Mom ended up giving birth in her bathroom—her 2-year-old became an unexpected source of comfort for her
A woman in labor might need all kinds of support she can get. However, a mom who gave birth in the bathroom hadn't known that her 2-year-old would become her strongest source of support. The mom, Shannen Krahn, was a week away from her due date when she ended up giving birth to her daughter in the bathroom at her home. It was a tough and unexpected moment for her. But then her toddler stepped in to make her feel better through the process, per PEOPLE.
"At one point, when I was looking down, he put his little hand under my chin and lifted my face up to look him in the eye," Krahn recounted. "Focusing on him kept my brain away from the pain." The woman was 39 weeks pregnant at that time and had come back home after fulfilling her day's duties as a middle school math teacher. She was feeling a little bit of pain, but it didn't seem like she was going into labor any time soon. So she encouraged her husband to go to work and promised to call him if she needed any help. Although she called him after she started experiencing severe pains, everything went so fast that her husband, Mitch, couldn't make it back home before she gave birth.
"I didn't realize how fast it was going to progress," Krahn went on. The contractions had become more severe while the woman took her post-work shower. So she called her husband while she was giving a bath to her son, Max. It would have taken her husband 45 minutes to be back, so the woman had started preparing her hospital bag and other necessities. She had also called a relative who would be taking care of her son when she went to the hospital. However, the moment she stepped into the bathroom to grab something, her water broke. "It was like a water balloon dropping on the floor. It was crazy." Her son tried to comfort her by patting her arm after she came out to check on him.
The mom had told Max to stay put as she went back inside the bathroom, but the boy followed her inside regardless. "I got myself down on my hands and knees. I'm not getting out of this bathroom without having this baby." After pushing three times, the baby was out. Krahn couldn't reach out to any adult because her phone was not with her at that moment. Max patted her arm and tried to reassure her throughout the ordeal. The baby could be delivered safely, without any problems. "I kind of got her up on my chest and she let out a good cry. That was just a huge weight off the shoulders."
Her husband was back home just five minutes after the birth. The moment they saw each other, both parents were a little stunned. "We made eye contact. [And I said] 'Hi, we have a baby.'" They went to the hospital after that. The doctors checked on both the mom and the baby, Brooklynn. Both of them were healthy and could go back home after 24 hours. Max was glad to see his baby sister and was completely in love with her. "He calls her, 'My baby.' He wants to know where she is all the time." Initially, the mom was worried that the experience might have a negative impact on Max, but he was doing fine.