Not all dads will cut the cord of their newborn baby, and even those who can may still want to become more involved throughout the pregnancy and birth.
In circumstances where all is well with Mum and Baby, whether Mum or Dad or another birth partner or the midwife cuts the baby's umbilical cord (or whether the cord is cut at all!) it is entirely the choice of the mum / dad / parents.
In fact, many fathers opt to be the one to cut the umbilical cord of their newborn to be as involved as possible in the birthing process.
Who can cut the cord? If you or your partner would like to help clamp and cut the umbilical cord, you should let your doctor know. If you have not specified your preference to the medical team, your doctor may ask if you would like to cut the cord. Your medical team will provide you with the necessary instructions.
During the operation
Whoever is in the operating room to support the mom, whether it be a dad, a family member or friend can be the person to cut the baby's umbilical cord when the baby is on the warmer. Also, we are able to delay cord clamping and milk the cord before clamping it.
What C Section Dads can do DURING the c section: Try and at least appear calm, even if inside you are absolutely bricking it! Your partner is the one who is going to go through the physical operation, and therefore the last thing she needs is to be worrying about you or be worrying about why you look so worried!!
Although you won't be able to see much because a sterile drape is placed between your partner's head and the rest of her body, the whole experience may make your head spin. “While rare, some dads still may get a little queasy—even when they can't see what's happening,” Lee said.
There are quite a few different reports on this one. One midwife shared around 95% of fathers who are offered the choice to cut the cord, do take it. The general consensus is that the majority of fathers will cut the umbilical cord when they can.
When the umbilical cord is not clamped and cut right after the baby is born, the baby gets more of their own blood back into their body. Getting extra blood may lower the chance of your baby having low iron levels at 4 to 6 months of life and may help your baby's health in other ways.
Delayed umbilical cord clamping appears to be beneficial for term and preterm infants. In term infants, delayed umbilical cord clamping increases hemoglobin levels at birth and improves iron stores in the first several months of life, which may have a favorable effect on developmental outcomes.
Cutting the cord, to some, is a dad's rite of passage, and it makes some dads feel closer to baby and like a bigger part of the birth experience. But if he doesn't want to do it, he shouldn't be pressured to. That won't make him any less of a dad, so support his decision either way.
After you give birth, doctors clamp and cut the cord. The cord has no nerves, so neither you nor your baby will feel anything. A small stump will be left on your child's belly. It can be anywhere from a half-inch to an inch long.
A lotus birth is the decision to leave your baby's umbilical cord attached after they are born. The umbilical cord remains attached to the placenta until it dries and falls off by itself. What are the risks of lotus birth? There are no research studies available on this topic.
Why should I consider saving my baby's cord blood? Cord blood contains blood-forming stem cells that, when transplanted, can rebuild the bone marrow and immune system and save the life of a patient with a serious blood disorder such as leukemia, lymphoma or sickle cell disease.
Children grow up fast, she said, so attaching memories “to something physical or tangible” — like an umbilical cord stump, perhaps — can help parents better remember and reconnect with the time when their children were young.
The first hour after birth when a mother has uninterrupted skin-to-skin contact with her newborn is referred to as the “golden hour.” This period of time is critical for a newborn baby who spent the past nine months in a controlled environment.
Do Hospitals Keep Placentas? Hospitals treat placentas as medical waste or biohazard material. The newborn placenta is placed in a biohazard bag for storage. Some hospitals keep the placenta for a period of time in case the need arises to send it to pathology for further analysis.
Most babies will start breathing or crying (or both) before the cord is clamped. However, some babies do not establish regular breathing during this time. After clamping the cord, most preterm babies are given some form of breathing support like continuous positive airway pressure (CPAP).
The World Health Organization recommends that the umbilical cord not be clamped earlier than 1 minute after birth in term or preterm newborns. The Royal College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists also recommends deferring umbilical cord clamping for healthy term and preterm infants for at least 2 minutes after birth.
This was as much habit as anything, but there was some data that babies that had delayed cord cutting might be at higher risks of bilirubin problems -- having a little jaundice after birth as a result of the extra blood. So until a couple years ago, it was habit to clamp and cut the cord right away.
"Some people even think that it is good luck to have a knot in the cord. In rare cases, however, a true knot can be associated with third trimester decreased fetal movement."
Fear of childbirth was the most common reason for cesarean birth preference, which was similar to previous studies [10,11,12,13, 15, 16]. Obstetricians should explore the fear, because fear of pain cannot be managed by cesarean section, which by itself will lead to pain afterwards.
There'll be many people in the operating theatre with you. You can usually have a support person. You can usually see and hold your baby straight after a caesarean.
"Do not complain or act bored (no yawning)," says Carole Arsenault, RN, IBCLC, and author of The Baby Nurse Bible. "I've heard many dads complain about a sore back because they've been standing next to their wives for so long." She adds that the labor experience is completely focused around the one giving birth.
During a c-section
You can usually stay with your partner during a planned or emergency c-section unless they need a general anaesthetic. The midwife or operating assistant will give you a top, trousers and hat to wear in the operating theatre. This is for hygiene reasons.