my first time seeing a dad almost pass out

Gompers, BSN, RN · Nov 9, 2006

And this is one of the reasons why my husband has been instructed to stay up near my head. I do NOT want him holding my legs, down there, looking at that. He hates hospitals and gets very freaked out when watching medical stuff on TV - even simple stuff like on ER or Grey's Anatomy. I don't need him passing out when I need his support the most!

santhony44, MSN, RN, NP · Nov 9, 2006

I was helping with a delivery, mom was on the table, pushing. I was on one side of mom, her mom was at her head, hubby and another nurse were on the other side.

I noticed that someone was breathing funny- taking really deep breaths, wasn't mom who was pushing, wasn't me, the other nurse, or her mom, we were all "helping" mom push.

I looked over, it's dad taking really deep breaths, looking a little pale and starting to sway.

He was, fortunately, able to get it under control and not pass out. He was about 6' 5" and the nurse standing on that side was about five feet nothing. She couldn't have caught him if he'd fallen.

Once all that passed he was fine and did great the rest of the time.

flytern · Nov 9, 2006

Usually about 1 out of 10 days pass out during epidural.

They all seem to have this macho thing going on, that they can handle everything. I just tell them (me being 5ft 2in). That if they pass out I might be able to catch them on the 2nd or third bounce, but I can guarantee they're hitting the floor on their own. I'm too busy keeping mom up, holding her leg.....

If they get some juice in them before pushing starts, they usually can get through it all. I also tell them, they can see/participate as much as they want. If they want to to hold her head, look at the ceiling the whole time, it's okay with me. If they want to see everything, cut the cord, watch the epis/sewing it's okay too.

:balloons:

elkpark · Nov 9, 2006

Although I'm not an OB nurse and don't have day-to-day experience with this, I will always remember an experience in my OB rotation in nursing school -- the dad got woozy and almost passed out watching me put an IV in the wife's arm, before she was even close to delivering!!!

It probably wouldn't have made such an impression on me if he hadn't been impressing on us all, since first arriving in the department, that he was a Marine and a big, tough, macho guy.:chuckle

(He also made a point of commenting to us that he'd been through this before with his first wife, which I thought was rather tacky and insensitive of him -- if I were the laboring woman, I would not be much interested in lying there and listening to him chat up the nursing staff about his first wife! But he seemed to be rather obnoxious and overbearing in general ...)

allnurses Guide · Nov 9, 2006

Although I'm not an OB nurse and don't have day-to-day experience with this, I will always remember an experience in my OB rotation in nursing school -- the dad got woozy and almost passed out watching me put an IV in the wife's arm, before she was even close to delivering!!!
It probably wouldn't have made such an impression on me if he hadn't been impressing on us all, since first arriving in the department, that he was a Marine and a big, tough, macho guy.:chuckle
(He also made a point of commenting to us that he'd been through this before with his first wife, which I thought was rather tacky and insensitive of him -- if I were the laboring woman, I would not be much interested in lying there and listening to him chat up the nursing staff about his first wife! But he seemed to be rather obnoxious and overbearing in general ...)

I think the same guy was at my hospital recently . . . .while his wife was in labor with her first child he kept making comments about how she didn't do well with pain and how he had been through this all before with his first wife. Yeah, that is a jerky thing to say.

steph

htrn · Nov 9, 2006

everyone in the room gets the same speech from me, a mantra really:

"if at any time you feel faint, dizzy, light headed, pukey or wierd at all, plant your butt on the nearest flat surface, even if it's the floor. we can sew up a perineum but not a head." or "we stitch bottoms, er stitches heads" everyone gets the speech, 1st kid or 15th, male/female, so or new grandma.

we have about 1-2 a month that spend some time sipping juice with their heads between their needs every few weeks.

eden · Nov 10, 2006

I've only had one dad pass out. I had just started ( like within a couple weeks) so there was a more senior nurse helping me with the delivery. There was no warning he was going to pass out He just fell back and hit his head while mom was yelling at him to get up because she needed him. The nurse with me freaked out because she had no idea what to do with him, so I looked after dad while the other nurse continued working with mom. He was so emabarrased but I just had to laugh since we was trying to pretend he didn't really faint:chuckle

ganursechick, BSN, RN · Nov 10, 2006

i had a guy puke all over the floor the other day at work because he happened to walk in the room when i was giving his wife a flu shot!!!:uhoh21: she said that normally when he goes with her to the doctor and she is gonna get a shot, he will turn his back, stand in the corner, put his fingers in his ears and sing out loud so he does not see/hear anything. just so happened we were trying to get her flu shot out of the way while he was supposed to be going to the mens room, guess there was a line, cause he came back quickly,,,,,not my fault he did not knock before he opened the door..man it was not a pretty sight. :lol2:

tvccrn, ASN, RN · Nov 10, 2006

i had a guy puke all over the floor the other day at work because he happened to walk in the room when i was giving his wife a flu shot!!!:uhoh21: she said that normally when he goes with her to the doctor and she is gonna get a shot, he will turn his back, stand in the corner, put his fingers in his ears and sing out loud so he does not see/hear anything. just so happened we were trying to get her flu shot out of the way while he was supposed to be going to the mens room, guess there was a line, cause he came back quickly,,,,,not my fault he did not knock before he opened the door..man it was not a pretty sight.

If I were her I wouldn't have him some with me if there was the chance of a shot. That can't be too fun for anyone in the office.

tvccrn

33-weeker · Nov 11, 2006

I was watching on of those baby story shows on TV. It was a nice couples' first baby. They were middle-aged and a bit nerd-ish.

She was delivering in an OR or old-fashioned delivery room. There was only one nurse with the doc. Mom was losing it. Dad (in paper scrubs and a boufant cap) was getting woozy. He managed to make it over to the wall by the doorway and kind of slide down the wall. He did pass out, but the wall held him up in a sitting position.

The nurse is trying to get mom under control, check on dad and assist the doc all at the same time. The camera man moved a little to get a shot of dad passed out against the wall. I could see a nurse down the hall peeking in, but she quickly walked away when she realized the camera was taping her.

The dad's glasses were crooked & his cap was sideways. He came-to and wabbled over to his wife's side just as she delivered. It was such a funny scene!!! The parents looked and behaved totally goofy, and the staff appeared virtually incompetent. I felt so sorry for the poor nurse stuck dealing with all of it by herself.

If I were the parents, I would not want that played on national TV for the world to see. :lol2: :lol2:

nurturing_angel · Nov 11, 2006

I've had 2 dads pass out on me during my OB career. First one passed out during pushing, passed out hitting his head and cracking it open. Went to ER while still unconscious and ended up spending the night in the hospital for observation. The second one was helping support his wife during an epidural placement and I just happened to be walking behind him when he crumpled to the floor almost pulling his wife off the bed with him. I had my hands full trying to lower him to the floor and keep the wife on the bed. The anesthesiologist just stood there looking at the commotion.

:balloons: