The former attending obstetrician for Empress Masako when she was crown princess said he learned so many things from her and the future emperor when they were becoming parents to Princess Aiko.

Osamu Tsutsumi, the 73-year-old honorary director of Sanno Hospital in Tokyo, shared some episodes of his interactions with the couple, who were crown prince and crown princess back then, both before and after Aiko, now 21, was born.

Tsutsumi served on the Board of the Crown Prince’s Household at the time. 

Naruhito ascended to the Chrysanthemum Throne in 2019. The couple marked their 30th wedding anniversary on June 9.

NEVER MISSED AN APPOINTMENT

Tsutsumi, speaking exclusively to The Asahi Shimbun, noted that Naruhito accompanied Masako, who fell pregnant in 2001, on every maternity checkup she received.

Naruhito drew criticism for accompanying her so often when he had a busy schedule of official duties. In those days, it was unusual for a husband to accompany his wife for repeated hospital checkups.

Naruhito, however, never once missed an appointment at the Hospital of the Imperial Household.

Masako, on her part, would take notes during the checkups. She also read a guide for expectant mothers, almost to the point of memorizing the entire contents, and kept records of her weight from day to day in her maternity health record book.

The crown princess was also diligent about engaging in physical exercise for 30 minutes when she was advised to do so.

Tsutsumi said the couple exuded a palpable sense of affection for the child they were expecting.

Around the time the preborn baby’s sex had become clear, Tsutsumi, in his capacity of attending obstetrician, asked Naruhito if he wanted to know if it was a boy or a girl--a prince or a princess, in this instance.

“No, I don’t need to know,” Naruhito replied.

Lengthy debate ensued after the birth on the wisdom of allowing Japan to have female or matrilineal emperors.

“He probably declined the offer out of consideration for Masako, unwilling to create a stir in her mind by being told about the baby’s sex before it was born,” Tsutsumi thought.

AVOIDING MEDIA FRENZY

He kept the expected date of delivery secret, except to Naruhito and Masako, to prevent information from leaking beforehand. He stuck to that principle even when the chief physician of the Crown Prince’s Household asked him about the date.

Tsutsumi also was in turmoil over when to have Masako hospitalized for delivery.

A key concern was ensuring the decision on her hospitalization would be made at the right time. This was because if the decision was made after her labor pains had started, it could be too late. It would take around two hours to arrange, among other things, security measures and media access before she was taken to the Hospital of the Imperial Household.

On the other hand, if she was admitted too early and her hospitalization was prolonged, that would have spawned unnecessary conjecture.

A fetal monitor called a remote cardiotocograph came in handy as the deadline for giving birth approached.

The device uses sensors worn on the abdomen to measure uterine contractions and fetal heart rates. Tsutsumi relied on data sent over an internet channel to decide on the timing of hospitalization.

The first wail of the newborn resounded loudly on Dec. 1, 2001, the day after Masako was hospitalized. The mother affectionately cradled the infant in her arms.

The crown princess was one month shy of 38 when she gave birth. She had been married for eight years and six months.

“It’s a princess,” Tsutsumi told Naruhito, who had been waiting in a separate room. “Both Masako and the princess are fine.”

IMPECCABLE MANNERS　

Naruhito straightened up and said, “Things have proceeded as you said they will, so I have been able to leave things in your charge without anxiety. I am so glad that it was you. Thank you.”

A new father would typically have had a burning desire to see his newborn straight away. But Naruhito graciously made time for appropriate courtesies, which left Tsutsumi overcome with emotion.

The doctor recalled that Masako made an unexpected remark on the day she was discharged from the hospital.

“It was fun giving birth,” the crown princess told him.

“I felt those words were giving me a lesson, given that so many people say that it’s tough giving birth,” Tsutsumi said.

‘FRESH BREEZE OF A NEW AGE’

It gradually became more common, after Masako gave birth, for couples to attend maternity checkups together.

Remote cardiotocography also rapidly gained currency and is now being used, for example, for expectant mothers in remote areas and on outlying islands.

“The royal childbirth brought the fresh breeze of a new age,” Tsutsumi said.

Now that she is 21, Aiko has official duties to perform as adult member of the imperial family. Tsutsumi said he is happy and delighted, as an obstetrician, to have watched the process of her growing up.

“I hope the imperial couple and their family will continue to live happily and the Reiwa Era (of Naruhito’s reign) will remain peaceful,” he said.