Diane's Birth of Bridget Amber

Diane's Birth of  Bridget Amber

This is a Hypnobabies birth story! 

http://www.Hypnobabiesblog.org

 

Bridget Amber was born on July 7th 2010 at 3:13 am, weighing 9lb 13oz, 20.5 inches

long. The birth was completely natural, intervention and medication-free, in a

hospital with a CNM. Bridget is my fourth baby, my first hypnobaby.

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> Here are some details. At my first prenatal visit, at around week 10, the

midwife informed me I would not be permitted to birth under water this time, due

to my history of big babies. Inside a felt like launching an arguement against

this ban because I really like birthing in water and I felt like I've already

proved myself with my last under water birth of a surprisingly heavy baby at

11lb 5oz. "It went smoothly, so why the ban", I wanted to argue. I decided

it's way too early in this pregnancy to get vocal about how I wanted to birth. 

So much could happen still before the birth that could sway the midwives

decision. I decided to hold my tongue. But this "ban" is what made me

interested in hypnosis.

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> Fast forward to weeks 35 and on. I began having pressure waves (PW) intense enough to really

slow me down. I was still working full-time and doubted that I'd be able to

finish working through week 38 as I had planned. The mornings were always when

I felt normal, but after 3 or 4 pm, I struggled to keep appearing unaffected by

the cramps, pinching down there, short breath, and general squeezing sensation. 

At 38 weeks my cervix was 3.5 cm open and 50% thinned. The result of these

early and annoying PWs. During this time I was totally useless at home in the

evenings. Trouble moving around to cook and bathe and put the three young ones

to bed. Finally I finished my last day of work and I could just wait. I waited

and waited, very much expected the baby to come any day. This was my mindset

every day for a week and a half. My guess date was July 8th (but my midwives

had it documented as June 29 based on early US). These were some of the slowest

days of my life. I felt like I was living in limbo. These are the days when

artificial induction, something I'm strongly opposed to, becomes tempting. But

thanks to hypnobabies I had confidence to just keep waiting. During the waiting

week-and-a-half, my PW established a pattern of coming on at 4:30pm, still

random and just annoying. Every day, though, they subsided while I slept and I

felt normal again in the mornings. Also during this time I had copious amounts

of mucus discharge. It didn't look like a mucus plug (brownish, old-looking

mucus). Also, toward the end of my waiting week-and-a-half, my stools were a

lot looser than ever during pregnancy. I took these as signs that I was getting

ever closer.

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> Then one night I awoke at 12:38 to a PW that got my attention. It was pretty

powerful AND it didn't follow my regular pattern of subsiding after going to

sleep. I lay awake and felt two more after a half-an-hour. At 1:10 am I woke

my husband to say, "You need to go get a cab." Then I called my midwife. I

felt like I had to defend my case for "now" being the time to go to the

hospital. What do I say, "I've had 3 PWs in the last 1/2 hour?" Most midwives

would say go back to bed. I reminded my midwife how fast my last two birthing

times were (under an hour each) and how this activity was not my pattern. She

agreed to meet me there. I then called our au pair, who lives in our basement,

to tell her we're going to the hospital. She'd be in charge of the kids in the

morning when they woke-up. I packed a bag and sat on my birthing ball while my

husband lined up a cab. We left the house at 1:45am. I remember a PW hit while

getting into the cab. I had to pause for this to pass. Another PW hit while at

a red light on Michigan Ave. Somehow, we hit all red lights going up Michigan

Ave. through downtown Chicago in the middle of the night! We get to the

hospital... PW hits while getting out of the cab. A hospital employee sees me

and gets a wheelchair for me. So nice of her since she was off and heading

home. We arrive to the hospital at about 2am.

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> In triage I sit and wait for the nurses to ready a triage room. No other

patients are around. This is a busy downtown Chicago woman's hospital that

delivers an average of 30 babies a day! The nurse motions me into a room. I

have to stop to lean against the doorway through another PW. The nurses are

patient. After giving a urine sample and changing into a gown, I get in bed and

get an internal. They're used to screening woman who 1/3 of the time get sent

home because it's too early. They declare me 7cm open and 100% effaced. They

role my bed toward the elevator to admit me to L&D. A nurse asks me how I'd

like to deliver. Under water, I say. She tells me the tub was recently used

and there's no time to clean it. Unfortunately I will not be getting a water

birth. I'm admitted at 2:15am. In the L&D room, I at first sit in bed and

chat with my widwife between waves. Eventually I ask for a birthing ball. I

sit on the ball with my head rested on the elevated bed and a couple pillows. 

Eventually I'm needed so much concentration for these PW, I've tuned out my

environment. Then I feel super hot. I recognize this from my last birth. I

know I'm getting close. The involuntary vocalizations start. The "cave woman

grunting." "Lower the bed." I manage to say. Now I climb into bed on my knees

leaning forward on pillows propped over the elevated head of the bed. This

position is close to the hands and knees position I had visualized birthing in.

Hands and knees being the best position to minimize risk of shoulder dystosia. 

In this position is where the vocalizations escalate and so does the intensity

of the PWs. I involuntarily push. I'm totally concentrating on relaxing and

following my body's urges. During the pushing stage, my midwife asks for

permission to break the bulging bag of water to avoid the mess of an explosion. 

I agreed to it. In a matter of minutes the baby is out.

>

> She was born at 3:13am, only an hour after being admitted. The baby's nurse

asked permission for the eye ointment and the vit D shot. I consented. I liked

how she asked first. These treatments as well as other aspects of the baby's

exam were done while I held her. So nice to see these changes in the hospital

treatment vs. separating baby and mom for these treatments and not even

including mom in the decisions. I'm also so pleased with my midwife for being

so 'hands-off.' She allowed me to do it my way and in my time. I'd like to

have the tub to deliver in, but since it wasn't available at the moment I needed

it, I could handle that news since I'd been preparing for a dry birth from the

start anyway. If I wasn't prepared mentally, that would have made it harder to

accept.

>

> I must confess I was a very lazy hypnobabies student when it came to listening

to the CDs and practicing. That's what working full-time and having 3 kids

does. I had no uninterrupted time leftover. Still I benefited from the

readings and the affirmations and the boost to my confidence the overall program

gives. I think the positive mental perspective alone makes hypno-anesthesia not

even needed for me, since the physical feelings of PWs and birthing are so

welcomed, nothing I couldn't deal with. Never did I feel fear or panic as some

describe, just empowered and a sense of marvel at the whole process. The female

body is a masterpiece!

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, natural hospital birth stories, birth stories with pictures, certified nurse midwife, CNM, positive birth stories, hypnobaby, hypnobabies