Ariel's Story

What better way to start the week than with a birth story?!

Ariel's Story

by Mellisa

We had a little girl on 10/30 at 12:08 am. I had a successful home waterbirth. No interventions of any kind. It was also very fast. She weighed 7 lbs 5oz.and was 21 inches long.  She had a knot in her cord that did not affect anything. It was still pulsating when she came out.

I had on and off contractions since the first Monday in October when I accidentally eat spicy shrimp. Contractions finally became intense, but would not keep going and every contraction was painful at my pubic bone area, so I reached out to my chiropractor. I didn't think this was normal. Of course it was not. My pubic bone was not separating in the proper direction. I was past my due date as well. She did some manipulation and since I was past my due date she did some Logan Technique work. Kind of like a chiropractic induction. She said I probably didn't need it. That fixing my pubic bone would most likely do the trick, but because of how I had been contracting for the last few days we figured it wouldn't hurt. It was obvious the baby wanted to come out.

Contractions slowed down and were less intense for a while (my chiropractor had warned me this would happen). At about 9 pm that night they were back to intense and consistent with no pubic bone pain! At 9:30 I went to lay down and my husband did some back massage during each contraction. I attempted to find another position and ended up on my stomach as a contraction started! Ouch!! I got up and yelled for him to turn the shower on. It was about 10 pm. A few minutes later he called our Doula, Claire. She listened to me grunting and moaning in the shower and told him she was on her way.  She called our midwife on her way to our house for us to give her an update and advised her to make her way over as well. 

Claire arrived around 10:30 pm. My husband was working on the birthing pool and I was still in the shower. I am now thinking we are going to run out of hot water and turned down my hot water usage. However contractions are harder to handle when I got cold. I now felt the water temp drop and told Claire. She had Jon check the pool water and sure enough it was coming out cold. He started boiling water on the stove. 

Since the water was now cold I get out of the shower. I was cold and contractions were harder to handle. It is hard to relax when you are cold! - just in case you didn't know that. Lol! My midwife arrives at some point. I keep asking about the pool. 

I have most of my labor in the living room on the couch (don't worry it was covered in plastic just in case). At about 11:30 my midwife says if I still want to get in the pool, now would be a good time. I am beyond relieved and immediately move to the pool. As i get in the pool, I notice the assistant midwife arrives.  I get in and immediately feel so much better. I think I started pushing before I got in the pool because I now feel a sense that my duty is to get the baby out. I am on all fours. That ring of fire (the one I was not able to experience with my first) was no JOKE! (note - read here for the Birth Story of Mellisa's first birthing experience). Holy crap that burned. When it didn't let up for a few contractions and stayed there, negative "I can't" thoughts entered my mind. A lot of the affirmations were going through my head, but that didn't help so I spoke my "I can't" out loud. Immediately Claire (my Doula) started saying to me "You can and you are doing it". Jon gets in my face and says the same thing, but adds WE ARE doing it. I start repeating it and try to remember to not push like a crazy woman. 

Someone tells me to reach down and feel the head. I remember it feeling fuzzy. I thought hey it has some hair! Now come out! Then I hear "ok reach down and grab your baby". I do. And they say "Give a final push and your baby will be out". Sure enough one final push and the baby was out and in my arms. I kept hearing someone say "Do we know what it is?" I finally look and with shock-- It is a girl!  I am excited and surprised because I was so certain we were having a boy. 

I get out of the pool and cough ( literally) out the placenta. I nurse and eat my home cooked meal. We move to the bed room and do all the newborn checks while I am laying in my own bed  We burn the cord off.  Claire knows the person who is doing the placenta  encapsulation and notifies her that I gave birth. 

And that is pretty much everything. I am overly happy with the birth, although I do wish I could have been in the pool from the beginning. 

Long story for only 3 hrs of labor.  Not counting the start stop contractions.

If you are interested in sharing your Birth Story here on the Radiant Birth blog, feel free to Contact Me.

Tomorrow's Birth Story Circle **CANCELLED**

**CANCELLED**

I have three very poorly kiddos in my home, and cannot in good conscience

invite mamas with little babies in.

I'll be posting reschedule details soon!

Just a quick note!

I still have spaces available for tomorrow's (Saturday the 22nd) Birth Story Circle. I limit the group to about half a dozen mamas so that this stays a small and cozy group. Babes in arms welcome!

More details are here!

 

Xanthie's Story

I've been really blessed to share each of Bethanie's, from Green and Grateful, birth stories. We have shared Bethanie's other three Birth Stories here, here and here. This story is of her fourth and most recent birth experience!

Xanthie's Story

by Bethanie

I think Xanthie was trying to outdo her sister, but didn’t quite make it! Aisling was 10 days late, but Xanthie didn’t quite make it that long. She arrived 7 days after her due date. In this home, the boys seem to arrive early and the girls late! I guess they need the extra gestational time for beauty sleep!
This labor was super fast, which I kind of expected and secretly hoped for, but it was definitely faster than I thought. Still VERY intense, but so relieved to have it completed so quickly!

So to start at the very beginning, on Saturday the 3rd, we had the day completely free and it was so nice not to have any plans to be able to spend time together as a family. It looked like it was going to rain in the morning, so we decided to go to the mall and walk and then let the kiddos play in the playground area. We did walk the perimeter of the mall… both floors, but unfortunately they were remodeling so the kids area was completely torn up.

The kids were disappointed, but we certainly didn’t have the meltdown that I partially expected. We had a gift card for Chipotle, so we decided to leave the mall and drive around the corner to get some lunch and do some more walking around Fairfax Corner since the sun had decided to come out. We walked some more and then listened to some live music in the square and let the kids play in the water fountain.

It was so nice not having a schedule and just letting the day play out. I really didn’t get any contractions out of all the walking which is what I was hoping for, but I did lose part of my mucus plug that night… so I guess I did get a little something out of all the walking!

Sunday we went to church in the morning and then enjoyed a relaxing afternoon with my parents at their house and with my sister and her family who were in town from Kentucky. It was great seeing them and enjoying another beautiful day! I think it was only in the 70s which is unheard of for August in Northern VA!

I felt a little crampy… just that the braxton hicks were stronger, but nothing anywhere close to anything I’d call labor. They weren’t regular at all and wouldn’t even say they were painful. My Mom was on call to take the kids when labor did start so I contemplated leaving them for the night, but didn’t think I was that close to having a baby that they should stay.

Then early Monday morning around 3:45/4am I awoke having to go the the bathroom which is a little abnormal for me. Usually I don’t have to wake up until 5am or after, but I didn’t think too much of it. However, once I got back in bed I couldn’t go back to sleep. I started having contractions that were 10 minutes apart. Just like period cramps. I still wouldn’t have even said they were painful… just annoying enough I couldn’t get back to sleep. I woke Brian at 5am and let him know that I thought we were gonna have a baby sometime before lunch time! So I asked him to start filling the pool to make sure it was ready for when I was ready to get in. At 5:30 I called my Mom and asked her to pick up the kids around 6:30 so that she wouldn’t get stuck in rush hour traffic.

When she got there around 6:30 my contractions were about 4-5 minutes apart and only about 30-45 seconds long, and uncomfortable, but not intensely painful. In fact I found out later that Mom told my sister she didn’t think I had any contractions the whole time she was there to get the kids. She hung around til about 7am. As soon as Mom left with the three kids the contractions increased to 2 minutes apart and still not intense, but stronger.

I called Peggy (our midwife) and was able to have a normal conversation with her through the contractions. She wanted to know if I wanted her to come now. I said it was up to her. I didn’t feel like she needed to be here, but I also said that once I wasn’t the one calling her because the intensity had increased… by that point she probably wouldn’t make it. So she said she would get ready to head out.

Things started to increase and at 7:45 they were strong enough that I got in the pool and didn’t really want to carry on a conversation with anyone. Grunts and one word answers was about all anyone could hope for! Brian was still finishing up a few things and adding a bit more hot water to the pool. Brian then hopped in the pool with me and I was so glad to have him there.

The midwives still weren’t there and I could tell it wouldn’t be too much longer. I had two really strong contractions though which I could feel Xanthie’s head moving down through my pelvis. I remembered feeling the same when Aisling was born and was hopeful it wouldn’t be too much longer. During the second of those two contractions Mayanne (Birth Assistant) arrived. At the end of the contraction she asked if i wanted to be checked and I said no. I knew the head was right there and I wanted to push with the next contraction.

Next one came and I pushed and her head emerged. I said something to that fact and Brian said Mayanne looked at her gloves and then at me and back at the gloves and then just came over to the pool! Next contraction shoulders and the rest of her were born. 8:33 Mayanne arrived and 8:36 Xanthie arrived! Peggy didn’t get there for another 10 minutes!

It was super intense but I’d much rather it be quick!

Thanks to my wonderful husband who cheerfully got up at 5am to quickly get the pool filled and do whatever he could to serve and care for me as I progressed through this labor. He was so encouraging and knew what words I needed to hear. He worked hard and quickly to get things together and then cared for me as the end neared. I always love to see the joy and excitement in him as the end nears and as the baby joins us! I couldn’t have asked for a better man. God knew my needs and provided a man to suit that perfectly.

I’m still in awe at the miracle of birth and rejoicing in the daughter that has newly joined our family.

Thank you for rejoicing with us!

Xanthie's mama, Bethanie, has a wonderful blog, Green and Grateful, where she writes about her days spent as a mama to her four beautiful children, frugal living, delicious food and homeschooling. Stop by and say 'hi!'

If you are interested in sharing your Birth Story here on the Radiant Birth blog, feel free to Contact Me.

Birth Story Circle

It's time to plan for the next Birth Story Circle!

A woman's birthing experience is such a powerful one, and many Mothers love to have the opportunity to share their own personal birthing story.

Birth Story Circles are small groups of Mothers, coming together to share their stories. This is a safe and non-judgmental space, where Mothers can feel supported and safe as they share.

I am so so excited to announce that I will be holding a Birth Story Circle, on Saturday 22nd November, 4-6 pm, in Sterling, Virginia.

Attendance is limited, to ensure that the group remains small, cozy and confidential. Please RSVP here to save your spot at an upcoming Birth Circle.

Babes in arms and nurslings welcome! Your first priority is to you and your baby, so please feel free to take care of your needs, to nurse, feed and change as you and your baby require.

There is no right or correct story to share. You are welcome at a Birth Circle whatever path your Birthing journey took. Please remember that Mothers each have their own story, and you may well hear stories that differ greatly from your own, including home births, cesarian sections, unassisted births, Birth Centers, Midwife deliveries and hospital births. This is a supportive space to share and receive ALL stories!

Interested in me facilitating a Birth Circle for your Mom's Group? Contact me for more information!

• Upcoming dates

Saturday, 22nd November, 4-6 pm
8 Howard Place, Sterling, VA. 20164.
     - Pay what you can! (suggested amount is $15 to $40)

Kora's Story

A new week, another opportunity for a Birth Story!
Read on!

Kora's Story

by Mellisa

I took the Bradley Method classes. We felt prepared. We had a doula. I chose a hospital birth due to unknown family history. My husband really thought we should have a birth center birth. I pushed back because of the unknown.

I started with mild irregular contractions on 10pm Friday night. Right at bed time. My husband said, "rest, you don't know how long it will be". I tried resting until about 2 am. At that point I was done with getting up every 20 minutes with a contraction, needing to pee and being thirsty. At this point I was also hungry. So, I decided to go to the kitchen and get something to eat. All I remember is wanting to eat the fruit we just bought. So, I stood there at the counter cutting up all the fruit, eating some and putting the others in containers. I also timed contractions. They were still irregular and not intense. At about 5 am I decided I should get more rest. They contractions must have stopped because I slept until about 9 am.

My family was in town and were preparing to leave when I woke up; I told then I was having contractions last night.

They decided to stay.  My sister and husband helped me try to get my contractions going again. We called our doula just to inform her.  The contractions came back and started to become regular in the afternoon. We called the doula after dinner time between 6 and 7pm again, to tell her they were getting stronger and staying pretty regular. I was still pretty talkative and felt fine.  Our doula arrived between 8 and 9 pm. We did some laboring on the ball; I was definitely moving along in labor. I had to concentrate and relax during each contraction. It never felt painful. We discussed if I should go to the hospital now or later. I was admitted to the hospital around 10pm.

I tried the tub, but I kept having to get out to pee so I was annoyed; I decided to stay out of the tub.

Some time around midnight, but Dr came in to check me.  I was told by my doctor in a frank voice "You are not fully dilated, your water has not broken and your cervix is protruding. You are pushing. You need to stop pushing or your cervix will explode. If you do not stop pushing, I will take you in for a c-section".

I told my doctor that I was not purposefully pushing, that my body was doing it. At this point my water broke. My doctor proceeded to tell me that my other option was an epidural. I told her that I didn’t want an epidural or a c-section. She then told me that if I didn’t stop pushing she would take me in for a c-section and that it would not be in a form of a question if I wanted one. My husband looked at our doula and asked if there was anything else we could do. She said that I could try to blow out each contraction and focus on that. We asked the doctor if we could try this. She said that I had one hour and if I could not stop pushing then I would have to get the epidural.

I tried so hard not to push. With the fear of a c-section looming and not being able to stop the pushing, I looked at my husband and told him to tell the doctor to get the epidural because I did not want a c-section.  I did not request the epidural for pain management. I wanted to avoid a c-section.

Looking back, I honestly believe my doctor wanted to perform a c-section. It was not only Sunday, it was Father’s Day. I remember my doctor looking at me and asking me if I wanted the epidural. I told her that I didn’t want a c-section and that I couldn’t stop pushing. So, if that is my only option then yes. I also remember her saying that it might be another hour before he could get to me. I remember being scared. Thinking how am I not going to push for another hour.  Well, I remember him coming in soon after she left with all the paperwork for me to sign. Of course my husband can’t sign them. I have to sign them in the middle of contractions. The epidural is inserted. Then nurse Anne goes to put the catheter in, but can’t. She yells over and says turn off the epidural, she doesn’t need it! I am confused, my husband is confused as is my doula. She says the head is right here, you need push and can push! My doctor did not check me before the epidural was given. I began pushing as my doctor is frantically getting ready. I can totally feel the pressure of the contractions. I am yelling "I need to push, I need to push". Then I feel it subside and then I go back to saying "I need to push, I need to push". They are not telling me that a contraction is coming or to push. I continue to do this until my beautiful daughter arrives at 4:44am on Father's Day.

If you are interested in sharing your Birth Story here on the Radiant Birth blog, feel free to 

Contact Me.

Simon's Story

Happy Friday everyone!
Enjoy your Birth Story!

Simon's Story

by Pamela

I had what I think was my first contraction around 7:15am while I was cuddling in bed with my two older boys.  I didn’t necessarily believe it was a contraction since up to this point I had had three nights of contractions that went from about 2am until 3am and then stopped.  The day before I went into labor I felt terrible; my body ached, I was in a tough place emotionally, and I truly thought I was going to be pregnant forever.  

After I got out of bed I went about my morning trying to keep time on my contractions.  I called Thad (my husband) around 8am and told him I had a few contractions but I couldn’t keep track of their pattern; they were somewhere between 10-15 minutes apart but not consistent.  He said he was going to leave the office right away but I told him I wasn’t sure if this was it.  He said he’d rather be home than miss anything so he came home.  I was standing in my kitchen trying to keep track of my contractions by my last made calls/texts to my husband, doula, and midwife.  By 8:45am my husband came home and he asked his mom to stay home in case she needed to take the boys out of the house.  I remember walking to the bathroom (I was making very frequent trips to the bathroom that morning which was a good indicator that I was truly in labor) around 9am and had to hang on to my dresser to get through a contraction.  My midwife, Marilee, called to check on me and said she was on her way and my doula texted me to tell her when we needed her help.  Around 9:30am my friend, Amanda, came by to pick up the cookies for our cookie exchange that morning and my mother in law was getting the boys and dog into the car and I had a long, intense contraction that had me on my knees hanging on to the banister with tears in my eyes.  Active labor began!!  Dash (older son) was very concerned seeing me in pain and I was grateful that they would not be there for labor despite my initial wants of having them in the house for labor and/or the birth.  I wouldn’t have been able to concentrate on labor if they were there.  I remember Marilee walking into the house while I was groaning through a contraction and I heard her say, “Those are good sounds,” and it finally occurred to me that this kid was going to be born that day.  It was around 9:45am. 
  

I made it downstairs in between contractions to see Thad busy at work filling the aqua doula, Marilee setting up supplies, and I helped by setting up my iPod for music and setting up my diffuser (I used doTerra’s Balance blend for grounding).  I was having a hard time getting comfortable through contractions because I couldn’t quite tell where I was having pressure.  Was the pressure on my bottom or my perineum or my back? I couldn’t tell, so I couldn’t figure out what position to be in for maximum comfort as I worked through my contractions.  All I knew was that I did not want to be standing up, so I tried being on all fours (which was tolerable) or sitting on the toilet and/or the birthing stool (which was more tolerable but not perfect).  I even tried hanging off the corner of my sectional but it was not quite right.  My doula, Mary Beth, arrived around 10:15am and she jumped right in and helped ground me through my contractions.  She helped me relax and used essential oils (we used Iris Oils 4 pack for Childbirth) for scent and massage.  Thad sat behind me to hold my shoulders down during contractions (so I wouldn’t tense up) and Mary Beth sat in front of me between my legs.  They took turns feeding me pineapple and/or pomegranate seeds and giving me sips of water to keep me hydrated.  I felt encapsulated in love.  

Around 10:45am after I went to the bathroom I stood there crying.  In pain, I cried worrying about whether or not my son would love me.  In retrospect, I realize this irrational worry was a sign of Transition, and apparently so did everyone in the room because Marilee, Thad, and Mary Beth held me in the bathroom as I cried.  When I got out of the bathroom I complained that I couldn’t get into a comfortable position and Marilee wisely suggested the aqua doula. 
 

Once I lowered myself into the pool I had instant relief.  I can’t believe I didn’t have a pool with all my babies!  The water was warm, soothing, and I instantly felt like it lifted everywhere I was feeling pressure. The counterpressure was so helpful in managing the pain, it was just amazing. We labored in the pool as the contractions became stronger – at this point I was still able to talk or joke a bit between them; I distinctly remember joking with the birth team over my husband’s dismay when Celine Dion came on the playlist.

The period for talking soon ended – the break between contractions was shortening and the contractions themselves were getting much stronger. I remember asking Marilee why I wasn’t getting a break, and what I should be doing, and she kept saying ‘You’re doing it.’ Sometime around noon I was really working hard – I remember feeling tired for the first time, and concerned about how long the labor would take – would I still have the energy to push effectively at the end? Mary Beth kept me hydrated with water and Gatorade, and I continually sought positions that would relieve pressure from my back. I remember leaning back with my husband’s hand supporting my back, leaning back in an almost hurdler pose with one leg extended, squatting upright and swirling my hips, and finally shifting to all fours in the pool, which would become my final birthing position.

At one point well into active labor, I did ask if there was anything for pain relief, and after a brief silence, Marilee replied ‘You’re sitting in it.’

In retrospect, now I know the various positions and movements were all what Simon needed me to do to safely enter the world. While I was deep in active labor, I had to release the negative thoughts that spun through my head. I questioned whether I had done enough. I had thoughts of being ill prepared, of his size, of my abilities to actually get him out, of possible rupture, and I realized I was at a point of no return, and in releasing those thoughts, I started to unintentionally push. My midwife does not dictate pushing; she allows the body to do what it needs to do. With Dash’s birth, she told me when to push because she saw that I was getting tired and needed to help me focus. This time, my body just did what it needed to do, and unbeknownst to both my husband and me, I was pushing.

I noticed Marilee was behind me by the pool, and Leigh Ann (her assistant) was holding tools of some sort. I had no concept of time at this point – I don’t know exactly when I began to push, or for how long I pushed. I don’t know if it’s because I was in the water, or because the bag of waters was intact, but I had no idea how close he was to being born. I remember Mary Beth asking my midwife if she ‘catches in the water’, (she does) and it hit me that we were going to meet him soon. It’s a crime that in some places women have to get out of the tub to deliver – I can’t imagine how hard that must be.

My groans became grunts, and bearing down with each contraction became instinctive. Whatever people say, you truly poop a baby out. The sensation is low and deep, and no other sensation can be compared to it other than pooping.

Thad was in front of me, supporting my weight and helping me focus. His strength and faith in me took away any fear I had in pushing. It started to burn up towards my clitoris, and I still had no idea where he was. My midwife never told me how much she could see, but in watching the birth video, he was beginning to crown. My midwife put her hands on me to help guide him out, and when she touched me, I was afraid that I was going to suck him back up into my body. When I watched the video and saw the moment she touched me, I didn’t realize just how close he was to being born.

I was pushing and Marilee told me that my bag of waters was intact, that there was a lot of vernix in there, and that his head was almost out. Thad told me that the time to slow down (to prevent tearing) was coming, but all I could feel was pressure and stretching – I didn’t realize his head was already out. It took my doula and husband telling me that his head was out before I grasped, emotionally and physically, that he was about to be born. My sac was still intact at this point and Marilee asked if I wanted her to puncture it – I told her to do whatever would relieve some pressure. On his way out, she made a small puncture to help him glide out.

While waiting for the next contraction, I felt stretched to the absolute max, and Thad and I maintained steady eye contact to help me stay open. It was during the next contraction that he was born – I was still bearing down and pushing when I heard Marilee say, ‘He’s out – reach down and take your baby – be careful, his cord is short’. I couldn’t believe that I was actually pulling him to my chest. I rested him on my breast, he let out a small cry, and the flood of emotions completely overwhelmed me. What broke my trance was Marilee saying to me, ‘You just birthed a direct OP baby.’ For those of you who don’t know what that means, he was posterior, sunny side up, and he came out gently, which is extremely unusual for babies in that position. In fact, part of the reason why Julian was born by Caesarean is because he was posterior.

Once he was born, we completed all the particulars - getting out of the pool, cutting the cord, prenatal exam, passing the placenta, and of course ordering some pizza. The entire birth team was in high spirits, the sun was still up, and they would be home in time to have dinner with their families – Simon Edgar Winston was born at 1:06pm. He was 7 lbs. 5 oz. and 21 inches long.  ‘Edgar’ is for my father.  Simon was born on the 11^th anniversary of his passing, which was also our original due date.  I couldn’t think of a better way to honor my father.  ‘Winston’ is our street name since he was born in our family room.

We had the obligatory family text and Facebook post, and by 4pm it was just the three of us, snuggling on the couch and soaking up every moment of our perfect birth and perfect son.  The postpartum period was an emotional roller coaster.   For now, I will return my arms to my little 3-week old babe waiting for mama’s milk and snuggles.  Life is good.  

If you are interested in sharing your Birth Story here on the Radiant Birth blog, feel free to Contact Me.

Aisling's Story

We featured a Birth Story from Bethanie of Green and Grateful a couple of weeks ago; here is the story of her third child!

Aisling's Story

by Bethanie

I woke up at 1:30 in the morning with some cramping, but nothing strong or really very painful. I laid in bed for another 30-45 minutes to see how far apart they were. Each contraction was about 5 minutes apart, so I called Peggy (our midwife) to give her a heads up just in case it started to get any stronger or progress more. She advised me to call back in about an hour and give her an update. An hour later things were still about the same so I had Brian start filling the pool with hot water and decided to wait a bit longer before I called her. By 3am my contractions were 1 minute long and 1 minute apart and getting stronger. I called Peggy and told her she should probably come before too long.

Everyone arrived around 4am and of course the contractions slowed down almost to a stop! Peggy checked me soon after she arrived and I was only 3 cm… a little disappointing! They were 7-10 minutes apart, no longer painful and only about 20 seconds long. It stayed like this for about 45 minutes and I was getting discouraged that I had called all these ladies and woken them up for nothing. We had the idea of trying the steps to see if that would help things to start moving again. I did the steps twice and then went into the restroom and sat on the toilet for a while as well and things started to pick up again! It was a feeling of “YEAH! Things are moving!” and “Oh, No, not labor again, I’m not sure I’m ready for this!”

Tonchi and Koa (older children) woke up at about 5:30 so we called our friend Judy Trostle to come and get them. They both wanted to keep checking on me to make sure things were ok. By then I was in the pool and not once did they ask to get in with me. I didn’t mind having them there and was able to give them hugs and kisses and chat with them between contractions.

Judy arrived around 6:30 to pick them up. Koa was not very happy about leaving and made his voice known, but Judy didn’t seem to mind. Later on she said he cried a lot on the way home, but was fine during the day and had a great time playing with Tonchi.

By 6:40 labor was really intense and I thought I should be almost done, so I asked Peggy to check me again. She said baby was -1 station and I was 8 cm dilated. I was a little disappointed. I was hoping to be 9 or 10 cm and baby close to being out! However… 15 minutes later at 6:55 Aisling Michelle was born! It was a SUPER intense 15 minutes. I could actually feel her head moving through my pelvis and it WAS NOT comfortable! As she started to crown I started to push just because I could tell she was right there, but I didn’t have any overwhelming urge to push!

I was SO thankful to be done and SO glad she was here! Brian was REALLY surprised that it was a girl! He had to double check just to make sure! I didn’t tear at all and the bleeding wasn’t too heavy either. She was born in the birthing pool underwater and I also delivered the placenta in the pool as well. Afterwards Brian and I took a shower and I think that is the best shower I’ve ever taken in my life! The warm water felt great!

After the midwives left I slept for about an hour and then Mom came out to see her before she had to start teaching her classes. Brian and I then had the afternoon to rest and relax and I think Aisling and I slept for about 4 hours! Later that evening we had A LOT more family to visit and see the baby! Mrs. Trostle also brought the boys back in the late afternoon and they were SO excited about their new baby sister!

This was another amazing birth! Just the way I had hoped and with close friends and family there! It was an amazing night. All who attended were each needed in their own special way and I’m so blessed they sacrificed precious sleep to be there to support us! And again, Brian was just what I needed when I needed it most. I love the way each birth has drawn us together and created a stronger bond between us. It’s so good to know he is there when i need him!

We praise God for a safe and healthy baby and for the first girl baby in the family! My mom has 5 grandsons and now a granddaughter! What a treat! She is going to be tough, but I’m guessing she will be the princess as well!

Aisling's mama, Bethanie, has a wonderful blog, Green and Grateful, where she writes about her days spent as a mama to her four beautiful children, frugal living, delicious food and homeschooling. Stop by and say 'hi!'

If you are interested in sharing your Birth Story here on the Radiant Birth blog, feel free to Contact Me.

 

Daschel's Story

Have you missed the Birth Stories as much as I have?!

Daschel's Story

by Pamela

Sunday wasn't anything particularly crazy, just a normal day. After dinner we were in the living room and at 7:06pm I had my very first "real" contraction. It was enough that I turned to Thad and said, "ow, what the hell was that, it really hurt." We kinda took note of the time but went on with our evening, giving Julian a bath and putting him down for bed. In the 7 o'clock hour I had about 3 contractions, and in the 8 o'clock hour I had about 4. By 9 o'clock I was like, ok, these really hurt and are coming every 10 or so minutes now...should we call someone?! I spoke to a friend to get her opinion since her birth story was still fresh in my mind (she had a planned home birth but it turned into an unplanned unassisted birth since her baby came so quick and the midwives didn't get there in time) and where I didn't want to call the midwife too soon, I also didn't want to wait too long. After I got off the phone with her, we called our doula (Mary Beth) and our midwife (Marilee) and she said she wanted to come over to "check things out." I was really nervous about her coming over because I didn't want her to come and this just be a false labor. We sent Scout (our dog) to my mom's since he was whining at me and I had to work through the contractions enough that his whining was pissing me off royally. So off he went.

The midwives showed up at about 10 pm and my contractions at this point were every 5 minutes, lasting about 60 seconds long. They hunkered down on the couch and took my vitals, listened to baby, and we spent the next hour seeing how things were progressing. We called Mary Beth, too, and she decided to come over as well. I didn't truly believe I was in labor and it wasn't until we lit the birth candle and I finally posted on FB for my friends to light their candles that I thought 'this was it.'

The next couple hours are a bit hazy to me as far as the timing goes, but essentially my contractions went from 5 minutes apart to 4 minutes apart over the next hour and then finally down to 3 minutes apart. We labored in the living room and they had set up the birth supplies in the bedroom, but as the night continued more and more supplies were appearing in the living room. Soon I was stripping down my clothes and chux pads were appearing under me everywhere I moved in case my water broke. I labored most of the time on my hands and knees or standing on the stairs (having my legs at different levels really helped) but as my contractions got to 2-3 minutes apart, I felt like I needed a change. I knew he was coming down but I couldn't figure out a better position to be in, so my midwife recommended that I lean back on Thad. Once I got in the sit position leaning back, the baby dropped incredibly low and I had a feeling I could start pushing. I was really, really worried to push since I didn't know how dilated I was and Marilee doesn't check unless I ask. I figured that we still had hours of labor ahead of us so it would be premature to push. Well the position we were in in the living room was so uncomfortable that I couldn't square up my hips. My hips kept on tilting one way or the other thus the baby did too....so Marilee asked if I wanted to move upstairs on the bed to be more comfortable. We started a mad dash in between contractions up the stairs. Thad was bracing me for each contraction, Mary Beth was following me with a chux pad in case my water broke, Valerie (the midwife assistant) started shuttling birth supplies back up to the bedroom, and Marilee was talking me through each contraction. I distinctly remember someone saying to me, "when this one ends you have to move, Pamela, to make it up the stairs before the next one." I don't think I walked so fast in my life, especially with a bowling ball literally between my legs.

We got into the bedroom, I laid on the bed, and I decided to have Marilee check me for dilation. Shoot, if I had hours more of this pain I had to be able to deal with my energy level, right? She checked me and very calmly said, "you are complete and the baby's head is right there." With that we began pushing around 3am. She said she could feel my bag of waters right in front of his head and I remember asking her if she needed extra clothes in case my water broke all over her. Next contraction, I beared down and my water literally popped everywhere- it sounded like a water balloon! At that his head really came down and we pushed through a few more contractions when the stretching was really kind of freaking me out Thad was being a great cheerleader, "with every push we see hair," "his head is right there!" I love him but gee, I know where his head was! There was a point where Marilee told me that she'd ask me to stop pushing so she could guide his head out slowly and when that moment hit, boy was that mean! Sure enough, though, down and out he came (cool note, my sacrum was so loosey-goosey that they said they could see it moving to let him out...props to chiropractic care during pregnancy) and at 3:33am our little boy was born. Daschel weighed in at 6 lbs 11 oz (2 lbs smaller than his big brother) and 20 1/2 inches long.

She placed him right on my chest and he was COVERED in vernix, a sign that he was early. Marilee said his gestational age was about 38 weeks which is just fine since this little dude is perfect. The placenta took over an hour to come out (it was posterior so I ended up having to sit on the birthing stool to get it out) and then I took a shower, got some stitches (which is why I was in bed for a few days to let them heal), and the newborn exam. Julian (older child) woke up just in time to see the newborn exam and check out the placenta (which is SO cool!). I'm still surprised he slept through all the ruckus.

By 6:30am everyone was headed home and Thad, baby, and I hunkered down in bed for a nice nap. Here we are, 9 days later and I am still on cloud 9 from our birth experience, and little Dash is napping on daddy's chest. My milk came in on day 2 and nursing (so far) has been a total breeze. Also, side note, all that eating well did me good...not only was Dash a great size, but I am only 2 lbs away from my pre-pregnancy weight. Granted, my belly needs some, um, toning, but damn, life is good.

Here is a photo right after he was born:

If you are interested in sharing your Birth Story here on the Radiant Birth blog, feel free to 

Contact Me.

Koa's Story

We featured a Birth Story from Bethanie of Green and Grateful a couple of weeks ago; here is the story of her second child!

Koa's Story

by Bethanie

All through the pregnancy the due date was February 24, but as the day approached and passed I didn’t feel at all like it was time for him to be born. I didn’t feel uncomfortable at all, no swelling in my hands or feet, I could still sleep through the night without having to get up to use the restroom, I hadn’t been having Braxton Hicks, I was measuring small, I hadn’t lost my mucus plug, and so much more. As I thought about all of this, I remembered that my cycles were 6 weeks long instead of the usual 4 weeks. I mentioned this to my midwives, Tierney and Peggy, and they agreed that the date had probably been miscalculated. The date was changed to March 10!

My last prenatal appointment was on March 5 in the late morning. While I was there I mentioned the fact that my feet had started to swell a little and I couldn’t wear my wedding rings any more. I also noticed that I had lost my mucus plug. We were all in agreement that Koa’s arrival was certainly getting closer. They asked if I wanted to try a few things to get labor started and I agreed. Tierney stripped my membranes (it was a little uncomfortable, but didn’t hurt) and then I purchased some Cotton Root and Labor E. Brian was there with me and on the way home we purchased some castor oil and Rosemary essential oil. After we ate lunch I waited 2 hours before starting the regime! First I was to take the Cotton Root under my tongue and then 15 minutes later take the Labor E. I was to alternate each every 15 minutes for the next 2-4 hours. I also used the breast pump for 30 minutes each hour, and also rubbed castor oil with the Rosemary essential oil on my belly each hour as well. As I was doing all this I was having contraction ranging anywhere from 2-5 minutes apart, but they didn’t hurt very much and weren’t at all regular or consistent.

I continued and pressed on thinking it would work, but after 4 hours and soreness under my tongue from the burning of the herbal supplements, I was ready for a break. It was about 8 pm and I was tired… Brian and I watched a movie, put Tonchi (read Tonchi's Birth Story here!) in bed and got ready to go to bed. I had been talking with Tierney and Peggy about it all. After stopping the supplements the contractions stopped completely. I slept through the whole night and didn’t have any more contractions.

On March 6th I awoke feeling great… unfortunately! I was ready to have that baby! Contractions started up again on their own at about 9am. It still wasn’t consistent and they only felt like cramps, not contractions. Brian was home all day so we all went for a walk in the afternoon. Tonchi had a great time at the playground! I was hoping the walk would help to speed up the contractions, but in fact, we were gone for 1 hour and I had a grand total of 3 contractions. Obviously things weren’t working on my time frame!

Mom had a program at church at 7pm, so she stopped by at about 6 to say hi and see Tonchi. We were eating dinner when they stopped. At this point my contractions were about 5 minutes apart, but still not at all painful. More like Braxton hicks with cramping. She left, and I asked her to call when she was leaving church to see how things were going. If it looked like things were changing then I was going to have her come back and pick up Tonchi for the night.

Tonchi, Brian and I laid on the bed upstairs and did some reading, worked on the computer and just laid around. At about 8:30 things started to pick up and I could tell this was it. Mom called around 9pm and came back and picked up Tonchi. These contractions did hurt! And they were about 4-5 minutes apart. Brian called Tierney and Peggy and asked them to come on over! Things were finally starting to move along!

Tierney and Peggy arrived a little after 10pm and I was still able to converse before and after contractions. Brittany also arrived at about the same time. Brian was working on filling the birthing tub with warm water, but it never really did happen! He did get it filled, but it was only lukewarm, and not really as relaxing as it had been with Tonchi.

At just before 11 I was ready to get in the pool, but Tierney and Peggy wanted to check me and check the baby before I got in. I was 5 cm! YEAH! Things really were moving! I got in the pool at about 11pm. By 11:40 I was hitting transition! Tierney checked me again and said I was 9.5cm and if I wanted to have the baby out of the water and in my bed I had better head upstairs.

I tried to labor on the floor leaning against the bed (I wanted to keep the mess out of the bed!) but I just couldn’t get comfortable and nothing seemed to work. Peggy had a hard time finding Koa’s heart rate and said I needed to try a different position. I got up on the bed and laid back on some pillows. After two contractions I wanted to start pushing. After the next two contractions Koa was born! At 11:59pm!

As his head came out Tierney said the cord was around his neck and it was too tight to remove. She asked me to give one last good push to get the rest of him out quickly. I did and the rest of him was born along with about a gallon of water! My water broke while I was in the pool, but there was still a lot of water above Koa before he was born. I felt terrible that Tierney’s leg got soaked!
It was an incredible birth! I’m so glad it was faster than Tonchi’s, but I feel like it was so much more intense. I remember Tonchi’s labor being hard, but this seemed a lot more painful.

Brittany left around 2:10 and Peggy and Tierney left around 2:30. It felt so good to get in bed and go to sleep. What a great reward after half a nights work! I really did feel good. I didn’t have any tear or swelling which made recovery that much faster.

Brian again was the perfect coach. I’m so glad he was there by my side during the whole thing. I really don’t think I could do it without him. He is so good at encouraging me and helping me look towards the end instead of only seeing the here and now. God has truly blessed me with a wonderful man and two wonderful sons!

 

Koa's mama, Bethanie, has a wonderful blog, Green and Grateful, where she writes about her days spent as a mama to her four beautiful children, frugal living, delicious food and homeschooling. Stop by and say 'hi!'

If you are interested in sharing your Birth Story here on the Radiant Birth blog, feel free to Contact Me.

Thomas' Story

A birth story with a bit of a twist today - the story written from the Father's point of view! Wonderful to hear a Father's perspective - enjoy!

 Thomas' Story

by Ben

We had intentions of a natural birth with a group of Certified Nurse Midwives in a small birth center right near our home.  We've had all of our prenatal work done with them and were very happy with the decision.  Our only concern was that the baby was positioned face forward which we were told can make labor very painful.

Rachel (Ben's wife) woke up in labor at 12am Tuesday morning.  Just as we were beginning to make the call to the birth center, her water broke.  We hurried to collect the few remaining loose necessities from their scattering around the apartment: things were disorganized after having moved out of the apartment the weekend before due to a severe storm that caused a multi-day power outage.  We met the midwife on call, Lisa, and our doula, Kelly, at the center at 3am.  The next 4 hours were extremely painful for Rachel.  Little we did could ease her back pain.  We found two positions that created a little relief for her but we were disappointed to know that despite the massive discomfort and the 7.5 hours effort so far, we had only progressed to 2cm by 7:30am.  At this point, Rachel decided an epidural was a must and we began preparations to transfer to the hospital with Lisa and Kelly (our midwife and doula) as well.

After the transfer and a round of IV fluids, the anesthesiologist finally arrived to place the epidural.  He did a fantastic job.  Rachel was finally able to rest.  Everyone caught a nap and, once awake, was able to interact without the incredible pain and focus that was previously required.  By the end of our first nap, Rachel had dilated to 5cm.  She remained there for quite some time and the doctor decided to introduce pitocin.  By early evening, we reached the appropriate 10cm and were ready to begin pushing. The epidural medication's rate was slowed to help Rachel push more effectively.

Rachel pushed for an hour and a half but the baby remained at -1 station for that time.  Due to the once again present back pain and the lack of progress, the doctors allowed Rachel to let the labor down by introducing more medication via the epidural.  Relief at this point was very quick, and Rachel was again asleep.  The rest of the birth team napped as well.

At 1145pm, Rachel was awake again and once again ready to push.  We worked for another 3 hours toward delivery; employing significant counter-pressure on Rachel's back and many of the positions we'd learned in our classes.  Still, the baby remained at -1 or 0 station and we were told the baby was having difficulty passing the pelvic bone.  The doctors proposed a small vacuum/suction cup could be attached to the baby's head and sometimes used to maneuver the baby while Rachel pushed.  Trying that took another 30 minutes but was unsuccessful.  The doctors decided a Cesarean section was needed.

Surgery was scary for me and freezing for both of us, but a clear success.  The baby was out in about 10 minutes after the initial incision, at 3:52am, and immediately let out a cry.  Rachel and I were extremely relieved to hear him as he was rushed to the NICU table in the OR, suctioned, measured, and evaluated.  They told us he was 9 lb, 2oz, which we could barely believe.  His official height was later recorded as 22.25".    Within minutes, he was considered stable and ready to return to our room in the labor and delivery wing.  We were later told his head was slightly sideways and he had an arm up, both of which were preventing him from moving down.  Rachel sent me with him while she remained in the OR for another 45 minutes to an hour to be stitched up.

We remained in the hospital for 3 days.  Though it was far from what we had intended, we learned a great deal, and our help from the nurses was invaluable.  Looking back, we're very happy with the experience and our decisions. We're now finally at home and very much enjoying our time with our son.

If you are interested in sharing your Birth Story here on the Radiant Birth blog, feel free to Contact Me.

Evelyn's Story

 A quick note about this Friday's Birth Circle ... there is still room for Mothers to join the Circle, so please contact me to reserve your spot! 

And now onto a Birth Story ...

 

Evelyn's Story

by Jenni 

I must say, this was my dream birth from start to finish, the only exception being the tearing that happened. But, I'd do it this way again in a heartbeat, you know, if we ever decide to do this again! Ha!

After going to bed on 7/31/2009, the baby was VERY active in utero. She usually kicked some at bedtime, but tonight, she was kicking and moving way more than normal.

At 3:00 am on 8/1/2009, I woke up to go to the bathroom. Given that I was 38 weeks pregnant, a nightly bathroom trip wasn’t unheard of. Typically, though, I went around 2:00 or 5:00 am, so 3:00 was a little different. When I finished using the restroom, I felt a small surge of fluid and thought “hmm…that’s odd, I thought I was finished”. I thought *maybe* labor was starting but didn’t want to get too excited. I put on a panty liner and walked toward the bedroom, when another small gush of fluid came out and the panty liner was clearly not enough. I changed into another panty liner (which was all I had upstairs) and went to the baby's room and got a prefold cloth diaper and used that instead. I went back into the bedroom and told Scott (Jenni's husband) “I think my water broke.” He said “Seriously?” and I had another surge of fluid. Yes, seriously. I tried to go to bed and sleep some more since it was so early in the morning, but contractions started coming at about 2 minutes apart lasting 40 seconds or so. They weren’t too strong yet, but because they were so close together, I couldn’t sleep. I felt pretty icky after my water broke, so I decided to take a shower. I washed my hair and shaved my legs and stood under the water for a long time. Then I got out, got another diaper (I had soaked the first one through already) and went to lay in bed. Scott coached me through the contractions using visualizations and techniques we had learned in our Bradley class. (Scott says: I had been worried I was not going to be able to keep talking long enough during the contractions and that I would run out of things to say. Or that I would keep using the same couple of visualizations over and over for such a long time that Jenni would gripe at me, “Say something ELSE!” In reality, Jenni was such a natural at finding her rhythm and relaxing through the pain, I didn’t have to do nearly as much coaching as I thought.) Scott timed the contractions using his iPod Touch and they were still about the same as they had been before. He got me some water and around 5:00 am he called our Doula, Kelly. She advised us to call our doctor, so he did that as well. Since my water had broken, the on call doctor didn’t want me to labor at home longer than 8 hours, so she advised us to come in at 11:00 am. Around this time, my contractions started to spread out some, so I was able to nap in between them. At some point (around 7:00 maybe?) I threw up and we called Kelly again. She asked to speak with me and listened to me have a short contraction (I was disappointed – this was the shortest, weakest one I’d had yet, and it was the one she listened to!) and advised me to use slow, deep breaths during the contractions. She listened to another one and said I was doing very well with the breathing. She asked what I thought of the contractions and my response was “These are serious.” She also advised that I try to eat small bites of food and drink water, so Scott made me some oatmeal, which I ate a few small bites of.

I brushed my teeth and got dressed in comfy pants and one of Scott’s XL college t-shirts and we went downstairs where Scott could make me some more food. This time he made toast with margarine. I sat on the exercise ball through several contractions and texted and called friends and family in between them. I still needed Scott to help me through the contractions either by massaging my back or by talking me through them. We timed them, but they were erratic – sometimes lasting 30 seconds, one lasting 2 minutes, and anywhere from 90 seconds to 3 minutes apart. (Scott says: Somewhere around now, Jenni moved to laying on the floor on her side. Intensity was certainly picking up, but we were still taking our time and not in a hurry.) We called Kelly hourly at this point, and at 10:30 am Scott called Jenn (our Bradley instructor, assistant doula, and photographer!) to come over while he packed up to go to the hospital. We planned to leave at 11:00 am, but we waited for me to go to the bathroom, then waited out a couple of contractions, so we wound up leaving around 11:20 am. In the car, I turned completely inward and began to manage the contractions on my own. Scott has since told me that he couldn’t tell when I was having a contraction and when I wasn’t, so he wasn’t able to help me, which was OK – I was handling them well. His job was to drive smoothly and safely. The remaining timeline was recorded by Jenn, otherwise I would have absolutely no idea when anything happened.

 

The car ride wasn’t nearly as bad as I had anticipated, and since it was a Saturday, it only took us 20 minutes to get there. Once we got there, Jenn suggested we walk around some before checking in, just in case things slowed down, then we could leave and go to a hotel nearby instead of checking in just as labor slowed down. I didn’t really want to walk, but thought the advice was good, so we started walking outside. It was too hot and I needed to go to the bathroom, so we went inside. I went to the bathroom as quickly as possible so I could stand up during contractions – those that I had on the toilet were the hardest, and I didn’t like them one bit. Scott and I walked around the lobby area for a short time, and I started to feel queasy, so I sat down and pointed to our makeshift puke bucket. Scott didn’t know what I was pointing at, so I pointed more fervently. He quickly understood when I started coughing. He got it to me in time, when I vomited bile. At this point, I just wanted to lay down, so I laid on the floor of the lobby. Jenn (I think?) gave me a pillow and at that point Kelly showed up. She joked about this being the place we were going to give birth and encouraged me to go upstairs and check in. I was so thankful. Labor was not slowing down; it was progressing at a good pace.

We walked to the elevators and I had a contraction or two on the way. When I would have a contraction, I would lean my head against my forearm on the wall, and Scott would rub my back. Slowly we made it to the elevator and up to the 3^rd floor, where we had to check in - after a few more contractions, one in the elevator, several in the hallway on the way to L&D. (Scott says: It was a good thing we had so many people with us, because we brought so much stuff to the hospital! Yoga ball, pillows, soft-sided cooler with juice and ice cubes of Gatorade and chicken broth, an iPod docking station, another bag of dry foods, a duffle bag with clothes and other odds and ends.) I had to fill out some paperwork and was barely “with it” enough to do that, but we made it through. At this point, it was around 12:45 pm. There were no rooms available but one was being cleaned, so they sent us to a “waiting room” which was actually a hallway with chairs in it and a family or two hanging out. Kelly asked if I wanted to sit on my yoga ball, and I definitely did, so I sat with my back to the families and went back into my own world. Kelly suggested I go to the bathroom and I told her I didn’t like to labor on the toilet. She said that that meant it was the best place for me to be because it was getting the baby into a good position. So, I went to the toilet, and Scott joined me in the room. He kept telling me I was doing a good job and would occasionally remind me to relax my shoulders or my face or wherever he noticed I was tense. This was very helpful and I was able to do as he said.

At 1:25, we were finally in a room. I changed into a robe I had brought from home instead of the hospital gown. Dr. Carrie Lawson – the on call doc for Dr. Tchabo – came in and checked me (this was my first internal check through my entire pregnancy) and I was at 5 cm and 100% effaced. I was so relieved because I was worried she’d tell me I was only at 2 cm or something and after all that work I would have been seriously disappointed. As it was, 5 cm sounded great to me! My contractions were about 3-4 minutes apart and 1 minute long and steady. The doctor looked over my birth plan and said everything was fine and that I would need a Heplock. The nurse (Sarah) came in and introduced herself. She was really nice and totally amenable to the birth plan too. I started to relax a little about having a hospital birth. She tried to put the Heplock in my right arm (the side where all the other wires, etc, would be for the monitors), but failed the first time. I really don’t like needles, and they were even harder to deal with while managing contractions. I needed Scott to help me through it, so I stared into his eyes and I think held his hand while she tried the other arm. I had to ask her to wait through the contraction I was having before sticking me, and she complied, but I remember thinking that she wasn’t very observant. The doctor agreed to intermittent monitoring, and so the nurse also strapped those on to me (also not paying attention to my contractions).

 

I labored on my right side in bed for a while, and Scott went to the cafeteria to get lunch. I asked for the monitors to be removed, and they were. At around 3:10 pm, Kelly convinced me to labor on the toilet, which brought on very intense and powerful contractions. I had a lot of bloody show and Kelly estimated I was probably around 7 cm at this point. I started feeling a fullness in my bottom and I pushed, completely involuntarily, once or twice on the toilet. Once I knew what pushing felt like, I was more capable of breathing through that type of contraction to wait until I was fully dilated so that I could push. Not pushing was certainly difficult, though! Scott came back from lunch around this time, and I was put back on the monitor in bed. I was very very warm, so Kelly and Scott applied cool washcloths to my face and neck, and I kept eating ice chips. I also became very verbal around this point – saying “ooh, ooh” or “ow ow ow ow” during contractions. Kelly advised me to use this type of vowel sound that kept my throat open rather than closing it off because if you keep your throat open, your cervix will be freer to open. At 3:45 I really started having the urge to push, but I had not been checked again, so I had to blow through the contractions. They were really intense and painful and I couldn’t resist pushing entirely. The nurse and doctor were called to let them know I was pushing, and at 3:55 Dr. Lawson checked me again. I was at 9 cm and, according to Jenn’s notes, I was having lots of double peak contractions, even one or two triple peaks. I had no idea at the time – I just knew they were strong. Kelly and Scott alternated putting pressure on my left hip/back area – the same place that had been hurting me during pregnancy and that had lead me to the chiropractor. The pressure helped, but it did not eliminate that back pain. I can’t imagine what it would have been like had I not been receiving therapy for it for months! I think it was around this time that I had the one fleeting thought of “an epidural might be nice” but then another contraction came and I had to focus, and I never thought about artificial pain relief again.

At 4:23, Dr. Lawson came back and declared that I was ready to push (I had declared this a while ago, and was practically begging them to let me push!). For the first push, Dr. Lawson held up my cervix to see if the baby’s head would drop, and at 4:25 I officially pushed for the first time. The doctor seemed surprised to say that I was a good pusher. I wasn’t so confident. Pushing was new territory – I had learned to cope with the contractions and could handle them. Pushing was a totally new experience.

At 4:25 the doctor left and Kelly and nurse Sarah attempted to put up the squatting labor bar. And then they thought they had it wrong, so they turned it around. And then they fidgeted with it some more and turned it back around. (Scott says: And then they thought they had it wrong, so they turned it around. And then they fidgeted with it some more and turned it back around. Finally, we all decided this must be right, because the other way looked even more wrong than this looked.) This was all very distracting to me. Finally, the labor bar was in place and the bed was positioned properly. Despite the labor bar being advertised on the hospital tour, our nurse said she had only put it up one other time in her 10 years at the hospital. Kelly sat at the foot of the bed and held a hand mirror so she could see how I was progressing. I had had a few more pushes and Kelly kept telling me what a good job I was doing.

 

I was pretty uncomfortable in the position I was in – I was sitting on the bed and would stand up on the drop-foot part of the bed and push against the labor bar during contractions. I wanted something to lean on in between pushes and Kelly suggested Scott sit behind me, so he did and I sat between his legs and was able to lean back on his chest when I wasn’t pushing. This made it more comfortable for me, but as I said earlier, pushing was a whole new ball game, and I didn’t like it one bit. I finally told Kelly “I’m so scared!” and saying it made it easier for me to focus on the job at hand. Scared didn’t begin to describe it – I was absolutely terrified. Scott has since asked what I was scared of, and I can’t put my finger on it. For one thing, I was worried, despite being told what a good pusher I was, that I was doing it wrong because I felt like I was only going to the bathroom – not pushing out baby. But, I don’t think that was all of it – I think I felt a little alone and without direction. The books all talk about labor pain management, they don’t spend a lot of time on the pushing part. I think Kelly told me it was OK to be scared and that I was doing a great job. During the next few pushes, I started making very guttural, animalistic noises – very loudly. After a few of these, Kelly suggested that my throat would be sore if I kept up this way, and so I tried to push without the noises. I would push for what I’m sure was a few seconds (that seemed like minutes…or days) and at the end would let out a roar. These pushes became much more effective, and Kelly told me I could touch my baby if I wanted. I tentatively placed a finger inside and sure enough, I could feel a bit of her head! I asked Kelly “How much longer?” and she, frustratingly ;), said “I don’t know.” Kelly recommended I pull against the bar instead of pushing against it, and again, this helped my pushes be more effective. All during this time, I was very hot and Scott and Jenn kept applying cold wash cloths to my face and neck between contractions and feeding me ice chips (I think).

 

Somewhere between 5:10 and 5:15 pm, I let out a mega-roar of a noise and pushed with all of my might. I began to understand the idea of “ring of fire” – an apt description of crowning, for sure! At 5:15, Dr. Lawson came back in and asked if this was the position I intended to give birth in. I was confused – was I not in the process of giving birth? So I said “yes” and the doctor took over Kelly’s position at the end of the bed. She asked if I wanted a perineal massage and I think I said yes. She then proceeded to run her finger around Evvie’s head as I pushed. This was SO PAINFUL. I think I said “ow ow ow” during those pushes. Sometime around this time, Kelly thought to ask for a mirror so Scott and I could watch as she emerged. They got it up just in the nick of time – I gave another push and her head was out – and it seems to me that her body just came out with it, but I may have had to push for that too. In any event, her body emerging was the most wonderful feeling! And at 5:22 pm, Evelyn Lily arrived. I barely saw it on the mirror – I was too relieved to not have to push anymore!

Dr. Lawson placed Evvie on my belly and they began to rub her. She was a little gray (Scott says: she was extremely gray for the first 10 seconds or so) and wasn’t yet crying. I didn’t really worry too much – just a fleeting thought of, “shouldn’t she be crying?!” before she did. I was able to hold her and kept saying, “Oh my God! Oh my God!” It was all I could think. Dr. Lawson, as per our birth plan, let her cord finish pulsing before it was time to cut the cord. I asked Scott, “Do you want to do it?” and he replied, “I guess so”. And he did. (Scott says: It was thick and tough and took a few snips to cut all the way through. I was also worried I might somehow slip and cut her, so I was probably being extra-cautious.)

Soon after the birth, someone asked me about our next child and I replied "I think we'll adopt the next one". At that moment, no one, including me, was sure whether I was joking. A few hours later, though, I knew that I was and that I'd gladly carry and deliver another child, when the time comes.

If you are interested in sharing your Birth Story here on the Radiant Birth blog, feel free to Contact Me.

Julian's Story

So long Labor day weekend! Hello September apple picking and leaf peeping!

Now, a Birth Story.

Julian's Story

by Pamela

Setting the Stage
This pregnancy was, by all intensive purposes, pretty easy. We never had any major complications, and sure, while some of the side effects that go along with pregnancy aren’t very comfortable or particularly pleasant, I enjoyed being pregnant very much.

When we got along in our pregnancy enough to discuss birthing methods, we decided that natural was the way to go for us. We hired a doula (Mary Beth) to help us in the hospital (the best decision we ever could have made) and took Bradley classes to help arm ourselves with the knowledge for a natural birth. We prepared a natural birth plan and specifically requested nurses and doctors who support natural childbirth.

Of course, things don’t always go as you planned…

About a month before my due date I started experiencing swelling. Everyone swells during pregnancy so I wasn’t too concerned about it. Unfortunately, I gained about 10 pounds in 2 weeks from water retention and developed carpal tunnel in my right hand due to the swelling. We monitored these symptoms but they never really caused us to raise any flags. About a week before my due date my blood pressure started to increase, enough that my doctors were concerned, and I also started having intense headaches. Still, I really didn’t think much about it until the Sunday before my due date the headaches were so bad that we went to the hospital to make sure everything was okay. The baby’s movement also decreased for a few hours so I got really paranoid that something was wrong (he was sleeping). On the Tuesday night before my due date I started having some cramps. We didn’t think much of them, however they were recurring and intense enough to make me slow down so Thad (Pamela's husband) started keeping track of them just in case. They lasted for about 3.5 hours and then stopped totally. My doctors told me to keep my regularly scheduled Wednesday morning appointment. Little did I know that that appointment would move things along considerably.

At my appointment not only was my blood pressure high but there was protein in my urine. Between the protein, swelling, headaches, and blood pressure, my doctor advised a scheduled induction on Thursday morning because he didn’t want my pre-eclamptic symptoms to go any further. I was already 2 cm dilated at this point and about 50% effaced so my doctor felt that inducing labor by artificially rupturing my bag of waters would jump start my delivery. After a lot of discussion, Thad and I decided to go with the induction. I had carried the baby for 39 weeks and 6 days at this point. Sure, it’s not a spontaneous start of labor but when the concern is over symptoms that can get worse in an unpredictable manner we decided not to tempt fate and risk harm to me or the baby.

Birth Story
We arrived at the hospital at 0545 for a 0600 induction. Unfortunately our doctor had just had a delivery so we didn’t end up having my water broken until 0815 and there was meconium in the fluid. Of course this raised a flag for the doctor but since I was already 2 cm. dilated and 50% effaced the hope was that my body would take over the labor naturally. Unfortunately, this was not the case. Luckily my doctors were okay with me moving me around and Thad and I spent the next few hours walking to see if we could get things moving. I only had a handful of contractions but nothing too uncomfortable. By about 1115 they checked me for dilation and there was no progress. At 1145 we decided to try some pitocin at a very low dose to see if that would jump start my contractions. At 1600 my doctor came to check my progress and I was only 3 cm dilated. My doula, Mary Beth, said that at this point the contractions should be “knocking me down” and they weren’t that bad so we went with the doctor’s advice and upped the pitocin yet again. The contractions became steadily stronger and longer, and what had begun as contraction-talk-contraction soon quieted into focused, active labor. The pain of the contractions also steadily grew, with the breathing and positioning techniques becoming less effective as the contraction times grew to two minutes and the breaks between decreased, with contractions sometimes stacking three or four in a row. Around 2200 the contractions were so long and close together, the nurse began lowering the Pitocin dose, which did very little. By 2330, the Pitocin drip had been turned off completely, but the contractions were still extremely strong and abnormally long. The doctor was doing an exam every two hours or so at this point, and at midnight, I reached the 5cm mark. Thad and our doula were both hopeful that things would accelerate at this point, with the contractions being as heavy as they were. Unfortunately, after another two grueling hours, I was only 6cm dilated, and all of our energy reserves were running low. We pushed through another two hours which included vomiting and bouts of the shakes, and we had high hopes as the doctor entered at 0400. Unfortunately, it was not to be, as I was still right around 6cm dilated. With so little energy remaining, we decided an epidural would be the best path for rest and another session after a brief rest. The epidural was administered at 0515, and we all took a quick sleep until 0730, at which point the nurses started up the Pitocin again (contractions had slowed to a point where we would not be able to make progress). The contractions were not as painful with the epidural in place, and over the next five hours, dilation slowly progressed. By about 1300 I was nearing the 10cm mark, but the anterior lip of the cervix refused to retract properly. We waited through another hour of contractions (and a stronger epidural), but the lip stayed in place. The nurse and doctor felt it was soft enough that it would not present a danger to the baby, and at 1500, we repositioned and started actual pushing!

After about 10 minutes of pushing (learning curve!), the epidural wore off, and while the pain was more intense, I also had a much better sense of where and how I should push, and the nurse was more excited about the movement of the baby, or at least what we thought was progress. As we continued pushing, a number of things became apparent: the baby was not moving as much as he should, my temperature (approaching 102 degrees), pulse (150 sustained) and blood pressure (180/110) were all worrisome, and the baby’s heart rate was sustained around 190-200 during contractions, signaling distress. After 75 minutes of pushing, the baby had still not moved past the unretracted lip, and the doctor and nurse both recommended we move to an emergency c-section in light of both my and the baby’s deteriorating condition. At this point, the water had been broken for 30 hours, I was already on IV antibiotics to protect against infection, and it was clear that a vaginal delivery was not in the cards.

After being prepped with a chest-down epidural, I was moved to the OR. I fell asleep almost immediately (I have never been so tired in my life), and actually was next awakened by Thad to see our wonderful son as he was moved to the triage station. It was 1714, and we had an 8lb. 13 oz. baby boy. We also received a couple pieces of information that would have been helpful the day before – he was sunny side up, his head position was asynclitic, and the cord was wrapped around his neck twice, preventing his proper descent!

Julian's Birth
After the doctors sewed me up, I was moved to transition, where the nurses were wonderful – as soon as his breathing was steady enough, they gave us 30 minutes for skin to skin contact, and he snuggled right into me – it was amazing! Unfortunately, he wasn’t able to keep his oxygen numbers high enough on his own and was showing other symptoms of respiratory distress, so he was moved to the NICU for additional oxygen and monitoring. He ended up staying there for five days, working through the TTN and then jaundice (caused by the difficult labor and delivery). We finally were able to bring him home almost a week after his birth.

Thad’s input
Obviously things didn’t go as we had planned. It was the most difficult and challenging 24 hours of my life, without a doubt. I’ve never been through anything like it, and doubt I will ever see its like.

As Pamela covered all the details, I won’t go into that, suffice it to say that the doula, Mary Beth, and I were both physically and mentally exhausted, so I can’t even imagine what place Pamela went to that allowed her to continue when we were both so close to collapse.

I will mention a couple of things, though, and they’re both Bradley related. Even though we weren’t able to deliver Julian vaginally, we still feel that we did the best we could have under the circumstances. There were so many times when we had a decision in front of us, and after discussion, we first tried things the natural way, and when that failed, we were forced to turn to the medicinal path to make progress. I can’t even count the natural things we tried – walking, squatting, raspberry tea, primrose oil, nipple stimulation, both blue and black cohosh, special positions with the doula’s riboso… the list went on and on. Unfortunately, they just weren’t enough. I believe that the baby wasn’t quite ready to come out, but due to the worsening pre-eclampsia and the meconium in the water, it is also clear that we didn’t have the luxury of time to wait, so we made the best of it.

Our doula was an absolute wonder. We are forever in her debt for the effort and comfort she provided during such a trying experience. She was a pillar of strength and also provided calm, sound advice during each of our decisions. I don’t know how we would have done it without her.

Pamela's Input
I don't know if I'll ever be able to look back at the labor and delivery and not get emotional. It was the hardest single thing I've ever had to do in my life and I suspect that it will never be topped. The whole experience pushed me into a new place as well as pushed my relationship with Thad to a new place as well. Looking back, though, despite the difficult recovery and series of unexpected events, I would not change a thing. Bringing Julian into this world required a lot of determination, patience, and ultimately a lot of love between me, Thad, and our doula and I will never be the same because of it. Now we have a beautiful, healthy baby boy and I am slowly on the mend. How can I be disappointed about anything that happened when the outcome was so wonderful?

I'll never be able to thank Thad and Mary Beth for everything they did for me. The doctors and nurses were wonderfully supportive and I am in their debt as well. Sure, it wasn't the delivery we were hoping but we are so lucky to be where we are today. Julian is the most wonderful thing to ever happen to me and I am so grateful for him each and every day. 'Nuff said.

If you are interested in sharing your Birth Story here on the Radiant Birth blog, feel free to Contact Me.