She had a weird feeling about her 10-hour-old baby, but doctors shrugged it off as 'first time mom' anxiety. Then the tests came back

Is maternal instinct real or a myth? Some psychologists say it’s a myth, but one mom’s experience proves that a mom’s gut instincts are strikingly real. Hours after bringing her newborn son home, Houston mom Maddie Muhs (@itsmaddiemuhs) felt that something wasn’t right. He wasn’t feeding properly and was having difficulty waking up for feeds. Muhs instantly felt that something wasn’t right. Doctors dismissed her claim, saying it was just postpartum anxiety as a first-time mom. But as it turned out, her intuition was correct, which ended up saving his life, as she shared in a May 16, 2024, Instagram video and in a June 16, 2026, Newsweek report.

Mom is always right

Even though the doctors shrugged off Muhs's concerns, after eight hours in the ER, the doctor told her that the baby had “inflammatory markers,” which meant he had an infection. The baby underwent several tests. After four long days, they told Muhs that the tiny tot was suffering from a UTI from Group Strep B, a bacterial infection of the urinary tract. It was weird because the mom had tested negative for it. When left untreated, the condition can cause meningitis, a bloodstream infection called sepsis, or a life-threatening infection.

Muhs and her baby spent 16 long days in the critical care. In the end, the doctors thanked Muhs because her intuition saved the baby’s life. “A mom’s intuition is so, so powerful. Happy that I didn’t let my ‘anxiety’ deter me from taking him to the ER right when I did. Trust yourself,” she told the viewers in the caption. She urged other parents to be confident and trust their instincts when it comes to their children’s health. Fast forward to today, her toddler is healthy and thriving, Newsweek reports.

A survey of 2375 children and adolescents published by JAMA Network revealed that parents can predict their children’s illness with high diagnostic accuracy. About 91% of child participants, who were diagnosed with an illness by their parents, required treatment in the emergency room. Another study published in Midwifery documented a survey of 234 mothers. 75% of the stillborn cases answered “yes” to experiencing a “gut instinct” that something was wrong before labor.

'Always trust your gut'

In response to Muhs’ video, people started sharing their own experiences with motherhood and parental instincts. @mel1408_94 said, “A lot of times, first-time moms get overlooked, thinking it's you, nothing is wrong with your baby, but mothers just know when something isn't right. Thank God you took him to the E.R; great job, mama!” @sincerelythejensens remarked, “My midwife told me other countries only test for that during labor because it can be there one day and gone the next. We’re so behind in a lot of birth practices here. I’m so sorry that happened to your poor baby and that you were brushed off at first. Always trust your gut.”

You can follow Maddie Muhs (@itsmaddiemuhs) on Instagram for more content related to motherhood and lifestyle.

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