When I initially registered for the Sex, Health, and Birth Honors Seminar, I was not aware of what I was in for. Out of the course description on Blackboard, it occurred to me that I would be participating in a service learning course that would fulfill my final historical perspectives Breath of Knowledge credit for my major. It sounded like a win/win situation considering the birthing process has always been somewhat of an interest to me. It turned out to be an extremely intriguing course that has changed my perspective on how incredible the nature and beauty of reproduction are.

 

The course was instructed by Dr. Wendy Kline fall semester, 2013. It was an undergraduate seminar of about seventeen predominately Arts and Science students at all different grade levels and various majors. Although there was at least one student that represented most of the colleges, the majority of the class participants were on the pre-med track. As a student in a nonmedical major, I felt slightly out of place initially, but I decided to stick it out anyway.

 

The main objectives of the course were aimed at exploring the world of parenthood with a focus on the gestation and birthing periods. Over the course of the semester, there was an emphasis on exploring the issue of infant mortality, the history of midwifery, and the evolution of delivery methods and customs. There were seven required books that ranged from novels, to memoirs, and non-fiction history books. Being that I am not much of a reader, the idea of reading seven books for one class was quite intimidating at first. To my surprise, however, I ended up finding pleasure in reading a majority of the books and they turned out to be rather resourceful and impactful. There was a different reading assigned each week, followed by a weekly journal entry that covered the reading. During the first half of the class period, we would rearrange the desks in a circle and Professor Kline would lead us in open forum to discuss over our thoughts and opinions of the reading.

          Each reading presented something new about the birthing process that I never knew or possibly ever even thought about.

 

Click each book sleeve to read  my entries on each book:

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

       

 

         Aside from the reading, Professor Kline had three speakers come in and talk to the class. The first speaker, Jennifer Berndsen is the program coordinator for the Every Child Succeeds program through Cincinnati Children’s Hospital. Ms. Berndsen explained how the program reaches out to new mothers that are in need of assistance. Some students worked with Ms. Berndsen to complete the service learning component of the course. One of the student’s mother was a trained midwife in Columbus, Ohio. She came in and gave a presentation to us about midwifery.

            For my service learning project, I had the opportunity to work with Ms. Jennifer Pavelka. Ms. Pavelka does research on various aspects of pregnancy. She was is need of informational graphics that could be given out to the public for a variety of different topics ranging from “Safe Sleep,” smoking during pregnancy, and how stress affects a woman and her baby during pregnancy. I did research on breastfeeding and came up with an info graphic that could convince new mothers to consider breastfeeding their newborn. Through the research, I discovered there are multiple advantages to breastfeeding which changed my outlook on the personal decision I may have to make in the future.

I also learned a vast amount about the harsh realities of infant mortality and how prevalent it is in today’s society. The numbers are shocking and it is saddening. The course has inspired me to learn more about what I can do to help prevent the issue and support research.

            Overall, the course is truly an excellent class for any student to take—regardless of their major. I would especially recommend it to one who plans on having children in the future (male or female) or working in obstetrics. The course turned out to be empowering to take as a woman after reading about the powerful gift of childbirth. It has encouraged me to consider having a natural birth that it not medically induced, perhaps in a birthing center rather than a hospital. I have also considered doing more research on the birthing process as a result of the course.