Many people have asked what exactly "en caul" means- aside from the previously stated "born in her amniotic sac" and occurs only once in every 80,000 births.
En caul birth's happen relatively rarely due to both the fact women's water generally breaks or is broken prior to getting to the "pushing" stage of birth. It occurs less and less frequently due to interventions taken by medical professionals but every once in a while women slip by and give birth to a baby en caul.
There are two types of en caul births. The first is total en caul, how Natalia was born; the amniotic sac is not broken and the baby is delivered still completely enveloped. The other is called a "veiled" birth which occurs more often than the total en caul. Veiled births occur when the baby is delivered with part of the amniotic sac on their face or head, and without the fluid present. Both hold many beliefs and superstitions that go with them.
En caul babies are considered "lucky" in many cultures. Among seafaring cultures they are associated to people who can't drown and who are drawn to water. In Romania they are associated with vampires. Thus far we have found that the being drawn to water is the most true- nothing calms Natalia like running water, or a bath.
Although I had no control over her being born en caul, I do find it a point of pride. Something about doing something so rare, even unintentionally, is really really cool. Not only did I do an almost completely natural birth (minus an hour of synthetic morphine to get me to the pushing stage), but my daughter was born in a very special way. Its silly to be so proud of it, but there it is. I'm proud of my water baby.
En caul birth's happen relatively rarely due to both the fact women's water generally breaks or is broken prior to getting to the "pushing" stage of birth. It occurs less and less frequently due to interventions taken by medical professionals but every once in a while women slip by and give birth to a baby en caul.
There are two types of en caul births. The first is total en caul, how Natalia was born; the amniotic sac is not broken and the baby is delivered still completely enveloped. The other is called a "veiled" birth which occurs more often than the total en caul. Veiled births occur when the baby is delivered with part of the amniotic sac on their face or head, and without the fluid present. Both hold many beliefs and superstitions that go with them.
En caul babies are considered "lucky" in many cultures. Among seafaring cultures they are associated to people who can't drown and who are drawn to water. In Romania they are associated with vampires. Thus far we have found that the being drawn to water is the most true- nothing calms Natalia like running water, or a bath.
Although I had no control over her being born en caul, I do find it a point of pride. Something about doing something so rare, even unintentionally, is really really cool. Not only did I do an almost completely natural birth (minus an hour of synthetic morphine to get me to the pushing stage), but my daughter was born in a very special way. Its silly to be so proud of it, but there it is. I'm proud of my water baby.
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