“Your vagina and stomach are in a world of pain. More often than not, there’s been a cut somewhere. You struggle to get comfortable in that hard hospital bed. You can barely sit, stand, lie down, or walk. A picture really is worth 1,000 words. This is me, roughly 24 hours after giving birth. I have no idea who took the picture, but you can tell how I feel just by looking at it.”
‘It’ll just be a quick visit!’ It’s not your right to visit a new baby, it’s a privilege.’: New mom urges us to give women space post-birth, ‘labor is the most painful, mind-blowing experience’
‘Get my makeup bag!’ I was almost fully dilated. My husband looked back, confused.’: Woman shamed for giving birth in ‘full glam makeup,’ claims ‘it’s your labor, do what makes you happy’
“The epidural was making me faint and blackout. ‘Bring her back!’ The nurses kept rushing in to put an oxygen mask on my face. I wanted to yell, cry. I couldn’t focus. ‘What can I do to pass the time?!’ My husband rushed back with my makeup bag. I started concealing away! When I posted my labor pictures, I was met with, ‘She’s so vain.’ ‘She doesn’t deserve to be a mother.’ Through all the pushing, sweat, and tears, my makeup stayed in place.”
‘Rebecca’s at the hospital in labor!’ Please don’t think it’s okay to announce my baby before I do.’: Mom urges us to ‘respect boundaries,’ refrain from ‘breaking baby announcement protocol’
“Why in the world would someone I barely know think it’s appropriate to announce the birth of my child? So much for privacy! The sting of not being the one to announce a pregnancy, gender reveal, or birth sticks with us. Postpartum hormones are strong and unpredictable! Something like this can really set them off. Bottom line: If it’s not your baby, don’t say a word. There are absolutely no exceptions. None. Ever.”
‘I’m so sorry.’ We’d lost the baby. I felt devastated for our surrogate.’: Gay dad feels ‘shattered’ after losing baby through surrogate miscarriage, insists he’s still ‘incredibly lucky ‘with family of 3
“We were flying back with our baby 5 days after she was born. We boarded early, and passed a number of men wearing hunting gear, whom I thought may have a problem with our family. But as we sat in our seats, wiping down all the surfaces and trying not to freak out, 2 of the guys in hunting gear came up to us and said, ‘Congratulations, you 3 make such a beautiful family.’ It was an important reminder.”
‘We should buy a test.’ ‘For what? I have an IUD. There’s no way!’’: 19-year-old mom has surprise pregnancy on the pill, second baby with IUD, ‘I can’t imagine my life any other way’
“WHAT!! How?? I had an alarm on my phone reminding me to take my pill every single day! She insisted I test anyway…sure enough, it was positive. ‘This isn’t a baby yet. You have options.’ Once I saw the baby on the ultrasound, I knew my only option was to give our child a chance at life. I knew God had a plan for me.”
‘The OB dropped my newborn. ‘It’s OK, you’re young. You’ll have more.’: Mom appalled by preemie’s treatment in child birth, hopes other child loss parents ‘never feel alone’
“Before I left, I turned back. I could see the heartbreak on my dad’s face. I was yelling bloody murder through the halls. They put my legs up. All I remember were bright lights and hearing, ‘Push! Keep pushing! He’s almost out!’ They failed to catch him. I finally got a call from my OB. She said her condolences. ‘I’m so sorry, I never predicted this.’”
‘Are you ready to hold your baby?’ She takes a deep breath, sits up as straight as she can. We’re very careful.’: Child loss photographer reminds grieving parents ‘this little life mattered’
“The room is still, almost silent. I meet their beautiful baby, I hold their baby, talk to their baby. All while taking a mental assessment of how much posing I can do. I ask who he got his beautiful wavy hair from, or his button nose or long toes. I talk, but not too much to overwhelm anyone. I work gently, efficiently. I capture every single detail. No one wants this. Their child existed. Their child was so loved, and so wanted.”
‘When can I see the baby?’ New moms hear over and over, before she’s even left the hospital.’: Mom reminds us to ‘nurture the mother’ post-delivery
“Before she’s had a chance to sleep. Before she’s showered off the blood. ‘When can I come see the baby?’ Her estrogen and progesterone levels are plummeting. She’s shaky. Hot, cold, sweaty, and weak. Her crotch is swollen, puffy. She has stretch marks, hair loss, acne, blurry vision, and dry eyes. When you walk into her house, look at HER. Admire the baby, sure. But don’t forget to nurture the mother.”
‘Why did you cut her?! She didn’t give you permission to do that.’ My blood boiled. He just stared, his face blank.’: Doctor performs episiotomy on mother without her permission during childbirth because he had ‘somewhere to be at 7 p.m.’
“Snnniiipppp. My doctor used scissors to cut me open ‘down there’ to make it easier to push the baby out. ‘What did you do?!’ I asked the male, 50-year-old doctor, with fear in my voice. Even the nurses paused. Just 30 minutes before, my doctor told me, ‘I have somewhere to be at 7 o’ clock, so you better be able to push this baby out soon.’ My husband’s rage was rising. I squeezed his hand. ‘We can’t do this now.’”
‘Your boyfriend has to deliver the baby.’ I was squatted on a bathroom floor, 20, convinced I was going to die.’: Woman delivers baby on bathroom floor after ‘grumpy midwife’ tells her to ‘go home’
“The contractions were progressing extremely quickly, but the midwife seemed grumpy and fed up. She didn’t believe me. ‘Go home. This could go on for days.’ Days?! I couldn’t cope with another hour of the pain! As soon as we pulled into our driveway, I ran to the bathroom. ‘Call an ambulance!’ I yelled at my confused boyfriend. ‘My body is pushing. I can’t stop it!’ I’d only known him 3 months before we got pregnant.”
