Thinking about doing your bit for the declining population? Get your credit card ready!

I’ve been putting off writing this blog post as, well, I thought it would be selfish of me to have a heart attack while my baby is still so young.

Last year, I was one of about 980,000 mums to give birth in Japan.

Here’s what we spent for that privilege . . .

The costs

Hospital fees
Pre-natal checks: JPY64,560
Birth costs: JPY885,000
Post-natal checks: JPY18,280
= JPY967,840

Optional care
Birth class: JPY37,044
Acupuncture: JPY15,000
Lactation consultation: JPY8,000
English doula: JPY70,000
= JPY130,044

By the time our bundle of joy was 10 days old, we’d hit the JPY1m mark! (JPY1,097,884 to be exact.)

The good news

Thankfully, I’m enrolled in the Japanese Health Insurance scheme, which covers about 70% of all medical expenses. Had I not had JHI, some of the hospital fees would’ve tripled.

Another bonus is that certain portions of the fees have been / will be reimbursed by our city and our insurer. Stay tuned for updates on this topic.

Finally, we have a beautiful, healthy baby girl to brighten our days. Priceless.

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How does the above compare to the costs of giving birth where you live? I’d love to swap notes!