Comments on: Umbilical cord around baby’s neck rarely causes complications

By: Jen Kamel

Jen Kamel — Tue, 07 Feb 2012 04:51:05 +0000

Mum of 3,

Thank you so much for taking the time to leave a comment. I can’t imagine how long that 4 minutes felt. Excruciating probably doesn’t begin to cover it.

I’m glad she’s doing ok now.

You might find it help to google “birth trauma resources” as I suspect there must be an on-line or in-person support group for moms who have experienced similarly scary events around the time of birth. I have always found it healing to talk to people who “get it” and maybe you will find the same.

Thanks again for your comment and take care,

Warmly,

Jen

By: Mum of 3

Mum of 3 — Tue, 07 Feb 2012 03:51:28 +0000

My Babys apgar at birth was 1then at 5 mins it was 4 then the next was 9 .

By: Mum of 3

Mum of 3 — Tue, 07 Feb 2012 03:32:29 +0000

My baby was born on the 2nd January . She had the cord wrapped around her neck 2 times . It was a horrible labour because the baby with every contraction I had her heart rate was dropping dramatically . After a few hours of monitoring her they decided it was best to prepare me for an emergency c-section . Just before transferring me to the operating theatre they checked and I was 10cm so they decided it would be quicker to deliver naturally . My baby was born 4 mins later and didn’t start breathing . They had to resuscitate her and it took 4 mins to get her to take her 1st breath . The silence was the worst time of my life. I didn’t think she would make it. After 8 hours inthe nicu she was with me in my arms for the 1st time ( obviously I didn’t get a cuddle at birth ) I am very lucky to say she is now a healthy 4 week old baby . I still feel traumatised though from what we went through and I wish there was a way we could have known that she was in trouble beforehand. I did however in the last week of my pregnancy feel a dramatic difference in the amount of movement that she was making so I just want to say follow your instinct . If your worried go see your doctor and get them to do a full check because I’m sure if they do a 3d or 4d scan they could have seen the cord there . My prayers are with all of those babies lost .

By: Jen Kamel

Jen Kamel — Sun, 08 Jan 2012 18:10:24 +0000

Hi Degas,

I am so sorry for your loss. I am not a medical professional but to my knowledge, I’m not aware of any fail proof way to determine in utero that a cord wrapped around a baby will injure that baby. I wish there was.

Warmly,

Jen

By: DEGAS ANTONY

DEGAS ANTONY — Thu, 05 Jan 2012 05:40:28 +0000

how we can tackle this cord winding incident from baby?????
is there any solutions in this medical world ??????

By: DEGAS ANTONY

DEGAS ANTONY — Thu, 05 Jan 2012 05:35:01 +0000

December 31st 2011
My babies incident happens on two days before delivery date.announced date for delivery was 2nd jan 2012.we used to consult regularly to doctor in ernakulam medical centre hospital in cochin with experienced gynec.from the begining there was no problems for fetus inside till a day before 31st when she take ecg in hospital, everything was normal…when my wife wake up in the morning of 31st when she checked for movements inside it was silent,no moments..once she felt she suddenly move to hospital with her mom and took scan.dr.found there was no cardiac activity inside baby.then she admitted to hospital and dr.gynec has checked she said something goes wrong inside it my be cord has wounded on baby.then they given trip-medicine for normal birth and the nxt day she dlvrd,the baby has dead cause two cords were wounded on babies neck and her fingers were fold on her neck with cords.as per doctors explanation it was normal it may happen it is no ones mistake……..doctor has always said like this there is no problems everything is normal so u have to admit only on 2nd jan,but instantly all this things happened….
someone can advise whatzzzz really happened????for lose of our baby.
is it some one mistake or natural phenemenon of a utrus one in hundred/????
degas antony
h/of linda
cochin,india.
degascochin@gmail.com

By: Joanie

Joanie — Tue, 27 Dec 2011 01:49:36 +0000

I lost my daughter August 2011 to what they believe was a cord accident. I felt less movement but still some movement. The confusing part to me is that some people say you will naturally feel less movement in the final weeks, as the baby becomes engaged. But then others say you will still feel the same amount of movement. And yet even others say that if you feel erratic, more constant movements then you should be concerned. There is so much conflicting information! My husband and I went to my weekly appointment at 38 weeks, there was no heartbeat. They said there was nothing they could have done about it, even if I had been in labor at the hospital. If they had saved her by emergency c section, she most likely would have been born with severe brain damage, as too much time would have passed with not enough oxygen/blood flow.
They induced my labor, she came out 24 hours later. Perfectly healthy, gorgeous baby. Cord around her neck several times…nothing else wrong. They believe that had to be it, there was just nothing else wrong. I had a perfectly blissful, uneventful pregnancy. (morning sickness excluded
It is frustrating that those of us in this minority are swept under the rug so that other expectant mothers don’t have to worry that they will be one of us. I bet none of us thought it would happen to us…but guess what? It did. However, has anyone else considered that God chooses these babies? People claim to be religious, yet when something extraordinary happens many chalk it up to bad luck. Each soul has to enter this earth for a certain amount of time, some very brief some very long. Has anyone considered that the reason this is a rare occurrence may be because these babies are needed for something, or perhaps too pure for this earth? They fulfilled their mission on this earth that God had intended for them, and now they are back in the arms of God where we should all be so lucky to be one day. (and not all of us will get there). Let’s not put all our faith in doctors and science. Doctors are not God and cannot control everything.

By: Heather

Heather — Mon, 12 Dec 2011 13:59:40 +0000

Eff,
I truly understand your point of view and wish you every sucess with your pregnancy. My advice would be to stop looking at websites for things that could potentially go wrong as they will not be able to help you in any way. Yes, I lost my daughter and I will not keep this a secret as I am immensly proud of her but PLEASE do not see this as some kind of warning to pregnant women. I had her at home and if I could go back in time I would NOT change that. There was absolutely no way of knowing what was about to happen and being in hospital wouldn’t have changed anything unfortunately as there was no reason to suspect any problems. Sadly, I am just part of a tiny and hugely unfortunate minority.

To all pregnant women reading this I say do whatever feels right to you. It is natural to feel scared about this life you so desperately want to protect but every chance is in your favour. You are doing literally the most natural thing in the world and if pregnancy and birth were so dangerous then the human race would have died out long ago! Life is full of risks and I truly believe your instincts are the ONLY way you can decide what is best for you and your child. Unless you already know of a problem with your particular pregnancy then PLEASE don’t go looking for reassurance on the internet as all you will find will be more things to worry about! Enjoy your beautiful pregnancies and beautiful babies. I hope to join you in this again next year!
Heather x

By: Heather

Heather — Mon, 12 Dec 2011 13:43:54 +0000

Hi Nancy. So sorry to hear of your loss. Not sure if you are still checking for responses but I felt I had to send you a message. My daughter was born on 7th September this year at home. Everything seemed fine during the labour and her heart beat was absolutely normal throughout – no signs of distress. However, when she was born she had no heart beat or breathing. The cord was ‘just’ (as the midwives put it)around her shoulder NOT her neck. Our fantastic midwife got her heart re-started and she was rushed to hospital. Everyone kept saying how terribly long she had been without oxygen which we just couldn’t understand as her heart had been beating normally and was last monitored as such 3 minutes before she was born. She kept fighting for 5 days and started doing half her breathing for a while but this also stopped again and as we began to see the suffering and difficulty of the fight taking its toll in her beautiful face, we were gently pushed to make the same unbearable decision as your son and his wife. Not that there is any ‘decision’ involved in such circumstances. The leading expert in London had looked at the results of her MRI and agreed that even sustaining her own life in the most basic form was impossible and we were so so lucky to have enough warning to be able to arrange saying goodbye in the most wonderful EACH hospice.

Here’s the point though – the cord was wrapped around her shoulder. It was pulled so tight whilst I was pushing her out that the oxygen supply was cut off within the cord. Our consultant explained that the heart can carry on beating normally for 20 minutes or more after oxygen has been cut off to the brain, before a sort of herat attack eventually occurs (which obviously hadn’t happened yet to your grandchild and had happened about the time of birth to our daughter). This was more than long enough to do all that damage to such a young brain. At least now we understood HOW it had happened but of course we are currently a long way from being able to accept what has happened and the absolute shock at the moment of what appeared to be a perfectly normal birth.

I try to take comfort in the fact that as her heart rate showed absolutely no sign of distress at any point, that the birth and problems with the cord did not cause her any pain or panic. I hope this helps, although you may by now have found answers for yourself. May I wish you and your family every possible positive thought at this time which I know personally is so terribly difficult and agonisingly painful for all of you and I suppose always will be.

Heather xxx

By: Marilyn

Marilyn — Fri, 02 Dec 2011 16:55:22 +0000

At 4 days overdue, I had been having labor contractions. I was induced via vaginally to open my cervix. I had a bad reaction, non-stop labor contractions. Inducer was removed. No pitocin was necessary. During last stage of labor I was given pain killer via IV, no epidural. My son became under distress. His umbilical cord was pinched. He was born with umbilical cord wrapped around his neck. He struggled to breath was given oxygen & put in incubator. Later, he was taken off oxygen & closely monitored. His ultrasound showed his umbilical cord was up against his face. He had difficulty swallowing & latching on. He was born 7lbs. 9oz. but lost too much weight & needed bottle supplement. He is now 4 months old, at a healthy weight & is well. My heart goes out to those who lost their precious babies. Be proactive: more research, awareness & careful monitoring must be mandatory to protect newborns.

By: Jen Kamel

Jen Kamel — Sat, 12 Nov 2011 23:54:37 +0000

Eff,

I’m so glad you found the website helpful. Best of luck with your pregnancy!

Warmly,

Jen

By: Eff Belanger

Eff Belanger — Sat, 12 Nov 2011 22:37:59 +0000

I’ve come to this website as a pregnant woman with a healthy prognostic for pregnancy. I, like most first-time expectant moms, am worried about everything and am coming here to find informed statistics – not anecdotal accounts. Thank you for this article as it helps quell another fear with sound research and information… nature is on our side.

I would, however, like to address the people who comment after experiencing the tragic loss of their child, as this is something I’ve noticed across pregnancy and obstetrics sites. While all women can certainly empathize with your pain, there are forums better suited to share your grief and discuss miscarriages and stillbirths. Support is available in an environment where expectant mothers looking for facts will not be flooded with personal accounts of rare adverse outcomes.

http://www.hopexchange.com/ResourcesLinks.htm has a broad selection of resources.

By: Jen Kamel

Jen Kamel — Tue, 08 Nov 2011 17:15:06 +0000

Boni,

Thank you so much for sharing your painful story. I am so sorry for your loss.

Warmly,

Jen

By: Boni

Boni — Tue, 08 Nov 2011 13:14:42 +0000

Hi
I lost my baby last week Tue 2 November 2011. it was a nightmare for me and my husband.I could feel that there was a problem when I could not feel my baby move or kick, I was 40 weeks pregnant. I went into labour and they could not find the heartbeat.I gave birth naturally and don’t regret. the cord was wrapped around my baby’s waste 2 times very tight and I was so shocked I almost went into a comma.It has not been easy. I find my comfort in the LORD. I have a 4 yr old girl that still needs me and I refuse to deprive her of my presents and happiness my falling into depression.It still eats me up and at times I find myself in no where land, however I am working towards my healing mentally, emotionally and physically.I pray and know that GOD has blessed my womb and I will get many more children.she will forever be my second born. she was perfect and beautiful in every way.I believe that this has brought me closer to GOD as he restores my soul. I pray that every mother that goes through what I did heals with time, finds peace and use this as an opportunity to help others as well. Boni

By: Jen Kamel

Jen Kamel — Tue, 08 Nov 2011 05:04:07 +0000

Kathryn,

I’m so sorry about your neice. What a tragedy.

Much love,

Jen