“Ah you’re a midwife , must be lovely cuddling babies all day!”
That old chestnut.
To set the record straight, newborn babies should always be with the women who birth them, in their arms, on their skin, not in the arms of midwives.
Our aim, touch baby minimally at the birth. Observations, measurements, ID placing (if in hospital) done with babe in arms unless resuscitation is needed or baby birthed by caesarean.
Our role, hover, empower, know when to step in, when to step back.
Birth is not only about making babies. Birth is about making mothers – strong, competent, capable mothers who trust themselves and know their inner strength.
Barbara Katz Rothman
But often we’re stretched too thin wishing we had more time to give leisurely help to new parents before they discharge.
From a funding perspective babies in Australian public maternity hospitals don’t exist! Money is allocated per woman (for the bed inhabited) but the time and hands-on care generated by these new tiny humans doesn’t count! 🤷♀️
Some babies are easier to feed, comfort and settle than others depending on birth circumstance and individual temperament.
Some seem outraged at being here, need to be snuggled with mum or dad at ALL times, feel for the parents knowing the sleep deprivation ahead. Good support at home is key here
In our fire fighting equipment cupboard along with the extinguishers is a tabard type garment with pouches to help transport babies in the event of a fire (god forbid! 😩) Some days (I work in a busy, city tertiary hospital) I visualise throwing it over my head, popping the unsettled babies in the pouches, and getting on with my shift, giving the exhausted sleep deprived women in my care an hours sleep!
None of us remembers being a baby? Can’t remember if we didn’t get skin to skin initially, can’t remember heel prick tests or immunisations not being fed or cuddled immediately.
A (perceived) less than perfect start won’t have any long lasting negative effects assuming bubs basic needs of comfort, warmth and nutrition are met. Hope this is the case.
Though the optimal start is preferable, hopefully all the babies will be fine, hormonal gaps caused by hospital systems and interventions can be made up with lots of skin-to-skin, cuddling and breast feeding at home, without health professionals commenting or giving guidance. Some mother/baby dyads take longer than others to work it all out.
I was a fully formula-fed 1960’s Scottish baby born with pethidine circulating in my veins, Babushka wrapped, no doubt given glucose water to “test” my stomach and initially separated hours at a time from my poor mum AND the result of an induction of labour. I remember none of it, I turned out fine.
I’m being light-hearted here, not to minimise the real trauma some women carry from their births and postnatal period.
And of course the pain women feel when separated from their premature or unwell baby 💔 is of course completely different challenge.
If women divulge feelings of personal guilt or failure 😣😭 of a birth that didn’t go according to plan it’s SO important to remind them how fabulous they’ve been HOWEVER they birthed and for the love of god don’t say the awful phrase “failure to progress,” all they’ll hear is the FAILURE part.
Growing a baby in your body and giving birth to it is phenomenal, every single time, never a failure.
If traumatised by birth events or by care given 😭😭😭 there is help. Trained professionals , psychologists and psychiatrists will listen and affirm, provide tools to help minimise or dull upsetting memories.
Birth Talk : www.birthtalk.org
The Birth Counsel : www.thebirthcounsel.com.au
COPE : www.cope.org.au
HealthDirect hotline : 1800022222
Lifeline : 131144 or text 0477131144
Beyond Blue : 1300 224 636
PANDA : 1300 726 306 or www.panda.org.au
Domestic Violence helpline : 1800 737 732 or www.1800respect.org.au
🤍Birth professionals need to do so much better in helping to reduce our crazy high induction and caesarean rate
🤍Women need to empower and educate themselves , be aware of the birth outcomes of the service provider they’ve chosen
🤍Have confidence in their body to birth, education around this should start in schools! Little girls and teens I believe would love it!
Lindsey Crossan . Registered Nurse/ Midwife