Not just mechanical birthing bodies: Articulating the impact of imbalanced power relationships in the birth arena on women’s subjectivity, agency, and consciousness (original) (raw)

Birthing women are not just birthing bodies. Their experiences are essential to optimal birth outcomes and are affected by their mental state, the birthing environment, and professional obstetric practices during the event of birth. Here we examine how obstetric practices and behaviors in the birth arena, including obstetric violence, result in subjugation of birthing women and their treatment as birthing (mechanical) bodies. We demonstrate that cultural practices that relegate women's consciousness and agency increase the likelihood of harmful effects caused unintentionally by medical activity. We also suggest a corrective. The phenomenon of 'birthing consciousness,' which describes the unique state of consciousness of birthing women in biomedical terms (i.e., physiological and brain states), places the birthing woman, with her mind and body, at the center of the birth process. The concept can bridge the relevant scientific fields because it describes a naturally occurring state of consciousness triggered by biochemical processes during birth that also represents the subjectivity and agency of birthing women and their importance. This move can be the first step toward changing longstanding paradigms of thought and action in the birth arena, reducing consequent harm.

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