Josy Peukert (37) posted an Instagram post showing her and her partner, Benni Cornelius (42), driving to the beach so she could give birth on the shores of Playa Majagual, Nicaragua.
She gave birth without any medical assistance while here, a free state delivery, checkups, and CT scans throughout the pregnancy. The video of the waves crashing against her back as she writhed in pain from the contractions attracted millions of views.
Josy Peukert writhes in pain from contractions
” The waves have the same rhythm as the contractions, the smooth flow makes me feel really much more comfortable,” says Josy.
There are no statistics available on the number of free births taking place around the world, but the number is believed by medical experts to be steadily increasing each year.
The natural process of childbirth caused controversy, after a California woman’s baby was stillborn in 2018 after a six-day labor without medical intervention.
Josy Peukert shares a video of her giving birth to a son in the Pacific
Explaining her decision, Josy said: ‘ I had an idea in my head that I wanted to give birth in the ocean because the conditions were very suitable there.
When Josy started labor, her children came to stay with friends, and Benni drove her to the beach with a birthing kit that included: a towel, a bowl with a sieve to catch the placenta, gauze and tissues.
Josy said: ‘After Bodhi was born and swaddled, I went back to the ocean to bathe. Then I got dressed and we packed up and drove home. That evening, we weighed Bodhi with a luggage scale, he weighed 3.5kg. I named him Bodhi Amor Ocean Cornelius.”
Baby Bodhi was born healthy with a weight of 3.5kg
The mother-of-four said she wanted her baby to be born without medical intervention because doctors and midwives would eliminate what a woman’s body can do on its own.
She said: “I want to not have to worry for once. My first birth was traumatic in a clinic and my second was a home birth but by the third, a midwife stayed at my home too much. This time I did not have a doctor’s prescription, scan or outside influence. We don’t have a due date or a deadline to bring the baby in, we just trust that our baby will be born safely.”
She added that she had been monitoring the tides for weeks and she knew when the baby was born, the beach would be a safe place for her to give birth. ” Bodhi is a really calm and happy baby. Everything is great for him in his mother’s arms. He is as comfortable as in my belly.”
Bodhi Amor Ocean Cornelius was born on February 27, 2022
Josy took a picture of her a few months pregnant with baby boy Bodhi
Benni Cornelius beams as he poses while sitting on the bonnet of a colorful truck
When Bodhi was two days old, Josy shared a birth video and story on her Instagram page, which has 6,800 followers and the video has been shared around the world.
However, after sharing her experience, Josy received a number of comments of concern and criticism about her choice to give birth freely at sea.
One commenter asked: “Is this hygienic? There are a lot of bacteria in the sea.”
Another wrote: “What a shock for the boy, from the warm womb to the cold ocean.”
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