A woman has sparked a debate after claiming she would want medics to save her life over that of her unborn child if there was a complication during the birth.
It's the dilemma all expectant mothers hope they never have to make a decision on - whose life should doctors prioritize saving if it's a choice between the mother or the baby during a medical emergency.
Many women say they'd want their baby saved over them in the event of a life-or-death situation, however, if the baby is saved and the mother dies during birth, the child will have to grow up without their mom.
One woman has left her followers divided after saying that she would prefer if she were the one to live if the situation were to happen to her in labor.
Shelbie Martin from Utah, who goes by the handle @shelbielenora on TikTok, shared a video of her lipsyncing to a song, with text overlaid which read: "If during birth you have to choose to save me or the baby, save me. I have babies at home that need me."
She added in the caption: "& my husband agrees."
The video has racked up over two million views since being posted on January 11, with thousands of comments on both sides of the debate.
One viewer wrote: "You’re the first person I’ve seen do this and didn’t say ‘save the baby’… I agree with you completely," to which Shelbie responded: "Moms that get it… get it."
Another commented: "I just don’t know why people would save the bay over the mother. I agree with you," while a third added: "I agree. Even without having children. Don't forget we are also someone's children... My parents couldn't live without me."
One wrote: "If it was my first child of course save the baby but I have a medically ill child that [relies] on me to stay alive so I’d save me too for him."
Some disagreed, commenting: "Just no. I signed a form in labor 1000000 save the baby," and "I would say save the baby, his life is more important than mine and I do have other children."
Others were left conflicted, adding: "You've got my brain in over drive on what I would do. I honestly don't know."
Many commenters admitted they had initially thought they'd want the baby saved until they had children and experienced an issue during a subsequent birth and realized they were also needed by their existing kids, leading them to decide their life should be prioritized over the unborn baby.
While it's a decision no mother - or family member of a pregnant woman - wants to have to make, thankfully most babies are delivered safely with the appropriate medical care for both mother and child.
