Now that all is said and done with delivering our beautiful second baby, here are some of my observations on delivering in the United States as compared with delivering in Thailand...in case any of my pregnant friends were considering making the trip for themselves : )
1. They give better pain medication in the United States. I have delivered 2 babies with normal sized heads from my body. My body was not the same as before with either of them. In Thailand they gave me Tylenol and in the United States they gave me Vicodin and Ibuprofen at the same time. Although none of the meds took away the pain, the Vicodin/Ibuprofen combo did much better than Tylenol. Apparently in Thailand they have very stringent drug laws and they are afraid of us druggie mommas, seriously.
Also, my friends who had c-sections in Thailand were only given Tylenol post c-section. Brutal. Absolutely brutal.
2. The anesthesiologist was better in the US. In Thailand the anesthesiologist tried 4 times before he finally got it right on the 5th attempt. My doctor in the US got it right on the first attempt, which is always better.
3. In Thailand they admitted me in 10 minutes. In the US they admitted me in an hour and a half. Thailand definitely wins that one.
4. In the US the lactation consultant visited me in my room twice and I have seen her twice since then. In Thailand I tried to call the lactation consultant but she was never in and did not call me back.
5. My delivery cost me nothing in Thailand. In the US we maxed out our Out of Pocket. Cheaper wins.
6. Living in a hotel in Thailand had its perks. I did not have to clean, wash/change the sheets, or even wash my dishes. It had a pool and the foot massage place charged $3 an hour. Cannot beat that. However, living in a hotel for 2 1/2 months does get old, and you get to the point where you just want to be settled in. Also, there is no place to go to get away from a crying baby. It is a tie.
7. Hello, I did not know how great it was to have my meals taken care of by so many wonderful people! Who knew how helpful it would be? My goodness I have not had to cook a dinner since DB was born, and can I tell you how much stress that takes off of me? Good grief, if I could just go back to before I had children, knowing what I know now I would have made multiple meals for my new mama friends. What a blessing! In a way I did get this benefit while in was in Thailand since my mom cooked for us every evening after AB was born, but delivering in the US wins this one.
8. Documentation. Arrg...Documentation. When you deliver overseas it is actually easier to get documentation in a timely manner. They are accustomed to rushing documents since it is quite obvious everyone living abroad needs a passport and all the other stuff necessary. We had AB's passport just 2 weeks after she was born. It took one day to get our visas, and our flights were booked the day before we flew. We just got DB's SS number, and are waiting for our appointment to apply for his passport. So, getting the documentation is easier in Thailand.
However, AB does not have a United States birth certificate. She has a Thai birth certificate that was officially translated in to English and certified by the US Embassy. Do you know what we would have to go through if we lost it? I do not want to even think about it. Whew, it gives me a headache! Instead of having a United States birth certificate, she has something called a Consular Report of a Birth Abroad. In the US it is supposed to be used as a birth certificate, but not many people know what it is and to get duplicates or a replacement is a huge deal since they must come from Washington rather than locally. So, in this aspect, delivering in the US wins. It was for this issue that we primarily wanted to deliver DB in the United States.
9. When it comes to my doctors, it is a tie. I think the two most wonderful doctors in the world delivered my children. It would be hard for me to choose between them.
Just a note though. In Thailand I was not told how I was progressing at all. I never knew if I was dilating prior to my delivery or even how I was progressing during my delivery. That is just not information they share with the patient. In the US my doctor told me each week how my body was becoming prepared to deliver my baby. For someone who likes information, the US is the way to go. If you prefer to not have those updates, go to Thailand.
10. Buying baby stuff in Thailand is very frustrating. They have many of the most popular baby items at a couple department stores, however the goods are imported so they automatically cost more, then on top of that government imposes something like a 50% tax on all imported goods. So, it is more of a "look and see what you cannot afford to buy" type of situation. For example, the stroller we own overseas is great. We bought it online and my mom brought it to us. It was a stroller recommended for use overseas, so it was a bit of an investment. At the department store in Thailand, it was about $730 - that is several times what we paid online in the US. It is just painful for a girl who likes to find sales. So in the US things are a lot cheaper, and you can get more for the same amount of money. On the downside, it can be addictive buying stuff for a bargain. (I think Target is in competition with Disney World for the title "the happiest place on earth" - sigh)
11. The biggest perk of delivering in the US (other than all that wonderful food brought to us) is having our family near. I tried not to dwell on it, but it was a little difficult that the only person there to celebrate the birth of our daughter in Thailand was my mom. I am practical enough to know not everyone can come or should come so far, but still who does not want the birth of their child to be celebrated? I know they were rejoicing for us but their presence was missed.
It is late and 11 comparisions is all I can come up with right now, but to all my girl friends out there who have delivered in Thailand and in the US let me know if you can think of pros and cons as well. I am open to adding to the list.
