Yes, it's normal. You have to ask and be laughed at on MM to get that normally, and if there is any issue they'll want to have the baby off lying on a flat surface to dot heir checks, resus, oxygen, etc.

I think so, my memory is a little fuzzy, but I do believe after they held him up for me to see, they weighed him, did some other stuff to him (cleared out mouth? Listened to his heart?) before I got him.

I don't think it was 45 minutes- maybe 15 minutes. Though I honestly don't remember. 

HRP22:

If I wasn't touching this baby, he wouldn't have touched human skin the entire first night of his life. 

Huh? You said the mom got to hold the baby after 45 minutes. If she wanted to do skin-to-skin, she could have taken off the baby's blanket.

Having the child away from the mom while getting dried off, checked, weighed, etc. is normal, especially if they're worried about a compromised airway.

I held my baby within 5 minutes of my delivery (c-section). They took her away for all that stuff after I got to hold her. DH got to hold her even sooner than I did, and he cut the cord.

Knitty:

Yes, it's normal. You have to ask and be laughed at on MM to get that normally, and if there is any issue they'll want to have the baby off lying on a flat surface to dot heir checks, resus, oxygen, etc.

I'm not sure what you are saying here.  Can you re-word this?

 

I got to look at him for a minute then they weighed him, cleaned him off and handed him right to me almost immediately. It seemed like 2 minutes thinking back on it. I eventually had to birth the placenta and all that so maybe that's when they did the rest, IDK. I do know I was really worried I wasn't going to be with him enough after birth and it turned out to not be an issue.

About an hour later, they did need to take him away for tests while I was cleaned up, de-cathitered and wheeled from my birthing room to my main room. 

I say no.  I had 2 kids in 2 different hospitals in different states, both via c-section (one unplanned, one planned).  I held them both within minutes of their birth.  Well, "held".  They put the babies cheek to cheek with me and wrapped my arm around them both times.  I couldn't move my arms.  DH held them both while still in the OR.  Once the babies were all cleared they were given back to me and stayed w/ me for the ride back to our room, etc.  I think it's increasingly "normal" to honor the skin to skin and mother/baby contact in hospitals and right from the start.  I asked about this and the policies w/ both doctors and hospitals prior to arranging to give birth there. 

Yes, especially if they were worried about his lungs.

With #2 she went directly to my chest for like and hour and I was blown away that no one needed to check her out for that long. I also think my doc was trying to "make up" for my first experience :) 

That was not my experience.  I have had two hospital births, with two different OBs attending.  The first time, the OB handed me the baby immediately after she caught him, and I held him for quite a while before they measured him, took his footprints, and did the eye goop right by my bed, then handed him back for me to nurse.  The second time, my OB told me to reach down and grab my baby as he was coming out, so I pulled him straight onto my chest, then pulled my gown down and did skin to skin.  He stayed there for a while before they measured him in the room.  Neither of the OBs I delivered with, nor the hospital where I delivered, have a rep for being particularly crunchy, and I had a pretty standard delivery and no written birth plan.  Though while I didn't have to ask to hold my boys right away, I certainly would have had they not handed him straight to me!

MainelyFoolish:

HRP22:

If I wasn't touching this baby, he wouldn't have touched human skin the entire first night of his life. 

Huh? You said the mom got to hold the baby after 45 minutes. If she wanted to do skin-to-skin, she could have taken off the baby's blanket.

Having the child away from the mom while getting dried off, checked, weighed, etc. is normal, especially if they're worried about a compromised airway.

She didn't undo his swaddle and remove his clothes.  So, if I weren't touching him, he wouldn't have touched skin at all.  I don't think many mothers would think to unswaddle and undress after the nurse just dressed and swaddled him and then handed him to you.  I think her reaction was normal.  If it were me, I would have asked that they hand him to me much earlier, and definitely before he was dressed. 

 

I can't remember the specifics, but they did take him, clean him off, take measurements, etc.  It was only a few minutes, though.  They got him to me pretty quickly.   45 mins seems long, but if they had issues to deal with... the health of the baby comes first.

EastCoastBride:

I can't remember the specifics, but they did take him, clean him off, take measurements, etc.  It was only a few minutes, though.  They got him to me pretty quickly.   45 mins seems long, but if they had issues to deal with... the health of the baby comes first.

They stuck the tube down his mouth into his lungs and cleared the fluid from them.  Took about 1 minute.  Then they started to do all the less important things such as measuring, shots etc.

 

 

That is not the norm at my hospital.

My plan was to do skin-to-skin after a quick wipedown, which the hospital was completely fine with --- in fact it's what they encourage. The only reason it didn't happen was because my baby had to go to NICU asap. Even then, we were able to hold her a couple hours later and did some skin-to-skin.

Is the mom of the baby as upset about this as you are?

Kid 1 I held right away, before the cord was cut and all. Kid 2 they had concerns about and took him away to be examined right away. So quickly that they apologized that my husband was not going to be allowed to cut the cord. 

I held both my sons for quite a while within a minute of their births.  Eventually they did all the "stuff", but I was not rushed to give him to a nurse and he was in the room the whole time. When I moved to my room he went to the nursery but I was able to have him back when I was settled. I vote 'not normal.'  If there were a medical problem I'm sure my experience would have been different.

My DS had to be taken to the ICU after he was born because the cord had been wrapped around his neck and he was a little blue.  So I did not get to hold him for a couple of hours.  They did all of the cleaning, measuring, etc. while they had him.  When they brought him back yes he was swaddled but was easily unwrappable for skin contact.  It sounds like they had to take your nephew to have his lungs checked out, which is a valid concern, and that was why it took 45 mins.  A newborn gets very cold so they are of course going to clothe him or wrap him up.  I don't think any of that is odd, but it was probably a result of the merconium concern that her experience was what it was.

HRP22:

MainelyFoolish:

HRP22:

If I wasn't touching this baby, he wouldn't have touched human skin the entire first night of his life. 

Huh? You said the mom got to hold the baby after 45 minutes. If she wanted to do skin-to-skin, she could have taken off the baby's blanket.

Having the child away from the mom while getting dried off, checked, weighed, etc. is normal, especially if they're worried about a compromised airway.

She didn't undo his swaddle and remove his clothes.  So, if I weren't touching him, he wouldn't have touched skin at all.  I don't think many mothers would think to unswaddle and undress after the nurse just dressed and swaddled him and then handed him to you.  I think her reaction was normal.  If it were me, I would have asked that they hand him to me much earlier, and definitely before he was dressed. 

Ok, now you just sound smug and judgy. Too bad this other mom is not as brilliant as you are.

I got to hold DS right away for a few minutes and then they took him over for all the normal stuff. They did the basic stuff in the room and then DH went with them to do a few more things. If there was a concern then they would have taken him right away for further testing or whatever.

If you got the hold the baby I am sure the mom could have if she'd asked. She was probably preoccupied with the rest of labor. Did your sister mind? Just wondering if this is your reaction or hers. In the middle of things concern over health was probably all she could think about. 

It could be. I suppose it depends on the hospital, the doctor or midwife attending the delivery and the parents requests. However, I think more hospitals are going towards immediate skin to skin contact.

We wanted immediate skin to skin contact with me, delayed cord clamping, delayed new born procedures, etc. We were told if things went well that all those requests could be accommodated. I do not remember which of those things were considered standard by hospital policy. Some of them may have just been standard per my provider (certified nurse midwife).

DD was put on my chest immediately after delivery. I think I held her for at least 30 minutes, maybe even an hour. I was holding her while DH cut the cord, not sure exactly when this happened. I am pretty sure I was still holding her while I delivered the placenta.  Eventually they weighed and measured her while I got up to go to the bathroom.

I can see how if they were concerned about meconium there might not be immediate skin to skin. However the other stuff could have waited.

 

While they were doing all that "unnecessary" stuff they were watching the baby to see if he was showing any signs of pulmonary compromise.  Meconium cancause lung/airway inflammation, and that takes a while to develop.  They said they were doing all of that other stuff so they didn't have to tell your sister that they were waiting to see if the baby decompensates.

Not normal in a normal case, but swallowing meconium = not normal case.  My DD was right on my chest and stayed there for a good while before they did anything. All initial checks, etc were done on her while she laid on me.

DS did pass meconium and so they did take him right over to check if he's swallowed any/check his lungs, etc. Luckily he had not swallowed/breathed in any so they brought him back in about 5 minutes, but if he had they would have kept him in the room but on the exam/warmer thing...my doc had warned me in advance though.

They threw a blanket on my chest and then DD was pulled out and immediately she was put on my chest (I still had my gown on, but I never expressed that I wanted skin to skin) for 10 minutes while they wiped her off (and DH cut the cord while she was on me) and while I delivered the placenta. Then they weighed her and all of that and I had her back in less than 5 minutes.

dirtyred:

While they were doing all that "unnecessary" stuff they were watching the baby to see if he was showing any signs of pulmonary compromise.  Meconium cancause lung/airway inflammation, and that takes a while to develop.  They said they were doing all of that other stuff so they didn't have to tell your sister that they were waiting to see if the baby decompensates.

This is what I was thinking.  Meconium has the potential to be pretty serious business.

starlily313:

HRP22:

MainelyFoolish:

HRP22:

If I wasn't touching this baby, he wouldn't have touched human skin the entire first night of his life. 

Huh? You said the mom got to hold the baby after 45 minutes. If she wanted to do skin-to-skin, she could have taken off the baby's blanket.

Having the child away from the mom while getting dried off, checked, weighed, etc. is normal, especially if they're worried about a compromised airway.

She didn't undo his swaddle and remove his clothes.  So, if I weren't touching him, he wouldn't have touched skin at all.  I don't think many mothers would think to unswaddle and undress after the nurse just dressed and swaddled him and then handed him to you.  I think her reaction was normal.  If it were me, I would have asked that they hand him to me much earlier, and definitely before he was dressed. 

Ok, now you just sound smug and judgy. Too bad this other mom is not as brilliant as you are.

with the meconium risk I think that is normal

some hospitals really emphasize skin to skin immediately, others do not.  

i think even if you plan to have a medicated birth/c-section it doesn't hurt to have a birth plan specifying your wishes in this are an on other post-birth procedures. 

I think it depends on your provider.  My midwife immediately placed my babies on my chest.  With DS, I held him and nursed him prior to any of that taking place.  I held him for probably an hour before he was cleaned, weighed, or measured. 

I don't see why this is OPs place to judge. I have no experience in this realm & have no clue what I will want, but if my sister asks me to be in the room with her, this is not something I would be judging

I thought skin to skin was common these days. My baby was placed on my chest as soon as she was born and they wiped her down and me down at the same time. DH actually has a running joke that he pretended that he wasn't totally distracted by all of the bodily fluids and faked-out being captured in the moment.

You seem a little horrified that they cleaned and swadled the baby. Do you not believe there was a medically vaid reason to check and clean the baby? What do you mean by "clothed the baby"? Did they put a onesie on the newborn + a swadle?

I'm not sure I'm getting what you object to - did you not belive the meconium was swallowed - or the baby was at risk? That they were pretending? To keep mother and baby from bonding, or something?

If the baby was at risk for swallowing meconium, then there is no skin to skin contact after birth.  If they knew this ahead of time, most likely the NICU nurses were in the room ready to take him.  It could have taken them longer than expected to make sure his lungs were clear.  45 minutes seem long but I'm sure there are other factors.