While waiting for the train, I was reading an article in one of those ‘real life’ magazines titled ‘Born on Twitter’. Immediately it grabbed my attention as it was to do with social media. The story was sent in by a young mother of two detailing her journey through the birth of her second child, however this wasn’t just in the magazine but had been posted all over Twitter whilst she was actually GIVING BIRTH.
I always personally assumed that giving birth was the most painful situation a woman could go through in her whole life due to what I see on television and what I hear from many mums. The majority describe being in labour a ‘difficult experience’ and I’ve heard that some even refuse to go through it more than once, so to be able to tweet about your contractions whilst having them is a bit shocking to me...
The tweeting began on December 3rd when Rachel Ince, 29, first started feeling a little pain right through to December 6th when mother and son were discharged and happily ready to go home. Through the whole 104 live tweeting updates of the birth, Rachel generated over 400 new followers who were interested in her and her baby’s journey! The young baby was a tweeting legend even before he was born and Rachel has become an inspiration to many mums - to- be out there...Well done!
So it is quiet true, online social media has become a huge part of everybody’s everyday life...it’s just one of those things u have to do (a bit like having to brush your teeth.)
A copy of some of the tweets posted on December 4th:
9:15: Oooh that hurt. Over half an hour since the previous contraction but ouch.
10:26: Ok so the really big painful ones seem to come after a long gap.
10:58: Local paper showing an interest in me for tweeting the birth. Best watch what I say from now on. Nothing too gruesome.
11:09: All strapped up for a bit of monitoring. Hopefully will be off by time toddler arrives for his visit. Else no cuddles for me.
11:31: Well he's gotten very lively since we've been listening to his heartbeat! Tried to kick the monitor off several times.
10:26: Ok so the really big painful ones seem to come after a long gap.
10:58: Local paper showing an interest in me for tweeting the birth. Best watch what I say from now on. Nothing too gruesome.
11:09: All strapped up for a bit of monitoring. Hopefully will be off by time toddler arrives for his visit. Else no cuddles for me.
11:31: Well he's gotten very lively since we've been listening to his heartbeat! Tried to kick the monitor off several times.
That is shocking! I would love to have been online whilst she was tweeting
ReplyDeleteThis is absolutely silly, I thought your not allowed phones in hospitals?!
ReplyDeleteWell apparantly an exeption was made for this young mum? Hospitals now dont really care as they have gone so downhill, they even send you home straight after giving birth! Twitter is going crazy, who would of thought it hey?
ReplyDeleteThe rise of Twitter is shocking,it has been found to be the platform for discussion and discourse and 2011 is predicted to be the year for Tweets!
ReplyDeleteIt is a two way commuinication method (Grunig should be proud!) its fast and open - microblogging is the way forward!
I love Twitter, i tweet about anything and everything! It is always intresting to see what others are up to, even how the birth of their baby is going!
ReplyDelete