Childhood in Iraq

During the period of economic sanctions imposed on Iraq in the 1990s, more than half a million children died, according to the United Nations.

One in eight children in Iraq died during that period of malnutrition, disease, and lack of medicine.

The U.S.-led invasion of Iraq during March 2003 brought hope that things might change, but that change has only been for the worse...

http://ipsnews.net/news.asp?idnews=39113

Growing up in a war zone

My mother in law is French. I asked her to tell me what it was like growing up during the Occupation. She sat back in her chair, drawing a crocheted afghan up and tucking it snugly across her body and under her legs. “Oh, I don’t like to be cold,” she shivered. “I was so cold all the time during the war. There wasn’t a warm building in all of Paris during the Occupation, even for the German soldiers. I’ve never forgotten how hard that was.”

At eighty three years of age, her French accent is as distinct as it was when she arrived in America as a war bride so many years ago - and her memory of those bleak years is still  strong and colored with vivid detail.

Jacqueline's early life was greatly affected by the rapid advance of the German army in WWII through France.  As the German war machine spilled westward beyond Paris, young Jacqueline was sent to stay on a relative’s farm outside of Paris. It wasn’t too long, however, before the German soldiers began to show up at such farms.  Jacqueline remembers her first view of the feared Boches.  "One day some German soldiers came to the farm and commandeered a team of my uncle’s Percheron horses for the German army.  That was my first sight of a German soldier in uniform.  One of the soldiers gave my brother and I some candy - which we promptly threw on the manure pile.  After all, we had been told that, in World War I, the Germans poisoned little children this way!”

There was no heat in the bedroom that Jacqueline and her brother shared. They quickly discovered a way to get warm at night. "We each had a bed, and there was a barrel of Calvados (apple brandy) at the foot of Jean Claude's bed.  We would sneak sugar cubes from the kitchen at night and let some of the Calvados drip from the tap onto the cubes.  This is called ‘petit canard'  (little duck) by the Normans.  We would suck on the sugar cubes and it didn't take long for the Calvados to warm us as we crawled into bed. “

As the German soldiers began roaming the countryside, demanding food and liquor from the Norman farmers, it became apparent that life on the farm was no safer than living in the city. Jacqueline and her brother were reunited with their family in Paris.

One thing that stands out in Jacqueline's recollections of Paris is how so much of her life was influenced by the German occupation and then the liberation.  It is difficult for anyone not experiencing the daily presence and always ominous threat of the hated Germans to understand what it was like.  There was no “freedom of speech" or any of the other freedoms that we take for granted and no civil liberties except as permitted by the German occupiers.  Everything was geared to what the Germans demanded.

 Jacqueline remembers one aspect of the occupation very distinctly - "la Gale du Pain".  “The only bread available at that time was a dark brown, very coarse bran-filled loaf, with many bits of straw baked in, some pieces almost one inch long! Because of chronic food shortages and the tight rationing, this coarse bread was a large part of a typical Parisian diet,” she recalls. “Because of this excessive roughage, many, many Parisians, and I mean by the thousands, developed this itchy skin condition which they called "the bread rash" (la gale du pain).”

Jacqueline described the treatment.  "We would be taken to l'Hospital Bicétre.  There, we would be separated, males and females, and then told to strip. First we would be thoroughly washed, then the nurses would brush us with rough bristled brushes which would open all of the sores.  Then they would use large paint brushes to apply an ointment all over our bodies.  Thousands of people went through these 'mass production' treatment lines every day.  After we got dressed again, we would go home, riding on the subway.  In the subway we could tell who else had just been to the hospital. Everyone smelled of this strong la gale ointment odor!"

Rationing, food shortages, coffee made from chicory and maybe even sawdust, filth and disease -- there was no one to complain to about all this.  But somehow, like all the other French, Jacqueline and her family survived. “When I hear young people these days complain about not having enough money or toys,” she smiles “I often wish they could go back in the past for just one week to live during the Occupation, then they would realize how lucky they are.”

The Birth Experience

I was 30 the first time I gave birth, and 32 the second. The first time, I was in weak labor for about 15 hours. It wasn't especially painful but wasn't getting me anywhere, either. I was put on a Pitocin drip, which immediately threw me into intense labor. Whew, I wasn't ready for that! After struggling along for a few more hours in terrible, panicky pain, my doctor asked if I wanted an epidural. Did I ever! The instant I had the epidural, the pain just completely stopped...it was wonderful. I barely even felt the baby come out.

The next time around, I told my doctor many times during the pregnancy that I wanted an epidural much sooner this time. When labor started, and we went to the hospital, I told the nurse I wanted an epidural right away. She wanted to hold off on calling the anesthesiologist till labor had progressed more, but I held my ground. Remember, I had just gone through all this a year and 1/2 before and vividly remembered every nightmarish moment- no way was I planning to endure any more pain than was absolutely necessary. My doctor backed me up and had them make the call. Consequently, I had an epidural very early in the labor experience. I did not have any discomfort at all during that delivery..played cards with my husband, chatted with the nurses, watched t.v., and painlessly pushed the baby out when the doctor said to. What a difference!

I did some reading on giving birth in Japan. The main differences between US and Japan birthing experience:

1. Women are considered old for birthing after age 35 (it was 30 until just a few years ago) and pregnancy is considered riskier. Even so, one must specifically ask for testing, such as amniocentesis. US doctors tend to offer, and patiently discuss, any possible testing options. In addition, pregnancies after the age of 35 are quite common.in the US.

2. Japanese doctors do not offer pregnant women vitamins or want women to gain much weight during pregnancy, US doctors are much more concerned about proper nutriction.

3. Hospitals are small and tend to be run by 1 or 2 doctors and a staff of nurses. It is common for these doctors to assist at 5 or 6 births a day. They are very busy, and have little time to answer questions in detail or discuss options. US doctors take a lot more time to listen to prospective parents and answer questions.

4. Pain relief is not commonly offered to laboring women. US doctors commonly discuss methods of pain relief before the birth, and have it readily available during the birth.   Amen to that  :  )

I was most surprised to find that the doctors in Japan don't routinely address the issues of nutrition and prenatal vitamins. It is well known that infants born of mothers without comprehensive prenatal care are much more likely to face complications than infants who get a healthier start during the pregnancy.

Take, T. (2010, June 17). Don't be afraid to ask questions about giving birth in japan. The Japan Times, pp. B1, B11-B13.