What does it mean when as baby is discribed as flat after birth?

[ClementineKelandra]

I've been having some counselling because of a traumatic birth with dd 3 year ago.

I had an emergency CS as dd was distressed. And then she was taken away straight after being born and I had a haemorrhage so will pretty much out of it for the following 24 hrs.

Dd was brought to us after a while although they kept taken her back up to scbu a few times a day to do bloods.

Nobody explained anything to us but at a Dr's appoinment I saw the screen on his computer and it discribed dd as having been 'flat' when she was born.

I've been trying to google but just get lots of stuff about flat heads. Please can anybody explain what it means?

Tia x

So many typo's

Hi, hope you're doing ok.

It means that they are floppy and take a little time to come round. It's very very common. Usually these babies are breathing and have a decent heart rate but their breathing is a bit slow and erratic and they haven't initially got good tone. They usually need a good rub down to stimulate them and often some extra breaths through a small pressure mask to stimulate better breathing and sometimes need warming up and some oxygen piped into an incubator for a couple of hours.

I hope this helps.

Think it's just a term for saying baby needs a bit of help getting going after birth... Sometimes described as floppy too... Might need help filling their lungs with air for the 1st time.. Some suction & some oxygen, a good old rub over to wake them up a bit

You'd have a better picture of the 'condition' of baby if you knew the APGAR score.

A 'flat' baby needs stimulating or resuscitating. Neither are unusual for a baby born by emergency CS.

It would be better to be able to go through all of the notes, if you are in contact with the hospital you can request a debrief.

Hope you're ok

My son was flat on delivery after an EMCS. He appeared to make a noise (I thought he was breathing okay and had cried) but he wasn't breathing. He had to be treated and is fine now.

My second son also needed help.

Both needed more than a rub to get them going and no one was [ I can assure you!

It is 'unofficial' medical jargon that is descriptive of a cluster of physiological signs or absence thereof when a baby is born.

In psychiatric terms it has a different meaning- an absence or dampening down of 'affect'- the way a person displays their mood i.e a lack of animation, emotional and physiological response.

Yep my DS was flat and very blue, felt like forever but he was soon in our arms and turning pink x

I'm doing good really, I just have a few flash backs and nightmares. I'm finding it very difficult to be apart from dd though. I've never left her with a babysitter and she sleeps with me too.

It was only when I started seeing a counsellor about my anxiety and depression that I realised just how traumatised the experience has left me.

Thanks for replying. It's good to know its not uncommon. I was think it meant she was born not alive (can't say the other word)