Nurse Reveals Wildest Things Dads Say In The Delivery Room

A nurse has shared a list of some of the shocking things she has heard new dads say in hospital delivery rooms.

Childbirth can be a difficult experience and while the bulk of the stress and strain is undoubtedly placed on the mom, dads experience a roller coaster of emotions too.

In 2020, a study published in the journal Springer saw 318 new dads complete surveys on their experience of witnessing childbirth. Many said they felt helpless (23 percent) while some recalled being overwhelmed by the situation (14.8 percent). While the majority (94 percent) were happy they were present, a little over one in three (36.5 percent) admitted to feeling fear during the process.

Maybe that's why Sydney has ended up hearing some of the things she's heard over the course of her five years as a labor and delivery nurse in Toronto, Canada. Sydney, who chooses not to share her full name, has been sharing educational content online regarding all things pregnancy, birth and postpartum for some time now under the handle nurse_sydney.

"I was scrolling on TikTok one day and saw a video of what to pack in your hospital bag. I quickly realized that as a labor & delivery nurse, I know exactly what people need to pack in their hospital bag, so I made my first video and it went viral," Sydney told Newsweek. "This was in 2022. Since then I've been posting regular content almost every day to multiple platforms."

It's her latest video, "Shocking things dads have said in the delivery room from a labor and delivery nurse" which is attracting attention at the moment though.

"This video came from some comments that stuck with me that dads have said in the delivery room," Sydney said. "Hopefully some of these comments can be a learning opportunity for future dads to keep to themselves the next time their wife is in the delivery room."

The clip sees Sydney act out a selection of the comments she has received from several soon-to-be-dads at the time who have remained nameless.

According to the video, Sydney claims one told her: "My back is killing me from that couch...I need that epidural too." In another instance, she alleges a dad asked: "How much longer is this going to take?"

Another time she remembers a dad saying: "I'm so tired...I've been up for like 48 hours" and the time one father-to-be crudely told her: "Hey Doc, wanna throw an extra stitch in for me?" There was even one occasion when the dad asked her: "So when can we have sex?" while another was heard to remark: "I'm starving, I haven't eaten in so long."

Sydney said she was "shocked" to hear dads say these things "especially when their wife has been experiencing the worst pain of her entire life trying to birth their unborn child."

"Even though most of these feelings and comments are extremely valid, the key is for the father to keep it to themselves," she said. "Because the mom is feeling all of these things multiplied 1,000."

Sydney added that some of the remarks left her feeling "uncomfortable" and that she hopes her video makes some men think more carefully about what is the appropriate thing to say in the delivery room.

"Hopefully it is able to help some new fathers and guide them on what to keep to themselves while in the delivery room," she said. "Most women in labor need unconditional support and love during this challenging time."