Partner birth is not an option for everyone

If a pregnant woman wants the future father of her child to be present at the birth, this issue is not decided on the eve of the delivery date: so that partner birth does not plunge the man into a state of shock, the husband's consent alone is not enough, especially when it is obtained "voluntarily-compulsorily". A couple expecting a new addition should prepare for this in advance.

So, what should you consider, what should you be prepared for, and what should you know about partner birth?

Partner birth: pros and cons

Despite the fact that domestic statistics on partner births, especially among young urban married couples, demonstrate positive dynamics, discussions among obstetricians and gynecologists regarding the advisability of the future father's presence at the birth of a child do not cease. And it is not only doctors who express their opinions on partner births: the participation of people close to the mother in childbirth is studied by psychologists and sociologists.

Obstetric practice confirms the positive role of the husband in partner births:

• in emotional and psychological support and reducing the level of anxiety of women;
• the possibility of relieving the pain of contractions with the help of a massage of the lumbar region;
• in ensuring comfort (the partner will give water, help to take a more comfortable position, etc.) and adequate communication with the medical staff of the maternity hospital (the husband can call the nurse in time, report a change in the wife’s condition, etc.);
• to help the mother care for the baby during the first days after birth.

But the opinions of psychologists are divided, with some considering the advantage of partner births to be the factor of the man's transition to a higher level in marital relations - to the awareness of fatherhood and the formation of new life values. Perhaps, participation in childbirth helps some future fathers to realize their new status in society and become more self-confident, increase responsibility for the child and, in general, for the family.

However, there are also disadvantages of partner births. An agitated, emotionally overexcited husband who has overestimated his stress tolerance threshold will most likely be of little help to his wife in labor and, on the contrary, may cause her negative emotions and irritation. At the same time, as studies by British obstetricians have shown, women in labor immediately feel a man's fear and, moreover, succumb to its influence. As a result, the level of adrenaline in the mother's blood increases, which leads to the cessation of labor. In some circumstances, this may require delivery by cesarean section.

Quite often, the presence of a husband next to a wife who cannot control her behavior during contractions and looks unattractive reduces male libido, which subsequently worsens the sexual relationship between the spouses.

In addition, it happens that due to shyness, women tense their muscles when they should relax (and vice versa), which can prolong labor and lead to complications and the need to use stimulating drugs and other methods of obstetric assistance.

Preparing for a partner birth

Couples who decide to give birth together, in preparation for the birth of the child, take courses in partner childbirth at the antenatal clinic or at the maternity hospital, where the future parents receive all the necessary information, including the characteristics of physiological childbirth; the features of the stages of this process and the rules of behavior of the partner at each of them; principles of breathing during contractions, techniques of distracting massage, etc.

Partner births take place in a maternity hospital, where they must know in advance that they will be partner births in order to provide a separate room. By the way, partner births with a friend, sister or mother of the pregnant woman are allowed (in most maternity hospitals only one close person can be present at the birth).

Required documents for partner birth: exchange card and passport of the pregnant woman, passport of the partner.

For a pregnant woman, the tests for partner birth are the same as for normal births. But the tests for the husband during partner births include a blood test from a vein for RW, hepatitis and HIV, a swab from the nasopharynx for staphylococcal infection; doctors also require a certificate of fluorography (the results of a chest X-ray are considered an indicator of the presence/absence of pulmonary tuberculosis). However, each medical institution has its own list of tests that the partner of the woman in labor must take.

A partner birth kit - a list of necessary personal hygiene products and things for the mother and baby - women receive along with an exchange card. Also required are changeable shoes (washable) and clothes, a suit for partner birth. It is best to buy disposable medical clothing and shoe covers at a pharmacy.

How does partner birth work?

Physiological partner births not complicated by pregnancy pathologies are carried out in accordance with the protocol for managing normal births.

With the onset of labor - at the stage of contractions, during which the cervix and pubic symphysis of the pelvic bones gradually expand, causing pain - a close person nearby calms and encourages the expectant mother, trying to verbally or with the help of a distracting massage of the lumbar muscles to ease the pain.

Since the first stage of labor lasts quite a long time and can exhaust the male partner, in most cases the husband's role in partner labor is limited to this, and during the pushing (as obstetricians say, the stage of expulsion of the fetus), he leaves the delivery room. If the couple decides to stay together until the end of labor, then the man is only at the head of the woman in labor during the pushing. But obstetricians can ask him to leave the room if there is a need to manually free the passage for the baby's head or if an incision (perineotomy) of the perineum is required.

After the birth of the child, the father can, under the guidance of the obstetrician, cut the umbilical cord and be near the mother and the baby, who is placed on her stomach and attached to her breast. The birth of the placenta and the entire final stage of labor takes place in the absence of a partner.

If a partner birth is performed by cesarean section, the father of the child is allowed into the operating room only after the newborn is removed from the uterine cavity. And during the completion of the operation, the baby (if it is full-term and there are no complications) can be placed on the father's chest.

Men's Reviews of Partner Births

If the birth of a child is one of the most important moments in a woman’s life (albeit the most painful), then, as many reviews of men about partner births testify, their presence at the birth and all possible assistance to their beloved woman makes them real fathers from the very first moments – thanks to a closer connection with the child.

But when deciding to have a partner birth, you should objectively evaluate the type of relationship between a man and a woman and the degree of their spiritual and emotional closeness. And if there is none, this option is unlikely to suit you.