being a very lively women, to being a fragile women." As described by my mother, her daughter, Kathleen. She required home help aids to take care of her, though she was a strong enough individual to continue cooking for her family, one of the many motherly hobbies that she enjoyed.
In 2007, at the age of 74, Virgina Caroccio went to receive Balloon Mitral Valvtomy, the placement of balloons to expand the heart valves at Bellevue Hospital. The unsuccessful surgery led to her transfer to New York University to receive Quadruple Bypass Surgery. After surviving the surgery she went home. She did not have any nurses come home with her, instead she received care from her family. Soon after being released she was sent back for having "water discharging in her lungs, placing more pressure on her already fragile heart." As described by my mother, her step-daughter, Kathleen. She soon died later that year in intensive care.
