Using a mirror during delivery
I prepared for childbirth like most moms. My husband and I attended a series of child birthing classes and created a birthing plan. I had incredibly fast labors with both of my children. During my first delivery, my epidural made my whole bottom half incredibly numb (just like it’s supposed to) which made it hard to push. My nurse asked me if I wanted to use the mirror so I could see the muscles contracting and I could know how to push effectively. Well, I wasn’t planning on keeping the mirror there for very long, but Darah came very quickly and there wasn’t time to tell the nurse to get the mirror out of the way. I watched her delivery and it was incredible! I was so glad the mirror was there! It was so amazing to see her little body enter the world for the first time. I will never forget that moment. It was perfection!
Fast forward two years and three months later. I found myself again in the delivery room, dilated to 10cm, and ready to PUSH! I specifically asked the nurse for the mirror this time because I wanted to have that magical moment of watching my second child’s delivery. Well, this one didn’t just slide right out like my first. I know this isn’t record breaking, but compared to the time it took to push my daughter out (less than 10 minutes), 45 minutes felt like an eternity! I was getting nervous because he wasn’t coming out very quickly and was very irritable. The mirror was getting on my nerves. I didn’t remember that it was a magnified mirror before and my butt was huge! This was not nearly as romantic as using the mirror with my daughter’s delivery, but I felt committed. Second children always get the short end of the stick, and I didn’t want to start short-changing things for my second child in the delivery room!
So, the mirror stayed and I (and everyone else in the room) stared at my butt in a 10x magnified miror for 45 minutes. The saddest part is my eyes were closed during his delivery and I missed it anyway. We later found out why he had such a hard time arriving…he was 10 pounds! The second he was born, I completely forgot the mirror was there and gazed at my perfect little boy. I then looked back down and saw the crazy long umbilical cord (I had no idea how long that thing was!) and saw the doctor going to town with a needle and a thread on my poor body…all magnified in that blasted mirror! I told the nurse to move the mirror and went back to heaven in my arms.
If we have another baby, I will most definitely use the mirror again. The only thing I’ll change is it will not be pointed to my butt until the baby is crowning!
I’m not even going to ask a question to start some conversation…I am hoping some fun discussions sprout on their own from this brave honesty of mine!
Share the fun: Email + Del.icio.us + Digg + Technorati
Oh wow….this would have been perfect if you shared your story on my blog, I’m having birth story week! Oh well, anyway, I never even thought of this….just imagining it is amazing, maybe when I have my second I’ll do that. I don’t know why but I feel compelled to admit I have a picture of my placenta
lol (isn’t that thing huge?)
I would never ever ever ever do this. Not just because of the “my butt is huge” situation but because I am easily queasy. I can’t and won’t watch birthing videos or see one live. I didn’t watch my c-section operations either time. And for weeks after both deliveries, I couldn’t even look at my own scar in the mirror at home.
All that said (with mucho emphasis!!), I applaud you for sharing this story here at The Mom Crowd, McKenna. You rock!!
I read this post, then a comment Sharon M wrote about “My kid said WHAT?” last week. Gives a whole new meaning to the “big butt” conversation.
ps. My last comment of the night, promise!
Omigosh, nooooo thank you! I tore and had an episiotomy (stitch up without drugs, they couldn’t FIND the anethesiologist?! BAH!)…I didn’t even want to THINK too much about what was going on ‘down there’ let alone SEE it :\
You’re definitely a brave woman!
wow, I don’t think I could have a mirror down there! I didn’t want to watch really, although somehow I bent myself so I could watch my second daughter come out, it might have been a little more gross magnified lol.
Ack!! No thank you!!! haha!
I didn’t want to see anything that was going on. At one point my doc said, “reach down and feel your baby!” as she was crowning and I said, “No!! I don’t want to get my hands dirty!” Haha! That pretty much sums it up for me. I don’t do well with mess and ick.
I wish I could do this, but like others, I am so queasy, I can’t even get my blood drawn without smelling salts.
I am so excited to do this with my second when the time comes. To think I never even thought of it. Thanks McKenna!!
I had a mirror with Ewan’s birth and I remember looking at it while I was pushing him out. I kept thinking, “how in the WORLD is a baby going to come out of THAT small hole!!!???” It felt a little discouraging at the time and I had my eyes closed while I was pushing so I missed him actually coming out.
When I had Isaac the midwife reminded me to watch him turn as he came out and it was awesome. I can’t remember if a mirror was there or not because it all happened so quickly. But I didn’t need it because I saw him come out. It was the highlight of his birth for me.
I couldn’t see Graham come out because I was on my hands and knees but I wish I could have seen it. I love that stuff though.
I had a mirror for Josh and Xavier. I could not see Josh being born due to the position of the mirror at the time. It had gotten moved somehow during the birth. But for Xavier I had the mirror and loved it. It was amazing to see his head. It just amazes me how awesome we are to be able to have a living person inside of us and bring them into this earth. WOW
With Jayden I didn’t have a mirror but my husband did tape the birth and that was the first time I could go back and rewatch our son being born.
I loved the mirror, but then again I think child birth is a beautiful thing.
Thanks for sharing Mckenna.
i didn’t think to ask for a mirror. i had the next best thing: a husband standing with a video camera giving me the blow by blow.
I love the different responses! I know our readers too well…I knew we’d get some pretty strong “ewwww” responses! LOL!
I do not get queasy very easily. I actually got to be a birthing partner for my friend’s c-section and I watched the whole thing after the incision and loved it! Although, I don’t think I could watch a c-section if it was my own body. I just love child birth and think it’s the most amazing thing ever! We weren’t allowed to use video cameras in the delivery room, but I so would have had it recorded if it was allowed! I could then use the video as birth control with my rebellious teenagers by making them watch it! *kidding!
A year later I can’t even begin to look at the birthing video of my last son. I can’t imagine having a mirror down there. I don’t think I could ever look at my lady parts in the same manner if I saw all of that somethings I am just better off not knowing what goes on.