cord cutting...

[junglefamily]

Could someone please tell me how to cut the cord...in detail? we're probably going to have a lotus birth...but i want to know anyway... i can't seem to find enough detail..

[chiro_kristin]

:

[Sagesgirl]

Someone will probably come along & explain this better than I, but this is my understanding of the procedure.

First, you want to wait, ideally, until the placenta is birthed & the cord is white & floppy, so you ensure your baby has everything she needs from the placenta. Then you clamp or tie (I vote tie; I'm going to crochet something special, but I have heard of everything from braided embroidery floss to a clean shoelace being used) the cord a short way from the navel, and cut through it with a pair of clean scissors.

I know the usual medical form is to clamp near the baby, then clamp a second time about an inch from that, & then cut in between the two clamps. But the usual medical form also doesn't account for waiting until the umbilicus has finished its job. If you wait til the cord is all done, you should only need the one tie near the baby.

If you feel energetic enough, you can do a search in this forum on cord-cutting; I know there was an excellent thread some time ago. There is also a section on it in the Midwife Archives on Gentlebirth.org that you can read here: http://www.gentlebirth.org/archives/cordIssues.html It is somewhat difficult reading, as it is the archives of a message board similar to this one, but that site is one of my main ones for birth info (If you go to the main page of the archives, there is a wealth of info on various subjects relating to labor, birth, & postpartum care.). It can get technical at times, but is fascinating to me.

[junglefamily]

how close?

thanks a million...i always forget i can search the forums...i'm kind of knew as you can see!! I'm going to look some more...but how close do you clamp it to the baby?

[chiro_kristin]

here's an excellent thread

[yvonnemlv]

Originally Posted by junglefamily

thanks a million...i always forget i can search the forums...i'm kind of knew as you can see!! I'm going to look some more...but how close do you clamp it to the baby?

Some people do it one inch from baby, others up to 5 inches away (the few I've read doing this, do it so that if it keeps bleeding they can tie it tighter further down and cut again... or to use as a keepsake in a babybook)

[Persephone]

Why would you need to tie the cord if the placenta is out and it's white and floppy and not pulsating anymore? Is there still danger that the baby will bleed out of it?

[yvonnemlv]

Originally Posted by Persephone

Why would you need to tie the cord if the placenta is out and it's white and floppy and not pulsating anymore? Is there still danger that the baby will bleed out of it?

I don't think it is danger of bleed out that people worry about so much as sometimes the cord can drip blood for awhile and get on shtuff, like your couch, or clothes, etc. Although if you wait long enough (one woman waited about 10 hours or so) to cut, then tying or clamping is probably unnecessary. So I guess it is just what you are comfortable with and want to do.

I hope to do this babe Lotus style.

[Sagesgirl]

I have read that tying off the cord is unnecessary when you wait til the cord is completely white and floppy, but I'm personally going to do it anyway; I'm too paranoid not to.