This is the incredible moment a mother gave birth on the porch of her house.
Footage shows Natasha Downing, who was 39 weeks pregnant at the time, heading to the car to go to the hospital when her water broke outside her home in Calabasa, California.
The doorbell camera captured Natasha, 34, squatting and giving birth to a baby girl, Lilybella, with her husband Tom, 38, by her side.
Tom later filmed Natasha lying on the floor with Lilybella in her arms and towels draped over her body as they waited for the midwives to arrive.
Natasha said of the sudden birth: ‘I’m walking down the stairs and I feel my baby coming. I had to duck outside and then my water broke. I knew I wasn’t going to make it to the birth center.’
Footage shows Natasha Downing, who was 39 weeks pregnant at the time, heading to the car to go to the hospital when her water broke outside her home in Calabasa, California. Her doorbell camera captured Natasha, 34, squatting and giving birth to a baby girl.
Tom later filmed Natasha lying on the floor with Lilybella in her arms and towels draped over her body as they waited for the midwives to arrive.
Her young son also came to greet his mother and little sister outside their house.
The morning of the birth, Natasha visited her midwife around 11:30 am, who performed a membrane sweep (a common procedure used to help induce labor naturally), as Natasha wanted to give birth. in a birth center.
After her midwife sent her home, Natasha’s labor began just hours later.
She started having contractions every three minutes but didn’t feel any pain; but decided to call her midwife, who lived 15 minutes away, to inform her that labor had begun.
Soon, the pain increased and the contractions began to shorten to just a minute apart. This severe pain led Natasha to end the call with the midwife.
After hanging up, the 34-year-old and her husband Tom decided to wait 30 minutes, but when she hung up, within two minutes her contractions were too painful for her to stand and she knew it was time to go to the hospital. .
As the contractions shortened again to just 10 seconds, the entire labor was over within an hour.
Tom, her 38-year-old husband, began running around the house, packing the car and preparing to take his wife to the birthing center.
Realizing she couldn’t move, the mom-to-be struggled to put her clothes on.
Waiting a few minutes to give him enough time to get up, Natasha decided to go downstairs, but then the baby started coming.
Natasha continued screaming for nitrous oxide and asked her husband to call the midwife because she urgently needed pain relief.
Walking down the stairs, she instantly sensed her baby coming and managed to get out the front door.
Crouching on the porch, Natasha’s water broke and her husband crouched down and soon saw the baby’s head poking out. When Tom called the midwife, his father called 911 for help.
But before the couple knew it, it was too late and their little daughter was on the way.
Tom appears in the photo above as he leaves his house, closely followed by Natasha.
Tom took a video of Natasha lying on the floor with her newborn baby Lilybella.
Lilybella was born perfectly healthy at 6.25pm weighing 4.5kg (10lb), while a midwife and paramedics soon arrived on the scene to check on mother and baby.
Natasha told how despite the chaos; His birth was one of the best experiences of his life.
She said: “I was perfectly healthy, it was everything I had dreamed of, it was everything I had wanted for both of my births – it sounds like it would be a traumatic birth, but it was very healing and really amazing.”
‘After hanging up the phone with the midwife, I decided to wait 30 minutes and as soon as the call ended, within two minutes my contractions were too painful to stand up.
“I couldn’t stand or move and there was no way to get dressed or get to the birthing center.
‘I was walking down the stairs and I felt my baby coming. I just felt my body pushing her down. The brain does not function the way it does when you are normal and conscious.
‘I kept shouting at Tom to get nitrous oxide and tell the midwife to prepare it, because I don’t think I can get there.
“I walked past the front door, bent down and my water broke, at which point my husband bends down and sees the baby’s head sticking out of me.
“I squatted down and just breathed like I hadn’t pushed at all, and his head cleared up on its own.
‘As my husband watched, he told me the baby was blue and only his head was out, and I felt him push back.
‘I didn’t know how I was going to get ahead in this position. Then I turned on my side and lay with my leg in the air.
“I was on call with my midwife and all I know is that I have to push to clear her shoulders. My husband got his head and it’s amazing. My neighbor ran out, put my head in her lap and came out with towels.
‘It’s like a wave going through my body and that was my only push, and she came out and was totally fine. One push and she came out, and I gave birth at 6:25 p.m.
‘My midwives arrived and when they came, I delivered the placenta. The midwives examined the baby and gave her a vitamin K injection and I stayed at home.’
