DVD

Childbirth &

Living in the Era after

the Great East Japan Earthquake

 

Have you notice the impact of the Great East Japan earthquake on mind over childbirth in Japan?

In Japan, the fertility rate in 2015 was only 1.46, indicating the severity of the declining birthrate and increasing aging of society. Many women giving birth for the first time are reported to have postpartum depression or severe qualms regarding child rearing.

 

On March 11, 2011, a 9.0 magnitude earthquake hit north-eastern Japan, followed by a tsunami which struck much of the Pacific coast. Even worse, however, was the nuclear disaster brought about by Man’s own hand, which has forced us to question our very way of life, the future path of society overall, and how it impacts the way we are born.

 

Amidst the continuing aftershocks in the hours and days after the original earthquake, new lives were born in midwifery homes or private houses near the evacuation shelters. The news of newly born babies gave hope to a people in grief.

 

What has changed in the birth culture of Japan since the triple disaster?  What about birth should we be protecting?

　

Thirty-nine people discuss their perspectives on childbirth, with the desire for birth to overflow with hope once again.