We decided in late December to hire a doula for labor support. I was a fence sitter about hiring a doula, but husband was concerned about forgetting everything that we had learned in class, in so doing, he was concerned that he wouldn’t be entirely helpful through the birth process.
Jan 20 – contractions (Braxton Hicks?), regular and stronger than past Braxton Hicks contractions, beginning at about 1 am. Finally decided to call my doula around 5 am. After a few hours, she suggested that they were not real contractions, and that I should have a cervical exam. Went for a cervical exam, and the doctor confirmed that the contractions were not “real” – nothing happening to my cervix. “You’ll know you’re in labor when you can’t smile through a contraction.” Went home and had an intimate moment with husband. Saw bloody show in the early evening.
Jan 21 – 4:00 am woke up with feeling of heavy menstrual-like flow or bladder incontinence. Ran to bathroom and figured that it was my water that broke. I think I lost about a cup or so of fluid. Went back to bed. Woke up around 8:30 am. Checked email, surfed the web, went to kitchen for breakfast, and then consulted class notes and Simkins’ book for advice. Finally called the doctor’s office for their advice. Went for another exam at 10:00 am.
Because I was group B strep positive, the doctor was very concerned about baby’s exposure, so instead of letting labor proceed at its own pace, he decided to induce. This was really the only point where I didn’t have a say in the matter (and where I cared). I was devastated inside, but tried not to show it. We let my doula know what was going on.
By 11:30, I was hooked up to the IV antibiotics and pitocin drip. During admission, I made it clear to all the nurses (admitting nurse and labor nurse) that I wanted as natural a birth as possible. I made a conscious choice to not sign the epidural consent form. I also made sure to give the nurses a copy of the “Birth Options Checklist.” They do read and follow the plan if you complete it.
My blood pressure spiked, and the labor nurse wouldn’t let me move around until it came down a bit. For some reason, they were concerned about the swelling at my feet in addition to my blood pressure.
My doula arrived after her work was over, around 1:30 pm. By then, I could move around some as long as I stayed within reach of the monitors (fetal and mommy). The labor nurse would check on my progress every 30 – 60 minutes or so. Going to the bathroom was a bit of a chore with the IV and the monitors.
Not sure when contractions started to get bad. They would start on the right side of my uterus, revolve around, and then end in my sacrum. I started out lying on my left side in bed while my blood pressure was too high. Once I could move around, I sat on the birthing ball. When the contractions became a little stronger, I tried leaning onto the bed. I got comfortable on the floor for a bit and tried leaning over the ball, but after about 30 minutes of acrobatics, the nurse couldn’t get the monitors positioned right and asked me to try a different position. I used a standing position, leaning against a tiny piece of wall, with my doula on one side and husband applying a hot pack to my tailbone. When the contractions got strong enough to make that position uncomfortable, I knelt on the floor, and leaned into the armchair. My doula gave husband her wooden massage roller – husband would massage my lower back between contractions and apply the hot pad during a contraction. The monitor proved useful at this point – he could tell exactly when a contraction was coming. At this point, it felt like the contraction ended with someone driving a stake into my sacrum. Meanwhile, my doula helped me focus on inhaling and exhaling, reminding me to relax and breathe out low; she also massaged my neck and shoulders from time to time – a welcome distraction.
Around 4 pm, I recall asking how far along I was. I was informed that the doctor would be along soon for rounds and would check me then. When the doc finally arrived, he made me get up on the bed (not an easy task) and then told me that I was 4 cm dilated – that this meant I had done 90% of the work.
The contractions kept getting stronger from this point. I recall my doula asking how a past contraction was. I even recall telling her that I didn’t remember – that is, somehow I was able to deal with contraction and then prepare mentally for the next one.
It was at this point that I realized that I was no longer watching the time. Not too long after the doctor left (apparently, it was only 45 minutes), I asked for another exam. I’m not sure why, but I felt like things were progressing rapidly. Indeed, the nurse did some more acrobatics and conducted a cervical exam while I stayed in my position on the floor. She and my doula were very excited that I had made it to 8 cm dilation. Not too long after that (apparently another 45 minutes), I said that I really wanted to push. I’m not sure who checked me or where the exam was done (on the floor? on the bed?), but I do recall being told by the nurse that I was then 10 cm dilated. My doula told me that I was going to have a baby. The nurse was so excited that it might happen on her shift that she apparently went running into the hall and hollered “We’re having a baby in here!” Lots of commotion followed…
I recall emptying my bladder 2-3 times prior to this point in time; however, I had not had a bowel movement. So it was at this point in time that my visualizations bizarrely focused on emptying my bowels before pushing out the baby.
We had set up the bed for squatting while pushing. The doctor, however, wanted better control of the head so he ruled out squatting. I was fortunate that I only had 10 minutes of pushing, so the position really didn’t matter. During pushing, I don’t recall feeling that position mattered; I was focused on visualizing the process from the inside out. I had never intended to do any visualizations, and that they were so deep and graphic surprise me even today. Start to finish, my labor was about 8 hours long.
My doula helped get my new son Ivan latched onto me for our first attempt at breastfeeding. Husband took off briefly to get us dinner and to stop by the house to feed the cats. In the meantime, the nurse did the initial inspection of Ivan, with my doula observing. Husband arrived with dinner just as we were about to head over to postpartum. I guess BHHS isn’t used to non-medicated births; the nurses were raving about how I “rock” because of my ordeal, however brief it was.
Our first night was quietly euphoric. The night shift nurses conducted some newborn care instructions, most of which husband received by himself. Because of the effects of a vaginal birth, I discovered that I had limited sensation in my bladder. I started using nurse visits as cues to go to the bathroom.
Addendum, June 2007: What would I have done differently? I would have used natural methods for addressing the GBS (garlic!) – Mothering magazine published an article not too long ago about the overuse of antibiotics for GBS treatment. I would have stalled a little bit more about contacting the doctor and waited to see if labor would kick in on its own. I also know that throughout pregnancy, I had issues with my pelvis, only my doctor didn’t know it – pubic symphysis dysfunction. I would have done a number of things differently to address the pelvis issue more directly – craniosacral therapy during pregnancy, squatting during pushing (lying down during pushing exacerbates this condition). I probably would have also had a craniosacral therapy session for baby and myself within days after his birth.
Submitted by Anonymous
10.11.2007
2.21.2007
Poems for a Blessing Way
For Tammy:
Breathe in the deep full depth of our love Gather our strength around you like a cloak.
We are your sisters, bonded in blood.
Our screams join your own until they reach the heavens and bring back light.
How brave
How hard
How wonderful
You are a mother, bearer of life.
What could be more powerful a miracle
The universe contracts
Life begins
For Amy:
The roundness of your belly contains the universe
Breathe in the wildness of the wind
Grasp hold of the heat of the sun
Fire burns as sure as grass will grow
Feel the cool solid soil beneath your feet
Dig in your toes and draw in the sweetness of the day
Your belly expands and contracts wresting new life into existence
All the hope and love 3 hearts can bring
Wrapped up in a warm little ball
Pain and joy coalesce
The world opens wide to let out a sigh
Simone is born
Submitted by Susan
Breathe in the deep full depth of our love Gather our strength around you like a cloak.
We are your sisters, bonded in blood.
Our screams join your own until they reach the heavens and bring back light.
How brave
How hard
How wonderful
You are a mother, bearer of life.
What could be more powerful a miracle
The universe contracts
Life begins
For Amy:
The roundness of your belly contains the universe
Breathe in the wildness of the wind
Grasp hold of the heat of the sun
Fire burns as sure as grass will grow
Feel the cool solid soil beneath your feet
Dig in your toes and draw in the sweetness of the day
Your belly expands and contracts wresting new life into existence
All the hope and love 3 hearts can bring
Wrapped up in a warm little ball
Pain and joy coalesce
The world opens wide to let out a sigh
Simone is born
Submitted by Susan
2.13.2007
Ellie's Birth, May 11, 2006
I wanted an unmedicated birth, but wasn’t sure I could handle it. In search of full information, just in case, my partner and I took two different childbirth classes (one that focused on “natural” birth, and another with more information about medicated options).
After learning about and practicing birthing techniques for an unmedicated birth, we discovered that our baby-to-be was breech and began contemplating a C-section. We tried everything under the sun to turn her (we have great photos of me 8 months pregnant and upside down on an ironing board balanced against our living room couch, with frozen peas just under my ribs and music playing at the bottom of my belly). Finally we got an assessment about the advisability of an external version (manual rotation). The verdict was that it would probably not be successful in my case and would be a risky procedure. (It also seemed highly unlikely that Ellie would turn on her own, even at the last minute, which often does happen.) So, we resigned ourselves to a C-section. For us, the pregnancy had been complicated enough that we did not want to try for a vaginal breech birth.
I was disappointed, and I’ll also admit that I experienced some relief (no birthing pain!)
Next was the saga about whether or not to schedule a C at 39 weeks or simply wait until I was in labor and then go in for a C (A C-section at 39 weeks is typical. I was unlikely to go into labor before then, as this birth was my first). My OBGYN (to whom I switched after working with a midwife) strongly advised scheduling a C, though he could understand why I would want to experience labor (I wanted to make sure the time was right for birth, and I wanted to have a “natural” experience as part of the birth process). He pointed out that although C-sections are done at the last minute all the time, if I waited until labor the C could be at, say, 3am, and the surgical team would therefore be less “fresh” than they would be for a scheduled C at 8am. Reluctantly, I succumbed to a full medicalization of my birth (accommodating Dr. scheduling convenience etc), figuring it was wise that the person delivering my baby be very comfortable (considering that it was to be major surgery!). Eventually, I felt good about this choice, as it allowed me to meet and interview the anesthesiologist and fully discuss medication options etc. I created a birth plan for the “best possible C” as well. (I would fully respect a person’s decision to wait until they experienced some labor, even if they knew the baby-to-be had little or no chance of turning… but in the end, a scheduled C was right for me.) It was good to know that two different doctors judged that Ellie would be fully ready to be born at 39 weeks, based on assessments of the age of the placenta via ultrasound.
The anesthesiologist was not comfortable with having my doula as well as my partner present for the birth. This was a disappointment, but oh well. (I decided to continue working with my doula, who was very helpful in the hours right after birth. We agreed she’d stick around a while longer afterwards than she would have for a vaginal birth).
The morning of the birth, I went to the nursing station and gave them my name, and they said, “here for surgery”? So weird! For “surgery” -- not “for a birth”! It was also very weird to not be feeling anything new (labor).
Overall, we were very excited and nervous, of course.
Everyone on staff introduced themselves to me, told me their roles, and made it clear they’d looked at our birth plan and its details (no eye ointment e.g.). This was very reassuring.
The room for delivery was blindingly bright, and very orderly. The spinal was practically painless, and soon I was on the table getting prepped. My partner was there with me the whole time.
I was nervous that I still had feeling in my body, but it was clear that I didn’t. Soon, I felt very lightheaded (the anesthesiologist told me this was from a low pulse), but this passed quickly. I had been very concerned about the prospect of vomiting during the C, and the anesthesiologist told me later that if I would have thrown up during surgery (which I didn’t) it would have been when I felt the effects of a low pulse.
The surgery to “extract” Ellie lasted all of 7 minutes!! I was of course flat on my back and could see nothing; my partner was watching it all (he wasn’t sure how he’d feel about this, but it turned out to be fine for him). I was narrating my feelings, and at one point, I said mildly, “oh, I feel a little tugging now.” My partner told me later that what I was feeling was a couple of shoehorn-like instruments hauling HARD on my stomach muscles to spread them aside! (muscle tissue is not cut for a C; rather, it is spread out of the way). After a short time, I experienced the most intense part of the birth: it seemed everyone was holding their breath, and soon I could hear Ellie crying!!!!
I was desperate to see her – I was practically shaking with frustration and desire about this. EVERYONE ELSE in the room could see her at the moment of birth, and I couldn’t! This was the best and the worst part: it was so exciting, and also my preferred birth plan option was to have the surgical drape lowered at the moment of birth so I could see. But this did not happen. My partner did try to accommodate my plan by attempting to lower the drape, only to be told off by the anesthesiologist for having a finger on the “blue” (sterilized) side of the operating “theater.” I had opted against a mirror because I thought I couldn’t handle seeing myself cut open. After having seen all the pictures, though, (a nurse took great photos of everything), I know it was all, amazingly, very “clean” looking and I do wish I had chosen a mirror, in retrospect. My OBGYN did hold her up high very briefly after she was born, but this gesture was perfunctory and very quick, and I couldn’t really see her well. AND, I was so utterly thrilled that she was born and apparently OK!
Ellie immediately was taken to the warmer and my partner went with her. It felt like I was countering my passive position to ask, after a few minutes, “what are her apgar scores?” I know these don’t really measure much unless the scores are quite low, but still, it’s a special memory that a nurse, looking a little surprised and thoughtful, said (a bit disbelievingly): “Well… I gave her a 9 and a 10!” The anesthesiologist said, “Wow, you don’t hear that very often!” – which I knew to be true (you don’t).
Soon, my partner brought her to me so I could see and touch her.
That was amazing. But again it felt not entirely “fair” for me to be almost the last one in the room to do so!
We were soon whisked out to the recovery area where my doula met us excitedly. The first breastfeeding is a fog. But I know it was good – in fact crucial – to have my doula there, because the postpartum nurse had no idea! She was showing me how to pinch my nipple to get Ellie to grasp it, and it was all wrong (no room around the areola for Ellie to grasp). My two clearest memories of this time are my doula’s excitement (lovely), and a nurse holding a tightly-pinched nipple of mine close to my face! When I see the pictures of Ellie’s first nursings (within 45 minutes of birth!), I know my doula won out.
In the end, my partner and I used our birthing techniques to help me through learning to breastfeed (this was painful for a while).
All in all it was a great, if very medicalized, experience. For what it was, I could not have asked for a better experience – except perhaps more clarity from the surgery team about the possibilities of seeing Ellie at the moment of birth. That moment remains the most vexing and the most thrilling for me.
Submitted by Helen
After learning about and practicing birthing techniques for an unmedicated birth, we discovered that our baby-to-be was breech and began contemplating a C-section. We tried everything under the sun to turn her (we have great photos of me 8 months pregnant and upside down on an ironing board balanced against our living room couch, with frozen peas just under my ribs and music playing at the bottom of my belly). Finally we got an assessment about the advisability of an external version (manual rotation). The verdict was that it would probably not be successful in my case and would be a risky procedure. (It also seemed highly unlikely that Ellie would turn on her own, even at the last minute, which often does happen.) So, we resigned ourselves to a C-section. For us, the pregnancy had been complicated enough that we did not want to try for a vaginal breech birth.
I was disappointed, and I’ll also admit that I experienced some relief (no birthing pain!)
Next was the saga about whether or not to schedule a C at 39 weeks or simply wait until I was in labor and then go in for a C (A C-section at 39 weeks is typical. I was unlikely to go into labor before then, as this birth was my first). My OBGYN (to whom I switched after working with a midwife) strongly advised scheduling a C, though he could understand why I would want to experience labor (I wanted to make sure the time was right for birth, and I wanted to have a “natural” experience as part of the birth process). He pointed out that although C-sections are done at the last minute all the time, if I waited until labor the C could be at, say, 3am, and the surgical team would therefore be less “fresh” than they would be for a scheduled C at 8am. Reluctantly, I succumbed to a full medicalization of my birth (accommodating Dr. scheduling convenience etc), figuring it was wise that the person delivering my baby be very comfortable (considering that it was to be major surgery!). Eventually, I felt good about this choice, as it allowed me to meet and interview the anesthesiologist and fully discuss medication options etc. I created a birth plan for the “best possible C” as well. (I would fully respect a person’s decision to wait until they experienced some labor, even if they knew the baby-to-be had little or no chance of turning… but in the end, a scheduled C was right for me.) It was good to know that two different doctors judged that Ellie would be fully ready to be born at 39 weeks, based on assessments of the age of the placenta via ultrasound.
The anesthesiologist was not comfortable with having my doula as well as my partner present for the birth. This was a disappointment, but oh well. (I decided to continue working with my doula, who was very helpful in the hours right after birth. We agreed she’d stick around a while longer afterwards than she would have for a vaginal birth).
The morning of the birth, I went to the nursing station and gave them my name, and they said, “here for surgery”? So weird! For “surgery” -- not “for a birth”! It was also very weird to not be feeling anything new (labor).
Overall, we were very excited and nervous, of course.
Everyone on staff introduced themselves to me, told me their roles, and made it clear they’d looked at our birth plan and its details (no eye ointment e.g.). This was very reassuring.
The room for delivery was blindingly bright, and very orderly. The spinal was practically painless, and soon I was on the table getting prepped. My partner was there with me the whole time.
I was nervous that I still had feeling in my body, but it was clear that I didn’t. Soon, I felt very lightheaded (the anesthesiologist told me this was from a low pulse), but this passed quickly. I had been very concerned about the prospect of vomiting during the C, and the anesthesiologist told me later that if I would have thrown up during surgery (which I didn’t) it would have been when I felt the effects of a low pulse.
The surgery to “extract” Ellie lasted all of 7 minutes!! I was of course flat on my back and could see nothing; my partner was watching it all (he wasn’t sure how he’d feel about this, but it turned out to be fine for him). I was narrating my feelings, and at one point, I said mildly, “oh, I feel a little tugging now.” My partner told me later that what I was feeling was a couple of shoehorn-like instruments hauling HARD on my stomach muscles to spread them aside! (muscle tissue is not cut for a C; rather, it is spread out of the way). After a short time, I experienced the most intense part of the birth: it seemed everyone was holding their breath, and soon I could hear Ellie crying!!!!
I was desperate to see her – I was practically shaking with frustration and desire about this. EVERYONE ELSE in the room could see her at the moment of birth, and I couldn’t! This was the best and the worst part: it was so exciting, and also my preferred birth plan option was to have the surgical drape lowered at the moment of birth so I could see. But this did not happen. My partner did try to accommodate my plan by attempting to lower the drape, only to be told off by the anesthesiologist for having a finger on the “blue” (sterilized) side of the operating “theater.” I had opted against a mirror because I thought I couldn’t handle seeing myself cut open. After having seen all the pictures, though, (a nurse took great photos of everything), I know it was all, amazingly, very “clean” looking and I do wish I had chosen a mirror, in retrospect. My OBGYN did hold her up high very briefly after she was born, but this gesture was perfunctory and very quick, and I couldn’t really see her well. AND, I was so utterly thrilled that she was born and apparently OK!
Ellie immediately was taken to the warmer and my partner went with her. It felt like I was countering my passive position to ask, after a few minutes, “what are her apgar scores?” I know these don’t really measure much unless the scores are quite low, but still, it’s a special memory that a nurse, looking a little surprised and thoughtful, said (a bit disbelievingly): “Well… I gave her a 9 and a 10!” The anesthesiologist said, “Wow, you don’t hear that very often!” – which I knew to be true (you don’t).
Soon, my partner brought her to me so I could see and touch her.
That was amazing. But again it felt not entirely “fair” for me to be almost the last one in the room to do so!
We were soon whisked out to the recovery area where my doula met us excitedly. The first breastfeeding is a fog. But I know it was good – in fact crucial – to have my doula there, because the postpartum nurse had no idea! She was showing me how to pinch my nipple to get Ellie to grasp it, and it was all wrong (no room around the areola for Ellie to grasp). My two clearest memories of this time are my doula’s excitement (lovely), and a nurse holding a tightly-pinched nipple of mine close to my face! When I see the pictures of Ellie’s first nursings (within 45 minutes of birth!), I know my doula won out.
In the end, my partner and I used our birthing techniques to help me through learning to breastfeed (this was painful for a while).
All in all it was a great, if very medicalized, experience. For what it was, I could not have asked for a better experience – except perhaps more clarity from the surgery team about the possibilities of seeing Ellie at the moment of birth. That moment remains the most vexing and the most thrilling for me.
Submitted by Helen
1.29.2007
Maia’s Birth, May 6, 2006
When my husband Spencer and I told our midwife that we were closing on our new house on May 5, she replied, “Well, now you know when you’ll have your baby.” (we were due with our first on April 27). Proving her both wise and prescient, I went into labor two hours after our 9 am closing. Backing up a bit, early labor had begun two nights before (a Wednesday night), with contractions that woke me up but dissipated in seconds and did not become regular. As I was a week overdue, I had a non-stress test on Thursday, during which my contractions were 10 minutes apart. My midwife swept my membranes, bringing me to 3-cm dilation. That evening I had regular contractions, about 4 minutes apart for an hour. We were ready to call our midwife, but then the contractions disappeared. No contractions awoke me that night, so I was afraid that maybe we were losing momentum. My midwife intended to artificially rupture my membranes on Monday at the hospital, which didn’t worry me as much as a potential inducement with pitocin. My worries were moot – after a luxurious 2-hour nap after our Friday morning closing, I woke with regular contractions that did not disappear.
After about two hours of contractions, we called our beloved doula, Linda. Upon her arrival, she announced that we should take a walk. It was a gorgeous, late spring afternoon. I was hesitant at first, thinking why would I want to walk – I’m in pain, I want to stay in my cozy living room, not advertise my condition on our busy street. I was quickly convinced that walking would speed things along and that it did – walking made the contractions more painful, but I realized that was a good thing – painful meant stronger which was really the ultimate goal. After about ¾ mile, I had to stop for a contraction every 15 feet, swaying with my weight on Spencer, moaning with each contraction. I had never imagined myself as a vocalizer, but I rapidly discovered that the vibrations of my voice were soothing and distracting from the pain. Upon our return home, I spent several house laboring in the side-lying position in our bed – Spencer and Linda took turns massaging my back, applying hot pads and rice socks to my aching hips, and generally just keeping me company. Let me digress a moment to sing the praises of having a doula – not only are they often a competent and expert presence for comfort measures, but they also allow a birth partner to eat, nap, chill out, take notes, or graph their partner’s contractions on their computer like Spencer.
Over the next few hours, my contractions became progressively longer, stronger, & closer together, although they never were 60 seconds apart, which is the alleged benchmark for heading to the hospital. The lesson there was that every labor is different and the “textbook” is only a guideline. I labored in various positions: on the birth ball, in the bathtub, walking, side-lying and sitting on the toilet (ouch!). At some point, I asked Linda when we should go to the hospital (it had also been clear since she had arrived that Linda intended to keep us at home as long as possible – another deviation from what I had envisioned – me on a birth ball, in a hospital room, happily sucking on ice chips & honey sticks – ha!). She said there was no rush but if I felt “pushy” or if I really wanted to be in the place where my baby would be born, then it would be time. My time came 12 hours after labor began – around 11:30 pm on Friday night, I had bloody show on a trip to the toilet and announced that I was ready to go. We called our midwife who would meet us at the hospital.
While the drive to Bloomington Hospital was only about 7 minutes, it took us almost three times that to get from the car to the 2nd floor. I didn’t know it, but I was in transition, stopping every minute or so to contract in the parking lot, the ER, the elevator, the sign-in desk, etc. We were quickly shown to our spacious birthing room, where our wonderful L&D nurse, V, checked me in. As it was midnight and I was a midwifery patient, the lights of the room were dim and all was quiet – one nurse, our midwife, Linda, and the anxious couple – what would develop into a very adept, supportive, and extraordinary birthing team. As my midwife examined me, I waited anxiously to know how much work we’d accomplished at home. At first, she looked confused and my heart sank, as I thought that maybe we were only at 4 cm and I would be in this room for-ev-er. But then, as she saw the crestfallen look on my face, both she and V told me at once that I was 9.5 cm dilated. “Well done”, my midwife told Linda.
After one more hour of hard contractions in the hospital bed, I asked if I could push (I never did feel “pushy” and so the ensuing 1:45 of pushing did not come naturally). My midwife gave the go ahead and the exhausting part began. I pushed in the side-lying position, with V holding the top leg at first and then I took over during the latter half to get better control over each push. Spencer mopped my blazing forehead and upper body, while Linda took photos and my midwife and V coached. My midwife was amazing – with each push, she encouraged and applauded me – letting me know when I should really “go for broke”. At some point, my midwife broke my water to accelerate the delivery. Soon after, my baby’s hair was born and a few contractions later, my husband announced that, “It’s a Maia”. She was 7 lbs, 8 oz, and 21.5 inches long.
Who can truly describe how that feels? Time is working against me to find the words, but if you’re a mother, you know, if you are expecting, you will know. It is good.
Maia came out blue and cone-headed, trying her best to get a breath, but had some trouble. She was soon whisked from my arms to the warming bed, suctioned and cleaned up. While Maia was checked out and encouraged to breath, my midwife delivered my placenta. Unfortunately, this was followed by about a liter of blood. A shot of pitocin the thigh firmed up my uterus and stopped the bleeding, but the damage was done – I would spend the next 2 weeks sitting or in bed, popping heavy-duty iron pills. Could have been much worse though. Maia also continued to have trouble – she spent her first 12 hours in the special care nursery (with her papa) as they monitored her oxygen levels and breathing. Linda stayed with me, yet another reason I’m so thankful she was there – we were a family divided and having her by my side was crucial. Finally, after an eternity, she was in my arms, nursing contentedly and our lives metamorphosed into this wonderful, crazy, excellent adventure called parenthood.
Submitted by Tara
1.22.2007
Sebastian's Birth, July 15th, 2006
My first birth, with Julien, was very long and arduous. I was in labor for three days (in part due to Julien's position; he was posterior), but thankfully, I still had a vaginal birth. At the time I didn't realize how close I was to having a cesarean! I had planned for a natural birth, but gave in to medication; after that many hours, it became necessary. My mother died two and a half months before I gave birth to Julien, which also added to the intensity of the experience.
The second time round, after my experience in the hospital with my first birth, I decided I was ready for a different type of birth experience. I was ready for a home birth.
The month before my due date I had lots of strong (but unorganized) contractions. Indications were that I might go in to labor a little early (or at least on time). My good friend Tanya (who is a midwife) came in to town hoping to be there for the birth.
On my due date, July tenth, we thought I was going into labor, but it was a false alarm. I had contractions two minutes apart that lasted about a minute long. I could hardly walk, was shaking etc. Tanya told Richard to call the midwife over right away. When she arrived she took one look at me and set up all the equipment. In between contractions she said "It looks like we will have a baby this afternoon!" And then everything just slowed down until my labor stopped. She checked me and I was only three and a half centimeters dilated, so everyone went home.
Five impatient days later, after both Tanya and my mother-in-law left town, I finally went into real labor. My actual labor for Sebastian's birth was short and intense. On July fifteenth I woke up at 2:10 a.m. with painful contractions about ten minutes apart. I lay in bed for about half an hour and then started to move around the house. I sat next to our kitty, Zeus, for a while and used his purrs to help me breathe through the pain. At 4:00 my vocalizations woke-up Richard. We were a bit nervous it might be a false alarm again (or that my labor would slow down) so we waited until 5:00 call our midwife and Doula, and when we did call we told them they didn't need to come over yet. I also told Richard to fill the pool (which we had set up on the sun porch). My contractions were really strong at this point, and as I was using Richard to help support my body, my water broke. I hadn't experienced that in my first birth, so we were both thrilled! He made another call to our midwife and said "come now!"
By the time everyone arrived, around 6:00, I was laboring in the pool. At 6:30 I said I felt "pushy," so Richard ran to wake up Julien. Once I got in the right position it only took a few pushes to get him out. Usually, after you get the head out the baby slips out easily, but I needed an extra push to get the chest out. We found out why later- his chest was an inch bigger around than his head! Sebastian was born at 6:48 a.m. and weighed 9 lbs, 15 oz., and was 20 3/4 inches long.
Sebastian was healthy and began to nurse easily. We were all thrilled.
We had wanted Julien to be involved in the birth and the timing was perfect. After he saw Sebastian enter the world Julien was absolutely glowing! The midwife's assistant showed Julien all the parts of the placenta and they even did a placenta print! He thought it was great. I was fed fresh strawberries and everyone scrounged around in our kitchen getting coffee and food. Luckily we had a nice fresh loaf of pecan-raisin bread. Then Tracy and her kids came over and took Julien for the day, which was a wonderful. He felt special and we were able to concentrate on Sebastian. What a difference to be rested when you have your newborn!
Submitted by Adrienne
1.21.2007
Simone's Birth, April 15, 2006
A few days after the estimated due date, my midwife shocked us by saying I was already at 4 cm. I hadn't been feeling contractions, so this was pretty surprising. She swept the membranes to encourage contractions. And I did have contractions the next day, but they weren't very strong and then they stopped. The following day we obsessed over trying to encourage them to pick up again. After my doula made some obvious/insightful observations, we realized we were trying to move things along because we knew I was so close, and I was quite tired of being pregnant. But the baby was not terribly late, and neither the baby nor I were having problems – it was really just anxiousness on our part. The baby was certainly going to be born soon, just not at that moment. We decided to pretend we didn't know I was at that point at 6 cm, breathed a sigh of relief, and went back to the business of waddling.
That night, I got some sleep even with going to the bathroom almost every hour or so. Around 6 in the morning I started feeling strong contractions, but tried sleeping through them. With the 3rd or 4th one, I felt some serious pressure. So I got up and that’s when my water broke. I woke up Alex, and he called the midwife, doula, and our on-call friends – Gina, who would be there to help at the birth, and Jen and Ryan to help with Cece.
I labored in the bathroom, and things were definitely getting more intense. My doula extraordinaire was there to remind my body what to do. I really wanted to use the pool for at least some of labor because I had used it a lot during the long labor with Cece. So Alex and Gina set up the pool in the living room. When it was ready, I moved into it.
Soon after getting into the pool, Cece woke up and snuggled with Alex. She understood what was going on and didn’t want to stay. So Ryan came over and picked her up. While Alex was helping Cece into the car, I started pushing. I wasn’t planning a water birth, but it was pretty clear by then that I wasn’t going anywhere – not even to the other side of the pool! Apparently, I pushed for 9 minutes. The baby came out pretty quickly, and one arm came out at the same time as her head.
She was immediately alert and snuggly. She had lots of vernix and a headful of hair. I was struck by how much she looked like Cece when she was a newborn. Of course I thought she was perfect. Soon after delivering the placenta I got out of the pool (with a lot of help) and settled into a chair to start nursing.
When Cece met her sister, she proclaimed “I like my baby.” She then helped feed me a chocolate croissant while I nursed. After a while, she went back to her friend Xander’s to get some good playing in. And we continued to hang out with our new baby.
So all in all, real labor was about 3.5 hours - she was born at 9:24 am on April 15. She weighed 10lbs 4 oz, and was 22 inches long. But she still looked like a little baby to me.
Submitted by Amy
That night, I got some sleep even with going to the bathroom almost every hour or so. Around 6 in the morning I started feeling strong contractions, but tried sleeping through them. With the 3rd or 4th one, I felt some serious pressure. So I got up and that’s when my water broke. I woke up Alex, and he called the midwife, doula, and our on-call friends – Gina, who would be there to help at the birth, and Jen and Ryan to help with Cece.
I labored in the bathroom, and things were definitely getting more intense. My doula extraordinaire was there to remind my body what to do. I really wanted to use the pool for at least some of labor because I had used it a lot during the long labor with Cece. So Alex and Gina set up the pool in the living room. When it was ready, I moved into it.
Soon after getting into the pool, Cece woke up and snuggled with Alex. She understood what was going on and didn’t want to stay. So Ryan came over and picked her up. While Alex was helping Cece into the car, I started pushing. I wasn’t planning a water birth, but it was pretty clear by then that I wasn’t going anywhere – not even to the other side of the pool! Apparently, I pushed for 9 minutes. The baby came out pretty quickly, and one arm came out at the same time as her head.
She was immediately alert and snuggly. She had lots of vernix and a headful of hair. I was struck by how much she looked like Cece when she was a newborn. Of course I thought she was perfect. Soon after delivering the placenta I got out of the pool (with a lot of help) and settled into a chair to start nursing.
When Cece met her sister, she proclaimed “I like my baby.” She then helped feed me a chocolate croissant while I nursed. After a while, she went back to her friend Xander’s to get some good playing in. And we continued to hang out with our new baby.
So all in all, real labor was about 3.5 hours - she was born at 9:24 am on April 15. She weighed 10lbs 4 oz, and was 22 inches long. But she still looked like a little baby to me.
Submitted by Amy
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