I had a baby in Russia!

I had a baby in Russia and I lived to blog about it!  Many people have asked about my experience giving birth in Russia, and I thought I would share the experience.  I am joking about the lived to blog about it- I knew going in that the Perinatal Medical Center was an excellent hospital and that I was in very good hands.  So, the story:
My c-section was scheduled for a Thursday morning, so my doctor has me check in the night before.  As I have said before, this was my 4th section and I had made the Russians quite nervous with this.  Russian women typically have 1-2 babies, so it is quite unusual in this country to have 4 c-sections.  Because of this the doctors decided to take John at 37 weeks.  My doctor, Sergei, was present for the surgery, but it was actually performed by Dr.Krusko, who is the head of the hospital and the leading Obgyn in Russia.  As I was told by the Russians-" He is very famous Ellen (yes, they call me Ellen here) and he is the best doctor in all of Russia.  You are in very good hands".  He usually delivers babies for government officials and celebrities in Moscow.  Not bad for a stay-at-home mom from Iowa. 
On the morning of the surgery Jesy met me outside the OR.  He was not allowed in the OR like in the States.  Russians are afraid the men are going to collapse during the surgery and they don't want to look after Dad and Mom.  I tried explaining to them that Jesy had been through 3 sections before and was an officer in the army who had seen combat, but they were not persuaded.  When they called me in to the surgery I went into a small outer room and they made me take all of my clothes off except for some white compression stockings.  I had to walk into the OR naked!  If I had not been so nervous I think I would have died of embarrassment.  The prepwork for the surgery was quite similar to the US and the three doctors in the room all spoke English.  The anestesiologist was the head of the department.  He is quite the catch at the hospital because I was told by many nurses that he is not married and quite handsome.  To be honest I was just happy that he was very nice and got me numb before they started cutting.  After about 30 minutes baby John arrived.  It was quite funny- after they cleaned him up they brought him over to me and opened up his legs.  The nurses did not speak English, so this was there way of telling me "look- it's a boy!".  They then presented the baby this way to Jesy also.
After the surgery I was taken to a recovery room that I ended up staying in for 9 hours.  Jesy was able to take John down to the pediatric ward and visit him many times during the day, but I was confined to recovery.  I slept most of the day and it took me longer than usual to recover because I had gotten a bit too much of the epidural and could not move my legs for many hours.  There were three other women in the room with me and it was quite surreal to not see my baby for so long.  In the US you are with the baby right away.  I passed the time by talking with Jesy and our interpretor Ela, who we hired to help us translate the first few days at the hospital.  She was a true blessing because even though I have been taking Russian lessons it is a very difficult language and who really wants to practice when they are doped up on pregnancy drugs anyways.
At about 6pm I was finally able to go to my private room and visit with John.  He is just lovely and Jesy and I enjoyed kissing him and snuggling.
After that my stay at the hospital was quite similar to the US.  The doctors were great, and the nurses were quite helpful and sweet.  I got by with alot of hand gesturing and simple phrases, and I noticed a few of the nurses using google translate to try and explain things to me.  Overall it was a positive experience and I would recommend this hospital to any woman wanting to have a baby in Moscow. 
Some funny observations from the hospital:
Johnny and I walked up and down the corridors of the hospital (best way to heal) and all of the pictures on the wall were of American cities.  I recognized Chicago, New York, St.Louis and San Francisco. 
I was called a "hero" by many of the nurses on the floor.  At first I thought they were just confusing some American word, but then when Jesy reported to me that he was called a hero at work we figured it out.  The Russians were amazed that I had four children!  The head doctor and many of the nurses kept on telling me that they would see me next year for baby number five.  As much as I love my children and enjoyed this hospital, no thank you.  Four is quite enough for Eileen and Jesy.
They do not do pain pills at the hospital- they do shots.  One of the English speaking nurses approached me about getting physical therapy in my derriere region after leaving the hospital.  At first I was so upset- does my backside look that bad after four kids that I need therapy?  I then realized that they were referring to all of the bruises- I bruise quite easily and my entire backside was black and blue.  No need for physical therapy, just some healing time and good exercise when I recover.
It is a Russian custom to give the doctor that delivered your baby a gift.  We gave our doctor a bottle of nice whiskey.  Imagine giving a doctor in the US liquor!  I find the differences in our countries so interesting.
It is also customary to release balloons (50-100) when you leave the hospital.  I actually thought this was very nice (maybe not for the environment) and enjoyed watching the releases from my hospital room window.  Jesy and I did not participate in this ritual, though, because I really just wanted to get home on my day of departure.
I usually do not get political in public, but some things to note about the Russian healthcare system and my experience.  I was at a private, commercial hospital.  We paid for this birth in cash (our American insurance company reimburses us) as do all the women who give birth at this hospital.  Every Russian has government insurance and most women give birth in state hospitals.  I visited one myself and I would not have given birth there and would not recommend it.  The doctors and nurses are paid very little and after the birth women share a room with 5 or 6 others during their hospital stay.  It is still customary to give the doctor a gift after the baby is born, but this gift is usually cash because they make so little money.  I was in the Perinatal Center with very wealthy Russians and couples who saved for years to be able to afford this experience.  I myself have never been on any type of public assisstance, but I know for a fact that the three other hospitals I gave birth at in the US accepted Medicaid patients.  It is always important to remember how nice we have it in the US. 
Dr.Krusko asked me how this experience compared to the US and if I would recommend his hospital to my friends in the expat community.  It was actually quite similar to the US and I would recommend it to any woman in Moscow who asks me.  But you will not see me next year for baby number five!