Kasie's Birth of Liliana Kate

The Birth of Liliana Kate 

(a home birth story of love, uncertainty, joy, and a lesson in trust)

I was shocked and thrilled when those two pink lines showed up. I love being a mother, and there was the realization right in front of me that I was lucky enough to get to do it again. I was excited to plan another unassisted birth. We had such a wonderful experience with Nikolai that there was never a question that we would go the same route for this baby. The one thing that was a little different this time was that I chose to have a completely unassisted pregnancy (minus blood work at 4 weeks). I had UP'd with Nikolai from 28 weeks. I had planned on one visit with a naturopath in order to get a referral for an ultrasound at 20 weeks, but that didn't work out. I decided it wasn't meant to be, and was at peace with that turn of events.


There was never any doubt in my mind that I was doing the best thing for my baby and myself. I was healthy, baby was healthy. I knew my body. I saw no need for outside care unless a problem arose. I monitored my blood pressure, urine, and baby's heart rate throughout the pregnancy, with normal results every time. I know that the peace I felt in doing my own pre-natal care contributed to my overall sense of well-being during the pregnancy.


I love being pregnant. And I was lucky enough to have yet another easy pregnancy. I actually had no morning sickness this time, which was the only unpleasant part for me last time. I was very tired during my first trimester, but I knew that would pass. My kids were a great help. The older boys often made sandwiches for the younger two so I could rest.


Once I hit my second trimester, I felt really good, My energy was up, I was eating healthy, and I was loving my ever-growing belly. I started nesting around 20 weeks. I organized, re-organized, scrubbed everything in sight, cleaned closets and washed newborn diapers. I was so busy that I thought I might run out of things to do, and told myself I had to wait until after Christmas to wash baby clothes.


I still felt great during my third trimester. I did have occasional pelvic pain, but other than that, I don't think I had ever felt better during pregnancy. I had more energy than I thought I would at that point. I was walking a lot, taking good care of myself, and thankful I was having such an easy time. The nesting continued. I ordered my birth supplies, washed baby clothes, and kept my house cleaner than it has ever been. Everyone asked me if I had any intuition about gender since we had chosen not to find out. I didn't have a feeling like I did with my other kids, but I did buy a lot of girly cloth diapers and a beautiful pink and brown blanket. The only other time I've done that was when I was pregnant with Persephone, and I knew from the minute the test came up positive that she was a girl. So I guess I did know in a way. Almost everyone else, including Stephen and the kids, was convinced it was a girl.


I had thought all along that it would be neat if baby came on Leap Day. It was only a week away from my guess date, so within the realm of possibility. As I got to about 36 weeks, though, I had a strong feeling that I wouldn't make it that far. Baby was low and getting lower. I could feel the relaxin at work in my hips. I could feel the pressure when I walked. It wasn't uncomfortable. I welcomed all of it. I knew my body was doing exactly what it was supposed to. I felt beautiful and strong. And I thought I would be ready when the time came.


I started having mild, irregular contractions on the morning of the 22nd, the day I turned 38 weeks. They were different than the Braxton-Hicks because they started in my back. I didn't bother timing them at that point because they were spaced so far apart. I also had some bloody show during that time. I knew something was happening, but I didn't know how long it would be. I thought I might have 24 hours or so, based on the bloody show. The contractions didn't get stronger, or closer together that day. I took Persephone to school and went about my day as usual.


Things picked up the next day (23rd). The contractions got stronger, and now radiated down to my upper thighs. I know I must have been sleeping through them, because I would have one every time I got up to pee during the middle of the night (22nd/23rd). They still weren't very regular, though. I might have two or three of them five minutes apart, then nothing for a couple of hours. The bloody show continued heavier than the day before. I slept a lot that day. I knew it would be soon.


By the next morning, I was not in a good place emotionally. The kids had been fighting over the past few days, and Nikolai was not sleeping well. I was really worried about how those distractions would affect my concentration during active labor. I became very unsure of how I would cope. I wanted another peaceful, gentle labor and birth, and I felt like it was slipping out of reach. I slept a lot that afternoon. I had three days of prodromal labor with Nikolai, and by the end I was frustrated with all the stop and start contractions. I just wanted him here. Not so this time. I wanted my baby, but I didn't want labor at that point. Too many distractions, too much uncertainty. I was happy with all of this pre-labor business. The contractions were stronger, but 100% manageable. Not painful at all. I would get on my hands and knees and breathe through them. Then right back to what I had been doing. I wanted to stay right where I was. I didn't want things to get heavy. I wasn't ready. I was...afraid. And I was disappointed in myself once I admitted that.


I checked myself around 9 that night and I was SHOCKED to find that I was 7 cms. dilated. I thought I was maybe 4 or 5. The whole time I had been worrying about active labor and how I would cope, I was already in active labor and coping just fine! That was exactly what I needed. I knew then that I would be fine. That I would have the peaceful birth I wanted for my baby and myself.


The contractions continued steadily for the next hour and a half. I made a couple of excited posts in private facebook groups and got lots of wonderful encouragement from my friends. Stephen had gone to bed early that night "just in case", and I woke him up around 10:30 to start filling the pool. My contractions spaced out a bit after that, and I took advantage of that time to rest. I was really thirsty, so Stephen brought me water. Persephone helped out by bringing me crackers.


My sense of time from here on is a little fuzzy, but the contractions did pick up again, and I got into the pool. Once again, the water felt amazing. I labored in there for awhile on my hands and knees, then felt like I needed to be on solid ground. I leaned over the birth ball and rocked. Then I moved to the bed. Hands and knees, moving my hips back and forth. Then I was back in the pool. Then sitting on the toilet. I definitely had a strong urge to move around.


The contractions were definitely stronger and coming closer together now. One on top of the other sometimes. I knew I was in transition. I got in the shower and leaned over the birth ball, with the water on my lower back. I stood up. It felt good to stand. I hung onto the ledge by the tiny window in the shower. I could feel the intense pressure. I welcomed it. All throughout I was making lots of "Ohhh" vocalizations to remind myself to stay open. It felt SO good to make those noises. I was never in pain. I was uncomfortable in my lower back, and Stephen was awesome about applying counter pressure. I got out of the shower, intending to get right back in the pool, but was hit by a very strong contraction. I went to my hands and knees right there on the bathroom floor. I breathed and "Ohhh"ed through it.


I made it back to the pool, and things went very quickly from there. I almost made myself laugh at one point when I said "Damn it, I'm hungry. Somebody better make me a sandwich when I'm done." It made Stephen laugh. I was so aware and present every minute, which was different than last time. I was off in labor land during each contraction. Not this time. I checked myself again. I was complete with a bulging bag of water. I pushed on my hands and knees for about 10 minutes, expecting it to break. It didn't (I swear it was all those oranges I ate during my pregnancy. They made for an amniotic sac of steel!). I decided, like with Nikolai, to break it myself. i reached up there and tore the sac open with my fingernail. Since I was on my hands and knees and couldn't see, I asked Stephen if the fluid was clear. It was. I told him to get the cameras (digital and video) ready.


I didn't feel the urge to push right away, but when I did it was like a freight train. My body pushed. There was no stopping it. I felt her head make its way down. I reached in (and this is the part where I cry remembering it) and touched her head. I felt her hair. I felt the wrinkle in her scalp where her skull plates had shifted to allow passage. I grunted. She crowned. I was kneeling, supporting my perineum, and trying to allow myself to slowly stretch. I gave a little push and her head was out. I cradled her head in my hand, feeling her hair, her tiny ears. That was the only moment where I tuned everything else out. That moment of birth is so amazing to me, because the baby is literally between worlds.


I gave a good push and her shoulders popped out, then the rest of her body. I brought her out of the water and cried out. It was 2:13 in the morning (3 hours and 45 minutes from when I woke Stephen up). Stephen asked if we had a boy or a girl. I looked. "It's a girl! We have a girl!" Joseph, Persephone and Nikolai had been on the bed watching the whole time, and were in awe. I tried to bring her up to my chest, but couldn't. I briefly thought she had a short cord, but I looked down and saw that it was around her neck. I tried to unwind it, but couldn't. I stood up, and it was then I noticed that it wasn't all the way around her neck, but around the back and her left arm. She was fine, but I still couldn't unwind her. I was holding her, half bent over, and I needed another pair of hands. I asked Joseph to help. He pulled the cord over her head and I was able to free her arm. He is very proud of how he helped his baby sister.


We got out of the pool and I sat down on some chux pads on the floor. Lili was covered in vernix, and I rubbed it right into her skin. Gabriel came in then (Bobby had come in while we were trying to figure out how to unwind her). Everyone got a good look at her, and we all decided she was just perfect. Persephone was thrilled to finally have a baby sister. She had wished for one my entire pregnancy (although she said she would be happy with another brother). She was grinning from ear to ear.


I laid down on the bed with Lili and Persephone (snuggled up next to her new baby sister, of course), not in any hurry to birth the placenta. She had pinked up nicely. It had been about 20 minutes since she was born and she nursed well right away. She really didn't leave the breast for the first 5 hours. We stayed skin to skin like that for about an hour and a half before I decided it was time to cut the cord and get both of us cleaned up. The process of getting up and in a position to cut the cord was a little bit comical. We were both covered in meconium and a bit of blood. I was trying to maneuver Lili to the middle of the bed while still attached to her, squatting over a bowl, with pieces of the disposable waterproof sheet sticking to me. And holding the camera while daddy cut the cord. It was a tangle of cord, poop, blood, tissue paper and squirming baby. Pretty funny. And to top it off, I popped the cord band off of the plastic ring that held it open before we got it on, rendering it useless. We ended up tying the cord off with a piece of the same sparkly purple yarn I had used for my blessingway necklaces.


I got up and the placenta came a few minutes later. I checked it over. It looked nice and healthy. Whole, too, so I wasn't worried about retaining anything. I cleaned Lili up, put a diaper on her, and let daddy take over while I took a shower. Lili and I stayed mostly undressed for the next several hours, having lots of precious skin to skin time. She had a wide awake, super aware period right after she was born, then slept and nursed the rest of the day. When we weighed her, about 5 hours after she was born, we were very surprised to find out that she was only 7 pounds! Healthy, but tiny to us. We are used to 8.5 - 9 pounders. My earliest (38w3d) and smallest baby (Bobby had previously held those titles at 38w4d and 8 pounds even). He still has her beat for shortest labor, though (3 hours).


I was on such a high from the birth that I didn't sleep until late that night. I just wanted to look at her. I gently stroked the top of her head - the same spot I had felt as she was coming down the birth canal. I rubbed her (hairy!) little ears, the same way I had when her head was born. I marveled that this mystery baby we had loved and wondered about was finally here (crying again as I write). She was, she is, perfect in every way. We couldn't have asked for a sweeter baby.


The kids are all completely in love with her. Nikolai has totally surprised us, too. I was sure there would be some level of jealousy since he is very much Mommy's Boy. But he has shown nothing but complete adoration for her. He kisses and loves on her every chance he gets, and is so very gentle. He wants to help with everything, from guiding her head to my breast for milk, to putting his hands on her when I lift her from her Moses basket. "Love baby Lili" is definitely the order of the day.


This labor surprised me in that I lost confidence in my ability to handle active labor. I never expected that to happen. It surprised me when I found myself to be 7 cms. dilated. The whole time my mind had been preoccupied with worry, my body just kept right on doing what it was supposed to. I am struck by the same thing that I felt so profoundly after Nikolai's birth. It is momentous and empowering in ways you cannot imagine unless you've done it. At the same time, it is the most simple and ordinary thing in the world. I gave birth at home, just my husband and kids and I.

And in case you were wondering...I did get my sandwich ;)

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Vanessa's Birth of Lola

Vanessa's Birth of Lola

This is a Hypnobabies birth story! 

http://www.Hypnobabiesblog.org

Most people do not know how long we waited for your arrival, but it was much longer than the standard nine months. After an ectopic pregnancy in 2005, I was left with only one uterine tube, which could have led to fertility issues. But we were expecting Autumn within a few months, so it did not seem to be impacting us. In 2009, I found out I was pregnant just a few months after we had decided we wanted another child. I was delighted, but a few days later found out that I was again having an ectopic pregnancy that had to be ended with Methotrexate. I was devastated and my sadness was compounded by the news that future pregnancies would likely end the same way. The doctor told me that my remaining tube was probably blocked and if we wanted another child our only option was in vitro fertilization. We do not have private insurance and since IVF was financially impossible, I gave up hope of a third child and decided to go back to school.

Dear Lola, imagine my surprise (and fear) that Friday nearly three years later, when looking at my calendar, I realized that I was “late.” Imagine my delight (and terror) when the second pink line appeared after I peed on “the stick”. I kept you, my delicious secret, for about a week, before telling your dad. And we waited another month, until we could see you growing safely in my uterus via ultrasound, until we told Mimi and Pap (then the rest of the world on Facebook.)

So you are very special to us: A wish granted unexpectedly and a joy unlooked for.

After an uneventful, complication-free, healthy pregnancy I headed into the weekend before I reached 37 weeks with the expectation of at least another week or two of pregnancy. In retrospect, I did a lot of nesting that weekend. I bought several last-minute baby items, paid all our bills, filed papers, made a to-do list and a number of appointments.

On Monday, April 30 I woke at 4 a.m. with a dreadful feeling about my appointment with the backup obstetricians that I had scheduled for May 1. The head doctor had called me several time the week before, wanting me to come in a sign yet another liability waiver for my homebirth plans. It was starting to wear on me and I was concerned about what awaited me at the clinic. I woke up Hal and cried to him because I felt that I was being sucked into the hospital agenda, that I would not go into my birthing time naturally or would go beyond 42 weeks. He calmed me down and I slept for several hours, missing my usual 6 a.m. 3-mile walk.

The girls and I enjoyed our first day off from homeschooling. We shopped at the Girl Scout Council store and bought some books for next year and patches. The security guard teased me about when my baby was coming and I wanted to have a Braxton Hicks in front of him to really scare him, but instead we smiles and went on our way. Our next stop was Trader Joe’s for our weekly groceries. I noticed that I was having fairly frequent practice waves and so I used my “Peace” Hypnobabies cue as I drove. Once at TJs, I was having to go to the bathroom with nearly every wave. So we finished shopping fast and I decided to skip my planned stop at Whole Food and ask my mom to pick up the gluten-free pizza crusts instead. I wanted to get home to eat, cook dinner and relax in case “this was it.”

After cooking, I had a sudden burst of energy, so I decided to channel it into my usual walk. The girls went with me for awhile, but mostly I was on my own, listening to my Hypnobabies Pregnancy Affirmations. A neighbor who recently had a baby, teased me about trying to get the baby out. At this point, I was still in denial that the baby could be coming sooner than later.

By the time I got home, Hal was there with the girls and we sat down to eat dinner together. I did not have much of an appetite for the stew and sitting on the hard kitchen chair was not comfortable. During dinner, I started using my lightswitch actively, even though I thought I was still have practice waves. I figured that if they turned real that I would be very relaxed from practicing and if they stopped, I would have gotten a lot of practice.

Finally, I felt like laying down, so I relaxed on the couch while Hal took care of the girls’ bedtime routine. They asked me to join them in Madeline’s room for bedtime stories, but I could not find a comfortable position to sit in, so I ended up wandering around her room impatiently until it was time to turn the lights off. 

I brought down the big laundry basket of baby clothes and homebirth supplies. Hal looked surprised, but I insisted that it did not mean a thing- I was 37 weeks and felt it was important to have them out now. He suggested that I lay on the couch and relax and time some pressure waves while he worked on his final paper for his degree. It was due on Friday and both of us thought he had time to finish it before the baby would be here. But when I timed four waves, I found that they were 2-3 minutes apart and lasting 45-60 seconds. Hal exclaimed, “This baby is coming, isn’t it?!?” I smiled and said I still was not sure. But he was.

When I headed into bed, I decided to call Ellen and give her a heads up. I also emailed my doula who was still in California for her Hypnobabies training. I slept very deeply, listening to the Deepening track, alternated with other ones, like Fear Clearning and Special Place. Using my lightswitch and peace cues all day made it easy to sleep through this early part of birth.

I alternated between the birth ball and sleeping in bed. Hal feverishly worked on his paper. Around 10 or 11 p.m. I decided we should call Ellen. I was afraid of having the baby too fast and my waves were becoming much more intense. I made Hal go to bed in case I needed him later in the night, I did not want him up all night working on his paper and without energy to support me. When Ellen arrived at 12:45 a.m. she offered to check me, but I declined. I had not lost much mucous plus and was worried that meant I was not dilating. She assured me that many women have babies without ever seeing their plug, which made me feel better. I decided to go back to sleep after a snack and a tour of our house. She offered me something to help me sleep, but I did not want to be groggy if the baby was born in the middle of the night. Ellen slept on our couch and I alternated between sleep, birth ball and eating chicken soup on the toilet. All the while, I was listening to my Hypnobabies CDs and using my finger drop to stay totally comfortable through each pressure wave.

At 6:45 a.m. I asked Ellen to check me, as my pressure waves were still not lasting over a minute consistently and we knew we needed them to grow in intensity to bring the baby. At first, she thought I was not dilated at all, but quickly realized that what she thought was the other side of my closed cervix was really my extremely bulgy bag of water hanging out of a very stretchy 5 cm dilated cervix.

The girls got up as usual at 8:30 a.m. and were very excited to know that the baby was probably coming today. Hal made us all breakfast and I ended up sleeping until 9 a.m. Love that Hypnobabies!

Ellen thought that we should take a walk, so Hal and I went around a nearby street with a nice big uphill. We walked and talked. It was such a lovely day. Whenever I had a wave, I would lean on Hal and he would tell me to “relax” and “let go”. I started feeling double-peaking waves and I think I may have entered transformation at this point. But it did not matter. I trusted totally in Hal’s support and with each wave, I would imagine myself floating on a wave, in my special place. The water was my anesthesia and as the wave peaked in my uterus, I would envision the wave peaking and carrying me to shore. This visualization along with Hal’s voice giving me cues was so powerful that the sensations literally faded away and became exquisitely intense rather than uncomfortable.

We came home and I napped again, listening to Hypnobabies CDs. The waves were feeling much more intense and it was harder to find comfortable positions to rest in. I was really just listening, deeply relaxed and getting up to use the toilet in between nearly every one. I was still worried that I was not losing much mucous plug and concerned that the baby was still in the left occiput transverse and was getting stuck on my pelvis. I was feeling each pressure wave, first in my abdomen, then again radiating through my pelvis into my birth canal. It was more intense than I remember feeling during either of my previous births.

At 11 a.m. we decided to go for another walk, even though my waves were extremely intense. They were nearly constant, only 30-60 seconds rest and lasting well over a minute and a half. It took us at least an hour and a half, maybe longer to walk around the same street that it usually took us 10 minutes to go around. People stopped us occasionally to ask if our baby was coming. I would take a few small steps (all I could manage at this time) and I would have another wave while leaning on my husband and having him give me verbal cues for anesthesia.

We got home and I decided that after that walk, I deserved to finally get into the birth pool. It felt heavenly. I leaned into the side, listening to Easy First Stage and holding on to the handles. The girls brought me a posy of wildflowers and I looked at it. They poured warm water on my low back, which helped me focus. I talked to you, our baby, telling you that I was ready for you to be born.

After an hour, I got out to use the toilet and asked Ellen to check me again. I was 8-9 cm, but the baby was still high because of my incredibly resiliant, bulgy bag of water. She declined to rupture it, due to the risk of cord prolapse, but encouraged me to do it myself. But I just was not able to get the power I needed with each wave to push yet. And I was starting to feel a little grumpy and impatient.

Ellen asked me to get out of the tub and do squats or walk our stairs. The squats did not feel like they did much. But the stairs... oh my... walking the stairs was perhaps the single most intense experience so far. I did it once and began to cry for Hal, my rock who kept me in hypnosis and helped me focus on maintaining my anesthesia. He did two more rounds with me as I cried and swore like a sailor. Ellen took the girls into their bedrooms to explain what I was doing and that I was okay. They are so sensitive to my feelings and I did not want them to feel scared. After the third time, I refused to go further and decided to sit on the toilet.

I began to have a pressure wave and in that moment, I decided that I was going to push the heck out of it, whether I felt like it or not... I did not care. I let out the loudest sound Hal has ever heard me make. A roar, while I pushed as hard as I could and broke my bag of water. There was so much fluid that it splashed out of the toilet and all over the bathroom.

Upon the bag breaking, I immediately felt you move through my cervix into my birth canal. Ellen came running with Chux pads, intending me to birth in the bathroom. Hal knew I would be sad if I did not make it to the pool. He looked me in the eyes as asked, “Are you ready? We are going to walk to the pool. It isn’t far.” I did not think I would make it, but I did. It was the hardest thing I had ever done. Later, Hal told me that he had planned to carry me down the hall to the pool, if I had refused to walk.

Once in the pool, I freaked out because the urge to push was so intense, but Ellen simply reminded me to reach down and feel your head to center myself. I did that and instantly, instinctively, I remembered to push between waves and said “Peace” to myself as I eased your head out. I called out for help as I felt your shoulders emerge, one at a time and then your body as I knelt in the pool. I sat back, brought you up to my belly. You were blue at first, as waterborn babies are, but your heart rate was strong and you were quietly alert, looking at me, your dad and your sisters, who were present for the whole thing.

I reached down to check and found you were a girl! Madeline was crying in joy and I started crying, mostly because I was happy to finally be finished.

We got out of the tub and snuggled together on the bed. It was so amazing to go from having a baby to resting in my own bed at home. It felt so right and wonderful. You recovered from birth quickly, pinking up with the help of a little oxygen and massage and you started nursing immediately. Your sisters will never forget watching their baby sister enter the world. I feel so lucky that we all were able to have this experience together as a family. Your dad’s support created a level of trust between us that will never go away.

Initially, I felt like I had really let go of my hypnosis towards the end. That I should have worked harder to stay comfortable... then I realized that there was no way that I could have spent over three hours (or more, who knows!) at 8-9 cm with a bulgy bag of fluid in transformation if I had not been using my hypnosis. The intensity that I experienced was only matched by the power of my mind to stay in control and working towards the goal of giving birth. I also initially felt caught off guard by the length of time I was birthing because it was so much longer than Autumn’s birth. However, when doing the “Visualize Your Birth” script, I always imagined my birth starting at night, going through the morning and you being born in the late afternoon. This was exactly what happened! I just had not imagined the intensity of the experience. Having gone through it, with only my husband’s support, I feel stronger as a person, wife and mother.

Photo credit: Danielle of Tiny Toes Portraits

Enjoy more amazing birth stories and information here on the Hypnobabies blog:

http://www.Hypnobabiesblog.org

Tags: birth, birth stories, birth stories on demand, natural birth stories, home birth stories, home birth, water birth, water birth stories, birth stories with pictures, hypnobabies, Positive birth stories, 

Amber's Birth of Mia Chloe

Amber's Birth of Mia Chloe

Mia Chloe Jasmine

The Birth of Maia Chloe Jasmine

The story of my labour starts a couple of weeks before Maia actually arrived. It was a Thursday night, I was 37+6 weeks pregnant, and I began to have regular contractions. They were still mild, but I knew they were real contractions. For a few days before that I had been losing bloody show and the mucus plug. I called my friend Charlie who was going to be my doula, and she came over about 10pm. We watched “The Business of Being Born” and I could tell the contractions were getting weaker. Cora had vomited earlier in the evening so I wondered if that had made my labour stall. I went to bed after midnight and woke up at 2:30am. Everything had totally stopped so I told Charlie she may as well go home.

Over the weekend I kept losing more bloody show. This hadn’t happened at all with the other two until labour was fairly imminent, so I really thought it would happen soon. The days kept passing by with no sign of anything happening though. On Monday (38+3) they attempted a stretch and sweep. I was in agony because of my SPD and couldn’t walk very far at all. They don’t usually do them so early without a reason. However my cervix was unfavourable, it was very posterior and completely closed and firm. The midwife called in the head midwife for some reason, and they kept telling me how unusual it was for a 3rd time Mum to not have a slightly open cervix at this stage. We agreed I would come back in a week and try again. So the next Monday I arrived for my check to be told basically the same thing, except that my cervix was quite soft this time. But the midwife said although it didn’t look as if anything was imminent, she was hopeful I wouldn’t make it to an appointment a week later, on what would be 40+3. I went into active labour with Cora at 40+2 (40+4 from scan dates), and with Calvin at 40+5. So I was hopeful that a sweep at 40+3 would work.

My due date fell on a Friday. That’s the day that Cora and Calvin have swimming lessons, so I arranged a taxi to take them there and decided to go a little early so we could swim together first. Then I could stay in the big pool while they had their lessons in the small pool. We did that and had fun splashing around and playing with a few bath toys they had brought along. When they went off for their lessons I just swam gently from one end of the pool to the other and relaxed. Sometimes I floated, sometimes I tried to stretch a bit without the pain that I normally felt on land. I had a few contractions while I was in the water by myself. They weren’t anything too serious but felt like a bit more than braxton hicks.

The next day I was having regular braxton hicks almost all day. I must have been in early labour because I frequently got annoyed when Calvin would try and press on my bump during a contraction. These contractions throughout the day felt similar to the ones at 37+6. More than braxton hicks but not active labour yet.

After the kids went to bed around 7pm the contractions slowly started to get more intense. Charlie called at 8pm to see how I was doing. I had a few contractions while on the phone, and although I could talk through them, it was easier not to! After I got off the phone I was just sitting on my chair and eventually realised I couldn’t sit there through the contractions. I pulled out the birthing ball and sat on that instead, it was where I had spent most of my labours with Cora and Calvin. I still wasn’t incredibly comfortable, but I wasn’t sure why. I asked Aaron to try lower back pressure during contractions, which again was wonderful during labour with the first two. It really didn’t help, which surprised me, so I asked Aaron to stop.

I decided to get in the shower. With Cora and Calvin’s labours I had taken a shower and the contractions intensified. The contractions were about ten minutes apart. I had the shower and the contractions remained constant. No more intense, but no less either. I decided to try to lay down. If it wasn’t real thing I hoped it would stop so I could sleep, because it was gone 9pm by this time. I laid down and 10 minutes passed, no contraction. Just when I decided they had stopped one began, and I realised I could not lay down through it. As fast as my SPD would let me I rolled over and got up onto my hands and knees. Then I made my way downstairs and told Aaron I couldn’t lay down through a contraction so I thought it might be it, although I was still in denial. I asked him to call Mum and give her a heads up, so he did. Then I called Charlie, I couldn’t talk through contractions this time and she said she would be over in about half an hour.

Aaron and I started to prepare the room for birth, tidying up and moving the table and chairs around. During contractions I leaned forward against something (anything!) and asked Aaron to try hip pressure. The first time it wasn’t really in the right place or hard enough, so before the next contraction I showed Aaron how to apply hip pressure on me. It worked wonderfully on the next contraction. I would lean against the table and sway my hips while Aaron swayed with me and applied the pressure. Hip pressure is not something I ever needed with the other two, but I was glad I knew about it because it felt good.

Just before 10pm I called Mum and said she should head home from my brother’s house, and pack up the car then ring to see how things were – just in case they stalled! I also had Aaron call the midwives to let them know I might be in labour, but that I didn’t want anyone to come out just yet. I think that perplexed them! The midwife at the unit called back shortly and I talked to her and she asked me if I was really sure I didn’t want anyone to come out yet. I said I knew I still had a while to go so I would call back later on. Before too long Charlie arrived. She made herself busy doing dishes and things, and as the next hour or so passed she began to help me through the contractions along with Aaron. Aaron was shattered so I told him to go to bed and that I would wake him up later.

Charlie and I were going to watch some videos online when she got done with the dishes, and in the meantime I kept tracking my contractions on a website made for that. It was a bit distracting trying to remember to hit the button when a contraction started. I was really unsure when to call the midwives, I didn’t want to call them and still have 12 hours to go. I hoped that logging my contractions would help me make the decision. By midnight the contractions were only about 6 minutes apart and much more intense. I decided we should call the midwives, so I asked Charlie to call them. She did, and then we started to sort out the birthing pool. Charlie vacuumed and we laid down the floor sheet. Mum arrived and began to help set up the pool too. We kept having to look at the instructions to check which bit to inflate next!

I went upstairs to wake Aaron up, suspecting he might already be awake because of the noise of the pool pump. He was sitting up in bed, and I walked around to his side of the bed when another contraction hit me. I leaned over the bed and asked Aaron to help but he was so sleepy that by the time he had got up and started to try and help the contraction was over. He got dressed and came downstairs with me. Contractions were still about 4-6 minutes apart and 45 seconds long. Shortly afterwards the first midwife arrived, around 12:30am. It was S from the local maternity unit. She asked me about the contractions a bit and said “We usually do an internal just to assess things, is that OK with you?”. I said I’d rather not have an internal. I was thinking that if I was only 2cm or something I would be discouraged, even if labour was progressing fine. S seemed a little bit unhappy with that but didn’t say anything. We soon noticed that my contractions were about 3 minutes apart now, still 45 seconds long. The pool was inflated and lined, and Aaron sorted out the hose and started filling it. At one point I went to the toilet and decided to check my own cervix, just to feel if it was any different from earlier that day. I was very glad to feel that I was definitely somewhat dilated (although I have no idea how much) and I could feel the bag of waters bulging. That made me happy because I was still thinking “what if it’s false labour?”! That’s something that was similar to both of the other labours, I was in a sort of denial until something proved that I was in active labour.

The other midwife T arrived about 1am. She is actually the Consultant Midwife for our trust, and I had met her at our Home Birth Group a few months back. I was glad she was on call because I trusted her judgement, knowing how supportive she was of normal birth and home birth. I was very happy to see that she wasn’t wearing uniform. Another local midwife had called earlier in the day to introduce herself in case she was on call, and one of the things she asked was if it was OK if she didn’t wear uniform. I was thrilled at the thought! Home birth is about being relaxed and comfortable and uniforms don’t really have a place in that in my opinion.

Contractions continued at about 3 minutes apart and 45 seconds long. They were becoming more intense and the pressure I felt during them was increasing. I remember at one point Aaron putting pressure on my hips, Charlie was holding a warm pack against my lower abdomen because that helped too. Aaron and my Mum were talking and laughing and it was so distracting I just blurted out “Shut up please!”. I felt like that was really rude of me but I didn’t care, I just wanted them to not talk during contractions. Eventually the pool was full enough and the right temperature, and I went upstairs to change. I put on my bikini and dressing gown, had a few good contractions while upstairs. I told Aaron I may need him to come into the pool with me if I couldn’t manage as well without the hip pressure, so he put on his trunks and a t-shirt. When we came downstairs they had a quick listen to Maia’s heartrate before I went into the pool. All was fine and I climbed in just before 2am. It felt wonderful! I felt supported by the water and enjoyed having my own space in the pool that no-one could encroach upon really. When contractions came I leaned against the side of the pool while I was on my knees. Between contractions I would sit back against the edge of the pool.

After a few contractions I felt a funny sensation and a gush of water, followed by another gush a few seconds later. I said “My waters just broke!”. Based on my previous labours I expected to feel like pushing on the next contraction, but I didn’t. It was much more intense though. I think at this point I said that someone should go and get the kids, because I expected to give birth soon. Mum went to get them and returned with a sleepy Cora, but Calvin had refused to wake up. Cora was very excited that Maia was on the way and had a huge smile on her face.

I had quite a few more contractions and realised I was in transition because I felt so immensely tired between contractions, just as I had with Calvin. I kept expecting to feel the overwhelming urge to push, like I had before, but it didn’t come and I was slightly confused. I started to feel a little bit like pushing during contractions, and I said I felt “a bit pushy”. With each of the next couple of contractions it got a bit stronger and eventually I just decided to try pushing. I didn’t keep pushing with the first contraction because it didn’t feel like it was doing anything, but the next one was different. I pushed and that made the urge to push stronger, and I felt her moving down. She began to crown and I reached my hand down to touch her head, and it felt odd. It felt soft and there was a dimple. I kept pushing and felt something pop free. I said “Is she breech?”, then I reached my hand further down and ran my hand over her hips. It must have been seconds but it felt like ages. I couldn’t understand. I had been told by so many people that she was head down, and how far engaged she was. I just couldn’t believe she could be breech at all! After I felt her hips I said “She is breech, those are legs!”. In those seconds I felt ignored and like no-one believed me. However I think in reality people were just springing into action. The midwives were looking, Charlie was turning on the light and Mum was grabbing the camera.

T said I was doing great and just to wait for the next contraction and push her head out. It felt like a long time but it came and I pushed. It was odd because it was crowning all over again. I was feeling her head as she crowned and I felt myself stretch beautifully. As she was fully born I turned over and brought her up to the surface with T’s help. The cord was wrapped quite tightly around her neck, twice, and T quickly unwound it. Maia was very blue but wide eyed and looking at me.

I was talking to her and rubbing her to try to get her to breathe, but she wouldn’t. So T called out to S and they quickly clamped her cord and laid her down to give her some oxygen. She started breathing shortly after they cut the cord, and she pinked up very quickly with the oxygen. I wasn’t worried about her at all but I think Aaron was. I knew she was fine.

After she pinked up the midwives said I could get out and sit on the couch so I could hold her again. I stood up to get out and could feel something pulling on the cord. I grabbed the cord and pulled it up and it was the cord clamp! I stood there for a second and felt the placenta moving down so I paused. I had handed the cord clamp to S to hold while I got out and I told her the placenta was coming, as I said that a big clot fell out then the placenta did. I was very glad, less mess and much easier than delivering the placenta on the couch! I walked over to the couch and sat down and Maia was handed to me. I held her skin to skin and had my robe over us. We had lots of skin to skin time. Charlie went to get Calvin and he was thrilled to see his new baby sister, but the first thing he said was “I wanted you to wake me up when she was born!”. I told him we had tried but he wouldn’t wake up, he was very disappointed but still glad to see her.

S went back to the maternity unit to get the scales. When I was ready she weighed Maia and pronounced that she was 2660g. She lifted her off then pressed the button to change it to pounds and ounces, and it read 5lbs 6oz. I was surprised that she was so tiny, she looked about the same as Cora to me and I had guessed maybe 5lbs 13/14 (I can’t remember which I guessed). We later found out that the scales must have malfunctioned because she as definitely 2660g which is actually equivalent to 5lbs 14oz! She was 21” long, compared to Cora’s 20” and Calvin’s 20.5”. The midwives explained that they were going to stick around a little bit longer than normal because she had been breech and had the cord around her neck, just to make sure she was fine. The kids went back to bed very happy. I think Mum and Charlie left at around 4am. T then checked me and I had no tears, not even a graze! After cleaning up and collecting all the stuff, they left at around 4:30am. Aaron and I took Maia upstairs and all got into bed and had a much deserved sleep before Cora and Calvin woke up again the next morning. It was bliss.

The whole labour was really enjoyable for me, I was so excited to finally meet Maia! I can honestly say that my entire labour and birth was pain free as well. The contractions were intense but enjoyable and I would do it all again in a heartbeat. I count my blessings every day that she was an undiagnosed breech, because if they had discovered that prior to birth I would have been pressured to have a caesarean – even vaginal breech hospital birth is rare where we live. Instead I had an amazing home water birth, I couldn’t ask for more.

Amber is a Doula! Please check out her website here: http://gentlerbeginnings.invigorated.org/

Tags: birth, birth stories, birth stories on demand, home birth, natural birth, birth stories with pictures, meconium, water birth, positive birth stories, midwife, midwife stories

Jenn's Birth of Christian

Jenn's Birth of Christian

Christian's Birth Story

I wish I could give every mother the gift of a beautiful birth like the one we had with Christian. It was everything I dreamed it would be . . . And more. I’m not going to censor very much about this story because some of the most intimate details are the ones that make it such a wonderful experience for me and that’s what I want to share. I know not everyone will appreciate it, but those that do, well, you know who you are!

The morning of Thursday March 12^th began with me waking at 6:45 a.m. for my usual (in pregnancy, anyway) morning pee. I had been having ‘surges’ (the word I will use for contractions) all night long. Even dreaming about them. But nothing so uncomfortable as to wake me from the uninterrupted night of sleep I had been praying for. Thank goodness for that restful night. It had been weeks since we last had such a peaceful rest. Olivia (5) and Dominick (3) had been routinely taking turns paying us nocturnal visits and the discomfort of my last weeks of pregnancy was making it very difficult to find a comfortable sleeping position. Needless to say, I was overjoyed to finally be in labor. I came back from the bathroom and woke Chris to tell him that it was time; I had the birth-is-imminent sign I had been waiting for (bloody show.) He looked at the clock and said, ‘Well, at least it’s not too early. We got some sleep!’ He asked what I wanted him to do first, I told him to call Kate (our midwife.) He said he would start filling the birth pool first and then call her.

We both went downstairs and started preparations, which didn’t entail too much since we had gotten most of the prep work out of the way about a week before during an evening of false labor. When Chris got on the phone with Kate, she told him that she was on her way to another birth and asked us to call her as things progressed. I wasn’t in hard labor yet, but it was only a matter of time. We called my mom and sisters-in-law, Shanni and Patti, to let them know to come over, as was the plan. Chris made me some breakfast and we enjoyed a quiet morning together before family arrived and the kids woke up. Surges were getting more serious, but still not serious enough for me to go lay down. Whenever one was coming I would go to the kitchen counter and lay my head down while Chris rubbed my lower back. It was really soothing and helped eased the surges more than I would have thought. Shanni arrived first - probably less than an hour after we called her and even before the kids woke up. (Incidentally, they both slept in later that morning than ever before in the history of our household - 9:30 a.m.!!!)

By the time Kate had arrived it was 11 a.m. and I was busy getting cameras ready and directing others. My surges were being notated - start time and stop time - on a memo pad in the kitchen and whoever was closest to me when I had one was summoned to rub my back for the duration of the surge. They had become serious enough for me to seek comfort laying over the exercise ball while getting my backrubs. I finally settled into the spare bedroom - where we planned to labor and deliver - so Kate could check my vitals. It turned out that my blood pressure was high (for me) and that concerned Kate a bit. She checked to see how much progress I had made - 4 cm. We talked about preeclampsia and a hospital transfer and what that would entail. Chris and I talked it over and decided to wait 30 minutes and check my blood pressure again after I had a chance to lay down and rest. (I hadn’t stopped moving since 6:45 a.m.) While we were alone I told Chris that I was not trying to make a statement by insisting on a homebirth, that all I truly wanted was the safest outcome and if that meant a trip to the hospital then so be it. I told him that I was leaving it in God’s hands - whatever will be will be.

The birth pool was ready for me and I couldn’t wait to get in it. The surges were approaching transition-intensity. (Basically, that means even the most granola crunchy mama might start insisting on drugs when they get that intense - but it’s almost over at that point anyway.) I requested the birth pool knowing that I would appreciate any type of relief at that point - and Hallelujah to that! I was so happy to have had that foresight. I asked for Kate to come in and check my blood pressure again so I could get in the tub if we were going to stay home. The 30 minutes hadn’t completely passed yet but I couldn’t wait any longer; I needed the tub! Kate checked my BP and it was back down to a comfortable number; We all breathed a huge sigh of relief. She told me to stay laying on my left side in the pool. I got in and immediately felt the comfort of the warm water wash over me. I was able to breathe through the next few surges without moving. This allowed my body to open faster and I could literally feel my cervix pulling upward and open. It was freaky and cool!!!

Once I got to transition I was feeling the need to get vocal through the surges. It actually helped make them more tolerable to moan through them. I felt a slight urge to push and said so out loud. Chris knew then that he should probably get in the tub. He asked if I wanted to call the kids in the room. Due to the “birth fog,” it took me a while to process the question but then I replied, ’Yes.’ Liv and Dom came and stood next to me outside the pool and we told them that the baby was coming. Dom seemed a little confused and agitated and maybe a little worried, too. We assured both of the kids that I was okay and that everything was going exactly as we had planned. I felt another surge coming and knew I wouldn’t be able to hold back so I hoped that someone would get Dom out of the room before it peaked. Thankfully, someone whisked him off to play with his Uncle Ty in the family room. Liv chose to stay in the room for the birth. She was amazing and totally composed. After that surge and my accompanying moan, she asked if I was okay. I told her that I was just fine - that it helped me feel better to make all that noise. Chris told her that if she felt uncomfortable at any time that she could leave if she felt like it. She said she was comfortable and that she wanted to stay. Chris told her that she could rub my head to help me feel better. She had a very soothing touch and it made me feel good to have her there. My mom was standing right next to her, encouraging her and explaining things to her.

I’m not sure how many pushes it took, more than with the other 2 babies as he was bigger and I was doing it right this time. If you are familiar with the ‘Ring of Fire’ you will appreciate knowing that giving birth in a pool of warm water pretty much renders the fire extinguished. I think I can attribute my intact perineum to the fact that I didn’t feel that burn and consequently didn’t forcibly eject the baby from my birth canal as I had done with Dom. Maybe it was 4 or 5 pushes, about 10 minutes total. I felt the bag of waters break just before the head came out. After the baby’s head was out, I heard Kate quietly talking Chris through the delivery. She had him check to make sure the umbilical cord hadn’t come out ahead of the baby. After a minute or two I had another pushing surge and gently pushed him out the rest of the way. Chris caught the babe and brought him up to my chest and they covered him with a towel. Liv and Mom and I checked out his face and somebody said something about ‘him.’ I asked, ‘Is it a boy?’ and everyone said they didn’t know, that no one had checked yet. So, we took a little peek and by golly, there were the family jewels. All along we had thought it was going to be a girl and here we had another gorgeous little man. We were surprised but overjoyed, nonetheless!

After I birthed the baby we had planned to draw the blood from the umbilical cord for banking. I had to get to the bed before birthing the placenta for this to happen, so Chris helped me out of the tub while I held the baby against my belly to keep him warm and Kate helped me hold the baby on me while we all walked together in a carefully executed choo-choo-train-sort-of shuffle to the bed. I laid down with the baby on me and Kate said that the cord had already shut down. This meant our only chance of drawing any blood was to get it directly from the placenta after I birthed it. While Keisha (Kate’s apprentice) was taking care of me and the baby, Kate and Chris took the placenta to the kitchen table and proceeded to violate it with their syringes! Ty came into the kitchen, saw what they were doing and said something about not knowing we would be having Flank Steak for dinner. Kate and Chris spent a very long time trying to draw as much blood as possible from the placenta and it was a valiant effort, I will give them that! Unfortunately, we came up short on nucleated cells but there isn’t much we could have done to change that outcome. After Kate and I talked we figured that it was probably the blood pressure issue that caused the cord to shut down so quickly.

The baby had pooped and peed on me within minutes of being born and started nursing not long after that. He was hitting all of his milestones right out of the gate! He had a superbly rounded head and a smooshed face with a deep crease across his forehead and another across the bridge of his nose. Both the creases filled in after a couple days. He has stork kisses on his forehead and under his nose which should fade in the first year (but I think they are adorable!) Chris and I had not prepared for the eventuality of having another boy and so we hadn’t even talked about a boy name. It took us a full day after the baby was born to come up with it. 

Liv and Dom are still smitten with Christian, more than 2 weeks later. I never discourage their kisses and affection which is bountiful if not completely smothering at times, but baby doesn’t seem to mind! He will hopefully continue with his astounding ability to sleep amidst the jungle atmosphere of our home, with all it’s interesting sights, sounds and smells. We are all so thrilled to have another person in our lives to love. Welcome to the world my darling, perfect and whole son!

The attached photo is a little blurry, but I think it really captures the wonder and excitement of Christian's Birth Day.

tags:birth,birth stories, birth stories on demand, positive birth stories, siblings, waterbirth, home birth, home birth stories, water birth stories, midwife, natural birth stories, won't scare pregnant women

Natalie's Birth of Naomi

We got our homebirth YAY

Under belly time
Our family has 4 kids, Samuel (6) Isaac (5) Melody (3) and Nathan (1). We moved into our new house way better than our old house a lot more room for all. Summer time came it was going to be a good summer. My older sister came down for visit from BC it was so nice to hang out with her again. One day she wanted to get me a birthday gifts some new clothes. I was still nursing Nathan at this time he was about 6months old but he was one small size, I had seen that my milk had done big decrees over the past month. Made me think I wonder if I was pregnant. So be for I got the new clothes I had to pee on stick. I did not tell my sister I was doing this, so here I was in food store washroom with a baby crying his head off pee on stick yah. When I get a + I was happen but really secured of what people would say. So I keep it to myself did not tell my sister at all. When home to wait to tell dad, later on my sister want to go back to my brother’s house I was ok with it because I want to tell Alex. Well I told him he did not know what do to do, because Nathan was so young and this would be #5 baby eeek. 
So we keep it to our self’s for a bit, I told a few people but not online or family yet because I want to get happy about baby 1st. So I was able to get midwife again YAY and I pick the midwife who said “see you in 6 months” midwife Ginger. At the end of July I thought it was time to tell people I fight it for lone time but I need to get it out and open, daily people ask me if I was done, all I could say was will see LOL. I go to a baby play group with melody ever week and I through that was best place. I had told the leaders beforehand because I know they would support me. My friends were joking around with me before it started about having more babies, so when they were handing out diapers is when I told them. My friend was setting right there and all I did was ask for size 6, 2, and new born. I said it like 4 times before the light ball went off in her head LOLOL. She was counting it out when she got it she run to tell our other friend omg it was all over the room in 2mins LOLOL.
So I call my family and told them, they were ok with it I think but there nothing they could do it was done. I call my sister and told her about when I tested, she as happy but a little mad that I did not tell her at the time. But she understands to. Later on I posted on Facebook and mom2mom that is when I got everything from OMG NO WAY, to are you joking me and so on. 
So people know good, 1st few months where hot and I was tried, I want to sleep all day long. I was still nursing Nathan but my hind milk had not come back in fully so I started him on formal. By a few months he stop nursing all together I was sad but happy to because less on me lol. Fall had came and gone, my belly started getting bigger, midwife apts where going great I was healthy nothing wrong with me or baby. Had the big u/s found out it was girl YAY. Christmas seem to take for ever to get here getting through every day was so long sometimes. But we did it Nathan turn one on Jan 5th, ok I was ready to get this done with. It was cold and wet, I feel in snow more times than I can count, still warring my blue crocs 
March 13 was my org due date with baby
I got up with biggest headack from the spring storms we had the night before
but I had to get stuff done for the day
kids off to day camp
and running around with my friend, and 40week midwife apt
so I got out bed sigh
kids off to day camp
got my sil some coffee and muffins
off to my midwife apt
they check me I was only 2-3cm still high up
even my mw said she does not see baby coming anytime soon
did my running around to do, eat lunch at back road cafe
came home slip and feel again on Mel toy
lost some of my plug but brush it off because I did get check out today
and I lost my plug a few times before baby comes
did some more running around again
pick up kids from day camp
did a trail run of car seat in the van and clean it up a bit
now it was supper time
opps its 8pm
so I try to clean up the kitchen a bit
and I was getting some cramps, stopping from cleaning up
I through maybe I should call my doula and take a shower
because there strong but it was fake labour again nothing new for me
I got Alex up told him how I was feeling his words "are you sure you did not eat something bad"
made him get up and feed the kids
I got some stronger cramps in shower
my doula came over, notice she forgot to tell me she did not have air pump for pool
so I called my friend to bring one and come get the kids
sil came over to get Nate
doula said yes I was in labor to call my mw
friend left with kids about 9:15, 
mw got there at 9:30
I was 5cem now 
did not want to lie down at all
I was getting some bad back pain
pool ready at 9:45
I was happy now pain going away
water break in the water about 10;00
one push and her head was out
hit my birthing wall
"I am done"
2nd mw got in my face and told me I had to one more push
push I did and she was out YAY 10:05
move to the bed 
weight baby girl 6.8 my smallest baby 
I got my water home birth with one of my kids there
my sil stay with Nathan because I was so going so fast lol
I did not even have time to update FB sorry all
look at my txt and my friend txt me the min I push her out asking "are you in labor" lolol
but 11:30 everyone had left 
me and Alex and baby sleep the night away
what a great night 

Tags: birth, birth stories, birth stories on demand, birthing time, home birth, water birth stories, home birth stories, birth stories with pictures, positive birth stories, natural birth,