Reddit Chimes In After Dad-To-Be Says He's Too "Squeamish" To Cut The Umbilical Cord

Most expectant parents have some sort of pre-conceived idea of what childbirth is going to look like, whether they get ideas from the internet, from their family and friends, or even from watching movies. Whether or not the reality of your child’s birth will match up with what you’ve seen changes from person to person, of course, because there are so many unknown variables. For example, one expectant dad shared on Reddit that his partner really wants him to cut the umbilical cord because she has a “Hollywood idea of birth,” but he is really not into it. Like, at all.

The expectant dad from Australia took to the sub-Reddit forum Am I The A**hole to share his particularly time-sensitive problem. “My wife is full term and being induced tomorrow,” he wrote. “I told her quite early on, that I didn’t want to cut to the cord. I know it’s just me and that I’m making it weird, but I find it really squeamish to cut into human flesh. It seems like a medical procedure and I’m REALLY uncomfortable with it.” His wife accepted his decision at first, but started to put the pressure on again once the due date got closer.

He thought he might be able to stave her off by agreeing to catch the baby as it was being born, but not a chance. “I feel that my wife has a Hollywood idea of birth, including that I cut the cord. She also wants me to get in the shower with her and rub her back during labour, which she saw on a Netflix show,” he wrote.

Again, the dad was willing to get in the shower to rub her back à la the Netflix show, but really felt too squeamish to cut the cord. And fellow Redditors had some suggestions for him.

“I wouldn’t argue about this with your (very pregnant!) wife if you don't have to — you know her wishes, she knows yours. No need to debate it. But decline and help her cuddle the baby while the cord is cut,” one person advised. “If you’re not comfortable literally cutting the cord, I think the last thing that should be between you and your newborn is essentially a very sharp knife.”

While this commenter didn’t think the expectant dad was an a**hole, they also pointed out, “I guess but this is hardly a ‘Hollywood idea of birth.’ Both of the things you mentioned are completely normal and common.”

Another person empathized with both expectant parents and offered a bit of insight: “She probably is just looking for more ways to share the experience with you. She’s literally doing all of the work , maybe from her perspective, you doing that means you’re taking a more active role. I doubt it’ll matter at all in the moment because there will be an actual baby, which is way more exciting than cutting the cord.”

Finally, this person pointed out that the wife is going to be going through a whole lot more than cutting an umbilical cord, “Yeah I mean he doesn’t have to do it, but I don’t think the wife is gonna be too sympathetic to his squeamishness given her role in the birth lol.”

While this expectant dad should rest assured that his new baby will not feel the umbilical cord being cut, his discomfort is understandable. And apparently, his wife eventually understood as well. Not a moment too soon. “We are going to go with mum cutting the cord while I hold her other hand and control the camera remote as she would like a photo of it,” he updated Reddit users mere hours before the couple went off to the hospital to welcome their new baby together.

Talk about a Hollywood ending.