“Cord Prolapse: Kim’s Story” – with Kimberly Goodridge, NP

Dr. Fox: Welcome to today’s episode of “Healthful Woman,” a podcast designed to explore topics in women’s health at all stages of life. I’m your host, Dr. Nathan Fox, an OBGYN and maternal-fetal medicine specialist practicing in New York City. At “Healthful Woman,” I speak with leaders in the field to help you learn more about women’s health, pregnancy, and wellness. Kim, welcome to the podcast. How are you doing today?

Kim: I’m good, thanks. How are you?

Dr. Fox: I’m fantastic. Thank you for asking me. So, you volunteered your story. Yes. Sent in an email and you say, “Hey, let me tell my story.” What motivated you to do that? We love it, but, you know, I’m just curious.

Kim: Yes, the podcast was very helpful to me throughout my pregnancy. I think I listened to pretty much every episode. And the complication that ended up happening to me during pregnancy was probably, like, the one thing I did not prepare for, and I noticed there wasn’t an episode on it, so I had wanted to share.

Dr. Fox: Well, that’s awesome. First of all, thank you for being a listener of the podcast, and thank you for volunteering, and we’re definitely gonna talk about it, talk about your story, talk about the complication we’re talking about, and go into it. So, we’re talking about the birth of your son, David, and he was just born in April of this year, 2023, right?

Kim: Correct. Yeah, seven weeks ago.

Dr. Fox: Wow. How’s he rolling?

Kim: He is doing great. He is, like, over 11 pounds and sleeping 7 hours. So, he’s a good baby.

Dr. Fox: Wait, he’s sleeping seven hours a night already?

Kim: He is, yeah.

Dr. Fox: Oh, my God. So, I should have had you on this sleep training podcast.

Kim: Right.

Dr. Fox: First baby. That’s unbelievable.

Kim: Next time, yeah.

Dr. Fox: That’s next level. That’s a good job. Can he, like, deal cards and ride a bicycle, and, you know, change your YouTube password or whatever?

Kim: Yeah, we’re getting there.

Dr. Fox: Amazing. Well, that’s really nice. And you’re in the Boston area with your husband Mike and son David, right?

Kim: Correct. Yeah.

Dr. Fox: Beautiful. So, let’s do this. Take us back to when you first got pregnant. So, I guess that would be somewhere around last summer, give or take. You know, where are you? What are you doing professionally? Where are you in life? You know, what’s going on in your family situation, walking into pregnancy?

Kim: Sure. So, I am a pediatric nurse practitioner. I work at a primary care office at a private practice. Prior to that, I was a NICU nurse for seven years. So, I would go to all the high-risk deliveries to kind of make sure the baby was okay, resuscitate them if needed. So, going into pregnancy, I did have a lot of medical knowledge in that area. I was definitely a little bit nervous and kind of almost expecting to have a complication just because the only…

Dr. Fox: Because we’re all nuts?

Kim: Yes. And the only deliveries that I saw were the ones that, you know, had complications.

Dr. Fox: Yeah. You know, it’s a really interesting thing that I think a lot of people who are not in medicine sort of assume that those of us who are in medicine find it somehow comforting and reassuring when we’re getting our medical care. And sometimes that’s the case, but frequently, it’s the opposite. We’re all like, “Oh, dude, I know what can go wrong. Like, this is not good.” Was it like that for you? Like, did you walk into pregnancy sort of more confident? Hey, I know what I’m doing. I’m involved in this world. I sort of get it, or were you like, “Oh, my God, like, here’s the 15 things that can go wrong on any given moment?”

Kim: The latter. Yeah.

Dr. Fox: What led you to go into nursing and specifically NICU nursing originally?

Kim: That’s a good question. My aunt was a nurse. She let me shadow her a lot. She worked in the ICU with adults, and I knew when I shadowed her I couldn’t really do that, but I always loved working with pediatrics growing up. I worked at summer camps and stuff, and I ended up getting a job as a nurse’s aide in nursing school in the NICU, and then I fell in love with it, and so kind of went from there.

Dr. Fox: Yeah, I mean, and NICU nurses, this is not like, you know, sit and hold to feed the baby. This is intense stuff. If it’s an ICU, you’re talking, you know, life and death situations, very premature babies, resuscitations, a lot of medications, a lot of stuff going on. It’s gonna be a very stressful job.

Kim: Exactly. And that’s what ultimately led me… You know, after seven years, I really wanted to go into primary care. I wanted to have more stable patients. I wanted to watch my patients grow up. I love taking care of, you know, kids, 0 to 22. So, that’s what kind of, you know, shaped my career.

Dr. Fox: So, you pivoted, as we say?

Kim: Yeah. Exactly.

Dr. Fox: So, now you can just have a lot of fear, you know, about David and what’s gonna happen meeting his milestones and all of that moving forward.

Kim: Yeah, exactly.

Dr. Fox: It’s good you’re following him. That’s nice. And I guess when he becomes an adult, you can switch to, you know, adult nursing and worry about all that. So, it’d be good.

Kim: Yes. Exactly.

Dr. Fox: Strong work. So, this is your first pregnancy, right?

Kim: Correct.

Dr. Fox: So, when you were sort of trying to go through prenatal care and find someone, did you have any thoughts about like, “I wanna be with someone more high risk, more low risk, you know, interventional or crunchy granola?” I mean, where were you in that sort of spectrum?

Kim: Yeah, I knew I wanted to deliver at a hospital that could handle high-risk pregnancies, just in case. Actually, one of my coworkers recommended my OB in Boston. It was nice because they had, like, a satellite location that was really close to home, but I would be delivering in the city.

Dr. Fox: Okay. And then how was your prenatal care in terms of, like, how it actually played out versus sort of your fears maybe?

Kim: Yeah, so I was actually surprised throughout pregnancy. I’d be like, “I can’t believe I’m still pregnant.” It’s not for sure I was gonna have a preemie. There were no complications at all, which I was very, very happy about, but it did surprise me.

Dr. Fox: So, were you, at 23 weeks, like, “Okay, if the baby’s born today, I sort of know what it’s like,” and, like, every week you’re updating your mental picture of your premature baby?

Kim: Exactly. I’m like, “Oh, this week he probably wouldn’t need to be intubated.” So, yeah.

Dr. Fox: That is a real comforting thought to go to sleep every night, “Oh, today my baby wouldn’t need to be intubated.” And most importantly to this story, how did you find this podcast?

Kim: So, I actually am a big fan of Emily Oster, and I was…

Dr. Fox: Oh, sure. Emily O.

Kim: Yeah, you know. And she’s been on the podcast a bunch. So, I listened to a few of her episodes, and then I was like, “Oh, you know what? This is exactly what I need for my pregnancy.”

Dr. Fox: Wow. And so you just sort of… I’m gonna spend a lot of time focusing on my podcast. That’s how I roll. So, you basically just, like, binge start to finish, or did you pick out topics based on where you were in pregnancy or what questions you had?

Kim: I picked out topics based on where I was in pregnancy. Yeah.

Dr. Fox: Wow. That’s…

Kim: And kind of thinking ahead what I might need to prepare for.

Dr. Fox: Listen, I think that’s awesome. Again, I’m not plugging the podcast because it’s my career, but that’s why we do it. So, you know, people like you, anyone can just get that information. Did you find it because you’re maybe at a higher knowledge level about this than the average listener? Did you find it to be sort of not advanced level enough for you, like you were looking for more, or was it sort of where you were hoping it would be?

Kim: No, I think it was… I mean, there may have been a few episodes that I was like, “Oh, I kind of knew a majority of this,” but for the most part, it was, you know, what I needed to hear, especially having two people have conversations. You both had so much to add. So, I really learned a lot.

Dr. Fox: Awesome. Good stuff. All right. Thank you for that segue. So, tell us what happened going towards delivery, your labor and, you know, all that.

Kim: Sure. So, I actually just went to the hospital for like, a scheduled post-dates ultrasound. I was, like, 42, and the baby was measuring large. He was, like, 9, 13. That’s what they estimated him at. And the fluid was low. So, they ended up admitting me for an induction.

Dr. Fox: Did you say 9 pounds, 13 ounces?

Kim: Yes.

Dr. Fox: God bless you. You’re going for the induction. Wow. All right. Love it.

Kim: Yeah.

Dr. Fox: Well, did that scare your little? Were you like, “No, no, big babies, I love?”

Kim: Oh, it did. No, it definitely scared me, and I was very hesitant to do the induction, and my doctors were as well, but they kind of felt like first pregnancy, it was worth a try.

Dr. Fox: Right. Okay.

Kim: So, it was pretty slow the first day, and I ended up getting, like, five doses of Cytotec inter vaginally. I mean, ended up getting fully balloon catheter. And then they started me on Pitocin, but at that point, I was still only, like, 3 centimeters and, like, 50% effaced.

Dr. Fox: How long had you been in the hospital already? Because the five doses I’m counting, yeah, that’s a lot of hours.

Kim: Yeah. So, I was there for about 24 hours at that point.

Dr. Fox: Oh, dear. And did you have an epidural yet? Not have an epidural?

Kim: No, I didn’t. I was trying to hold out. I wanted to be able to walk around. I’d wanted an epidural and I was thinking a lot about it because I was pretty uncomfortable at times, especially with the side attack, but I knew I was pretty far from delivery, so I was trying to hold out.

Dr. Fox: All right. And in your hospital, do they let women who are being induced eat, drink, all the above, none of the above?

Kim: Yeah. I was able to eat and drink. They said until I got my epidural I would be able to.

Dr. Fox: Okay. I mean, every hospital’s different, and it’s actually weird why it’s different because most of the data shows it doesn’t make a difference whatsoever, but whatever. At least you got to eat. You’re not starving for that 24 hours.

Kim: Exactly.

Dr. Fox: All right. So, they’re trying everything, and you got the balloon in, and you’re 20 to 24 hours in and… Continue.

Kim: Yeah. So, things were, you know, starting to progress a little bit. I started contracting. Like, every two minutes I was getting uncomfortable. I honestly wasn’t at the point that I felt I should be to get an epidural, but I kind of found myself just calling for my nurse. I just said I want the epidural. I’m not sure why I did that. I think it was just kind of, like, a mom gut. I kind of credit it to divine intervention because it was really good timing. But anesthesia came, placed the epidural, and about five minutes after they left, my water broke. It was really, really thick meconium.

I ended up calling my nurse, like, right away to let her know my water broke. She came in all cheerful. She brought one of the residents with her. Was very kind of happy, like, “Oh, you know, do you mind if I check you? That’s great. Your water broke.” And the resident checks me and we go from, like, this, you know, happy, joking around, like, attitude to her becoming very serious, and she just says, “I’m so sorry to say there’s a cord prolapse and we’re heading straight to the OR.”

Dr. Fox: All right. So, here’s what we’re gonna do. I wanna pause right here. So, what did you know at the time about cord prolapse that when she told you this, like, what was going through your head?

Kim: Oh, yeah. So, I had known about it. One of the attendings a few hours before had actually mentioned it to us as the possibility if they broke my water prematurely, and he was like, you know, “Don’t worry. It’s not gonna happen to you, but this is why we don’t wanna break your water.” I think maybe he jinxed to me. But my husband and I had taken, you know, the prenatal classes. They had mentioned it during the classes. So, my husband was totally aware of what it was. And just for my medical knowledge, I was aware as well. And so I was absolutely terrified. It was like my worst fear coming true.

Dr. Fox: Right. So, on the OB side of it, so for our listeners, essentially what happens is either when you break the water artificially, like we do it, or if the water breaks on its own, or the water could have broken a long time ago, a cord prolapse is when the umbilical cord, which, again, connects the placenta, which is attached to the uterus to the baby and the baby belly button, that cord, which is essentially the baby’s lifeline, all the oxygen, all the fluid, all the food is coming in through there, it essentially slips out between the baby’s head and the cervix and comes out into the vagina.

Now, it’s not specifically dangerous to have the cord sitting there, but the problem with cord prolapse is what frequently follows cord prolapse is then the head plops down into the cervix and compresses the cord. So, a cord prolapse basically is a situation where either it will happen or it is happening that the cord’s getting compressed, no different than if someone inside and, like, literally took their hand and just squeezed the cord closed. And that’s quite unsafe for the baby if it persists because the baby’s not getting any oxygen during that time period. So, it is a big situation, and that’s why when you examine someone and feel it…right? That’s why the OB resident’s face changed. Do you know what your resident she was? I’m curious. Like, early or late in her career?

Kim: I think she was early. I think it was her first cord prolapse.

Dr. Fox: Yeah, but we teach them early, like if you feel this, big deal, you know, call for help. All right. So, you knew that. Did she have to, like, go into it further, like, just to sort of refresh your memory, or you knew what the drill is?

Kim: Yeah, she didn’t have to tell me anything. It was so fast. She just said, you know, “We’re going to the OR,” and I said, “I know,” and everybody else.

Dr. Fox: Right. And basically, on our end, the goal is you can’t really typically, like, push the cord back up and, you know, pass the head and, like, fix the problem in that way. I guess it’s happened in history of mankind, I suppose, but it’s not really the goal because you can’t really do that. But you basically have to do an emergency cesarean so that if the cord is being compressed, you minimize the time between when it starts getting compressed and delivery. So, that’s good for the baby. And between that time, one of the things you also do is you try to elevate the baby’s head so it’s not compressing the cord.

And so, it’s one of these really dramatic scenes when it happens on a labor floor because, A, you’re basically yelling out, “We need to do an emergency C-section, like, right away.” It’s that crash section, whatever people call it, means we’re going as soon as humanly possible, like we’re running to the operating room, which itself is quite dramatic for everyone involved. But number two, during this whole process, there’s this person sitting on your bed between your legs with their hand inside of you pushing the baby’s head up the whole time. Did that happen to you?

Kim: It did, yeah.

Dr. Fox: When you’re a resident and the first time you are on the bed with the mother, a sheet over you because, you know, we’re rolling down the hallway, it is like, “Oh, my God, what career did I just choose?” And you’re like, “What is going on down there?” It is really very dramatic. How did you deal with that sort of wild and scary situation?

Kim: Yeah, I don’t know, to be honest. I think I just tried to kinda keep quiet. And I knew that, like, they had to work as fast as they could, and I just had to let them do what they needed to do. So, I tried not to kind of cry or be showing too much emotion because I just wanted them to, you know, work as quickly as they could and move me in whatever way they needed to. So, yeah.

Dr. Fox: Did you know at the time when it was diagnosed and when she’s lifting the head if the baby’s heart rate was still normal and reassuring or if it had sort of dropped, which typically happens when you squeeze the cord?

Kim: Yeah, apparently, it was always above 120. It was always reassuring the whole time that he was on the monitor. Yeah.

Dr. Fox: Which is great, which means that even though the cord prolapsed, it had not yet been compressed. And so even though you’re still doing this emergently, you sort of, fortunately, everyone knows, all right, at this point, the baby’s still okay, at this point, the baby’s still okay. And it’s not that fear that as we’re doing this and as we’re, you know, going towards the operating room, the cord is compressed. So, that’s good. That’s helpful.

Kim: Exactly, yeah.

Dr. Fox: All right. And then you said before, just so our listeners understand, that it was sort of your mom gut to get the epidural before this happened. So, explain why. Why is that a big deal?

Kim: Yes. I was actually loaded up with, like, 90 minutes of numbing medication, so they were able to do the C-section right away. Like, they didn’t need to give me any other anesthesia. I believe otherwise I would’ve needed to have general anesthesia. So, from, like, a numbing perspective, I was, like, all ready to go. So, it didn’t delay anything.

Dr. Fox: Yeah. I mean, if you didn’t have an epidural, pretty much they would’ve taken you to the operating room and put you to sleep, put a tube in your throat, the whole thing, which would’ve been… It’s a little bit more dangerous for you. It’s also much more unpleasant because you’re not awake for the birth of your baby. Frequently, they’re not gonna let your husband in with you while you’re sort of being put to sleep. And then when you wake up, it’s like an hour or two later, you don’t know where the baby is. It’s just not the way you wanna go if you don’t have to. If you already had an epidural and you weren’t numb enough, sometimes there’s enough time to get you numb quickly and sometimes there isn’t. So, it’s sort of a toss-up, but yes, it is a good thing. What do you mean by mom gut in that sense?

Kim: Like, I had this feeling that I did know that if I needed an emergency C-section that I would need general anesthesia. So, that was always kind of looming in my head, like if I get the epidural, I’ll be ready for that. And kind of at the moment where I started to get uncomfortable, I was just like, “You know what? Now’s the time.” And I can’t really explain why.

Dr. Fox: Now, did you have…? I assume, based on your story, you didn’t really have any risk factors for cord prolapse. I mean, the biggest risk factor tends to be either the baby’s not head down, it’s breech or transverse, and your water breaks, which is not the case, or if you had a large amount of fluid. You said you had a low amount of fluid, right?

Kim: Correct. Yeah.

Dr. Fox: Yeah. Interesting. All right. It’s totally unexpected. All right. And so tell us what happened when you got to the operating room.

Kim: Yeah, so basically, everything was moving so fast. There were probably, like, 30 people in the room. They were all working so, so fast. But they all kind of were able to introduce themselves to me and tell me kind of what was happening and tell me my baby’s heart rate was reassuring. So, that was all really helpful to me in that moment. They brought my husband in kind of after the C-section had started. And it felt like an eternity to me, but apparently, it was only 14 minutes from when my membranes raptured that they got him out, but it just felt like they were working so, so fast to get him out. I couldn’t feel anything, but I could feel like, you know, just kind of tugging and pulling and stuff.

Dr. Fox: Yeah, 14 minutes is fast from being in your labor room and having the baby out. And I assume that probably 12 or 13 minutes of it was getting you from the room till starting the C-section. And once they started, it was probably a minute or two before the baby’s out.

Kim: Yeah.

Dr. Fox: Wow. Now, Mike, your husband, how was he dealing with all this?

Kim: Yeah, so he kind of seemed very calm to me. Talking to him later, he was not, but he was trying to be strong for me. I think he was, you know, having a hard time because we all kind of left him in the room. And one of the nurses suggested kind of packing up the stuff and had mentioned, you know, “Don’t forget to bring your camera to the, you know, delivery.” And he’s like, “Bring my camera. Like, there’s an emergency.”

Dr. Fox: I’m bringing a fire extinguisher. What do you mean?

Kim: Right. But he was only alone for a few minutes and then they brought him in, and I think it was good for us to be together for the majority of the C-section.

Dr. Fox: Does he have any background in medicine or anything?

Kim: No, he doesn’t.

Dr. Fox: It always sort of works out that way. Okay. So, when they did the C-section and David was born, did he cry right away? Was it pretty clear right away that he was okay?

Kim: Yeah, he cried right away.

Dr. Fox: Right. And are you immediately, like, calculating his Apgar scores and, like, going to warmer, pressing buttons and telling them, you know, do this, do this, do this. Are you a full-on NICU nurse at this time?

Kim: So, I think once I heard him screaming, I was just like, “He’s okay.” You know, like it’s from the time he’s born and then scream, scream, scream. And my husband kind of ran over there. I kind of turned off at that moment. That was when I really kind of let my emotions out and I just was like, “I can’t believe that just happened,” because it really went from, is he okay? To, like, yes he is.

Dr. Fox: Yeah. I would say probably that is the one moment in time where you being a NICU nurse is a good thing because you know that once that kid comes out screaming and is fine, you’re like, “All right, this kid’s okay,” you know. Like, “Okay, we’re good. We’re good.” Like, “That was a wild ride, but he’s fine. It’s all gonna work out.” Yeah, because, I mean, if you’re not, you’d be like, “Wait a second, was he harmed? Did something happen?” Because you just don’t know what it means and what the signs would be or not. So, okay, you know, there was a plus side to you having that background. And then afterwards, was the recovery from it physically sort of what you would’ve expected or what you think to be typical, or was there anything difficult about the recovery physically?

Kim: Yeah, I think physically, I was very surprised how tough the recovery was, like how much pain I was in, how, you know, it was hard to get up to take care of my baby. It was just not the delivery at all that I was expecting. Even though I had kind of expected a complication to occur, I really imagined myself having a vaginal delivery. So, this was totally not the way I saw things going.

Dr. Fox: Yeah. Had you ever had, like, major surgery before that you had to recover from for some other reason?

Kim: No.

Dr. Fox: Yeah. People are often surprised how painful it is to recover from a C-section. I tell people it’s like getting hit by a truck. I mean, it’s very safe and people do recover, you know, and they do well, but that first week or two, it’s not easy. It’s a big operation. I mean, most surgeries people have a laparoscopic with these little holes. And, you know, a C-section is big incision. You gotta fit a baby out of there. And this baby was, you know, like 55 pounds, and so you had to make a really big incision to get this bruiser out. Wow.

So, tell me about sort of the emotional recovery or the processing of just, like, how everything flipped so quickly and just a wild drive. Was it traumatizing to you or just sort of, like, playful, looking back on it? How did you look back on that?

Kim: It was pretty traumatizing. I think especially in the hospital, the first few days I just had a hard time kind of believing that it had happened. I couldn’t believe he was okay. I was pretty emotional. I think now that I’ve had, you know, a couple of months to process it, it’s not something that I’m thinking about, you know, every day by any means, but it’s still something that I kinda think back like, “Wow, I still can’t believe that that happened.”

Dr. Fox: And is the trauma sort of…? I’m just trying to get into what it was. Is it that “I was hoping for a vaginal birth and I didn’t,” or, “Oh, my God, my beautiful son could have been hurt and that’s kind of, like, scary?” You know, it’s sort of, like, eye-opening, which obviously you already knew that based on your career, but I say, what aspect of it was traumatizing?

Kim: Yeah, that’s something… You know, he could have been harmed. Yeah, I, you know, was totally prepared to have an emergency C-section if I needed to. You know, I was okay with that, but it was more that something bad could have happened to him.

Dr. Fox: Did it affect your ability to sort of experience all the joy of, you know, being a new parent and having a beautiful baby? I mean, were you still able to, like, during the other times say, “This is great. He’s so cute. Let’s take pictures. Let’s do this or this,” or was it like it tainted the whole experience?

Kim: No. I think if anything, I almost was oddly more joyful because I was just like, you know, “Potentially horrible thing happened and he’s okay,” and I was just even more kind of grateful. So, I was definitely able to enjoy him and bond with him and take pictures, and yeah.

Dr. Fox: That’s amazing. It’s so interesting. I mean, one of the reasons I love doing this podcast and, you know, speaking to people after they have babies, and however it plays out, is that everyone processes delivery so differently. And, you know, it’s not always what happened during the delivery or what happened with the baby, you know, good outcome, bad outcome, or the process. Just humans, we’re rigged so differently from one another and it’s so hard to even predict how someone’s gonna feel about their birth. And it’s so fascinating to talk to people. It’s like you learn so much about humans and about human experience just by having them talk about their story. It’s really crazy.

Kim: Yeah.

Dr. Fox: Interesting. Wow. All right. So, tell me, looking back on this, what is it that you would like others to learn from your story?

Kim: Yeah, I think I want others to learn pregnancy is not without risk. And so it’s really important to kinda educate yourself ahead of time, whether it’s with reputable books or, you know, podcasts like this one. Just, you know, talking to your OB, asking them questions just so that you have the knowledge should an emergency arise that no time is wasted. For me, I, you know, knew what cord prolapse was, I knew what the treatment was, and so they didn’t have to convince me to get a C-section. I was, you know, already on board.

And I think another thing I kind of would like people to hear is just keep your healthcare team informed of your symptoms. You know, I think the fact that I called my nurse right away to tell her my water broke, and, you know, she was able to come in right away, that just kind of expedited things. So, don’t be afraid to call the call bell.

Dr. Fox: Absolutely. And there’s a very high chance that that’s the reason he did so well is because you did let someone know right away. Because who knows what would’ve happened if you just sort of let it be. It’s scary to think about, obviously.

Kim: Yeah.

Dr. Fox: Wow. And then also, of course, your mom gut. Stick with the gut. Your gut’s good.

Kim: Exactly.

Dr. Fox: Wow. What about for you? Right? That’s what others are gonna take away. What do you take away from this story?

Kim: So, I think I kind of learned that even, you know, when the worst-case scenario happens, it’s not always as bad as we imagined it could be. You know, my whole pregnancy I was kind of a pessimist and, you know, expecting things to go wrong and imagining the worst possible scenario. And when it was happening and when it was resolved, it, you know, didn’t quite end the horrible way I imagined it ending.

Dr. Fox: Wow. Have you thought about your next pregnancy and, you know, what that might look like and whether you’re gonna be more afraid, less afraid? Have you given any thoughts to that? I know it’s early. You know, I’m not trying to sell you another car right after you bought one. You know, people do think about this, they think about the future.

Kim: Yeah. No, I definitely, you know, thought about my next pregnancy and I think I’m going to be a lot calmer knowing that things went, you know, well throughout my pregnancy this time around. And there’s nothing… You know, like you said earlier, I didn’t have any risk factors for cord prolapse. I am going to opt for a scheduled C-section the next time around.

Dr. Fox: No feedback for you.

Kim: I think I will feel more comfortable with that. So, yeah, I think it’ll be a much different experience.

Dr. Fox: All right. No, I’m not gonna hold you to that. This podcast is not trial testimony. You can always change your feelings seven weeks out. And what do you think about, you know, since you’re in healthcare and now you’ve been the patient, right, in a more concrete way than just going for an annual checkup or something, how do you think this might affect you as a nurse, as a nurse practitioner, as a healthcare provider, you know, for others?

Kim: Well, I kind of found it’s a very vulnerable position to be the patient. And my healthcare team did such a great job of caring for me. They worked really fast, but they kept me informed the entire time. And that really helped to keep me calmer. So, I’ll take that into my practice. And as a pediatric provider, I learned the importance of caring for both parents postpartum. You know, at our pediatrician’s appointments, you know, everybody’s not only checking in to see how I’m doing, but asking how my husband is doing. And, you know, I’m thinking back to my visits and I’m like, “Oh, geez, I don’t think I’ve ever asked how a dad is doing or how a partner is doing.” So, that’s something that I’ll take away as well.

Dr. Fox: Wow, that’s terrific. Listen, I think, first of all, your story is really interesting and it’s great. And I’m so happy that ultimately, everything worked out for you and for Mike, and, of course, for David and that he’s doing well and everything was okay. But also it really did give us an opportunity to talk about cord prolapse, which is rare. It does not happen often, but it happens and it’s mostly unpredictable. And so, for our listeners, it’s, you know, one of those things to just put away in the back of your mind that this is something that could happen. And again, if it’s recognized quickly, then typically everything’s gonna be okay, especially if you’re somewhere where they can, you know, recognize it quickly and do a C -section quickly and there’s someone there to elevate the head. But it sort of gives people some sense if that happens to them, “Oh, yeah, I knew that could happen,” and makes it slightly less scary, slightly, while they’re undergoing it.

Kim: Yeah.

Dr. Fox: Wow. Thank you for volunteering. Really, I appreciate you taking time out. You’re a new mom, you’re recovering from a C-section, you know, you got things going on and you took the time to talk to me and to our listeners. And it’s awesome and we really appreciate it.

Kim: Yeah, thank you so much for having me.

Dr. Fox: Thank you for listening to the “Healthful Woman” podcast. To learn more about our podcast, please visit our website at www.healthfulwoman.com. That’s healthfulwoman.com. If you have any questions about this podcast or any other topic you would like us to address, please feel free to email us at hw@healthfulwoman.com. Have a great day.

The information discussed in “Healthful Woman” is intended for educational uses only and does not replace medical care from your physician. “Healthful Woman” is meant to expand your knowledge of women’s health and does not replace ongoing care from your regular physician or gynecologist. We encourage you to speak with your doctor about specific diagnoses and treatment options for an effective treatment plan.