LOBA FILM REVIEW

TRIGGER WARNING: This movie contains some traumatic birth experiences and stories of women who suffered from obstetric violence.

Last month I had the chance to watch the film LOBA during an International Women’s Day online screening. This film, directed by French osteopath Catherine Béchard, is an honest and beautiful exploration of what giving birth means nowadays in a variety of settings and locations.

​The word loba, meaning she-wolf in Spanish, is a very appropriate title for a movie that explores deeply and with a multiculturalist lens how our seemingly ever growing distance from nature is transforming the way we are born, and especially the way we as women relate to our bodies.

Shot in France, Spain, Mexico and Cuba, this film opens up a window into the reality of different parts of the world and invites us to challenge and widen our understanding of normality.

​​​Anyone who has been pregnant knows of the seemingly never stopping need to pee. And you need to remember to drink a lot of water and stay hydrated, which doesn't make it any easier. It’s kind of a hassle, but not such a big deal when there is a nearby toilet.

But what about when you’re outside, it’s cold and there is no bathroom available? And you really can’t wait much longer! Well, let me share a tip with you about a very special piece of plastic that made my nomadic, outdoorsy pregnancy into a peeing freedom journey.
 
I was 24-years-old and living in Mexico City when I got my first PStyle from my friend Elisa. It was wrapped in a beautiful flower-print cloth baggie that looked a lot like a glasses case.
I didn’t have any idea what it was, so I examined the plastic funnel in search of something that would give me a clue about its use.
Elisa kept on smiling widely. She seemed pretty amused at my confusion.
“Do you know what it is?” She asked.
I shook my head.