The coolest thing is reading the comments- it seems she's inspired some women who had no idea this was possible.

Wow, what a refreshing change! My respect for her just increased quite a bit.

I just posted this to my facebook profile:

Okay, I admit it, I watched it. I was totally amazed at how she lifted her baby up and helped to pull him out. I mean, it's E! It's good to see something other than cesarean/tummy tucks, water breaking leading to crazy-painful contractions and a mad dash to the hospital (she took a shower and put on makeup before going to the hospital) good for Kourtney for showing the way a NORMAL birth is.

How cool. :)

I am a childbirth educator, and this pleased me as well. The other good thing about this episode was when her water broke, she insisted on taking a shower, getting dressed, and putting on makeup before going to the hospital. She was in no rush, and some of her family members wanted to do that silly panic-rush-to-the-hospital-like-its-an-emergency thing, and Kourtney would have none of that, she was calm, confident, and kept those around her mellow. The birth went quickly, did not seem overly medicalized by what I could tell, and was very inspiring. Not the usual thing I see on television birth. Way to go, Kourtney!

I saw it and figured that: a. she did not have a doula because she went to the hospital (after showering and putting on make-up) shortly after her water broke and did no laboring at home (that was shown)
b. had an epidural and pit because there was no discomfort shown and
c. really did catch her own baby because I saw it with my own eyes.

That's fucking awesome! I loved Kim's "she's acting totally normal, like nothing's wrong! she's not even crying!"

I was also really impressed with how composed Kourtney was. Everyone was all "you're putting on MAKEUP? to deliver a BABY?!"
Hey, if I had any idea how long it would be until I took an uninterrupted shower and got made up enough to feel like I wasn't a total frump, I'd have taken a nice long shower once I was in labor too.

I'm going to watch it again! And the little arm waving out is really cute, like "HEYYYY!"

In my last labor, my water broke after I reached the hospital. It was everywhere - my clothes, my shoes, I was sitting in it as I got wheeled into the L&D room. I wasn't even sure if my baby was head down LOL (he wasn't) but heck yeah, I was taking a shower first!

Before I delivered my second I took a shower, even shaved my legs during labor. LOL Then I went to the grocery store and walked around (it hurt like hell but was a good idea, in hindsight) and bought some things for my hospital bag. It's nice to see someone not panicking at the first twinge. I will be interested to see what the feedback is after people see this.

Hear hear. If I'd have known my home water birth would end up three days later with an unnecesarean and no shower for another two days I'd have made the time for a shower somehow.

I caught my own baby. They are pushed out not pulled out. All you have to do is have a good hold and hang on. I was squatting upright though, and can't even fathom how much more difficult it would be in the beetle position. It's great that women are seeing that catching their own baby is a possibility!! A lot of providers are too hands on to allow this to happen. This is an awesome example of what normal birth could become.

Thank you Ms. Kardashian for improving the timbre of birthing discourse.

I comment regularly on Jezebel, and I love that they showed this clip. So many commenters responded along the lines of "oh my god! I didn't realise that was physically possible! Could I give birth like that? You mean I don't have to be screaming?" that I was astounded. Here's one thread: http://jezebel.com/comment/19700835/

I say astounded, because I'm young, have no children, and am not planning on having any soon, but I'm interested in birth issues from a feminist/evidence-based medicine perspective, so I do a lot of reading. I know I'm probably slightly more well-informed that the average person my age because of that, but to see that so many women's perspectives of birth come only from sensationalist TV and films was really terrible.

Impressive. I didn't like the comment her sister made about it not being normal, but I'm happy that a celebrity showed people out there that you can "deliver" your own baby. I loved how the doctor was calm and there was a lack of commotion in general. Many hospital births I've watched were just plain chaotic. Although, many women who are first time moms may go into a hospital setting expecting something like this birth, and I have a feeling they might just be disappointed.

Maybe it is just my 37 weeks pregnant self, but that actually brought tears to my eyes. I am not really a fan of the Kardashians, but it was quite cool to see a woman on TV with a birth that seemed positively normal. Her sisters' comments are a bit disheartening, though overall, I think it is great for younger people to see that birth isn't always like in the movies. In fact most women I know aren't screaming their heads off and asking for their partner's testicles on a platter during labor! I just wish there were more images of births like this.

I like watching Keeping Up With The Kardashians, and honestly, I did not have high hopes for a normal birth. In fact, I had predicted that she'd end up being induced and then have a c-section. (Ironically, I had thought the same thing about Kendra Wilkinson- which was what happened with her.) I was really pleased to watch the episode and see her take a calm, relaxed approach to her birth. In previous episodes, they had shown/mentioned her going to Lamaze and breastfeeding class. While there were things I wouldn't consider ideal, overall I was very impressed with how the birth was portrayed, especially in comparison to most births on TV. Congrats to Kourtney!

I'm always glad when there are a few glimmers out there as it relates to birthing in our culture...but I have to chuckle a little because I have *no* idea who she is.

I watched it. I am a nurse and I thought that it was awesome of Kourtney to assist in pulling the baby out. As a healthcare worker I know that baby to mommy skin to skin contact is important right after they pull the baby out. Generally they rush off with the baby and dry them and do all sorts of stuff but it was very appropriate for that doc to allow that. Wonderful bonding for both mommy and baby. Doesnt matter how gross it looks to the public eye. In the mommy's mind it is amazing and not gross. Loved it!!

Awesome. Just awesome.

spam

it's just funny how she does laundry after her water just broke LMFAO :D

I thought this was just amazing! I hope my birth is like this!

I watched the episode when it originally aired on TV, specifically to see the birth (I don't normally watch that show). I thought the birth was beautiful - it brought tears to my eyes as well - and I was happy to see a positive portrayal of birth on TV, much less for a celebrity (I was so disappointed to see how the birth experience went for Kendra Wilkinson - another E! celebrity whose baby was born around the same time as Kourtney's). I thought it was great that Kourtney participated in the birth and pulled her baby out and up for skin-to skin.

At the same time, I'm a little nervous that young women are going to see her birth and be reinforced in their belief that epidural anesthesia is the "magic bullet" for happy childbirth. Of course some women choose anesthesia and have a happy, calm experience like Kourtney did - but many others experience myriad side effects and consequences including the cascade of interventions. I'm glad Kourtney had a good experience, and I'm not questioning her choice - I just want to see a popular young celebrity give birth, on TV, med-free. Is that so much to ask??