Megan Martinez said she used to make fun of people who had their babies on the side of the road, as she didn't understand how that could possibly happen. Then recently it happened to her.
According to ABC 13, Martinez's water broke early last Friday morning, and her contractions started coming rapidly. Her husband, Chad Martinez, packed her and their 21-month-old daughter, Ava, into the backseat and headed to the hospital, which was about 25 minutes away from their home.
As they were driving, she saw a foot hanging out. "I'm like Chad, there are toes," she told the station. OMG! Can you even imagine?!
Fortunately Chad is an Illinois State Trooper and had some medical training, because it wasn't an easy birth to say the least. First of all the baby was breech (thus the toes), but then after she was born -- about three minutes after they pulled the car to the side of the road -- they saw that the umbilical cord was wrapped around the baby's neck twice.
He told the station: "At that point, immediately training just kicked in. I had to improvise by removing the mucous from the airway, and I actually had to do that by mouth."
Wow. And I also just can't imagine what their little daughter was thinking as she witnessed the whole thing. She must have been terrified.
Fortunately everything turned out fine. An ambulance arrived and took mom and little Maci Martinez to the hospital. Both are doing well and will certainly have one heck of a birth story to tell for years to come. Oh, and now Megan says she totally gets how having a baby on the side of the road can happen.
Can you imagine giving birth like this?
Image via ABC 13
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Comments 10
Makes me glad I stayed home to have my babe. No rushing around, a comfortable, familiar place, all the medical equipment I might need brought to me (and not used because it wasn't needed, but good to have just in case). A glorious, empowering, amazing birth with no traveling or rushing about.
And obviously most moms (even with complications like a breech birth) don't really NEED a hospitlal or doctors to give birth...I'd prefer a comfortable location over the back of a car, though! A lady gave birth in a store I worked in once. Staff stood around holding up blankets for her privacy...she was determined to buy some last minute baby items while she was in labor and it was quicker than she'd expected, lol.
Also, the umbilical cord around a baby's neck is actually very common, so this wasn't an emergency or cause for concern either. It's a huge myth that nuchal cords are dangerous.
Do your research, know the facts.
Stories like this makes me really glad I choose to stay HOME and give birth!
Why would the toddler be terrified? Most toddlers that I've ever heard of attending births are totally fine and oblivious to anything weird going on...the only reason we think birth is terrifying is because society tells us that, fortunately toddlers are oblivious to this influence and usually think nothing of it. My almost 3 yr old son attended the home birth of our daughter, and even with it being a very difficult birth, he was the calmest person in the room. Later when asked about watching his sister be born he said "well, mommy said "aaahhhh" and baby came out mommys butt" like it was nothing. birth is a normal event and children should not be taught to think that it is scary or an emergency. I am sure that toddler was fine. oh, and the cord around the neck? not that big of a deal either, not an emergency, and it's quite common. http://midwifethinking.com/2010/07/29/nuchal-cords/