Jennifer was 44 years old when, in her words, she “finally had the husband and circumstances in which she wanted to have a child.” She immediately saw her doctor, whom she’d been seeing for years and trusted completely. She did what her doctor told her to do throughout the process of both getting pregnant and being pregnant. Jennifer trusted the latest medical advances and completed all the recommended testing. She figured if her doctor was armed with as much information as possible, then she could, from her experience and knowledge, suggest the best courses of action for Jennifer’s and her baby’s care.
Jennifer had people in her life telling her that she should question her doctor’s recommendations and the need to take the fetal tests that she took during her first trimester. She understood why they were nervous about her getting statistics that might indicate a strong chance of having a baby with a chromosome irregularity. They expressed concerns about her possibly having to deal with alarming news even when she knew she’d move forward with the pregnancy regardless of the tests’ results. Yet, it didn’t feel good to Jennifer to question. She wanted to believe in her doctor, so she did. This felt like the best way to take care of herself and ensure the health of her baby. And with each test result that bettered her odds even by the smallest amount, she took comfort. And Jennifer was right to feel comfort. She gave birth to a healthy baby girl.
Jennifer put her trust in her doctor and trusted herself that this was the most supportive approach for her. She believed it was her time to have a baby and believed that her doctor and her doctor’s knowledge would help her do so safely and comfortably. She trusted her trust in another, which means she trusted herself.
How have you trusted yourself? even when it didn't look like the "best" course to others…
Thanks for this question, Amy. I remember many times that my wife, Carolyn (CNM), was dealing with the trust issue with regard to birth practices – for herself, for her clients, and between the doctors and hospitals. From my parenting work, self-distrust seems very common in our culture, and I've frequently disguised it by a false confidence (automatic arrogance?), which doesn't allow me to consider and learn anything new. I am now reconsidering using some resources that I rejected in the past without feeling I have distrusted myself just because I rejected them the first time. Again, thanks!