Skin-to-skin contact ... also after a cesarean section

Although the benefits of skin-to-skin contact after delivery, and we know that the first hour is decisive to bond and initiate breastfeeding; Mothers who have their baby by cesarean section still find it difficult to allow such contact.

In fact, one of the causes of separation (mother - baby) is a cesarean delivery; but precisely that way of being born advises not to lose body contact. In this campaign of El Parto es Nuestro, call that they do not separate you, explain that 'children born after elective cesarean section cry less in skin-to-skin contact than those who remain in the crib, and they also take less time to fall asleep; this is explained because they are not born in the quiet alertness to which the adrenaline rush takes them caused by the stress of childbirth.

The reality is that if you have had a cesarean, your baby can be put on you, which will have a positive impact on your emotional and physical health, There's no doubt; also establishing breastfeeding is much easier. The practice, however, is still very stubborn despite the small advances that hospitals are making.

For example, in many of them it is already established by protocol that the baby have skin-to-skin contact as soon as you are born with the father: As you know, the mother stays in resuscitation for a while in case there are any complications after the operation. I believe that when there is a will to change, change is possible, because if not, we are maintaining a painful situation for mothers and cruel for children (those who do not enjoy contact with their father).

Skin to skin after a cesarean section: with the mother.

If the baby is healthy, and the mother does not have any complications, what is the problem? The problem is the resistance of the health system to make small changes in the operation. It is evident that after major abdominal surgery, the mother will need helpShe can't just keep the baby on her, but that's what the father is for, or another person designated by her (a relative, the accompanying doula ...)

These changes would prevent babies from being alone for up to two hours (even if they are fine), which can have consequences for their future emotional health.

In the documents that accompany the EPEN initiative, they make useful recommendations for healthcare personnel who have performed the operation or are present:

'' Place the electrodes for constant control on the mother's back, so that her chest is available to accommodate the baby; ensure that the arms are free to support the newborn; provide help (may be the parent) to keep her child with her while the wound is stitched up; provide psychological support 'After the cesarean section, it is usual to take the woman to a resuscitation room (these rooms do not usually allow the presence of babies), and sometimes the separation is up to 24 hours, depending on the organization of each hospital.

Follow-up of the mother can be done without damaging the bond

Question of rights.

This is not the first time we have mentioned the European Charter for Rights of Hospitalized Children (which was approved by the European Parliament on June 16, 1986). 'Any child has the right to be accompanied by his parents (or a substitute for them) for as long as possible while in the hospital '. It also establishes the Right not to receive useless medical treatments and not endure physical and moral suffering that can be avoided (That they do not separate you).

Based on these Rights, in cases where it is medically (for example, general anesthesia) impossible for skin to skin to be done with the mother, and complicated from the point of view of the organization of the hospital center; then it would be the father who would take the baby to his chest, Of course that's better than letting him be alone! (It is that apart from the consequences that this may have, and the medical / scientific bibliography in this regard, it is very sad that a child passes from the uterus to a sterile cradle in an empty room.

Believe me: the avoidance of harmful routines for children can and should be demanded, that is why it is our right to ask 'not to be separated'. Remember that you have the possibility to express that desire in your Birth Plan (explaining how you would like to be treated in an exceptional situation such as an emergency cesarean section). Obstetrician Michel Oden He said it, and we must believe it for the sake of newborns: "To change the world, we must first change the way we are born."

Picture - Inspired Photography CT