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Birth of Noah June 9, 2011

My husband Matt was fabulous during this process. If I didn’t have him, my midwife and the Birth Center I would not have gotten through the birth. Instead of feeling like I was in the middle of some medical emergency or stressful ordeal, water birthing at the birth center just felt natural and low-key.

I woke up at around 4 a.m. and I had small annoying contractions. They were not painful at all. I woke up and told my husband so he wouldn’t freak out when I went from no contractions at all to intense pain. After that I went back to sleep, but Matt couldn’t sleep. Instead, he held me in his arms and just lay there. I woke up again at about 6:30 a.m. The contractions were getting a little more annoying, but not yet painful. Matt made me breakfast while I reassured him that I was OK.
I spent the first part of my labor in the shower. I don’t remember what those contractions felt like. I kept having the urge to pee and when I tried to it would bring on a contraction. I was hanging on the top of the shower and swaying back in forth with the water as hot as I could get it on my back. I was coping well, but I was restless with the back labor.
It seemed like hours went by and the contractions were seven minutes apart and getting slightly uncomfortable. Matt asked me if I needed to go to the Birth Center. We called our midwife and let her know what was happening. Three more hours went by, and I was in a great deal of pain. I curled up in the warm water in the bathtub and Matt just held me and stroked my hair and told me I could get through this. I felt a gush of water and he looked at me, his face white. I knew it was just my water had broken, but he thought that the baby was coming now. After I calmed him down we decided to get into the car and drive to the Birth Center.
We got to the Birth Center about 10:15 a.m and settled into our birth room and I got in the tub. Matt came into the tub and I lay my head onto his chest and he told me I could do it and I was going to be a mommy soon. He brushed my hair around my ear and whispered to me that I was the strongest person that he knew, and if anybody could get this baby out it was me. Around 11:45 a.m. I got out of the tub. I was walking around, leaning over the bed, swaying and rocking. I was just trying to get through each contraction. I started to get very anxious because I felt like I couldn’t get on top of them. Matt tried counter pressure, but it was too much for me. I stopped getting any breaks between the contractions. It really felt like one 1.5-hour contraction. It was very intense and I was vocalizing a lot. I asked to get back in the tub at this point. I got in the tub on my hands and knees at about 12:45 p.m. Matt was great the whole time! He was pouring water over my back and encouraging me. I was moaning with every contraction.
The midwife recommended that I have a vaginal exam to see where I was at. She checked me and told me I was 9.5 centimeters! I was still on my hands and knees. As the midwife was walking out of the room I yelled, “I’m pushing!” I pushed on my hands and knees in the tub until around 1:30 p.m., when the midwife recommended that I turn over into a semi-sitting position. I did not want to move, but I did anyway. Matt started rubbing my shoulders and the midwife was pouring warm water on my belly. At some point the midwife said that I could try to feel his head if I wanted to. So I put my hand down there and there he was. About an inch or two inside was this little person, which gave me hope that the end was near. I started pushing even harder at that point. I tried to get three pushes in each contraction. The first one I never felt him move much. The second I felt him moving a little and the third was when I always felt the most progress. As he moved down, though, I could feel him moving out….When he was halfway out I instinctively reached down, grabbed him and pulled/pushed him the rest of the way out. Matt said I pushed the midwife’s hands away to grab him but I don’t remember doing that. I could hear Matt laughing with joy and saying “Baby!” over and over again.I pulled my baby onto my chest and started rubbing him and talking to him. He cried right away. I put him to the breast and he nuzzled and latched on and began sucking vigorously. Matt cut the cord and took him so I could concentrate on delivering the placenta. I stayed in the tub to deliver it, and I’m glad I did! When my midwife told me to give a little push to get it out, there was an explosion of blood! After that, though, the placenta came out with no problem. The midwife took it into the other room and came back to help me out of the tub. We stayed at the Birth Center for about four hours before we finally went home. My water birth was so empowering. I feel like I can do anything now! Holding my baby in my arms was so worth it. I love him so much! I would do it again and again for this reward.

Birth of Aidan May 6, 2009 and Conor March 1,2011

With my first baby Aidan my plan was to stay home and labor as long as possible and go in as I was more progressed. But my water broke at 1230am in my 39th week. I had no contractions, not even mild ones. I called my OB and got the OB on call, and they wanted me to get over to the hospital as soon as possible so that I could be started on pitocin so I wouldn’t get an infection. I stayed home awhile but nothing was happening so we decided to leave for the hospital. Once I arrived at the hospital, I was told that I could have a few more hours since my water broke to get things going. If that did not work, then they would need to start me on pitocin. I walked all over the birth center trying to get things going but after 4 hours but I had only had a handful of contractions. Then at 630am the nurses insisted that I be started on Pitocin as that was their protocol. They kept turning the pitocin up. At about 130pm the nurse checked me I was at 2cm but my contractions were about 30 seconds apart. At around 230pm the contractions were so bad that I could not talk when I had them and could not rest between because they were so very intense and close together. I was checked again at 330pm and was at 3cm, when the nurse was done checking me I asked to go to the bathroom again and when I got in there I found out that it felt so good to just sit on the toilet during a contraction. It made them more bearable and I could tell they were more productive. I sat there for about 10 minutes then they made me get into bed to check me again and said I was at 5cm. The pitocin were making my contractions so intense and so close together I begged the nurse to call the OB and ask if they could turn down the pitocin. The nurse had the OB called, and said she would be there in 3-5 minutes. The OB on call came in to see where I was at and he told me I was 91/2 cm with some lip still there. I told him I had a STRONG urge to push. He told me not to push yet, turned the pitocin up and left the room.

As they laid down the bed and started to prepare the bed for delivery, I became overwhelmed with the urge to push. I tried to pant through a couple pushes, but there was no stopping it almost at once I could feel his head coming through. Just as the OB came back in his head was born. His head came out fine but then the rest wouldn’t as his shoulders were stuck! The OB pulled on his head and had yelled at me to push as hard as I could and pull my legs up. Then the nurses called for the pediatrician and resuscitation. Everyone was panicking! But as soon as I pulled my knees to my chest his shoulders popped loose and he came out screaming and pooping. I had a 3rd degree tear from him being pulled out so fast. Everyone was still panicking but when they saw he was going to be ok everything calmed down.
With my second baby Conor I saw a nurse-midwife group and what a difference. I had a few prenatal appointments with them and decided that I didn’t want to have my baby at a hospital but in their Birth Center. I was worried about interventions and what would happen to my baby afterwards. I wanted to have a natural birth this time. We became more educated about the birthing process and agreed that we had a better chance of things going smoothly if we chose to put ourselves in a positive, nurturing, trusting environment rather than a negative, fear-based one. Again my plan was to stay home and labor as long as possible and go in as I was more progressed. But again my water broke at 1230am in my 39th week. I woke Jason. Again as before, I had no contractions, not even mild ones. I called my midwife and she told me to go back to sleep and when I woke up in the morning to take my temperature and call her. I woke up a few hours later feeling contractions but was able to go back to sleep. We woke up again at 7am and the contractions had started to get much worse and closer together. I took my temperature (98.2) and called my midwife who told me to drink plenty of fluids and take my temperature every two hours until I came in at noon or sooner if I needed. After breakfast we decided that I would get into the shower. Jason ran the water for me. I got into the shower with only candlelight and he sat on the toilet to keep me company. We had music playing and I stayed in there on and off for about two hours. Even though the contractions were getting worse I felt much more comfortable and at ease in the shower. We were anxious to get to the Birth Center and arrived at around 1230pm and the contractions seemed to be so much worse. When we arrived at the birthing center my midwives were at the door to greet me. We went to my favorite room and began to set up for my birth. I got into the tub; Jason lit my scented candles, turned on the music, took out my oils, filled up my water cup and dimmed the lights. We labored for awhile before my midwife came in and asked to check me, and realized that my son was right there and did I want to push a little.  It just felt good to bear down into the force of the contraction. I was never told to stop, and never checked for dilation. I pushed maybe three times when they told me the head was crowning and I reached down to greet my second son. A few more pushes and my baby was born. As I bought my baby into my arms Jason cried “It is a boy. We have another son.” I put him to my breast and he latched on quick and strong.

I stayed in the tub till the placenta delivered and when I got out Jason put Conor skin to skin and told him what a wonderful boy he was and how much his big brother was going to love him. My mom and dad came later with Aidan and we all celebrated. They left after about 20 minutes and left Aidan with us. We all cuddled in the bed and ate birthday cake and sparkling apple juice. We left for home about four hours after the birth.

Who you birth with and where you birth are so important. This birth was the most miraculous thing I have ever experienced. Although intense and in many ways even more miraculous than I could have imagined, it reminded me of the greatness within me, and showed me that my relationship with Jason is growing even stronger than before. I had envisioned my first birth experience to have gone so different. I knew not to expect everything to go as planned. But nothing went as planned. The only thing I took away from that birth was my amazing son. This time I took away a family.