We did skin to skin immediately after birth with my first. With the second, the dr made us wait until the cord had been cut (about two minutes later) before I held him. My mom was shocked. She thought it was gross and couldn't believe I didn't want him wiped up first! In the movies the women always are holding a clean baby wrapped in a blanket.
Did you want to hold your baby *right* after birth, goop and all? (Or what do you think you will want?)
166 votes
hostess / papaya / 10219 posts
Yup. I mean they had to cut his cord first because he had a super short cord and they couldn't put him on me without cutting. Both babies went right on me. Why would I be grossed out?? They were just IN me!
blogger / wonderful cherry / 21628 posts
Yes! Give me my baby. 
DH helped me wipe the goop off my hands later.
hostess / wonderful apple seed / 16729 posts
I had to wait because I was induced at 34 weeks and was told there was a high chance that they needed to be whisked away to the nicu. One baby had breathing issues and the other was lifted up above the curtain... of course, DH didn't want to see it so he looked away.
I wanted to see if I could try to cut the umbilical cords (since DH said he didn't) but with the risk of the nicu, they said it was not a possibility. It's okay, I got over it. I was able to hear both babies cry.
ETA: I didn't get to hold DS until about 5 hours after and DD was on CPAP so I didn't get to hold her until about 24 hours later. I was able to reach into the isolator to hold her hand.
pomelo / 5258 posts
I happily took my DS, goop and all. DD was slathered in meconium after a very long labor. She looked like swamp thing. My legs were covered in it too. I didn't have the option to hold her immediately but I would have held her if they had given her to me. It would have been gross, really gross, but I wouldn't have sent her away or anything if they gave her to me. I'm glad they cleaned her up first though.
blogger / honeydew / 7081 posts
Yes- hand over that baby!
M was COVERED in vernix- like, he looked like he had been rolled in butter. But the midwives wiped him off while he was on my chest.
hostess / wonderful watermelon / 39513 posts
I wanted to but it was never an option. The nurse examined the baby before she wiped them off. DH held them first because I had csections.
grapefruit / 4355 posts
I wanted to, but I didn't get to hold DD for over an hour after she was born. I had a C-section so DH was able to hold her very quickly (they did a quick check of her first and gave her to him in a blanket) but my arms were straped down to the table. And then I was in recovery for a while because I had BPs over 200 so they were not letting me go anywhere.
nectarine / 2028 posts
He was born with an initial Apgar of 2, and NICU doctors needed to take him up right away. I tecnically did get to see him for a minute, but I was so sick (and in the middle of a c-section) that I couldn't really hold him. It was another 3-4 hours before I got to do skin-to-skin. 
kiwi / 556 posts
Yes! They were wiping her down as she was on me, so she wasn't covered in a lot of gunk or anything that I can recall. Gosh, it's only been 7 months but it's so hard to remember the details!
pomelo / 5678 posts
Yes! They handed her to me immediately, as quickly as possible. It was so amazing!
hostess / wonderful grape / 20803 posts
I thought I would want them cleaned off, but I wanted them right away.
honeydew / 7622 posts
She needed some assistance right after birth. So I think I got her after she was wiped down.
grapefruit / 4545 posts
I did not and I did not want to but it had nothing to do with the goo or mess...
I had DH hold her immediately...
pomegranate / 3438 posts
I didn't get a choice. He needed a little extra help with breathing. Once he was breathing normally DH got to hold him while I was being stitched up. (Stitches took forever!)
pomegranate / 3580 posts
Give me the goopy baby! We did delayed cord clamping, but I think that was only 45 seconds to a minute maybe? Then they put her right on me all goopy! I didn't mind. After a while they came and wiped her up while she was on me, but she didn't get a proper bath until 1-2 hours later.
cantaloupe / 6059 posts
My first labor was super traumatic and I was not in any shape to hold a baby after he was born. They put him right on my chest and I asked DH to hold him.
My second I wanted her right away! She really didn't have much goop on her.
apricot / 443 posts
My OB was like, "okay, deliver your baby!" And I sort of pulled her out of me/off the table (she wasn't really inside anymore) and put her onto my chest. It was amazing and the goop factor didn't even occur to me!
pear / 1616 posts
Yep! Both times. I still remember that moment vividly for both. To go from one last push to all of a sudden feeling a warm, goopy, squirmy body on you was amazing!
apricot / 442 posts
I had a forceps delivery and was shaking so badly that i thought i had been ripped in half and was dying. I made dh, and he did a great job. 15 minutes later and a round of IV pain killers we were good to go though.
pomelo / 5607 posts
She had no goop, though I would have been okay with it. I assume because my water didn't break till she was crowning. Unfortunately I didn't get to actually hold her, as a preemie.
persimmon / 1461 posts
my babe was covered in so much cheesy goop that even the midwives remarked on how much vernix there was. it just got everywhere on my chest and bra and I only realised when I had a shower the next morning. It was gross but ehhh we get covered in poop not long after haha
GOLD / watermelon / 14076 posts
Yes. Never even crossed my mind to wait til she was cleaned off.
pomegranate / 3845 posts
Yes, I want baby, goop and all. My first was a preemie so I missed that experience the first time around.
pomegranate / 3192 posts
YES!!! I would have never even considered not holding them right away!!!
pomegranate / 3192 posts
@travellingbee: my daughter had a super short cord too! My midwife lifted her up to me but she could only hang out around my hip 
honeydew / 7230 posts
Yes, but it wasn't an option due to a lot of issues with L&D. DH got to hold them for a minute and we took a family picture. He went with the babies to the nursery and I went to recovery. We were reunited 3 hrs later. It was not at all what I wanted and makes me sad to think about now, but it is what it is.
honeydew / 7235 posts
Yes! The wiped both of my boys down as I was holding them, cord still attached.
pear / 1558 posts
I was in the "gimme that baby!" camp! I don't even remember if she was goopy, but she must have been. 
She was mouthing & latched on within seconds of being born & DH cut her cord while she laid on me. It was THE most amazing few minutes of my life. 
pear / 1593 posts
Haha guess I'm the weirdo - I want a cleaned up baby
It wasn't an option with LO1 though, cord was around his neck, so it took them a few minutes to get him to respond and pass the apgar - he was cleaned up once I held him about 10min later.
grapefruit / 4819 posts
Most definitely! Both girls went straight to my belly for cord cutting and then up to my chest for the next hour and a bit. The midwives didn't rub them down or clean them - just wrapped a blanket over us and went about their business of stitches, clean up, paperwork etc. An hour later, they weighed the baby, took essential measurements, and then straight back to me they went, dried on vernix and all! As a side note, in Australia they don't recommend bathing babies for the first 24 hrs anyway - so it's goopy babies for one and all!
apricot / 315 posts
I wanted to! Apparently when the goop gets on your chest it leaves a scent that helps baby find the breast. I had a csection so they wiped him down a little but he was still a little sticky. They put him on my chest after a quick check but he kept sliding towards my neck so I asked DH to take him.
persimmon / 1095 posts
They asked what I wanted once I started pushing and I said I wasn't sure and we'd have to decide then-maybe wrap her in a blanket first. But when she was born she wasn't breathing and they had to whisk her away and work on her and I didn't get to hold her for 10 long minutes. By then she was all cleaned up. I would have rather gotten her all goopy than have that scare!
wonderful clementine / 24134 posts
Goop and all. But really they are pretty good and swift with wiping most of it off (from their face at least) before bringing them up to the chest.
wonderful cherry / 21504 posts
Yes both times. Just like @kodybear: going from the last big push to that sweet relief of, well, not pushing, and the warm squirmy baby on your chest is the most amazing feeling. They wiped her off some while she was on my chest before cutting the cord and then covered us both with some blankets. That was probably the best part of labor.
Oh and both my babies pooped immediately after being born, on me. Didn't even phase me and the nurses cleaned it right up.
pineapple / 12234 posts
Yes!!! I waited so long to hold them, I didn't want to wait any longer!
eggplant / 11861 posts
I wanted her right away, but she was taken to a table right after to get sucked out I had a lots of her stool in AF
I had her maybe 5 minutes after!
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