How to cut/clamp/tie the umbilical cord?

[Amila]

We aren't planning a UC, but just want to be prepared in case it were to happen, as our midwife lives kind of far away. We have two plastic cord clamps and some cord tape...but beyond that I would have no clue what to do.

We obviously want to birth the placenta before any clamping or cutting, but is there any danger with NOT cutting it for quite a while? And what about tying?

Any advice welcome!

[sunnymw]

You don't have to cut it at all, nope... some people have lotus births, where they leave the placenta attached to baby w/o clamping or cutting until it falls of by itself--4-10days?

If you DO want to though, you can use the clamps or the ties as long as they are sterile, and cut w/ sterile scissors. Just make sure it's done pulsating first--totally limp and white--otherwise it could get quite messy.

[7SacredMama]

My Cord Burning..

At my son's water birth we left the placenta and cord compleate until the next day(lotus birth) when my sweet midwife helped separate my son from his "first mother" with two burning candles.The cord popped and sizzeled with a magical kind of energy! It also starilized the cord, wich we left a few inches long(it dried up and fell of clean within a few days!) My midwife then took my placenta and encapsulated it for me to take as medicine! I was spared the baby blues by my precious placenta, I still have a good portion of it in my freezer! don't waste it!

[Kidzaplenty]

No problem waiting until placenta has delivered. And like PP said, you don't even have to cut the cord. But if you want to, and wait until the placenta has delivered, just clamp it, tie it with string and cut it. IF you cut it before the placenta has delivered, put two clamps or ties on the cord and cut in the middle of them (so both ends are clamped).

[daughteroftruth]

If your midwife is absent, just wait till she arrives. I would recomend leaving it on for at least a few hours. Give the baby as much time to absorb all that the placenta has to give.

If you have to cut, then tie about 1.5inchs above the baby's belly button, and then tie off the other end, then clamp ( I really prefered ties with my kids. My second son had the clamp and it has to be cut off after it dries enough. The hopstial forgot to do this, and then it was really hard to cut. My son ended up with a herniated belly button from it. It took about a year to close up). I really prefer the umbilical tape it so much easier.

[logcabinmomma]

We wait 2-3 hours after the placenta delivers to cut the cord. By then it's white and has little beads of clots in it and you don't have to tie it off. No worries. I always get so mad at those stupid "emergency childbirth" shows where they freak about cutting the cord.

-Kristi

[elfinbaby]

I just go to do this! We waited over an hr. to cut. Then we just tied it w/3 strands of sock yarn I had braided. We sterilized the tie and scissors in boiling water. That was it!

[accountclosed3]

i like that candle idea. that's cool.

i'm planning to lotus, but am also considering cutting. we'll see how i feel when the time comes.

[mamabadger]

If you wait a couple of hours after the placenta comes, you don't even have to clamp or tie it, just cut. The birth centre where I volunteered almost never clamped the cord. They just wrapped the placenta in a plastic bag, and once the blood flow through the cord had stopped and the cord vessels "gelled," which takes at least an hour, they just cut it.

[A_Random_Phrase]

Awesome comments! I'd never heard of burning the cord. And just cutting it after a while - well, I like that idea. Another thread I was reading a while back mentioned just cutting it but there weren't too many posting who had done that. Cats and dogs don't tie. They chew. 'Course, we're not cats and dogs but all of us have placentas, cords, and uteri.

[majikfaerie]

never heard of burning before... interesting
yep. no need to cut or clamp.
heck, you can just chew through it if you're feeling primal

[mhaddon]

I've read about shoelaces, but I just don't know about that... What about wool yarn? I have a ton of wool yarn and would feel more comfy using it rather than shoe strings. How tight do you tie it? Of course I'd wait for it to turn white

[majikfaerie]

to tie strings (any kind) you can do a really simple knot - the basic right over left and then tucked under, pull it tight and then repeat, but make sure you do it in reverse the second time, or the knot will slip. very easy and you can use any string you like, as long as it's somewhat sterile. if the cord is fully stopped pulsing, I wouldn't even worry too much about that. dental floss works fine.

[Devaskyla]

We used boiled shoelaces & boiled scissors with ds. I think we left it about half an hour or a bit more before we tied it off & cut it. The cord was really long & the placenta took awhile to come out, so we actually ended up tying & cutting it again higher up so that I could walk without having to choose between holding it up or having it hit my ankles every step.