Do Guys Have To Be In The Delivery Room?

Simon Cowell recently had people shaking their heads again after he admitted that he will not be in the delivery room when his girlfriend delivers their child in February. He has since said that he will be in the delivery room. But it brought up a good question. Do guys have to be in the delivery room?

Lets be honest. There isn't much for us to do at all. I was there. Essentially all that I did was bring my wife ice chips, tell her she was doing a good job and get mad at the nurses for not doing enough to take away her pain (which they actually did a great job of). I was there for nearly every breath and scream that my wife let out. I would not give it up for a second. That's what worked for my wife and I. I'm very glad that I was there for the births. But do we have to be?

It's really a pretty new practice for guys to be in the delivery room at all. Heck, most of the older guys I know found out about the birth of their kids while they were sitting at a bar down the street. Some weren't even allowed to be in there.

It's a helpless feeling being a guy in a delivery room. Guys like to fix things. If something's broken, we want to fix it. If you're in pain, we want to take that away. We cannot even fathom what you ladies are going through, yet we sit there and "coach" you on like we are helping the baby come out faster by saying, "You're doing great, hon! Keep breathing!" Really? Keep breathing? That's the best we can do? Great job, Captain Obvious!

What do you think ladies? Do guys need to be in the delivery room? If you think we should be, what can we do to help?