Coronavirus in Argentina: step by step recounted an unexpected home birth and revolutionized Twitter

07/18/2020 - 13:41

• Clarín.com
• Society

"Well, in quarantine, before week 38, one day before Emilia's birthday AND AT HOME, the irresponsible Martina Heller was born." With that phrase, between ironic and still shocked, begins a story that this Saturday is trending on Twitter.

It is the first person account of a father, Mariano Heller, about an unplanned home birth. The story, of course, has a happy ending: mother and daughter were able to move to a clinic minutes after birth and recover without complications.

The "Welcome Martina" trend is shared by hundreds of users who, in many cases, despite not knowing the family personally, were involved in the story that Heller, lawyer, radical and fan of Boca, as defined by his profile in the social network, began to count in the early hours of Saturday. His wife, Fátima Noriega, is also a colleague, received at UBA like him. 

Well, in quarantine, before week 38, a day before Emilia's birthday AND AT HOME the irresponsible Martina Heller was born. pic.twitter.com/aX3DVPVHZP

Each tweet, in addition, is commented by users who compare with more traditional experiences of childbirth and also with the nerves and anxiety typical of the arrival of a new member to the family, in this case, raised to the umpteenth power.

He said to me at that moment, here comes another contraction, let's measure time again. We measured it and the app released a red sign saying go to the hospital or something like that. There began an epic that took no less than 8 years of my life.

"It turns out that I was placidly watching Los Sopranos and at 0.22 @Fatinoriega told me that I was having a bit strong contractions ," the chronological account begins.

At first they thought it was part of the normal contractions of the last trimester, which are noticeable several weeks before delivery but do not necessarily warn that you have to run to the hospital.

But an application to measure contractions warned that labor was about to start. 

I called the midwife first and told her how I could. This girl Paula, who I think deserves at least a Nobel Prize, tried to calm me down and said pass me on to Fatima. I tried and she twisted in pain yelled at me I CANNOT GRIP THE PHONE.

The reactions of the followers included all kinds of comments between a film story: "I read everything, I went from tachycardia, to laughter, to crying with a snot of emotion! It could not be otherwise the arrival of your daughter to get more epic to 2020! ", synthesized a user.

"Congratulations to all! To the mother for giving birth by herself, to the father for maintaining sanity, to the little girl for continuing to sleep, to the doctor for guiding them by phone, to the grandmother for arriving immediately and to the cat for not importuning." Even several asked to enrich the story with audios of the tense moments and directly dream of an adaptation of Netflix.

I go back to the head ... when he came out I yelled at Paula there the head came out! What do I do now? Threw? Nerd. She will go out alone. And there Fati put in another push and spat on the creature. 1.52 hours.

Through the loudspeaker the midwife tried to calm them , but the situation already seemed to be defined: the baby was going to be born right there. "I am going to have to do this myself. I see at that moment that an unclean thing begins to come out. It was the head covered with some substance that I would never want to see again in my life," he relates with a harshness that generated more than 1,3000 "I like it", on the rise.

At 1.52 AM Emilia was finally born, in the hands of her father and with the indications at a distance from the midwife. " I wanted to know if he was breathing, if he was fine . Luckily after a few seconds he began to cry. Paula congratulated us and said to call 911."

In my brief previous dialogue with the obstetrician, I told him to give me half his salary because I had taken care of everything, and he told me that no matter what happens, don't let the cord be cut because later the identification was a quilombo.

With the ambulance already on the way, the brand-new grandmother arrived to take care of the oldest daughter of the couple, who, that is to say, did not wake up at any time from the sudden birth of her younger sister.

Emilia weighed a little more than three kilos and her state of health, like that of her mother, was impeccable when they arrived at the clinic and began the formalities, with the most difficult part of the job already done. "Just now, a few hours later, my adrenaline is going down a bit and it's like a truck has passed me. The girls are in the clinic bed. Martina has already latched on to her tit."

Just now, a few hours later, my adrenaline is going down a bit and it's as if a truck has passed me. The girls are in the clinic bed. Martina already latched on to the tit.

Among those who commented on the story there were several recognized figures who also echoed the emotional story. "Incredible. Congratulations. I am glad that you are all well. A strong hug to the mother who gave birth without anesthesia and surely with a lot of fright, a champion. You too. Hugs", published the writer Claudia Piñeiro.

"They made me cry. Everything together," said national deputy Gabriela Cerruti. Ricardo Gil Lavedra also joined: "Impressive the story! Congratulations for the baby and for the attitude. It is not easy to face that emergency."