‘Traumatising': My 7yo was with me in the delivery room

"Well, now you have the 'where do babies come from?' conversation covered." 

Who you want by your side during your baby's birth is deeply personal. Some prefer to keep the experience intimate, while others welcome their extended support network. 

It's more unusual to have children present - which is what one mum did recently. Ashley Cunningham supported her seven-year-old daughter Sophia's wish to be present during the birth of her sister, Brylee, and posted about it. 

However, with 2.1 million views on TikTok, Ashley received an onslaught of messages, and not all were positive.

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However, Sophia remains unaffected after witnessing the miracle of life.

"My seven-year-old daughter begged to be in the delivery room when it was time for me to deliver her baby sister," Ashley explains in the clip.

"I was able to convince my doctors that she was mature enough to handle it and I’m so glad it worked out. Sophia handled it so well and was so excited to see her baby sister be born."

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"She did better than my husband"

Viewers of the clip praised the young girl's maturity in such a grown-up situation.  

"She did better than my husband; the nurses managed to kick a chair under him as he went down, so he was fine. I was reassuring him the whole time," one wrote. 

"This young little lady did better than most grown men. Incredible," added another. 

And this man was impressed, writing, "Us men full-on passing out! Idk how mum and her were so calm!"

One mum also wrote in support: "You deserve to have whoever you want in that birthing room! And you are teaching her way more than any video would. You are forever her hero for this!"

My 7yo was with me in the delivery room. Source: TikTok

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"It was terrifying"

As always, a few people tried to ruin the moment and burst the family's love bubble. 

For example, this person who wrote, "I wouldn't want my children in the delivery room."

"I saw my mum have my brother at 15, and it was terrifying," another said. 

"She is either going to be an MD or childless," someone joked.

The mixed reactions prompted Ashley and Sophia to answer some questions in a follow-up video. 

The mum of two explained that Sophia was prepared for what would happen in the delivery room and had watched a video to help her understand the process.

Sophia piped up and said that she likes "medical stuff," so this wasn't a scary experience. She wanted to see her sister's first breath and spend special time with her mum.

And to the person who wrote, "No having kids for her, I bet," Sophia responded with a side eye, "Seriously?"

Ashley concluded, "The nurses kept bragging about how well she did! I think they enjoyed having someone so young who was interested in the whole process. They probably don’t see that much."

Originally published as ‘Traumatising': My 7yo was with me in the delivery room