Expecting Birth
The average newborn human at full-term gestation weighs 3.55kg and measures 51cm in length.
After a vaginal birth without intervention, the newborn takes their first breath and will continue to breath automatically for an average of 79 years!
Babies who have not been exposed to pain relief or other drugs in the maternal bloodstream will respond to being placed uninterrupted against their mothers body with progression through a series of predictable behaviours to bring them to her breast and initiate the first feed. A natural third stage allows the uterus to respond to the oxytocin released in response to her baby’s contact and expel the placenta, at which point the umbilical cord can allow the infant’s blood return to the baby before the cord is cut and the child begins life outside the womb.
And so mammals have reproduced for millennia.
However, the best laid birth plans don’t always go to plan. Many mothers and babies have a different experience. Inductions of labour, interventions such as ventouse delivery or the use of forceps, surgical birth via caesarean … the modern childbirth experience can look very different.
These interventions can delay a smooth transition from the 3rd to 4th trimester but there are many ways you can get back on track.
Caesarean Birth
While a routine procedure for obstetricians, anaesthetists and the theatre staff who support them, the birth of a child may only happen once or twice for parents in the modern world. Thankfully this is now recognised and non-urgent practices like separating mother and baby are being phased out. If you are planning for a surgical delivery, you can still discuss your preferences with your medical team, including skin-to-skin and an uninterrupted first hour. For those who have an unplanned caesarean, if mother and baby are both well and stable, separation should still be limited.
Premature Babies
When babies are born too soon, it is not always possible to recreate the womb-like experience in the immediate postnatal period, however practices have evolved in recent years to do so as much as possible. Kangaroo Care is probably the best-known of these. Breastmilk feeding with lots of skin-to-skin contact as soon as baby is stable, darkened cocoon-like spaces within incubators and quieter NICU wards are all possibilities unthought of even 25 years ago.
Birth complications
From inductions to restricted mobility in labour, to distressed babies and instruments used in delivery, both mother and baby can need additional care soon after the birth. Connecting the mother/baby dyad may be delayed for minutes or hours. Healing the physical and emotional trauma of complicated childbirth can be enhanced by the gentle practices we associate with the 4th trimester.
