articles
China Elevator Stories
Pregnancy in China: What to Expect as an Expat
I lived in Shenzhen, Guangdong province, China, during my first pregnancy and in Siping, Jilin province, during my second pregnancy.
27/12/2024
Ruth Silbermayr
Author
During my first pregnancy, I was living in Shenzhen, where I had met my former husband, a Chinese man from Northeast China. After trying for a child and suspecting that I might be pregnant, we initially took an early home pregnancy test, which showed negative. It was too early for the test to detect anything. A little later, when my menstruation was still delayed, I went to one of the many hospitals in Shenzhen for a professional pregnancy test. The first result was inconclusive, but a follow-up test confirmed a clear positive.
Public hospitals in Shenzhen are not usually as clean as those in Austria, and they tend to be very crowded. Patients often gather around doctors, and women frequently don’t wait in line or stay seated in waiting areas. Instead, doctors may address multiple patients simultaneously. Navigating a Chinese hospital as an expat can be challenging, so it’s helpful to bring a local companion to ensure you see a doctor and aren’t bypassed by others.
The pregnancy checkups themselves are adequate, in my opinion, but be prepared for a lack of privacy. Other people might observe you during consultations, and as a foreign woman, you may draw extra attention, with people staring at you because of your appearance.
Having a strong-willed Chinese husband or someone who is good at setting boundaries can be very helpful in such situations. If you visit a hospital while pregnant, be cautious to avoid accidental jostling, as the environment is often hectic, with both patients and doctors rushing to get things done. You’ll be one of many in a long line.
I didn’t enjoy my pregnancy checkups in China and didn’t feel very safe. I trusted Austrian doctors and hospitals more, and my experiences in Chinese hospitals were a major factor in my decision to give birth in Austria. I wanted peace of mind and didn’t feel secure giving birth in a Chinese hospital.
Chinese cities usually have public hospitals as well as “women’s and children’s hospitals”, which specialize in pregnancy and childbirth (called 妇女儿童医院 fùnǚ értóng yīyuàn or 妇幼保健院 fùyòu bǎojiànyuàn in Chinese). In Shenzhen, I went to a public maternity and children’s hospital located two bus stops from my apartment for regular pregnancy checkups. In Siping, although such a hospital also exists, I chose to visit the central public hospital, which also offered pregnancy checkups and had a decent gynecology department.
Here are some posts I wrote about my first pregnancy in Shenzhen:
“Oh My God, I’m Going to Be a Father!”
Wearing Radiation-Proof Maternity Clothes to Get a Seat on the Subway
“Will Your Mother Come Here When You Give Birth?”
My Experience of Being Pregnant and Living With Chinese In-Laws
“I’m Afraid My Mother Will Get Lost on Her Way to the Market”
“Has Your Skin Turned Darker After Becoming Pregnant?”
Things My Chinese Mother-In-Law Told Me Not to Do During Pregnancy
“Pregnant Women Can’t Eat Chinese Hawthorn”
“Make Sure to Get Enough Rest and Watch Cartoons”
“In China, Parents Don’t Want Their Kids to Do Any Household Chores”
After the birth of our son in Austria, my ex-husband and I moved to his hometown, Siping, in Jilin Province, Northeast China. I became pregnant with my second son in Siping at the end of 2015 and underwent early pregnancy checkups at a local hospital there.
As with many public hospitals in China, cleanliness was an issue. One incident that stood out to me was seeing a grandmother let a newborn urinate in a bathroom sink, only for the urine to miss the sink. Bathrooms with squat toilets, that came without running water, soap, or toilet paper were the norm—these are issues that are common in public hospitals in China. Additionally, many newborns in China don’t wear diapers but instead wear split baby pants, which can lead to less sanitary conditions. Despite these challenges, the doctor’s office itself was clean enough, and the ultrasound machines were modern.
Abortion is common in China, so one of the first questions a doctor may ask upon learning of your pregnancy is whether you want an abortion. It’s also typical for doctors to inquire about any past abortions, even during routine checkups not related to pregnancy.
The checkups at the hospital in Siping during my second pregnancy were acceptable, but I still felt safer giving birth in Austria.
Most hospitals in China do not allow husbands to accompany their wives to doctor’s appointments or to stay in the same room during childbirth.
Here’s a pregnancy post I wrote during my second pregnancy:
During my third trimester, I traveled to Xinjiang. Being pregnant in China comes with many restrictions, often heightened if you have a Chinese mother-in-law. Being away from my overly controlling former mother-in-law during this time felt liberating. I wrote about my trip here:
Have you ever been pregnant in China?