Expat partner Sarina Langermann moved to the Philippines when she was three months pregnant. We asked her to share some of her experiences of prenatal care and childbirth in the Filipino capital.
First come, first served
“As it was my second child, I thought that I’d do what I did before – find an obstetrician, get a checkup and go from there. But in the Philippines, there are no private clinics with obstetricians (like in Germany). Everything is centralised at hospitals,” says Sarina, who relocated from Frankfurt in early 2023. “You also don’t make appointments by email (I tried that) or calling (I also tried that). You go to a hospital, register and then wait your turn. It’s first come, first served, so I always went 30 minutes before they opened. It’s time consuming to have a check up. Every test (for example, an ultrasound) is performed in a different part of the hospital. You come back three days later for the results.”
Under pressure
“When it came close to giving birth, I requested a midwife but this was not allowed due to Covid-19 regulations. At this point, I considered returning to Germany but then my husband Kai would not be with us, so I stayed,” says Sarina. “When it came to the delivery, I had a C-section which is the norm in the Philippines. Even if you wish to have a natural birth, the doctors might advise against it. In my case, the doctors essentially told me it was an emergency. I felt uncomfortable with this situation but I was already having contractions, so I agreed.”
A learning experience
“On the day of delivery, we also had to get permission for Kai to be in the operating room with me as I had the C-section. Giving birth in another country with a very different approach has definitely been a learning experience! The main thing is my son was born happy and healthy,” says Sarina. “Another thing I would like to share is that after the birth, Kai had to do a lot of running around to get the birth certificate from local authorities, so we could receive our baby Luuk’s German passport. It can take up to eight months normally, however, we paid more to get it in three weeks. Even with this fast track option it was a little frustrating. But all’s well that ends well, we now have the passport and are free to travel!”
Photo: Sarina with her family and baby Luuk
