Woman's surprising response to life-or-death decision sparks debate online
- Replies 7
It’s a situation no parent ever wants to experience.
But a mum-of-four sparked a fierce debate when she shared her opinion on what to do in the case of a life-or-death situation while in labour.
US-based TikTok user Shelbie Martin, who goes by @shelbielenora online, uploaded a short but powerful video on the social media platform.
In the clip, she said: ‘If, during birth, you have to choose to save me or the baby, save me.’
She added: ‘I have babies at home that need me. And my husband agrees.'
Ms Martin’s controversial video sparked a ton of backlash on TikTok, with commenters saying that they would always put the life of their child first.
‘I couldn’t get in line with that. I’d rather have my baby be born,’ one woman said.
One said that they told their partner to save the baby if something was to happen. ‘She’s my miracle baby, my one and only,’ the mum added.
‘I’d save my kid. I would likely never recover from losing a child,’ another replied.
While someone interjected and said: ‘I’m on my second and I still say save my child. Don’t say you’d take a bullet for them if you can’t put them first in ANY aspect.’
‘I signed a form in labour and 1,000,000% save the baby,’ one more commented.
Many people agreed with Ms Martin, and said that they would make the same decision, and said that they ‘couldn’t imagine’ leaving behind their husbands and kids at home.
‘You’re the first person I’ve seen do this that didn’t say “save the baby”…I agree with you completely,’ one woman shared.
‘Society expects you to save the baby, but I have babies and a husband who would be lost without me. As heartbreaking as it would be, I agree,’ another wrote.
One shared: ‘Before I had kids, I’d save the baby. I have 2 kids now, they need me.’
While another said they want to save their baby but they have three babies at home that need them.
‘This happened to my mum. She died 12 years ago, leaving 6 children behind. She was pregnant also and the baby died 8 days after my mum. I wish she listened and she would be here now,’ a woman claimed.
Someone commented that from a medical perspective, the doctors and nurses put the mother ‘as the priority’ in these situations.
Others recalled their own experiences while in labour, and told their heartbreaking and deeply personal stories in the comments section.
‘I had a stillborn. I haemorrhaged after I gave birth. I remember begging the nurse to save my life for my children at home,’ one mum stated.
While another countered: ‘People say this, but losing a baby and then living after it is the hardest ever. Saying it like it’s nothing…I’d rather die than go through that again.’
Ms Martin’s video went viral, amassing over 2 million views in mere days. She told reporters that she was 18 when she lost her own mum. Since posting the video, she said she faced ‘a great deal’ of outrage from people online.
‘I absolutely got backlash. I’ve been told I don’t deserve my children, my children are better off without me, and a few things harsher than that,’ she admitted.
Ms Martin said that although she knew she would get different points of view from people, she claimed that she’ll ‘just never understand the need to be so nasty when you disagree about a topic’.
‘It truly does seem that if you look through the comments, many people agree with me and are glad I spoke up about it, as it made them feel that their feelings about it were valid,’ she told reporters.
You can watch Ms Martin’s video below:
In Australia, the maternal mortality rate in 2020 was 5.5 deaths per 100,000 women giving birth (about 16 maternal deaths). These were divided into two sub-categories: Direct and indirect.
Direct maternal deaths are those that resulted from obstetric complications of pregnancy or its management. Indirect maternal deaths are those that result from diseases or conditions that were not due to a direct cause but were ‘aggravated’ by the physiologic effects of pregnancy.
It was also reported that 1 in 3 mothers said that they experienced the birth of their child as a ‘traumatic’ event.
What are your thoughts on this topic, members? Please feel free to share your opinions in the comments below, but also be kind and keep it respectful.
But a mum-of-four sparked a fierce debate when she shared her opinion on what to do in the case of a life-or-death situation while in labour.
US-based TikTok user Shelbie Martin, who goes by @shelbielenora online, uploaded a short but powerful video on the social media platform.
In the clip, she said: ‘If, during birth, you have to choose to save me or the baby, save me.’
She added: ‘I have babies at home that need me. And my husband agrees.'
Shelbie’s opinion sparked outrage on TikTok. Credit: Taryn Elliott/Pexels
Ms Martin’s controversial video sparked a ton of backlash on TikTok, with commenters saying that they would always put the life of their child first.
‘I couldn’t get in line with that. I’d rather have my baby be born,’ one woman said.
One said that they told their partner to save the baby if something was to happen. ‘She’s my miracle baby, my one and only,’ the mum added.
‘I’d save my kid. I would likely never recover from losing a child,’ another replied.
While someone interjected and said: ‘I’m on my second and I still say save my child. Don’t say you’d take a bullet for them if you can’t put them first in ANY aspect.’
‘I signed a form in labour and 1,000,000% save the baby,’ one more commented.
Shelbie said she’d save herself. Credit: shelbielenora/TikTok
Many people agreed with Ms Martin, and said that they would make the same decision, and said that they ‘couldn’t imagine’ leaving behind their husbands and kids at home.
‘You’re the first person I’ve seen do this that didn’t say “save the baby”…I agree with you completely,’ one woman shared.
‘Society expects you to save the baby, but I have babies and a husband who would be lost without me. As heartbreaking as it would be, I agree,’ another wrote.
One shared: ‘Before I had kids, I’d save the baby. I have 2 kids now, they need me.’
While another said they want to save their baby but they have three babies at home that need them.
‘This happened to my mum. She died 12 years ago, leaving 6 children behind. She was pregnant also and the baby died 8 days after my mum. I wish she listened and she would be here now,’ a woman claimed.
Someone commented that from a medical perspective, the doctors and nurses put the mother ‘as the priority’ in these situations.
Others recalled their own experiences while in labour, and told their heartbreaking and deeply personal stories in the comments section.
‘I had a stillborn. I haemorrhaged after I gave birth. I remember begging the nurse to save my life for my children at home,’ one mum stated.
While another countered: ‘People say this, but losing a baby and then living after it is the hardest ever. Saying it like it’s nothing…I’d rather die than go through that again.’
Ms Martin’s video went viral, amassing over 2 million views in mere days. She told reporters that she was 18 when she lost her own mum. Since posting the video, she said she faced ‘a great deal’ of outrage from people online.
‘I absolutely got backlash. I’ve been told I don’t deserve my children, my children are better off without me, and a few things harsher than that,’ she admitted.
Ms Martin said that although she knew she would get different points of view from people, she claimed that she’ll ‘just never understand the need to be so nasty when you disagree about a topic’.
‘It truly does seem that if you look through the comments, many people agree with me and are glad I spoke up about it, as it made them feel that their feelings about it were valid,’ she told reporters.
You can watch Ms Martin’s video below:
In Australia, the maternal mortality rate in 2020 was 5.5 deaths per 100,000 women giving birth (about 16 maternal deaths). These were divided into two sub-categories: Direct and indirect.
Direct maternal deaths are those that resulted from obstetric complications of pregnancy or its management. Indirect maternal deaths are those that result from diseases or conditions that were not due to a direct cause but were ‘aggravated’ by the physiologic effects of pregnancy.
It was also reported that 1 in 3 mothers said that they experienced the birth of their child as a ‘traumatic’ event.
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