Here I come, Mama!

Ever wondered how baby experiences labour?

THE BIGGER YOUR baby, the less wiggle room there is in the womb. By this time, he knows your false labour pains, but the real makoya are far stronger. Real contractions put pressure on his body. This wakes him up and starts preparing him for life outside of you.

After your waters have broken, the uterus will feel a lot different. There’s no more amniotic fluid between his head and your cervix. The labour contractions press his head against your cervix, which starts to open. Don’t be worried; the top of his head is not really sensitive. If his scalp swells a little, it’s just to offer extra protection.

When you’re fully dilated, the contractions will guide your baby into the birth canal. He moves, and this moves the birthing process along. His skull bones can overlap, and his head and neck can turn to make birthing easier. Your baby crowns when his head becomes visible. At this stage, his head comprises a quarter of his whole body. Once that’s out, the shoulders slip out one by one, followed by the rest of the body.

Your baby feels the temperature difference as his skin comes into contact with the air, and this moves him to take his first breath.

That’s when he cries, and you hear his voice for the first time – unforgettable! The pressure of birth also presses all the moisture out of his lungs.

It’s incredible to imagine that within a few moments, your baby goes from total dependence on your placenta to using his own lungs and airways. His colour now quickly changes from blue to pink, as his breathing gets on track. All his organs function, and he can see, hear, taste, smell and feel. Your voice will be reassuring, as will your heartbeat when he lies against your chest. These are both things that he knows very well.

In the first hour after birth, your baby is intensely aware of you. He learns to recognise your smell and your face and can even start trying to copy your facial expressions in the first hour.

He might cough and sneeze to expel the last bit of moisture from his lungs. Don’t be worried about what’s happening to baby while he’s being born. Both of your bodies are geared to produce hormones that will give him the strength he needs for the birthing process and ensure that he’s not scared or does not feel pain. Both of you also produce oxytocin, the love hormone. Neither of you will feel the cord being cut, as it does not have any nerves. Your baby’s sucking reflex is strongest in the first hour after birth. You don’t need to wait before starting to nurse him – the quicker, the better. Your baby is very awake during the first hour thanks to the excitement of the birth, and it’s a wonderful time for you to bond.