90 Day Fiance’s Paola and Russ Mayfield Share Behind-the-Scenes Photos From Home Birth

Credit: Courtesy of Discovery

90 Day Fiance's Paola and Russ Mayfield Share Behind-the-Scenes Photos From Home Birth

Baby bliss! 90 Day Fiancé stars Paola and Russ Mayfield gave Us Weekly an exclusive look at the birth of their son, Axel, ahead of his Sunday, June 23, debut on the TLC reality show. The couple, who first appeared on season 1 of the series, shared behind-the-scenes photos of Paola, 32, as she awaited her first child’s arrival via home birth in January. They also provided a glimpse of Axel’s first moments with his parents. The Colombia native tells Us that she chose to do a water birth at home to avoid the cold atmosphere of a hospital. “I wanted to have more control about my son. I wanted to be able to see everything what was happening with him, and I know that at the hospital, they normally take the baby away,” she explains. “So when I was talking with the midwife, she told me that I'm going to be there, he's going to be on my chest. And I did my investigation and all about the placenta … and how to keep the baby connected to the placenta for almost two hours.” [jwplayer Qh5xetFO-l3ahXupL] She continues: “It's just a long process and so natural that I was like, ‘I want to do it this way. I don't want to go to the hospital and do it. They don't do it that way,’ and I didn't want to separate from my son for any minute.” Russ, for his part, dozed off in between his wife’s contractions after the pair moved upstairs to their bed as her labor progressed. “I allowed myself to relax and I fell asleep, and then as soon as she kicked into her contractions again, I just snapped back awake,” the 31-year-old says. Scroll to see more photos of the delivery and baby Axel! Paola and Russ’ home birth episode of 90 Day Fiancé: Happily Ever After? airs on TLC Sunday, June 23, at 8 p.m. ET. With reporting by Sharon Tharp

Credit: Courtesy of Discovery

90 Day Fiance's Paola and Russ Mayfield Share Behind-the-Scenes Photos From Home Birth

Baby bliss! 90 Day Fiancé stars Paola and Russ Mayfield gave Us Weekly an exclusive look at the birth of their son, Axel, ahead of his Sunday, June 23, debut on the TLC reality show. The couple, who first appeared on season 1 of the series, shared behind-the-scenes photos of Paola, 32, as she awaited her first child’s arrival via home birth in January. They also provided a glimpse of Axel’s first moments with his parents. The Colombia native tells Us that she chose to do a water birth at home to avoid the cold atmosphere of a hospital. “I wanted to have more control about my son. I wanted to be able to see everything what was happening with him, and I know that at the hospital, they normally take the baby away,” she explains. “So when I was talking with the midwife, she told me that I'm going to be there, he's going to be on my chest. And I did my investigation and all about the placenta … and how to keep the baby connected to the placenta for almost two hours.” [jwplayer Qh5xetFO-l3ahXupL] She continues: “It's just a long process and so natural that I was like, ‘I want to do it this way. I don't want to go to the hospital and do it. They don't do it that way,’ and I didn't want to separate from my son for any minute.” Russ, for his part, dozed off in between his wife’s contractions after the pair moved upstairs to their bed as her labor progressed. “I allowed myself to relax and I fell asleep, and then as soon as she kicked into her contractions again, I just snapped back awake,” the 31-year-old says. Scroll to see more photos of the delivery and baby Axel! Paola and Russ’ home birth episode of 90 Day Fiancé: Happily Ever After? airs on TLC Sunday, June 23, at 8 p.m. ET. With reporting by Sharon Tharp

Credit: Courtesy of Discovery

Her Way

Paola admits to Us that mom-shamers have been on her case since giving birth. “I’m like, ‘Oh, whatever.’ I just don’t care,” she reveals. “I think I just want to do what I think is best.” Russ adds, “We’re the only ones that know Axel. … We know the best way to raise our son.”

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Home First

The reality star says she opted for a midwife because she “didn’t have a connection with the doctor.”

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Long Day

Paola was in labor for 13 hours before delivering her baby boy. “I pushed five contractions, and he was finally out,” she recalls. “Five really painful contractions.”

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Little Fella

The couple chose to not even tell their closest friends and family Axel’s name ahead of the birth. “Russ was the one who actually chose,” she tells Us.

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Happy New Year

Axel was born on New Year’s Day, just 22 minutes after 2019 began. “At midnight, we hear fireworks, and we said, ‘Happy New Year,’ to each other,” Russ jokes as Paola recalls not caring about the holiday due to her pain. 

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Big Personality

The parents describe their now 5-month-old son as active, funny and grumpy. “He’s got Mama’s attitude,” Russ quips. As for his looks, they attribute those to his dad.

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Post-Baby Body Goals

Paola tells Us she is “working on” fitness as she balances her new mom duties. “It’s more like a revenge body or something because I got so many people hating on me and calling me names,” she says, adding: “I want to do it in a way that I’m not starving myself, I’m not affecting my baby’s milk.”

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More on the Way?

The duo disagree about when they should add to their brood. “We could have a girl but not anytime soon,” Paola explains, while Russ counters, “I say let’s get it over with. I’m all about him having a sibling, and I agree this is a lot of hard work, especially for mom, so why not package it up in a bundle rather than spreading it out?”

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Different Styles

“Pao is definitely more overprotective,” Russ says of their parenting styles. “I’m more relaxed on a lot of things, and there’s definitely compromise and there’s definitely heated discussions.”

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Mom and Dad Time

Russ tells Us the parents “definitely need to do some more us time.”