Tag Archives: Karen Brody

Open Mouth. Insert Foot.

As if ABC’s Private Practice hadn’t failed enough recently, there’s a brief interview with Tim Daly in this week’s TV Guide.

Mr. Daly rails against Violet’s character rejecting help from both his character and the other possible father of her unborn child by calling it “sexist and bulls#$%.” Wait. It gets better, I promise.

Then Daly goes on to share his thoughts on way birth is portrayed on the show. (This is where it gets good) “For the sake of the psyche of American women, I’d like to see one woman on the show have a really easy, happy, joyous birthing experience.”

What, so watching a happy birth on a drama is supposed to help the American female psyche? How? Nevermind that your show just totally screwed the American female psyche over with your hack job on Postpartum Mood Disorders. Do you REALLY think they could do better with birth?? And what is your definition of an easy, joyous, happy birth? Medicated? Natural? What? Let’s go there, Mr. Daly.

Nevermind that birth isn’t always easy. And let’s just totally ignore the work of people like Ricki Lake and The Business of Being Born or Karen Brody and her play BIRTH. Or Susan Hodges and her organization, Citizens for Midwifery. Let’s show a Mom giving birth at home with a midwife instead of with an OB in a medical environment – that’d be happy and joyous!

And FYI, Mr. Daly, there is nothing EASY about birth. Try it sometime. Oh wait, you can’t. Sorry.

Birth: A Play by Karen Brody

EVERY WOMAN IN AMERICA NEEDS TO SEE THIS PLAY.

EVERY WOMAN IN AMERICA NEEDS TO SEE THIS PLAY.

And yes, every woman SHOULD see this play. With their husbands and family members. This play is amazingly honest, straightforward, and touching. I had the honor of seeing this play in Atlanta Saturday night with a friend of mine, Cheryl Jazzar. (You’ll get to know her on Thursday!) We thoroughly enjoyed the performance and the panel discussion afterward. Want to giggle? We saw it at the Push Push Theatre in Decatur. I know, right?

I related to so many of the characters. My birth experiences have all been so different – with Alli it was very un-informed, very non-consensual, very traumatic. Charlotte’s birth was long, no pain meds for 24 hours, and I was truly exhausted when finally I got to hold her. Cameron – well, I was induced with him, five hours from beginning to finish and yes, I had an epidural for all three of them. But I do not feel the need to justify my decisions to anyone. These are MY BIRTHS, no apology or explanation needed. And this is precisely what BIRTH is about. Reclaiming Birth for ourselves. OUR BODY. OUR DECISION. No rushing by doctors, no being TOLD what we will do during delivery – what happened to the home birth? What happened to being surrounded by a caring community of knowledgeable women as you bring your baby into the world? When did we lose sight of this and graduate to giving birth in the hospital? Whatever happened to the beauty and power that lies within the act of BIRTH? If these questions are ones you have often wondered about, see BIRTH. If you can’t see BIRTH, read it.

You can also read Karen Brody’s blog here.