[lovingmommyhood]

So.

The hospital I'm delivering at is 90 miles from our house...there is one closer but it is a horrible hospital and I have already had to report them several times and their gross neglect almost caused me to lose DD at 14 weeks pregnant...just, no...unless there is a TRUE, life threatening emergency I can't go there...

That being said.

This will be baby number four for me and my labors have gotten shorter with the last one coming in at 2 hours. I plan on leaving home as SOON as I start getting any sort of contractions, I won't wait for them to be very timeable because with DS2 I barely felt like I was in labor and thought my contractions had stopped when I got to the hospital and I was dilated to six...so I just have to be cautious and could possibly end up taking needless trips to that town, but oh well.

My question is...what should I have in the car in case the baby comes enroute? Towels? Blankets? Nasal aspirator? Am I crazy? The hospital I HATE is 20 minutes away and this is the only other option, the one I go to now and went to with DS1 there are no other options as we live in the boonies.

Any advice would be incredibly helpful as to what I should bring just in case the baby makes a very fast appearance.

 

[Beckily]

http://www.bellytales.com/2005/05/12/emergency-car-birth-kit/

This sounds reasonable

I just googled "emergency birth kit for car" and there are several links

 

[kristandthekids]

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[SouthernStormy]

Here is a pretty good emergency birth kit from one of blogs I like to read "Stand and Deliver"
http://rixarixa.blogspot.com/2007/04/whats-in-your-emergency-birth-kit.html

 

[lovingmommyhood]

Quote:

Originally Posted by kristandthekids

Seriously?

If I'm giving birth in a car the last thing I'm going to be thinking of is "oh, no! not my good panties! you know, I'm kinda hungry..."
Towels and life saving things I can see. My cell phone will take care of the rest. I assume everything else I assume will be on the ambulance that is coming to get my butt because I'm giving birth on the toll!

I thought the same thing...I'm thinking it will mostly be like this... Me: "OMG the baby is crowning, drive faster, drive faster!!!!!" kneel on seat and catch baby if crossing legs doesn't work (

) all the while DH is on the phone with 9-1-1 telling them where we are. I'm mildly concerned about my placenta as they have had to be manually extracted with all of my children and with my last birth I lost quite a bit of blood at the end, so that would be my biggest concern. I've never had a problem pushing the baby out, has always been 5-10 minutes MAX...so I am pretty confident that way but it's the after part that makes me a bit nervy.

I truly don't want to get my seats messy though because even if water spills on them, they stain so I'm thinking the plastic is perfect. I also didn't consider a baby hat.

 

[lovingmommyhood]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Beckily

http://www.bellytales.com/2005/05/12/emergency-car-birth-kit/

This sounds reasonable

I just googled "emergency birth kit for car" and there are several links

Quote:

Originally Posted by SouthernStormy

Here is a pretty good emergency birth kit from one of blogs I like to read "Stand and Deliver"
http://rixarixa.blogspot.com/2007/04/whats-in-your-emergency-birth-kit.html

Thank you both! Definitely some things I didn't think of!

Maybe I'll put something like this in a bag: (My other problem is I don't have endless room to haul stuff around ICE)

4 packs sterile gauze pads (useful for misc. cleanup/wiping)

blankets
towels
bulb syringe
large trash bags
baby hat

I don't need to worry about cutting the cord, correct?

DH and I both have reliable cell phones and I assume that 9-1-1 could walk us through most things...Am I being naive?

 

[Peony]

Correct abut the cord, no need to worry about cutting it in the car! That can be taken care of later. The supply list looks good to me, I don't use more then that (well scissors for the cord eventually) for my births at my house.

 

[Emerging butterfly]

No...if baby is coming that fast you have very little to worry about except bleeding afterwards in all honesty. have a warm soft blanket, some towels, water, a nasal aspirator which you likely will not need unless you need to help baby out a bit...and learn infant CPR just in case. If you birth in the car, just pause, do it, and then continue to the hospital...you will also likely birth the placenta, so have a container for that as well...and do not cut the cord. It will be fine.....and what a fun story for your little one! have you considered home birth, under the circumstances???

 

[Beckily]

Yeah, I meant to say - don't cut the cord! No reason to and sounds stressful

 

[jillybeans]

Hmm. I should get a kit ready too.

Sounds exactly like me...the closest hospital is an absolutely life-threatening emergency-only but not other than that resort. I hate them. We barely made it to the hospital we are delivering at again with dd3.

My biggest concern isn't delivering in the car...I've had homebirths, I know the basics. My biggest fear is delivering EARLY in the car...which is a reality I'm facing. So if I'm before 36 weeks and it looks like we won't make it...I'm calling an ambulance. But after 36 weeks, then we'll wing it!

 

[kristandthekids]

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[Beckily]

Quote:

Originally Posted by kristandthekids

psh... it'll be fine in the cup holder.

Oh man.

Blech Quite the cleanup. And can you imagine trying to wad it up to fit?

 

[HawaiianBlesing]

If you have to birth in the car, the 9-1-1 dispatcher will walk you through it step by step. They have cards that they read off of step by step. They will have you pull over and wait for the ambulance. Us medics don't like to try and find moving targets. Their protocol will most likely tell you to clamp the cord and cut it....just skip that step till they get there.

Biggest thing is to get baby dry and keep him/her warm, and keep the airway clear. Might need to turn off AC in the car if you were using it. I agree with one of the PP....learn infant CPR if you don't already know it. Just in case.

Good luck and hoping you make it to the hospital so you can avoid all the "hassle"

 

[happylemon]

I would have some chux pads to put on top of the trash bags, sitting on plastic with a wet bum would not be comfy and the chux will absorb some hopefully leaving less to drip on the seat or floor. You can also just wrap the placenta up in the blanket with the baby and not even worry about anything to put it in.

 

[Greenlea]

My sister had a car birth 2 mths ago. Her water broke in the car and she bled a lot. Her car was a total mess. Luckily they were only 5 minutes from the hospital so she delieverd the placenta at the hospital.

So if you are truly worried about having the baby in the car, I would cover the backseat with a tarp / garbage bag / other plastic lining and have a lot of towels. Have a large towel or blanket to cover baby in too.

 

[Emerging butterfly]

Quote:

Originally Posted by kristandthekids

psh... it'll be fine in the cup holder.

BWAH HA HA HA HA .....eeeeeewww.....I'm afraid that might not be an option in MY car....my cup holders are....uh...full....of stuff. I want to encapsulate it as well, so, I kinda want to keep it clean. heh heh.....oh just soooo gross.

 

[jillybeans]

oh man...the 911 dispatcher! One of my best friends is one of our regions dispatchers...that would be CRAZY to have her working when I called in!

 

[mareseatoats]

It seems like pretty much everything else has been covered, but I just wanted to say that in an emergency situation (hemorrhage) consuming a piece of the placenta could save your life.

I know! I know. But read more info here http://www.mothering.com/community/forum/thread/439743/risk-of-hemorrhage. I think it's pretty amazing. It makes so much sense.

 

[lovingmommyhood]

Thank you, everybody! I really hope it's unnecessary just because, well, that seems like a PITA to deliver in the car. I will if I have to though! EB- Homebirth is not something I'm comfortable with because of my prior issues and the fact that the only option for transfer is 90 minutes away.

Placenta in the cup holders! I'm thinking maybe just the glove box?

We have a mini van and it will be car seat less at that point, except for the new baby's so...should be plenty of room between all of the seats if the need arises. Perhaps I'll put the plastic under the seat back there for quick access, along with the towels.

Thank you!!

 

[kristandthekids]

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