Emotions that may be experienced in the birthing phase
After the baby's head crowns, their eyebrows, eyes, nose, mouth and chin emerge until their whole head is out. Your caregiver may need to ease the perineum over your baby's chin, if their chin is not completely born. This can sometimes cause momentary discomfort.
The birthing phase contractions can:
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Still be present, but remain 4 to 7 minutes apart, as they have been throughout the 2nd stage. |
The following is step-by-step description of the actual birth of the baby after their head is born.
Head born
Shoulders rotate
Checking for cord
Birth of the shoulders
Injection of Syntocinon
Head born. If the woman were to reach down in front between her thighs, she would feel the back of your baby's head (because babies are normally born facing towards the woman's bottom). For example, if you were in the squatting, or standing position, your baby would be looking behind you. If you were on all fours the baby's head would be looking up to the ceiling, or if you were on your back the baby would be face down into the bed.
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Warning: This image shows a real photo of a baby's head just emerging during the birth phase. If you would like to look at this image, Click here.( Image 6-14) |
Shoulders rotate. The baby's head and body are normally born individually, with 2 separate contractions. During the rest time between the contractions, the baby's head rotates to one side, (so that they end up looking at the inside of one of your thighs). This lines up their shoulders from lying horizontally (or across ways) inside the pelvis, to vertically, so that one shoulder is under the pubic bone and the other shoulder is close to the coccyx bone. This larger space allows the shoulders to be born more easily.