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    'I was alone': how giving birth is changing during the pandemic

    Maternal care has been derailed due to coronavirus – and advocates warn the outcome could be disastrous for black mothers as they navigate US hospitalsCoronavirus – live US updatesLive global updatesSee all our coronavirus coverage
    by Alexandra Villarreal in New York May 03, 2020 4 minutes
    ‘It’s really changing how women are giving birth. It’s becoming more clinical. It’s becoming more controlled. And women are losing their autonomy.’ Photograph: Yui Mok/PA

    Cristal Brown thought she would give birth with her mom and boyfriend by her side, and then draw her newborn close to breastfeed.

    “That’s how I pictured it,” Brown said. “And it went totally the opposite. I was alone.”

    When the time finally arrived to induce labor, Manhattan hospitals were already limiting visitors because of the coronavirus pandemic. After Brown tested positive for Covid-19, her partner was forced to leave.

    Pre-eclampsia and a bacterial infection eventually pushed her into having an invasive C-section. After her baby was born, she had to stay 6ft away from him and couldn’t hold him before he was whisked out of the room.

    Brown was isolated except when hospital

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