A new mom has gone viral after sharing a video of herself braiding her hair in an intricate way during labor because she wanted it to “look cute” at birth.
Secora Hawks, 21, of San Diego, California, admitted she was in the “worst pain” she’s ever known in her life while chronicling how she styles her hair last month, but she denied that she was was about to give birth.
“I just took a shower so I can re-braid my hair in case I go into labor to make it look cute,” she explained in her TikTok video, which has been viewed more than 12.3 million times.
Secora Hawks, 21, of San Diego, California, captured braiding her hair while she was in labor in a now viral TikTok video
The mother for the first time denied she was in labor despite being in the “worst pain” she had ever experienced in her life
She had to stop her work and take a few deep breaths while fighting the contractions, but she managed to finish her braids
“My husband is on the phone with labor and delivery to ask if I should come. I am definitely in the worst pain of my life. I’m just trying to do my hair real quick before the pain starts again. I have a feeling the pain is coming soon.’
Understandably, she had trouble braiding her hair to her liking between contractions.
“This is literally the worst braid. Babe, I can’t braid my hair!’ she called to her husband. ‘It looks so bad.’
Hawks was also concerned that her mother hadn’t arrived from Nevada yet, saying, “I better not be in labor because my mother won’t be in until tomorrow.”
She had to stop her work and take a few deep breaths while fighting the contractions halfway through the video.
Hawks and her husband went to the hospital after she did her hair, but she was still confident she wasn’t in labor and would be sent home
“So it turns out I’m in labor,” she said in a follow-up clip filmed from her hospital bed. “I was an inch dilated at my appointment this morning and now I’m two inches tall.”
“I really hope that this pain just goes away tonight and that I’m not really in labor,” she said. “But if I need to feel that pain again and worse when I go into labour, it will be me [going to be] be p****d. ‘
‘[People] I really doubted I would do my hair in labor but I was committed as you can see,” she added in the caption.
The viral video has garnered more than 2,000 comments, with many people praising her for being so “calm.” Others pointed out that Hawks styling her hair while in crippling pain is a testament to the strength of women.
“Women in the worst pain of their lives: I’m just gonna braid my hair… Men in the worst pain of their lives: “Rolling around on the floor,” one person wrote.
“I literally got my hair and makeup done at 7pm. Had them when I was 10,” shared another mom.
“The fact that you were in the worst pain of your life still looked amazing and didn’t show you were in pain… I couldn’t speak,” admitted someone else.
Hawks and her husband welcomed their daughter Olive just hours later
The new mom rated her French braids after giving birth and said she would give them a 9 out of 10 because they held up well
Hawks’ daughter is now a month old and has been documenting her motherhood experience on TikTok
Hawks and her husband went to the hospital after she did her hair, but she was still confident she wasn’t in labor and would be sent home.
“So it turns out I’m in labor,” she said in a follow-up clip filmed from her hospital bed. “I was an inch dilated at my appointment this morning and now I’m two inches tall.
“I really spent my day in labor without even knowing it,” she added. “I had pain. I sold clothes at Plato’s Closet. I walked around Target. I have Wendy’s I was hanging out in the pool playing a Mario party.
Hawks welcomed a healthy baby girl named Olive just hours later, and she has no regrets taking the time to do her hair.
“This is what the hair looks like 12 hours later,” she shared in another video. “If I had to rate it from 1 to 10, I’d say a solid 9. It’s held up pretty well.
“I’m not sure what’s going on,” she added, pointing to the back of her head. “In my defense, I did these braids while I was in labour. But during labor I was so hot and sweating. If my hair wasn’t like that I would have been unhappy.’