“Horrific” Breech Birth Scene In ‘House Of The Dragon’ Triggered Many Women

House of the Dragon – the prequel to Game of Thrones – caused controversy after the pilot featured a birth scene that audience members have deemed “triggering.” At the start of the episode, King Viserys looks forward to having a son with his pregnant wife, Queen Aemma. But when it was finally time for her to give birth, things quickly went south. The baby was in a breeched position, an occurrence where the baby’s feet or buttocks are positioned to come out of the vagina first. King Viserys decides to save the baby by performing a bloody and painful C-section on his wife, which resulted in her death. The scene was indeed graphic, but isn’t that to be expected from the work of George R.R. Martin?

Jen Coates, the director for Sands (a charity dedicated to women who had stillbirths), believes a trigger warning should’ve been added at the start of the episode. “I think it’s fairly traumatic for anybody actually,” she said. “With 13 babies dying every day in the UK, the situation impacts an enormous community of people directly too.” One user from a subreddit dedicated to mothers (r/Mommit) commented, “I had a scheduled c-section and during all of my pregnancy since day 1, my biggest fear was dying while giving birth or that my son would die. Even if it was scheduled, that scene just triggered me. I’m 3 months pp [post-partum] and I was crying my eyes out. It was too much.”

I think it’s fairly traumatic for anybody.

The co-showrunner, Michael Sapochnik, told PopSugar during an interview, "It seemed important to highlight something that was the kind of the most traumatic event...it's what breaks that family apart.” He continues, "And more importantly than anything, Viserys doesn't give his wife, Aemma, a choice, and that's something that seems really important." 

What Happens in a Breech Birth?

In a proper birth, the baby’s head should come out first. A breech birth may seem alarming, but there’s no need to be concerned – breech babies usually come out healthy with today's technology and medical advances. There’s a low risk of birth defects in these types of pregnancies. There are different types of breech births, namely:

• Complete breech: The baby’s bottom is positioned to come out first with its knees bent.

• Frank breech: The baby’s legs are stretched up, with the feet near its head.

• Footling breech: One or both of the baby’s legs is lowered over the cervix. 

The safest way to deliver a breech baby is through a C-section.

Closing Thoughts

Shows like Game of Thrones and House of the Dragon typically contain scenes that are graphic in nature, and it’s quite difficult to expect what will happen in many of their episodes. My heart goes out to the women who are pregnant or going through postpartum and saw it without warning – but at the same time, these scenes should come as no surprise. Women who are incredibly sensitive to the images of rape, torture, or death should simply refrain from watching these shows altogether. Realistically speaking, HBO probably still won’t include warnings in future episodes of House of the Dragon.

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