Hospital Gowns are terrible. First there is the fact that they leave your bum hanging out for the whole world to see, but they are also one-size-fits-none! Putting on a hospital gown is symbolic. It strips away your normal role of the clothes that you put on that morning and magically transforms you into a “patient” without any form of individuality or expression. Putting on that gown also visually communicates to anyone in the room what your “role” is there, and honestly strips away more than just your dignity. Studies have shown that when you put on that gown, you also strip away some of your perceived control and feel more vulnerable. What you wear affects how you feel, and it turns out that hospital gowns aren’t likely to make anyone feel powerful or better.
Standard Operating Policies & Procedures
Similar to those gowns, many other policies and procedures in the hospital make people feel bad unnecessarily. Standards are put in place for a reason, but many people have argued that hospital birthing policies and procedures are more often than not written primarily to protect the hospital from liability. That subject is a whole can of worms that I’m not opening right now, but my point to you is this: just because something is standard, doesn’t mean that it is required, evidence based, or that it fits with your plans/desires/wishes. Standard is the mold and you don’t have to try to force yourself into it. You can decline things and say, “no thank you.” Maybe you aren’t planning a “standard” birth or approach to your birth. Maybe your postpartum and parenting plans and priorities are different from your pediatrician’s approach. That’s ok! One size honestly fits NONE and even as a parent with older kids, I still have to be a different parent to each kid.
This is not to say that all Standard Operating Procedures (SOPs) are the exact same at every hospital or birthing location. In fact, we KNOW they aren’t and have seen that in action. A great example is the SOP for eating and drinking during labor. One local hospital doesn’t allow anything other than ice chips during labor, a practice not at all supported by evidence by the way. At another hospital where we attend a births, the labor and delivery nurses there taught me how they make “slushies” for laboring parents out of popsicles. At a 3rd hospital, they have a standard laboring mom tray of snacks and drinks that they bring. What are the policies and procedures where you are delivering? Are they followed all the time?
What size fits you?
There are so many lies that are told to us about pregnancy, birth, and postpartum, and one of those is that the standards are in place to protect everyone, evidence based, and enforced equally. I can tell you that is definitely not the case from what I have observed as a doula. In a medical system that is forced to treat patients as consumers though, you do have some power if you decide to hold onto it. If it helps, bring your own gown to wear during labor or go buck naked to remind yourself (and signal to the staff too) that you are not sick and are indeed powerful. It also sends a visual signal that you want something other than the SOP, whether you choose to say anything about it or not. Spend some time finding out what the policy is where you are planning to deliver and what aligns with your approach. Humans are not all the same, and figuring out what size fits your needs and wants is helpful to do before the big day. That is one of the things that doulas do too, help you find what works for you and your family. Keep asking questions and demanding the individualized care that you deserve just for being an awesome human being with a new one in your care.