Baby pulling the umbilical cord - dangerous??

[Marabou]

Perhaps this is a silly question, but my LO seems to be increasingly interested in the umbilical cord and pulls it quite forcefully sometimes. For me it simply feels a little uncomfortable, but I was actually worried that he might pull on it so hard it breaks somehow.. Is this possible? And how would I know if something's not normal??

Sorry if this is too silly ..

I can't see how it would break in utero - it's quite a thick cord (like a rope)

how do you know?? how can you feel this tugging in utero??

it is thick and if it was not evolved enough to withstand possible tugging/wrapping round a baby , i think the human race would have died out long ago

how on earth do you know your baby is pulling it??? lol

um, and no, it won't break in utero by your baby pulling it :)

Yes, how do you know?!

pnyb (precious not-yet-born)
Don't worry it's no more likely to detach than my toddler's willy, which he also won't leave alone!

Hm, maybe that's not it then ..

It's just kind of like a tugging feeling, like something pulling inside and it doesn't really hurt, but feels more uncomfortable. But it's a different feeling to kicking and him moving around.. I'm 28 weeks 5 days by the way.. Gosh am I the only one feeling this?! I thought it's so clearly pulling..?

Oh, thanks for saying it's more like a thick rope and that it wouldn't break! I guess it gets pretty boring in there !

Lol!! I was just saying to my DH that I wish he preferred pulling on his willy !

your baby is doing all sorts of things which might include pulling the cord, but i promise he can't do anything bad to it or himself

Thanks for the reassuring messages. Really needed them.. Being pregnant for the first time makes me worry about all sorts..

I was also worrying about that. I was talking to a midwife about delivering the placenta and she said that sometimes they have to tug on the cord to pull the placenta out. And I asked if the cord ever snapped off and she said that she has known that happen quite a few times. and I posted a thread a while ago about these pains ive been having and someone said it could be baby pulling the cord. and i started worrying.

yes but your average midwife is quite a lot stronger than a tiny unborn baby

Melly19MummyToBe, Aah finally someone, who's felt the same thing ! Not happy about what your MW said though.. although yes, they probably generally are stronger than the unborn baby !

I have finally heard everything

She only said they have to tug gently and it sometimes snaps right off if theres a weak spot in the cord!

Hi Marabou Oooh yes just remembered the horrible feeling as midwife pulls the placenta out - I seem to remember it being quite a strong pull (defo stronger than a baby!).

Not as horrid as MW pulling placenta out - and the cord snapping off and having to have it manually removed with no pain relief! That hurt much more than labour, I recall!

Crikey. And the MW I was talking to said you hardly noticed it being removed

I think it's rare? I lost a lot of blood because it had to be manually removed before the tear from DS2's 'superman' exit was stitched. So had transfusion. And then another one 2 days later.

Errr someone remind me why I'm doing all this again?!

I don't think you would feel baby pulling on the cord, it is simply your body stretching to accomodate a rapidly growing baby! Cords certainly can break when delivering the placenta but as a previous poster mentioned a fully grown woman pulling on it to bring it through the birth canal and vagina is very different to a 28 week fetus playing with it!
As a general rule we do tug gently but sometimes they are thin or 'friable' and they go ping! I don't know how you would not notice as they are pretty large, perhaps she meant that your attention would be on your lovely new baby at the time!

when my friend had her baby the cord snapped as he was born because it was exceptionally short

but the forces we're talking here are really unlikely to be recreated by a foetus in utero.
honestly

have you any idea how weak a baby is??

honestly, a "gentle tug" from a midwife is far more than a baby could ever do, trust me
or perhaps next time you see MW ask her if she has ever come across a baby that has managed to snap its own umbilical cord.

Hih, I think I was overestimating my little man, bless him ! My DH keeps telling me he's hungry and it's his dinner bell..

try eating some cake every time it happens and see if that helps lol

well there's the overestimating the foetus

and the fact that there are no nerve endings in an umbilical cord or placenta

and the fact that everything is stretching to accomodate the feotus - and babies can move a lot

I find this thread very endearing

Good idea actually. I never thought of asking her that! reikizen are you a midwife then? just wondering because of the line "As a general rule we do tug gently" :)

I know exactly the sensation you're describing! I felt it too from around 28ish weeks and presumed it was DS tugging the cord or something similar.

It really is a pulling feeling, very different to kicking, and felt exactly like when the midwife pulled the placenta out - except less intense. V weird!