Darling Baby Colette

We went into labor on Friday, November 1st around 3:30 in the morning. The day went pretty smoothly, we took a walk, I tried to nap, and generally we just laid low. Our midwife came over around 4:00 when contractions were about 5 minutes apart. She helped Steve get the tub ready and laid our her supplies. Contractions didn't really start until around 6:30, at that point I found the exercise ball was helpful, using it to support myself while on hands and knees.I got into the tub around 7:00 but ended up only spending about 30 minutes in there because it was too warm, but it did help with the transition. I'm not going to lie, transition sucks, but it goes by quickly. And honestly, the only time I thought to myself, "why the hell am I doing this at home without the juice?" was earlier in the day when I had time to think about it. Steve was really great, reminding me to breath and generally just being a silent support. I was very grateful to be at home where I felt comfortable and secure. My midwife, Deb was wonderful, explaining each step and really acting as a guide through the whole process. I ended up pushing for around 45 minutes and hour daughter Colette Amelia was born at 9:39 pm. She weighted 7lb 2oz and was 19"long. She managed to pee on me twice within her first hour of life and is completely amazing.

While it isn't really part of our "birth story" I do want to take a moment and mention breast feeding. It's hard, sometimes it seems totally impossible, it will make you cry your eyes out and there will be days when you feel like all you did was nurse. But keep at it, ask for help, see a lactation consultant if you aren't getting the hang of it (I wish we had gone in sooner). It will get better; everyone will tell you this and you will want to punch them in the mouth, but trust that advice. It took us to weeks to figure it out and now it's less like work and more a chance to bond with each other. <3 p="">

Owen The September Baby Extraordinaire!

He was going to be an October baby. My due date was October 6th. This entire pregnancy, I believed that the baby would be born on or around my mother's birthday, October 5th. So, when contractions started in the early morning hours of Wednesday, September 25th, I dismissed them as Braxton Hicks or nothing at all. I went to work as usual, go there at 7:30 a.m., and taught art-on-a-"cart" up and down stairs to my students. The contractions continued. I hadn't even mentioned anything about having contractions to my husband that morning, so convinced was I that it was false labor. Now, it was after 9 a.m., and the contractions still weren't going away. I decided it was time to start writing down how often they were occurring and quickly realized they came EVERY TEN MINUTES, like clockwork! At this time, I texted my husband and let him know. He texted back immediately, that he was coming to pick me up and get us to the hospital. I said "No, no, it's not necessary. I'm sure it's nothing." I also texted my dula who said to let her know if the contractions get "longer, stronger, and closer together." I told my husband that he did not have to leave work, and that I would just call the OB nurse, see what she says, and then let him know. The OB nurse suggested that we touch base in an hour to see how I was doing. 

Shortly thereafter, I had bloody show. I let my dula know this and she said that if it was red, that for sure meant labor, but mine was brown, which my dula said was a good sign and could mean that I was in labor, or could mean that I would be going into labor in the next couple of days. I voted for the later, and continued teaching art - up and down stairs, schlepping art supplies, and talking about Vincent Van Gogh. When an hour had passed. I called the OB nurse and let her know that I had bloody show. She said that I should come in to see Dr. Wasserman. I asked if it would be possible to see Dr. Wasserman after work, and she said that today was his short day and that if I didn't want to leave work that I should just go directly to Labor and Delivery after I got done with work. Well, the contractions continued, and continued to get "longer, stronger, and closer together." Now with every contraction, I had to stop what I was doing and really breath into the contraction... I really did non want to give birth in front of my students. I realized that maybe it was time to go... no more teaching art... and get to the hospital!

It was 2 p.m. when I left work, 2:20 p.m. by the time we got to the hospital, and 2:30 p.m. by the time they got me into the lasts room - with a tub! - YAY! - at Columbia St. Mary's. The nurse checked me - I was already at 7 cm. She said there was no time to fill the tub. She then asked me if I wanted drugs. Before answering the nurse, I asked my dula, "Will the pain get much worse?" My dula said "Yes, but you can handle it." I told the nurse, "No thank you" to the drugs. Then I immediately regretted my decision. It got really intense. The nurse called Dr. Wasserman and said that he had to come to the hospital now. My screams went from mildly crazy pain screams to SUPER CRAZY PRIMAL WOMAN screams. I quickly learned why the "Ring of Fire" was called the "Ring of Fire". The nurse said that I needed to stop screaming and start breathing into each contraction. Dr. Wasserman had arrived, and told me to start pushing. I told Dr. Wasserman, "NO!!" But then, quickly realized that if I was going to get that baby out, and put and end to the ring of fire that was the only way to go. So, I took Dr. Wasserman's wise advice, and PUSHED! 

Twenty minutes and 3-4 contractions later HE WAS HERE!! On my chest, looking up at me. Perfect. Beautiful. My little September baby! He wanted to arrive today! He entered the world at 3:44 p.m. Fastest birth in my experience (since my first baby was 28 hours of labor). I am SO thankful to have had the support of my husband and my dula - my friend and female advocate who believed in me. If not for my dula, I would have not been so brave to have given birth without drugs. This was the birth experience I wanted, and would not change a thing!! Welcome to the world, Owen!

Empowering 42 week VBAC success!

Jackson Mark born October 15, 2013  8 lbs 15 oz, 21.5 in

Jackson’s birth was quite an exciting ride!  After an unplanned and probably unnecessary C-section with my first son, I wanted to try to have a natural birth.  I knew my best chance at success was to learn everything I could and do the whole thing without drugs and interventions if at all possible.

I was seeing a Certified Nurse Midwife (CNM) because she would allow us to have a hospital birth with the benefits of having a midwife in the room with us throughout labor and delivery.  I started looking into Bradley Method classes, and a friend highly recommended Coral and the classes at Well-Rounded.  Things went very well until I found out that I would have to have an X-ray of my pelvis and an ultrasound at 38 weeks to determine if the baby would fit through my pelvis in order for the hospital we had chosen to allow us to have a VBAC there.  I was against doing it, but by the time I understood that it was a requirement, I was already 34 weeks along, and we felt it was too late to make a change.  At 38 weeks 2 days, my CNM told me that my pelvis was abnormally small and that they’d measured the baby’s head to be in the 97^th percentile (somewhere around 8 lbs).  I knew from our classes that ultrasounds can be very unreliable, that babies heads can mold to fit through, and that the pelvis can change drastically depending on position!  But the CNM and back-up OB told me that the hospital wouldn’t accept the liability of the added risk, and the only thing we could do was schedule a C-section. We scheduled the surgery for the following Friday, but I truly felt that it was the wrong decision.  I wasn't sure it would be possible to find someone else to deliver our baby when I could go into labor any minute, but I prayed and researched.  A solution all but fell in my lap.  I had been talking with Sabrina Foulks-Thomas, who we later hired to be our doula, and she made a couple of connections for us with doctors that she knew were supportive of VBACs.  We met with one doctor on Monday night who told me that pelvimetry X-rays haven’t been used since the 1950s and said he’d be my doctor even if I went into labor that night.  The next morning, Dr. Claudia Koch called me personally and offered me an appointment that afternoon.  We decided to go ahead and meet her as well, and I’m very glad we did because she was great and really put us at ease about switching doctors and hospitals so late.

During the few days that it took to line up our new arrangements, I was praying that I wouldn’t go into labor and have to make a spur of the moment decision to go ahead with C-section or just refuse and take my chances at a different hospital.  Once we met Dr. Koch, it was back to praying for a swift and positive end to pregnancy!  I went in for a 40 week appointment and was dilated to 2 cm and 50% effaced.  I’d also been having strong Braxton Hicks contractions that were sometimes even 5 minutes apart.   Every few days, they’d get close together like that, but then they’d slow back down.  At my 41 week 2 day appointment, I was 3 cm, 70% and having several contractions an hour most of the time.  We did a non-stress test which went fine and which agreed with me about the strength of contractions!  Dr. K was pretty sure I’d go into labor that night (Friday), but we scheduled an ultrasound to check fluid level and health of the placenta, and planned to induce on Tuesday morning if I didn’t go into labor on my own.  Unfortunately, we got through the weekend, and I found myself still pregnant and worried on Monday morning. 

Next to C-section, Pitocin was the last thing I wanted.  I’d hoped we could try drug-free methods like a Foley bulb, but I was so far dilated that there wasn’t any point.  I told doctor and doula my fears, but they both reassured me that this would be nothing like my induction with my first baby.  Clearly my body was progressing on its own, so Dr. K would just use the bare minimum of Pitocin and turn it off once my body took over.  After a lot of prayer, I was able to let go of my worries and try to relax.  We sent our three-year-old to grandma’s house so that we’d all sleep well.  I managed to fall asleep at a decent hour.  My husband, David, on the other hand, was too anxious to get to sleep until aftermidnight.

At around 12:45 I woke up with a contraction.  It had been my pattern to wake up with them most nights so I think much of it and went back to sleep for a while.  At around 1:30, I woke up with another one and had to get up.  I went downstairs, got a snack, checked Facebook, and had a few other surprisingly strong contractions.  I started timing.  Three minutes apart.  I moved around some more, trying to change positions, but they continued and the pain in my back got stronger.  I tried watching TV and working or resting through contractions.  I was trying hard not to jump to conclusions or get my hopes up, but I finally decided that if I had two more strong contractions, I’d go wake David up.

I only got through one more.  The pain was so strong in my back that I decided I needed him right away.  Since we were both really tired, I had David lay behind me and just put pressure on my back during every contraction.  They spaced out to about 7 minutes apart, so we both slept between.  It was great to be able to rest, but during the contractions, I couldn’t move or really cope with the pain.  After about an hour, I decided I had to get out of bed and try the shower.  Once in the shower, the contractions picked up to three minutes apart again, but were far less intense.  We decided to call Dr. Koch since the idea is close together and more intense.  I figured it was better to let her know.  That was sometime around 4 in the morning.  She wanted us to go ahead and come in for the 7:30 scheduled induction (not that she was going to induce at this point) just to keep us from getting stuck in rush hour traffic since we live 35 minutes outside of the city.  We were more than willing.  David packed up our bags and loaded the car.  I worked through contractions, but I needed his help as soon as I could get it.  We tried to eat some to keep up our energy.  We tried watching TV.  Clearly I was in active labor, because it was hard to do anything but breathe. 

We left for the hospital at around 6:45.  The sunrise was beautiful.  I didn’t care.  I had about five contractions on the way that were much harder to manage without David putting pressure on my lower back.  Going in, I understood how the flight or fight instinct kicks in and can stall labor.  Just going into the sterile hospital environment made me feel a little panicky.  I could tell I was hyperventilating a little bit.  As soon as I got to my room and met our nurse, Katie, I was able to relax.  She was calm and reassuring.  She got me on the fetal heart rate and contraction monitors, got my capped IV in (VBAC requirements), and asked a bunch of questions.  Then she did an exam and found I was 5+ cm!  

Sabrina came shortly after and we worked on several positions for contractions.  Dr. Koch came around maybe 10ish.  She didn’t check me, which was good and bad.  News of progress would have been nice, but I definitely didn’t want to hear no change.  An hour or so later, something must have changed because Sabrina asked if I was starting to feel like pushing.  I said maybe, but not anything strong.  She still had Dr. Koch come check me.  The only thing I didn’t want to hear was 8, because that’s where I stalled with my first labor.  Sure enough, 8 cm, but stretchy.  In all my studying, I hadn’t encountered “stretchy” so I was surprised when she said I could start pushing as I felt like it.

They suggested I try the shower for some pain relief.  It was helpful, but tricky since the water temperature would fluctuate quite a bit.  My monitors were not picking up the baby’s heartbeat—this is where I knew I had an exceptional doctor—Dr. Koch, herself was holding the monitor on my stomach and moving it around to try to catch the beat.  She was getting splashed on and everything for probably at least half an hour.  I was so exhausted that I kept nodding off in the shower between contractions.  I finally decided I’d had enough and was brave enough to try get out.  (Contractions got stronger whenever I moved.) 

Since I was tired, they suggested that I try pushing in bed.  At this point, I still didn’t have much of a desire to push, but they were sure I could start.  David was behind me, doula on the right, nurse on the left, and doctor sitting on the foot of the bed.  They had me hold my legs, tuck my chin, and curl up to push as hard as I could.  I had to push three to four times per contraction. Pushing was very painful, and I was very tired.  Dr. Koch broke my water sometime while I was pushing, but I’m not sure when.  All I know is that his head was so low hardly any fluid came out.  After a while, we tried shifting to my side for a few contractions. The last thing I thought I’d be doing was screaming, but I definitely did some of that.  After one unhealthy scream, I remember saying (joking a little), “that was not good for my voice.”  Katie thought that it was funny I’d care, but Sabrina told her I was a singer, so it would matter to me.  I knew from classes that I shouldn't be screaming, because only low sounds would be helpful.  That sure didn't stop me.  After a few more, I returned to my back because it was the most restful.  I was thinking about my “small pelvis” and “big baby” and that I should probably be in a better position, but they kept telling me I was making great progress. I’d hear, “Push as hard as you can,” and I’d try, but I was sure it wasn't hard enough.  They kept saying that I’d had a really great push and that he was almost here, but I thought they were just trying to keep me from giving up.  Jackson was definitely posterior (face up), hence the back labor, but he turned as he was coming out.  Dr. Koch asked if I wanted to see in a mirror or feel the baby’s head.  I said no!  (I guess when I am in pain, I like to pretend it’s not happening…?)  She convinced me to touch his head, and I really was shocked to feel it.  We actually were close to the end!  Things got a little intense at the end since he angled up at the last minute and I ended up tearing where you don’t normally tear, and I’m not sure what happened, but he must have practically exploded out because I heard, “Head! Shoulders!” and he was on my chest in the same second.  I literally could not believe it was over. 

They toweled Jackson off and he stayed on my chest for an hour.  I had to be stitched up, and I was bleeding more than normal, so I needed a shot of Pitocin.  (Nothing like the drip!)  At some point, I asked what time he was born.  Katie told me 2:03.  I asked her how long I’d been pushing and she said, “You got back into bed a little after 1:00, so just under an hour.”  I was prepared for an epicly long labor and hours of pushing.  Even though the pain was worse than I imagined, it was over much more quickly than I anticipated. 

It’s night and day difference between my C-section and VBAC.  There is still pain, but I could get out of bed on my own immediately.  We bonded and nursed well right away.  The toughest part has been trying to remember that I’m in recovery.  I’m so much more mobile that I don’t remember I should be resting until I have already done too much. 

It’s crazy and sad to me that I wouldn't be allowed to have this experience in the hospital we’d originally chosen.  And by the way, at 42 weeks, Jackson was just short of 9 lbs, so I doubt he was as big as they thought.  Even though things weren't predictable, they were so much better than I hoped.  My husband was awesome!  I was almost as proud of him as I am of myself.  I’m so thankful for the successful outcome, for my doctor, nurse, and doula, and for the prayers and love from family and friends. We couldn’t have done it alone!

Little Late Lucy

The most important thing for me to say first is that we had a beautiful baby girl, Lucy Batya, on Wednesday, October 16th. She's beautiful and we're totally smitten--when we can stop yawning, that is! 

 

Our experience seems to follow the trend of not-as-planned--the first clue as to how it went not-as-planned is implied in the date of Lucy's birth, which was 2 weeks and 5 days after our due date. Let me tell you, we tried LITERALLY EVERYTHING to get this little girl out so we could avoid induction--everything from acupuncture and a membrane sweep to raspberry leaf tea and walking multiple miles a day--but nothing was happening. We were super lucky to have a really terrific ob/gyn, Sheldon Wasserman, who supported our desire to keep waiting it out so that we could stick with our plan to have the baby at Well Rounded and avoid induction, but by 42 weeks and 3 days it was just time to get things moving, especially since I was still having no signs of labor. We went to Columbia St. Mary’s on Monday afternoon and for the first 24 hours tried a Foley Bulb (a way to induce without pitocin)…but again: nothing! So on Tuesday afternoon we started pitocin, which basically jump-started me through early labor super fast. After about 5 hours we were able to turn it off and I was finally in labor on my own. Our midwife Ali came at midnight and with her and Ted's support I labored through a *very* long transition (about 4-5 hours) and then pushed for 3 hours and finally, at 8:30 am, Lucy was born. I gather that some of the people in the room had never seen a baby delivered from the hands-and-knees position, but I couldn’t imagine a better way to do it—it was definitely a moment when everything we discussed in our class paid off. And Ali, our midwife, was absolutely amazing—we’d never have been able to do it without her.

 

Lucy was perfect at birth--Apgar of 9, and we were totally full of joy. Ted cut the cord and I was able to hold her right away—she was so alert and big-eyed! Unfortunately that's when things got complicated--as they were helping me deliver the placenta, Dr. W became concerned about the amount of bleeding, and they realized that some of the placenta was still stuck. After a few (very painful) attempts to get it out in the delivery room, he told us that he was going to need to put me under semi-sedation to be able to get the rest out. We were pretty scared but they were still optimistic at that point that it could be done easily if I was under some anesthetic. After the procedure, though, I was still bleeding a lot, and they were growing more concerned. I was still pretty out of it from the sedation and Dilaudid when Dr. W told Ted--who was with Lucy in the recovery room with me--that the next step would be a full D&C, and that if that didn't work they were going to have to go in and immediately perform a hysterectomy. Obviously this was really scary for Ted, who also was reluctant to sign off on something like that while I was still not fully conscious. Dr. W agreed and decided to consult some colleagues, who recommended a procedure where they insert a compression balloon to cauterize the blood vessels in the uterus. Meanwhile, I received a blood transfusion because I was still losing a lot of blood. After the procedure, they were still concerned that the placement of the balloon wasn't good, and after consulting more with his colleagues at Froedert, Dr. W decided he had to take it back out--at this point they had a radiological team on call to do another operation to cut off blood flow to the uterus laproscopically, again trying to avoid the worst case scenario of a hysterectomy. But when they took the balloon out, for whatever miraculous reason the bleeding had stopped--they monitored it for a few hours to make sure, but somehow it had just worked. By around 6pm, I was in the recovery wing with Ted and Lulu, and by the next morning we were transferred to the Mama and Baby wing. (For those of you having a hospital birth, a piece of personal advice: if the labor is in any way particularly difficult--really long, or physically traumatic, or anything like that, do consider allowing your little one to go to the nursery the first night. You can have the nurses bring her in every few hours to nurse and can insist on no formula, but it helps to have a quiet place to sleep that first night if the labor has been hard on your body. I really needed sleep that night and didn't get it because she was a bit fussy. Just a thought…)

 

 

 

In short, it was really scary--it was terrifying for Ted, who was there for the whole thing, and I think for me the first few days home were affected by my sense that I was sort of processing a big trauma. But we were also super lucky to have gotten such good care, and obviously the fact that we ended up having her in the hospital was meant to be, since an emergency transfer would have been even scarier, and potentially risky. And the most important thing is that our beautiful little girl is just fine--nursing great, gaining weight, and utterly lovely. And I feel really proud of both myself and of Ted that we ended up with a (basically) natural birth after all, even if it didn’t go exactly as we’d imagined.

A Piece of Pi Birth.

Thanks to the classes that we took with Coral at well Rounded Maternity, we were able to again have a successful Bradley birth.  Contractions began at 2:00 in the morning. We worked it out with my doctor that I would see her in the clinic to be sure that I was far enough along to check into the hospital. (with Anna, her labor was 30 hours and we went to the hospital too early so they sent me home only to go back and push the drugs that we didn’t want because we were still not far enough along. We didn’t want to repeat that.) So, I wanted to wait until the clinic opened at 8:00. We drove to the clinic right at 8:00 and stopped at the front door so that I could take a wheel chair upstairs. At that point I decided that I was feeling a little pressure and should probably go to the hospital and not the  clinic – aka I couldn’t even get out of the car. We checked into the hospital and they took me to a triage room where they checked me and found that I was at a 9 and ready to push. They got me right into a birthing room. Dr Hicks just made it in time to break the water and with that three pushes and baby Madeline was born. If we had waited any longer (or had even attempted to go into the clinic) she would have been born somewhere other than the hospital. Pretty crazy to think, but it was absolutely perfect birthing circumstances and was exactly the way we wanted it. 

Madeline Bethany Schweiger was born on March 14^th (Pi Day!) at 8:30 in the morning. Her weight was 8lbs 1oz and she was 21in long. 

We are now home & doing well. Anna absolutely loves and adores her baby sister and looks for ways she can help every chance she gets. 

Margie, The girl born next door

Margaret Amanda Heinrich: The Girl Born Next Door

I figured that my second pregnancy would be even easier than my first, and I couldn’t have been more wrong. The first trimester was filled with exhaustion and nausea. When I finally started to feel good again, a subchorionic hematoma (blood clot in the uterus) put me on 7 weeks of bed rest and caused me all kinds of worries about the baby and the delivery. By the third trimester, I was grateful to be cleared for a vaginal delivery with a midwife as we had planned, but was still uncomfortable all the time and paranoid of pre-term labor – my son Paul had arrived 5 weeks early, and if this one came before 37 weeks, I’d still have to go to the hospital.

I finally hit 37 weeks and felt incredible relief – I was ready now! So of course, I started having contractions and false labor almost every night. There seemed to be enough signs that baby would come early that we had my mom fly out a week earlier than planned, since we would need someone to stay with Paul during the birth. Since Paul’s birth had been so fast and unexpected, I had never experienced the “waiting game” of late pregnancy, and it was driving me crazy. Every night I stayed up reading, wondering if my contractions were going somewhere or just another false alarm. Jan, my midwife, reassured me that there would be a moment when I would know for sure that it was the real thing, so I tried to focus on relaxing and letting it happen.

On Wednesday, August 21, I tried to go to bed around 11pm, when a contraction woke me up that was definitely different. It surged on fast, felt like it took over my entire lower body for about 20 seconds, and disappeared all at once, leaving me relaxed again. I waited nervously to see if it would repeat, and when I had two more that felt the same way, I decided it was time to call Jan. She left to meet me at the Well-Rounded Maternity Center, a birth center conveniently located right next door to our apartment in Milwaukee (The center had opened the same weekend we moved in, and we had just learned that I was pregnant – it seemed too good to be true!). I woke up Rudi (my husband) and my mom, and when Jan arrived, Rudi and I headed down the stairs and next door around midnight.

It felt more like checking into a hotel than arriving somewhere to give birth. We had a simple room painted a calm bluish-green, with a big bed in the middle and a birthing tub in the corner. Jan set to work getting her equipment ready and filling the tub, and Rudi and I got comfortable and looked at some old photo albums together. The contractions were about 10 minutes apart and 1 minute long, and just intense enough that I needed to hold Rudi’s hand and breathe through them. After about an hour, Jan suggested that taking a walk might help move things along. It was a cool, crisp night, so we took a middle-of-the-night stroll around our Bayview neighborhood, running into several random people on the on the street who wished us congratulations and good luck! It was relaxing and fun to spend the time together, and it definitely worked – by the time we came back, the contractions were less than 5 minutes apart and getting intense enough that I couldn’t focus on much else.

The tub was full and warm by now, so it seemed like a good time to get in for a while and relax. The water felt amazing, especially since the tub was so deep and I could be submerged all the way to make neck, taking the weight completely off my sore pelvic muscles and heavy belly. It actually slowed the contractions down for a little while, but they were just as intense. After about half an hour, my legs started to cramp up and I was ready to get out. I moved back to the bed and lay on my left side with lots of pillows, a position that felt quite comfortable for me, and where I would stay for the remainder of labor. Jan’s student assistant, Jessica, arrived, and we were starting to get down to business.

The next several hours were the most intense physical experience of my life. While my first delivery had been unmedicated, it had all happened in such a rush and a panic, with a lot going on at the hospital, and a feeling that I wasn’t entirely in control. The pain had been abstract, and I had done what it took to get through it. This time, I knew exactly what was going on in my body, and I could feel it in so much more detail. The pain was deep and visceral. As the contractions grew closer together, I closed my eyes through them, squeezed Rudi’s hand as hard as I could, breathed in through my nose and moaned deep and low. After a while, I discovered that singing songs took my mind off the pain more, so I belted out a few choice tunes, to Jan and Jessica’s delight. Eventually, my water broke, and even singing became too difficult – I just hollered, afraid to let go of my voice and let the pain seep into the silence. It began to feel less like contractions starting and stopping and more like constant burning pressure. Jan told me to go ahead and let myself push slowly when it felt right. She helped me reach down and feel the top of the baby’s head, which I could hardly believe was real.

Pushing was so much different this time. The first time around, a few hard pushes and an episiotomy had brought on a sudden crash and splash of baby into the world. Now I could feel absolutely everything in slow motion – the shape of the head and face, the literal sensation of bringing a child into the outside world. When the baby’s head was through, Jan held a mirror for me to see it. For the second time in my life, I saw an incredible full head of dark hair and knew I was almost there. Rudi looked at me with tears in his eyes and told me I could do it. Pushing until I could barely take it, I felt the shoulders, arms, legs, feet move through me. I rolled onto my back, and saw my beautiful daughter, her eyes wide open and a lively squawk from her lips, glide onto my belly and into my arms. Rudi and I said “hello, Margie!” and sang to her while she looked at us with huge, alert eyes.

It was 6:30am – a six and a half hour labor from start to finish. The sun streaked into the room for a short while before a thunderstorm rolled in. Delivering the placenta and getting sutured (I had only torn minimally this time, which meant that Jan could stitch me herself) were far more bearable when we were spending time holding our baby. Around 9:00, Rudi went next door to get my mom and Paul. When Paul came in the room, he said “go to Baby Margie’s house!” He climbed onto the bed with us and saw his sister for the first time, curious and uncertain, but smiling at her. “Four people,” he said, “Mama, papa, Paul, Margie.”

I can’t express how fortunate I feel that after all of the worries and complications, Margie’s birth was even better than I imagined it would be. No machines, fluorescent lights, masks, or stretchers…just me, my husband, and our child in a quiet room with a few trusting people who knew what they were doing. I knew that birth could happen this way, and it did on August 22. Happy birthday, Margie!

Julia's Home Birth Story

My first birth
My first birth took place in a hospital without the aid of interventions or medications.  I delivered a 10lb 6oz boy. While I had a wonderful nurse and was happy with my birth experience;  I felt that there was too much time sitting around and being monitored.  I decided to seek out a midwife for my next pregnancy.

Turning to Breech
Our second baby was an active one, and had a tendency to flip to a breech position. At 34 weeks I sought chiropractic care, and the baby turned back into position.  At 36 weeks baby had flipped again!  I was beginning to worry that I would require an external version or a cesarean delivery.  I had many people praying with me and I spend an entire weekend doing a host of exercises and movements to bring baby back to a good position.  Thank God, baby turned.

Labor Day
My due date was Palm Sunday, March 24 and I had nothing to report.  I had my 40 week appointment the next day and we learned my cervix was forward and ready for delivery.  My toddler and I took a nap after the appointment and later went out to run to the post office.  On the way there I had my first contraction, around 4 p.m.  That night, I did not feel like cooking so we made frozen pizza and wings.  My husband remained calm as I announced each contraction.

Around 7 p.m. I noticed some brown mucous.  After I spoke to the midwife we continued to time my contractions, we said our evening prayers, swayed to music with my toddler.  My contractions remained strong, so around 8 o'clock I called my parents to let them know they may need to pick up our son.  Right around this a friend of my husband's came over, and I had to excuse myself until he left as I walked through each contraction.  After he left I noted my contractions came about every 3-5 minutes.  My mom and sister arrived and were gathering my son's things, they were amused that I would hug them or sway through the peak of a contraction.

Once my family left, I experienced a huge contraction, followed by bloody show.  We decided to try to sleep and my contractions stopped when I was on my left side. When I switched to my right side, BOOM I had another contraction.  Sometime later my husband called the midwife, who said she knew things were getting serious because my husband called, not me.  While waiting for her arrival I labored on the toilet, the exercise ball, leaning against the bathroom sink.  I also used moaning and whistling to work through each contraction.

The Midwife Arrives
Our midwife arrived around 11 o'clock that night, and I don't remember as many details from this phase of labor.  I felt a little out of control, both my husband and midwife reminded me to breathe slowly and moan "lowly."  My cervix still wasn't completely ready, eventually I felt hopeful that I had reached transition because I vomited.  Eventually, it was time to push.  I was amazed at how much faster this labor was progressing than my last.

The best position for me was kneeling on the bed, leaning against the exercise ball.  I remember thinking it was very strange to be pushing only when I felt it was time.  In my previous delivery, I experienced the desire to push, but I was coached as to when to push.  I kept asking if my water had yet broken, but it has not.  At one point they told me to feel the bag bulging, but I was just irritated that I wasn't feeling the baby's head!

 

My husband reminded me to take one contraction at at time, and that we would meet our baby soon. He also kept me hydrated.  The midwife and her student midwife encouraged me through each contraction, this really helped my morale.  As the pushing phase ended, I turned to my side.  After 2-3 contractions I started screaming, "the head is out, the head is out!"  I was thrilled, that last birth of wriggling and burning was soon over and I had a crying baby placed next to me! HEAVEN! God be praised!  My husband helped turn the baby and announced that we had another boy.  I asked my husband if he decided on a name, out of the ones we had already agreed on, of course.  He said, Phillip, and I marvelled at how much he looked like his big brother.  This little guy was so skinny, but strong, with dark hair.  He was 22 inches long and weighed 8 pounds, 11 ounces. He was born at 1:30 am on March 26th, only 9 1/2 hours after my first contraction.

I could not have been happier with my home-birth experience.  I felt safe and free to do whatever my body called for.  My husband felt more at ease this time and enjoyed being my labor coach.  For me, the most notable parts of my labor were that the water did not break until after I delivered his head, and that I never experience back labor, even though he was "sunny side up." I feel blessed to have experience such a beautiful adventure in my own home, with my husband at my side.