babies don't cry when born? - Page 2

[Greaseball]

It's too bad that if a baby doesn't cry in the hospital, it will get slapped and flicked and pinched to make it cry. Why don't they just look at it and watch it breathe?

[3_opihi]

It's a totally different cry in the hospital. I noticed its more of a high pitched shaky I'm in pain because I was just suctioned, taken away from my mommy, had bright lights in my eyes, then gooey stuff put in them so they couldn't see anymore, then a giant needle shot me in the leg, then some weird ladies poked me and pinched me and rubbed me down reall hard when my precious little skin has never felt a single sensation -Ever before. and I'm all sore because I just got pushed through a hole one third the size of my body and nobody is being gentle with me at all....I mean sheesh, as an adult would you let anyone do that to YOU?:

[theyogamama]

My first one cried a bit after he was delivered (via cesarean), but Dad was right with him, talking to him, and he calmed down. Then, when Dad brought him to me and he heard my voice, his head whipped around to see me! That calm, happy little face!

My second was born joyfully at home. He never cried. He just looked around, then stared/gazed right at me until they had to take him and cut the cord because I had lost quite a bit of blood and was about to pass out! I wasn't able to hold, much less nurse him for about 30 minutes. Then, they couldn't get him out of my arms!


Namaste,
Alex

[Ragana]

I wonder if part of this could be personality differences?

#1 screamed bloody murder and had a beet red face when she came out. #2 just looked around at everything. #1 is 3.5 yrs. now and is very active, energetic, and lively (as she was in the womb). #2 is going on one month old and sleeps a lot, is mellow, etc. (as she was in the womb also).

I had a planned hospital birth with #1 and a planned homebirth/unplanned transport to hospital with #2. With both I ended up with an epidural, pitocin, episiotomy. The main difference with #2 was being able to labor at home for 24 hrs., eat and drink, take showers, i.e. be in a relaxed atmosphere. My hospital experiences were not as severe as some described here - both babies were put on my chest right away, encouraged to breastfeed right away, etc.

[Ame]

MamaMaya took the words right outta my mouth -

My two hospital birthed babies cried something horrible.
My unassisted/home/waterbirthed baby didn't cry - she just rooted around for my breast and fed. She didn't cry until I put her down.

[Worldshakerz]

I am a new mommie and had my ds at a birthing center. He didnt cry at all when he came out. He was a tad gray. He was put on my tummy right away and pinked up on his own.Held him a few minutes, his eyes were wide and he was looking around at everything. I didnt nurse him right away, had to get stitches. After I nursed him, he was still very alert...for 2 hours after he was born, eyes were wide and attentive, and still no cries. But, he never cried until my mom laid him down when he was sleeping, when he woke up he gave a gentle little cry, kind of like "Hey, what's goin on?" but that was it.

[shay]

My 1st baby, hospital born cried and cried. But that is what the medical people wanted, to pink him up. LOL, well they did cut that cord immediatly, so can understand the breathing thing for God's sake!!!!!!!!!

My next 2 homebirth babies let a little whaaaa out. But I held them close and talked to them. They shut up and looked around and were not scared anymore, very beautiful. And of course, we had trust in nature and its way....no cutting that cord til later.

[RachelGS]

My birth-center baby didn't cry, either. She just snuggled up and went to sleep. (We had a long, very difficult labor and were both exhausted.) A while later she woke up and was in the quiet alert state for a while. It was lovely.

[LuvMy2Kidz]

Ds was a hospital birth and screamed DD was a homebirth and didn't make a sound. I also think it has something to do with the cord not being cut and they don't have to gasp for air.

[bizarrogirl]

My daughter (first and only) was a hospital birth. She had to have her cord cut right away so she could be moved and suctioned due to lots of meconium in my waters.

In any event, she did not cry from the time her head popped out til they brought her to me, and then not til thirty minutes later. She was awake, alert and checking things out, but was not upset in the least.

Dawn

[USAmma]

I've observed a few births and in my experience most babies are born peaceful and only cry when the cord is clamped and cut. I hope next time not to have the cord cut right away and will see if that makes a difference.

Darshani

[JesseMomme]

Hi Dawn, Welcome to MDC

I hope you don't mind me borrowing from your post to point out something:

She had to have her cord cut right away so she could be moved and suctioned due to lots of meconium in my waters.

First of all I wish our NY hospitals (or, any hospitals really) would get with the program. No baby has to have their cord cut right away. It is entirely possible to bring the Peds team over to the mom and work on the baby with the baby still attatched to the cord - cutting the cord is cutting a direct oxygen line, further compromising baby A baby can be suctioned while the cord is still pulsing. A baby can start breathing on their own while the cord is still attatched and eventually the blood flow will slow down and stop.

Viola, nature works, but thats just not effeciant enough for sOB's on time contraints.

I think one reason why some OB/Dr cuts the cord right away is because that makes mom and baby separate. Once the baby is separate, he/she falls under the responsibility of the Ped. If something happens to the baby god forbid, it would fall on the Ped, not the OB who probably caused the problem in the first place (and further exacerbated it by cutting the cord right away), If people were to go looking for fault anyway.

Some Drs still clamp and cut because they have outdated notions on the physiology of birth.

You gave birth in a teaching hospital too right? :

Here's an excellent website about cord clamping - Dangers of Early Cord Clamping.

Sorry to rant - cord clamping is a core issue for me

[hummingbear]

Homebirth and crying

OK I deliverd at home and he cried. I don't remember if it was for very long. Who can say why. I guess I believe that even when babies are born they bring a wealth of experience with them and maybe if they are crying they need to be crying.

Good Luck

[delilahdr]

My Virginia was born at home and was screaming before she got all the way out. Indignity that I had held back from pushing for 15 minutes when she wanted OUT, I think. Within 1-2 minutes, long before the cord was cut, she was happily snuggled up to me and found her thumb, no more crying. And she is my absolute most peaceful, quiet, content baby out of my three!

My Vanessa was born in hospital with immediate cord clamping/cutting of course, I had an epidural for the last 3 hours (and swore never again- hospital OR epidural) but she only cried when she was away from me on the table being "done stuff to" before I even got to hold her. Grrr. When I started talking to her, from across the room, she calmed down immediately. She was definitely my most challenging baby- nursing got off to a ROUGH start (and it was really, really hard for about a month), she rarely slept and didn't sleep through the night until she was over a year old, etc.

My Isaac was born in a free standing birth center, and he didn't cry at all- and his cord was cut out from around his neck so I could get him out, it was around twice and too tightly to slip off. He was definitely my quietest baby at birth, but I would have been happy to have heard a cry or two out of him, because he took a bit to be pink and happy. He was breathing but very wet (to me- I'm no professional and no one else seemed concerned) and had to be suctioned twice. In fact, I think the midwife gave him a bit of oxygen after he'd been born for maybe 10 minutes and was still not as pink as she liked. However... he is now a bright and active 3 year old, so I don't know that there was a definite correllation. Certainly he had a better start, environment-wise, than my first daughter, but not sure if it really helped him so much.

Virginia's birth was beautiful and super and the outcome was too- wish now I had done them all at home!!

Delilah

[MysticHealerMom]

read Childbirth Without Violence by Leboyer. He talks at length about how babies don't need to cry when they're born. he was responsible for the low lighting movement in the 70's.

in my case, my little guy screamed, but since he was early and they were worried about lung development, it was probably a 'good thing'. esp since we went to the hopsital instead of getting to birth at home.

babies don't need to cry when they're born, they just need to breathe, and you can do that without crying.

[bizarrogirl]

Originally posted by JesseMomme
Some Drs still clamp and cut because they have outdated notions on the physiology of birth.

You gave birth in a teaching hospital too right? :

Here's an excellent website about cord clamping - Dangers of Early Cord Clamping.

Sorry to rant - cord clamping is a core issue for me

I actually had put in my birth plan that I wanted them to wait for the cord to stop pulsing before it was clamped and cut, having read the above url before, actually. When I reviewed my birth plan with my OB, she said she did not recommend it because she said there was a chance of blood flowing OUT of the baby back to the placenta, and it also could increase the risk of jaundice.

I'm not saying she's RIGHT, only that I didn't have the expertise to contradict her one way or the other, so I let it go.

Yeah, it was a teaching hospital - whee.



Dawn

[maiaminna]

Both my daughters were born at home -
Tara didn't cry - she cooed, like you might expect a 4 month old to do. Chloe was 10 lbs and born very hungry, she kind of yelled, and then nursed very enthusiastically.
Neither one screamed like the babies on TV do!
maiaminna
mama to Tara, 3, and Chloe, 16 months

[Plady]

My dd giggled a moment but she didn't cry for a long time (maybe 24 hours or more? I don't remember but it was really peaceful.)

[Alstrameria]

Dd didn't cry, she was alert and looking around. The sun was just coming up and the windows wide open so she was bathed in a beautiful golden light. She rested on my chest and wasn't clamped right away, was not suctioned, poked or prodded to cry.

She was born in our hospital, but I think things might be different up here, because my experience was nothing like the horror show some of you describe! If it was I wouldn't have been there, I can tell you that.

Jen

[annakiss]

Well I guess I'll be the first to really waver here... My DS SCREAMED for the first hour he was alive and he was born at home. I don't have nay explanation as to why, but in the photo of him crowning, he's got what looks like a knot on his head, I'm assuming from grinding it against my tailbone for ten hours. He was born with a cleft lip and palate and could not get much nursing, so he could have been hungry, I guess.