Micro-Preemie Birth Story: Keeping the Cord Uncut Saved Them

“My micropreemie twins (born at 1 lb, 3 oz and 1 lb, 7 oz) were not born at the hospital.

At 25 weeks gestation, I started to have some cramping in the middle of the night. I took a hot bath and the cramps subsided. I drank tons of water and laid in bed. When I felt a little more cramping, I took another hot bath and they subsided again. I really thought I was fine, nothing to see here. I’ve gone past (even WAY past) my due dates with all my other babies!

Fast forward to early morning and I realized that I needed to get to a hospital NOW.

But it was too late. I felt the urge to push. I reached down and felt… a baby’s head.

I rushed downstairs to load up in the van (I had already woke up hubby and he was getting us out the door). But it was too late.

I went to the downstairs bathroom and instinctively reached down to catch a baby. I put this baby on my right quadricep and reached for another baby with my left hand. I put the second baby on my left quadricep – mimicking the best “skin on skin” or Kangaroo care I could give at the moment with the short cords.

Right there in my bathroom. Two teeny babies were born. I yelled for hubby to get in there and he was already on the phone with a 911 dispatcher. Baby B was still in the sac. I had given birth 4 times before this, three of those times being healthy, full-term homebirths. I knew we needed to rupture the sac so hubby did this in about two seconds. Both 25 week babies were breathing on their own! Baby A was making tiny, little noises.

Soon Baby B started to turn blue though, we thought we were losing her/him. We didn’t know if he/she would make it, if either of them would make it. Hubby takes CPR classes every year at work so he knew exactly what to do.

Hubby gave breaths until the paramedics arrived. What a sight those men saw! The paramedics didn’t act panicked but they obviously had no clue what to do.

I yelled at them to give my babies oxygen!!

This next decision saved their lives! THIS is why I’m sharing my story!! The paramedics wanted to cut the babies’ umbilical cords so that they could get us to the hospital easier.

They didn’t know they were dealing with an experienced home-birth Mama!! NO WAY was I letting them cut my babies’ cords!! I don’t even cut my 40-week cords right after birth! And those babies were full-term! The nourishment and stem cells and oxygen that my babies were getting from their cords was their only hope!

The paramedics kept insisting and arguing that we get the cords cut. I replied, “I am NOT cutting these cords, get me on the stretcher and get us to the hospital NOW.” I think they possibly assumed that the babies wouldn’t make it and only mother needed care. I didn’t need any medical attention whatsoever. I just wanted my babies helped!

On the 5 minute drive to the hospital, they still kept pressuring me to cut the cords! I changed the subject… “Can you look and tell me if I have boys or girls or one of each? That poor paramedic having to lift a leg the size of his pinky. He announced the first one… girl. He checked the second one… girl! My heart was melted! Even in a scary situation, I remained calm. Because of Jesus within me!

The key miracle in this story: We made it to the hospital with cords still attached!

With babies still alive!

Both got to keep their cord attached for 20 minutes! Thus saving their lives!

Later that day and for months to come, the neonatologist and NICU staff went on and on and ON about how leaving the cords attached absolutely saved Hannah and Haley’s lives!!!

The neonatologist that was there that day had even published a paper about Delayed Cord Clamping!

More hospitals are now waiting 3 minutes before clamping and cutting cords.

2 minutes.

Source: Jessica Rojas

4 Reasons to Consider Delayed Cord Clamping (University of Missouri)

Delayed cord clamping means that doctors don’t immediately clamp and cut the umbilical cord. Instead, they allow extra time for the blood in the cord and placenta to flow to the baby. Eventually, the placenta, also known as afterbirth, detaches from the uterus and is also delivered. The baby then receives oxygen through his or her lungs and nutrition from the mother’s milk.

“Until recently, hospitals immediately clamped and cut the umbilical cord after delivery of the baby,” Barnes says. “By delaying the clamping of the cord, more blood travels from the cord and placenta to the baby.”

Delayed cord clamping is now standard practice at MU Health Care for most births.

Here’s why:

1. It decreases the risk of anemia

“For full-term babies, delayed cord clamping increases the baby’s blood volume and iron stores,” Barnes says. “Because iron is poorly transferred into breast milk, this extra iron helps prevent anemia.”

Anemia is a condition characterized by low red blood cell volume. Increased red blood cell count can lead to better development as the baby grows.

2. The benefits are even greater for preterm babies

Babies born prematurely are at risk for serious health problems, and an extra boost of healthy blood from the umbilical cord can help lower that risk.

According to Barnes, delayed cord clamping in preterm babies has been shown to decrease the number of needed blood transfusions and reduce the risk of necrotizing enterocolitis (a severe complication involving the intestines of a preterm baby) and interventricular hemorrhage (a bleed in the baby’s brain that can cause lifelong neurologic problems).

3. It can be performed with a C-section

Because cord clamping can take place after the placenta has been removed from the mother’s uterus, there is no added risk to the mother or child to delay cord clamping after a cesarean birth.

“Since the operating rooms are often quite chilly, special attention needs to be paid to ensure that the babies stay warm,” Barnes says.

4. It’s a very safe procedure

There are very few risks associated with delayed cord clamping for healthy mothers and babies.

“The main risk to delayed cord clamping is that the increased blood volume may result in temporary jaundice,” Barnes says. “Because all babies are monitored for jaundice, this is a minor complication that we would be able to detect.”

Treatment for jaundice involves placing the baby under a light that helps break down excess bilirubin in the blood.

The American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists now recommends a delay in umbilical cord clamping.

“As you do not know the path of the wind, or how the body is formed in a mother’s womb, so you cannot understand the work of God, the Maker of all things.” ~Ecclesiastes 11:5

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