Twilight Sleep: The Miracle Too Good To Be True

08/26/2024

What is Twilight Sleep?

First used in Germany in the early twentieth century, Twilight Sleep was a method of childbirth in which morphine and scopolamine were combined to put women in a state of unconsciousness so that they may wake up from the process with no recollection of the events that transpired.

The idea of a 'painless birth' led women to demand that the procedure be adopted by medical professionals in the United States. Before long, the practice would become a widespread alternative to traditional birth as suffragettes and The National Twilight Sleep Association encouraged women to reclaim control of their births.

You may be thinking, "Who wouldn't choose Twilight Sleep?"

One must admit, it sounds like a lucrative option. However, the ignorance of pain does not mean the absence of pain.

The Truth Behind the "Miracle"

The combination of drugs, doled out shoddily by doctors, gave these women little relief.

After taking Twilight Sleep, many women had to be restrained and blinded by towels to prevent injury. As long as the labor persisted, a woman would often lay in her own excrements screaming and thrashing.

Twilight Sleep impacted mothers and their babies during and after labor.

The use of morphine and scopolamine interfered with the natural release of oxytocin, a hormone crucial for labor progression and maternal bonding. Oxytocin helps to stimulate uterine contractions and is also known as the "love hormone" for its role in bonding.

Additionally, the semi-conscious state of the mother often meant that she was not fully aware or able to participate in the immediate post-birth bonding period, a critical time for establishing the mother-infant connection. The disruption of oxytocin release also affected breastfeeding. Oxytocin is essential for milk let-down, and difficulties with breastfeeding could interfere with the bonding process.

Babies born under Twilight Sleep were sometimes more sedated or lethargic due to the drugs passing through the placenta. This could lead to difficulties with the baby's initial alertness and ability to breastfeed, further impacting bonding.

It wasn't until 1915, when one of the leading advocates for Twilight Sleep, Francis Carmody, died while giving birth to her third child, that support for the drug began to dwindle, but that doesn't mean its impact isn't still rampant today.

The Long Term Affects

The aforementioned affects that Twilight Sleep had on bonding and breastfeeding disrupted the relationship between mother and child for an entire generation. Its impact can even be connected to difficulties in emotional development for those children.

Further, the popularity of Twilight Sleep contributed greatly in transitioning childbirth from a home event to a medicalized hospital procedure. Midwives lost perceived importance and doctors gained more control over the birthing process.

Above all, our country's journey with Twilight Sleep taught us the importance of being present for every moment of our birthing journey. Educating yourself on childbirth today can make all the difference tomorrow.

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