Disclaimer: This is for the purpose of education only. Do not try to deliver a baby by yourself.
Important Parts of Childbirth
So there’s a woman telling you that she is delivering her baby. Here’s the way it all starts. Literally! Life is about to begin. So keep it a happy memory. And… Don’t panic.
You’re going to have to examine what’s coming out of her vagina. There’s no way out of this. Just getting her to start pushing blindly is a mistake. That’s the long and the short of it.
This is the way it works. If you feeling “Y”, that is a very good thing. That is the top of the babies head. Pushing and working as a team can begin.
(Note: if you don’t feel a “Y“, it is not the baby’s head. That’s… Bad. This is a difficult delivery. But it can happen. Be looking for another presentation on that coming soon.)
Here we go.
Head. First deliver the head. It could shoot out, bringing the whole kit and caboodle with it. And that’s what you don’t want. So, be cautious.
Neck. Next, deliver the neck. Shoulders follow, so stay in control.
Nuchal cord? That means the baby’s umbilical cord is wrapped around it’s neck. No problem. You are going to have to reduce it. That means undo it from the baby’s neck. Unwrap it. Remember that there could be more than one nuchal cord wrapping itself around the neck. So, check for more wraparounds.
But, what if you CAN’T reduce a nuchal cord? Then you will have to Clamp and Cut the cord now. If there are no nuchal cords wrapped around the baby’s neck, you should clamp and cut later on.
After you rule out multiple cords around the neck, you can proceed.
Drop but don’t drop the baby… I still remember the “rule of 45s.” Hold the baby about 45° under the mother for 45 seconds. Then, clamp and cut the cord.
Babies are slippery, so exercise caution every step of the way, keeping something like you between the baby and the floor at all times.
Don’t pull the placenta. Gentle massage is usually all you need. It comes out practically on its own.
Go fast but never speed to the hospital. If you keep your car windows cracked, that represents the equivalent of blow-by supplementary oxygen for the mother and the baby. Very useful thing to do for anyone you are driving quickly to the emergency room for anything. Please do it. Extra oxygen helps everything.
