Tag: births
Mom scoops up her own intestines after C-section scar splits
A new mom was left cradling her own intestines after her C-section scar burst open five days following birth.
First-time mom Mel Bremner, 38, bent down to pick up the shampoo in the shower when she saw her guts spill out.
She hobbled to the sofa with the help of partner Aidan Johnson, 40, who covered her with a towel while the paramedics rushed to their home.
Bremner — who admits she has a high pain threshold — posed for a photo while they waited, before being airlifted to the hospital.
She shared the photo with parenting site ChannelMum.com in a bid to dispel the myth that C-sections are “easy” and encourage moms to heed advice to take it easy after the major surgery.
Bremner, a hotel waitress, said: “When I look at that photo I remember sitting there and my stomach and insides were literally in my hands.
“It was all gurgling around and moving. It was awful.
“I was sitting there thinking, ‘Oh my god, I’m holding my intestines.’
“It was quite creepy.
“Everyone was asking me ‘what have you been doing?’ but I wasn’t doing anything I shouldn’t have — I was just having a shower.
“People think that C-section is the easy way out. It’s really not.
“It’s major surgery, but they don’t tell you that at the time. They just tell you ‘take it easy’ and away you go home.
“I think after giving birth you are sort of expected to get up and get on with it.
“People are always telling you to take it easy but you just say ‘I’m fine.’”
Bremner had an emergency C-section on Dec. 9, 2011, after she was overdue, and she wasn’t dilating despite medical intervention.
The procedure at Dr. Gray’s Hospital in Elgin, Scotland, seemed to go smoothly, and she was soon home with daughter Nadie, and partner Johnson, an offshore engineering consultant.
She said her surgery wound dressing was inspected before she left the hospital, and she was deemed well enough to leave.
er partner noticed two “white blobs” in the middle of the wound four days after the birth — now thought to be fat — but they didn’t suspect anything was wrong.
A day later she was in the shower when she noticed something was wrong.
“I had only been in for a couple of minutes and I bent down to get the shampoo,” she said.
“I don’t remember if I felt it happen or saw it happen first, but my intestines were slipping out of my stomach.
“I put my hands underneath to catch it.
“I realized if I shouted out it would put pressure on my stomach, and that if I shout it will all fall out, so I was just trying to call out calmly to Aidan.”
He calmly led her from the shower to the sofa in the living room, propped up her feet and fetched a towel to cover her while calling for an ambulance.
She said the pair contemplated covering her with plastic wrap, but waited for paramedics who then called the air ambulance to take her to Aberdeen Royal Infirmary.
“I don’t think the woman on the end of the phone believed him really,” she said.
“I was sat there holding my insides the whole time. I daren’t move my hands.”
She had surgery and after a couple of days in the hospital was home again.
The couple said the C-section consultant later speculated he had cut the end of the thread too short while stitching her up, or not tied the knot tight enough.
Bremner later had daughters Allie, now 4, and Robyn, now 3, by C-section, despite the traumatic experience with Nadie, now 7.
She added: “If Aidan had panicked I think I would have too, but he was brilliant and calm.
A spokesperson for Dr. Gray’s Hospital declined to comment.
via: https://nypost.com/2019/01/11/mom-scoops-up-her-own-intestines-after-c-section-scar-splits/
Mom blends her placenta into smoothie and feeds it to family
A mom of four turned her placenta into a smoothie and fed it to her husband and their 3-year-old son for the health benefits.
Jay Woodall, 33, has four children, Logan, 9, Demitrius, 6, River, 3 and Storm, nine months, with husband Jon, 34.
Woodall always dreamed of repurposing her placenta but missed her opportunity with the first two, but found a solution by the time she had her two most recent children.
She paid $42 for her raw placenta to be turned into smoothies, and everything leftover was dehydrated and turned into pills – costing a further $210.
Woodall said: “It’s a mixed reaction, a few people think it’s a bit gross — not very appetizing.”
“There are some people that think about it and are interested and ask questions about it, I’ve had some people that listen to what I say and do it themselves as well.”
“People are grossed out, some people are interested.”
“I don’t care, everyone is entitled to their opinion and it’s my body. I’m the one that looks into stuff and I make up my own mind about whatever I do.”
“I’m up for trying things out if it’s going to benefit my health and my body, or my children’s bodies.”
“It’s not really much different from eating certain meats. A lot of animals do it, especially mammals, we’re the only ones who don’t eat the after birth.”
Woodall, a self-confessed hippy from England, even had her umbilical chord dehydrated and turned into a keepsake.
Woodall continued: “It just tasted like a berry smoothie. It had coconut water and berries in it so tasted really nice.”
“I had a boost of energy, better deeper sleep, and my mood was boosted – I felt really good.”
“Milk production was good too, I had to take less because I was producing too much milk.”
“The recovery after birth was quicker as well.”
“It didn’t really taste of anything because I had it with coconut water and berries.”
“But I did have a little taste of it on its own before and it just tastes a bit like liver, an irony, metallic taste. It’s not horrible, it’s not a disgusting taste at all.”
Woodall even fed the placenta smoothie to her husband and son, Demitrius.
Woodall said: “I think everyone had it. My husband had some just out of pure curiosity and my son tried some and said it was yummy. But again it had berries and stuff in it.”
“With my mom, I gave her half of my placenta pills when I gave birth to Storm because she was suffering from a few hormonal issues.”
“It was a similar response, they said it tasted nice and their energy levels increased. Mom said it made her feel very alert and very connected.”
“It’s a highly beneficial thing to do, I know mothers that have suffered from postnatal depression and I think it would help that, in my opinion.”
“She said it made her feel loads better and gave her a lot of energy. And I thought hormonally it made me feel a lot better too.”
“I’m quite an emotional person anyway, and it felt like my hormones were nicely balanced after I had it.”
“When you think how much some people spend on vitamins, it sounds like a lot but if it lasts you a whole year then it’s good value for money.”
“After I had the placenta smoothie, with both girls, I was able to go out that same day after giving birth.”
“A really calming feeling came over me. I had a boost of energy and just felt really good about myself. It was really lovely to experience feeling that.”
“It’s one of those things that you can be skeptical about it, but in my eyes, there’s nothing negative that could happen from it.”
“I was a bit more connected and bonded to my baby, I was able to have a very deep sleep after having it, so it just outweighs the negatives.”
via: https://nypost.com/2018/03/29/mom-blends-her-placenta-into-smoothie-and-feeds-it-to-family/