A pregnant woman who was being induced for labor had a brilliant idea to dress up in costume before going to the hospital on Halloween.
In her now-viral TikTok video, Laura Ortiz shared the hilarious footage of the moment she and her husband, Reid Halvorson, walked through the delivery wing doors last year dressed as two different “Thors“ from the Marvel franchise.
The footage, which has now been viewed more than three million times, showed Ortiz wearing a full beard, wig, sunglasses, and a sledgehammer as “Lazy Thor,” while her husband was wearing his own wig and red leather biker vest as the character from Thor: Love and Thunder. The soon-to-be parents greeted everyone at Skyridge Medical Center in Colorado with a basket of candy, lotion, snacks, and drinks.
“Last year, I went to into the hospital to give birth to my daughter on Halloween. I was nervous about possible complications, so I decided to have as much fun with it as possible,” Ortiz wrote.
The mother explained how her delivery room was turned into a “party room” in the process, describing it as “the most fun” she’s had in her life. Later that evening, she welcomed her daughter Emilia.
“Birth can be scary but with the right attitude, you can overcome the fear and learn to find the fun and joy in the process,” Ortiz added.
Speaking to People, Ortiz opened up about her nerves ahead of the delivery, explaining that she’d experienced preeclampsia and gestational diabetes during her pregnancy. Her doctors suggested she schedule an induced labor, which led her to decide on Halloween as her daughter’s delivery date.
“It’s one of my favorite holidays,” she told the outlet. “I kind of thought, ‘Well, maybe I’ll convince my husband to dress up with me and be Thor from the different movies.’”
@laura_ortiz96 Last year I went into the hospital to give birth to my daughter on halloween, I was nervous about possible complications so I decided to have as much fun with it as possible. I convinced my husband and we dressed up as thor (from different movies) and gave out candy and turned our room into a “party” room. It was one of the most fun days of my life! Birth can be scary but with the right attitude you can overcome the fear and learn to find the fun and joy in the process. #birth #birthstory #baby #babygirl #halloween2023 #halloweenlook #halloween #halloweencostume #throwback #hospital #skyridge #nurse #fun
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In addition to celebrating the spooky holiday with festive outfits, Ortiz thought the costumes would ease the pressure and anxiety of giving birth. “I didn’t want to bring our kid into the world feeling anxious and worried,” she admitted.
Ironically, Ortiz felt more worried about showing up in her Thor costume than she did about giving birth. Of course, when it came time to go into labor, she took off her Halloween outfit.
The Independent has contacted Ortiz for a comment.
In the comments under her TikTok, hundreds of people gushed over Ortiz and Halvorson’s looks and shared how their parents, friends, and family members had done the same thing.
“My mom gave birth to my brother dressed as Elvira and my dad was a Ninja Turtle,” one person wrote, while another admitted: “One of our doctors takes Halloween VERY seriously. He came and delivered babies dressed as a Viking, he even had this one wheel decked out like a ship and road it down the halls.”
A third viewer claimed their doctor dressed up as Batman when she gave birth on Halloween.
