How pregnancy and childbirth are handled in Luxembourg

Pregnancy and childbirth can be one of the happiest moments in life, or one of the most traumatic. Especially when things don't go according to plan. But is there any reason to be afraid of giving birth, especially if it's in Luxembourg?

How to prepare for pregnancy

My eldest son was born in Russia, and after we moved, we started thinking about having a second child, but nothing worked out. Once, during a routine check-up with my gynaecologist, I decided to ask how we could remedy the situation. Before that, we had somehow relied on chance, especially since we already had one child, which meant that everything was fine. But this time, I asked specifically. The doctor prescribed folic acid, and literally a month after taking it, everything worked out. I suppose the problem in my body wasn't that serious, since a simple vitamin was able to fix it.

How is the pregnancy going?

The first time I came, the foetal egg was not even visible yet. In other words, the ultrasound could not confirm the pregnancy. Then the doctor gave me a referral for an hCG test (human chorionic gonadotropin — a hormone that begins to be produced during pregnancy. Editor's note). Then we met again a week later, and by then the ultrasound confirmed the pregnancy.

Closer to the 12th week, I may be mistaken here because I don't remember the exact dates, I was given a Carnet de Maternite. It's a notebook that I took with me to every appointment with my gynaecologist. It also contains all the forms for receiving all benefits. There are three of them in total:

Compared to Moscow, there were definitely many more visits. In Moscow, I just went to the antenatal clinic. I had to go there every month, but we only had ultrasounds for screening.

I also went there every month, and they did an ultrasound scan every time I visited. That's another important difference from Russia. Here, the gynaecologist has the equipment right there in the office. In Russia, you usually get a referral, make an appointment, and wait your turn. Or you go to a private clinic, which is what I did, so that you can get a better look at everything, get photos and so on.

I also had tests done every month. There was quite a long list of tests. The good thing was that I didn't have to pay anything for the blood tests. Everything was completely free. By the way, they also did a blood test for foetal chromosomal abnormalities: Down syndrome, Patau syndrome and others. And that was free too. Maybe because I'm already 35.

For my second trimester screening, I was referred to Dr. Stiber at the Bohler Clinic. My gynaecologist, Agnes, works with this clinic, and all her patients give birth there. She used to deliver babies herself, but then she gave up this practice because it took too much time. Dr. Stieber is very well known in Luxembourg, and they say it's almost impossible to get an appointment with him.

Towards the end of my pregnancy, my blood pressure rose. This is dangerous, and I also got myself worked up, so I spent several days in the prenatal ward at Bohler. I was hospitalised and spent two nights in the clinic. I had regular check-ups to make sure the baby was doing well, was prescribed blood pressure medication, they made sure it was helping, and then I was discharged.

But three days later, I went there anyway and gave birth.

How childbirth and preparation for it take place

At Bohler, they offered me stimulation, but I refused because it was a very traumatic experience. I gave birth to my first child in Moscow at the Kulakov Obstetrics Centre. It is very popular and has many positive reviews. You can only get in for free on a quota basis, for example, in the case of an extremely dangerous or complicated case, so I had to pay. I chose this clinic carefully, I paid for the delivery, and it was a terrible experience.

Everything went wrong, they induced labour, I wasn't allowed to get up during the whole process, they shouted at me — in short, everything went according to the classic scenario. Essentially, I paid to experience the full charm of giving birth under the compulsory medical insurance scheme at the nearest maternity hospital. In the end, the baby was still born with hypoxia, and they had to squeeze him out, which is very traumatic. There was a paediatric resuscitation. It seemed like they had everything under control, but it still didn't go according to plan...

So, I decided against stimulation and did not sign a contract. Contracts of this kind are not common here. However, there are a number of mandatory procedures. For example, after the 35th week, you need to come in for a consultation with an anaesthesiologist. They will explain the types of anaesthesia available and ask about your previous births.

Shortly before that, by the way, you still have to visit the doctor who will deliver your baby. Unfortunately, Dr. Stieber was on holiday at the time, so another doctor examined me. And at that point, I was already starting to panic: the birth was coming soon, and I remembered how it had gone in Moscow. I went up to the doctor and said, "Let's do a caesarean section, shall we? I don't mind, just get the baby out of me and we'll go our separate ways. I can't give birth myself, I don't know how to do anything!"

He didn't even try to calm me down. As a result, when I arrived at the appointment with the midwife, I was in tears. And she was the only member of the medical staff who calmed me down. She calmly explained to me that this was not their practice, that nothing like this had ever happened before and never would, and that what happened the first time would never happen again.

Let's return to the story about my hospitalisation. On Friday, I am discharged from the hospital, and on Monday, I have a scheduled visit. They measure my blood pressure, and it is high again. The doctor checks the baby, says that it is still high and everything is fine, and sends me home.

In the evening, the contractions began. They were quite intense, with short intervals between them. I had no idea what to expect, as I hadn't had any contractions the first time — I was induced! My husband and I looked at each other and decided that these were practice contractions, but we still decided to go to the hospital and get pain relief so that I could sleep. The whole way there, we were sure that this was just practice.

We arrived at the hospital at 9 p.m. Everything was closed, so we entered through the emergency entrance. They immediately put me in a wheelchair and took me to be examined — I was 8 centimetres dilated!

Initially, I was lying on my back, but it was uncomfortable. They allowed me to assume the position I wanted — on my knees. The birth was quick, and I spent a total of 15 minutes in the ward :)

Of course, my husband and I weren't prepared for this. He went to the car to get our things, and then someone ran up to him and said, "Your wife is giving birth!" He ran back. Just as he was — in his jacket, boots, and jeans — he entered the ward and saw our daughter being born. Then they invited him inside, he cut his daughter's umbilical cord, and they gave me the baby. We had brought our son with us too, as we had no one to leave him with. At that time, he was chatting with the nurses in Luxembourgish.

By the way, doctors often speak several languages, including English. So don't worry that you won't be understood!

How postnatal care works

I have a slightly unusual situation. The birth was very easy and quick, there were no injuries or tears, and the baby is completely healthy. We spent some time in the maternity ward, with doctors periodically coming in to check for bleeding. Then I was taken on a trolley to the ward with the baby, so she wasn't even taken anywhere.

Before we left, our daughter was examined by a neonatologist. On the third day, we arrived and had blood tests done for diseases that, the earlier they are detected and treated, the better the prognosis will be. They don't usually send the results. So if you don't receive a letter with the test results, it means that everything is fine.

A week later, we went for an audio analysis. This is when they check a child's hearing. I had seen the equipment in Russia, and it was very bulky. Here, they checked both ears with a small device with headphones, said that everything was fine, and sent us home.

And the food at the hospital is excellent. As soon as you are admitted to a ward, you are given a menu from which you can choose your meals for the week. That is, a starter, main course, dessert and even a drink: it can be tea, coffee, coffee with milk, herbal teas — you choose everything yourself. All in all, it's very cool.

How much does it cost to give birth in Luxembourg?

Opinions differ on this. I know that some people did not receive any bills for gynaecologist appointments, hospital stays, and so on. I recently received these bills!

Of course, we paid for everything right away, and I sent the receipts to CNS so that they would reimburse me for most of it, and I will send the rest to Caisse Médico-Complémentaire Mutualiste (CMCM). This is additional insurance that I took out as soon as I found out I was pregnant. It's very useful because thanks to it, I didn't have to pay for a single room.

To be honest, I was expecting to see a bill for a single room only. I received it, but I didn't even pay anything. I just sent it straight to CMCM, and they dealt with it themselves. But then the usual bills arrived. That wasn't for the anaesthesia, so they included it in the final bill :)

It turned out that giving birth in Luxembourg wasn't as scary as I had initially thought!