Lilly's Home Birth
Submitted by naturalmama
2/1/10
0400- I woke up with contractions too strong to sleep through. I did a cervix check- 2cm. That was about what it had been, but I did my GBS+ rinse just in case.
0530- I did another cervix check- 3cm, small bulging membranes. Finally, a change! That's probably labor so I sent an email to mom. Contractions 3-6 minutes, pain about 4/10. No blood, no leaking.
0600- Called Mom and sister in law, all are on the way. Toddler woke up and nursed a few minutes. The contractions got suddenly so much stronger that I had to tell her no more.
0700- Contractions were getting stronger, pain 6/10, 3-5 minutes apart. I did another cervix check 4-5cm, lg bulging membranes. No blood, no leaking. That was a lot of progress in a short period of time. I started to get nervous about whether my mom would make it in time. Woke up hubby.
0715- Called midwife Kate, she's on her way. I got some bloody show with my next pee stop. Kate arrived a bit later. I felt better once she was there.
0800- Midwife apprentice Love here. Labor assessment done. Setting up the kitchen for the birth. Inflating the tub. Contractions getting more intense, every 2-3 minutes. Puttering around the house getting everything just the way I wanted. Stopping and breathing through contractions. We sent Toddler next door too play until the baby was about to come.
1000- Couldn't sit down through contractions anymore. The pain was radiating down through my hips and low back. Starting to feel some rectal pressure. Mom was coming at 1100 with sister and sister in law. Getting nervous that they're going to miss the birth. Starting to fill the tub. Nurse Sue here.
1100- Whew, everyone made it. Tub getting full. Still walking around, chatting between contractions. Final belly pictures taken. Belly pictures with sister in law too. Went to the bathroom to pee one more time before getting in the tub. GBS rinse done. Had trouble getting the douche bottle in so I checked to see what was going on in there. 8cm dilated with huge bulging amniotic membrane. Got the rinse done. I never would have guessed I was 8cm. I was so much more comfortable than at the hospital with the induced contractions last time. From my level of discomfort I would have guessed 3-4 cm. Went down and told the midwives what I found, they said it was tub time.
1200- Into the tub. The water was amazing, made everything fell better. Listened to nice music and talked. Mothers talking about their births. Everyone made guesses about gender, time and birth weight.
1300- Contractions suddenly more painful, especially low back. Tried a couple little pushes, but that was worse. Contractions started to space out, more every 5-10 minutes. Getting pruned up anyway, so out of the tub to walk around and so Kate could see what the baby was doing. Baby turned out to be direct OP, so I started with lunges on the stairs to try to turn baby around. Slow danced with hubby for a few contractions.
1400- Went upstairs to pee. Talked to mom for a few minutes. I was feeling pretty discouraged. I thought I was almost done down in the tub, now the labor was dragging on ahead of me. Trying to trust my body and wait it out. Got back down to the living room. Contractions spaced to 15 minutes.
1500- Baby still OP, slightly to the right. Baby's heart rate had been a little fast for about 2 hours. So we decided I should lie down and rest on my right side to help me gather some energy and help baby roll back to the right position. I had a liter of IV fluid to help with the baby's heart rate. The contractions hurt so badly, I just wanted to get up. I knew that I had gotten through 8 hours of this pain last time, so I could get through one hour now. I couldn't be still, couldn't relax. I watched the fluid drip into my arm and kept breathing. The contractions started to get closer together again. Finally enough was in and baby's heart rate was better.
1700- The midwife pulled the IV and I was free to get up. I stood up and got hit with a big contraction. I grabbed hubby's shoulders and hung on. My body started pushing and my legs fell half into a squat. My water broke in a huge gush that startled everyone in the room. Baby had turned the right way and way ready. Back to the tub. I got in on hands and knees. I wanted to push, but when I did it felt wrong. Everything was so intense and I was feeling frantic. I couldn't figure out what I wanted to do. I pushed a little, breathed a little, turned and crawled in the tub. Nothing felt right. I checked my cervix and was still only 9cm. I almost cried. Hubby was right at the side of the tub. I just looked up at him and tried not to think. I don't know what I would have done if he hadn't been right there. My sister ran next door to get my toddler.
Another contraction came and my body pushed, hard. I tried not to, but there was no stopping it. The baby moved down and felt so huge, like my hips were coming apart. The contraction passed and the feelings got less intense. I was afraid to push anymore because the baby felt so big, but I was afraid not to because I knew another contraction would come. I experimented with a couple of small pushes and baby slid down and started to crown. I stretched and wiggled and pushed a tiny bit. The next contraction pushed the baby's head most of the way out. A few more little pushes had the shoulders out. I expected the final gush of the baby leaving my body, but it didn't come. The midwife told me to push. I did, but the baby didn't move. The midwife pulled on the baby and pulled me back through the water. Baby was stuck tight.
1732- The midwife told me to stand up. As soon as I did the baby came loose and out. What a relief! We passed the baby between my legs and up to my belly, but I couldn't see between the legs, so I asked hubby what we had. He told me I had a daughter, Lilly. I was so happy. I sat with her in the water and snuggled her. Hubby and toddler came close to see. Toddler was fascinated. She wasn't scared by the birth, but she was concerned that the baby was crying. There was barely any blood. The water wasn't even pink.
After a while I felt like I was ready to deliver the placenta. They helped me stand up and I sat on the bedside toilet. The cord was really short so hubby cut it. Baby went to hubby just as I started to push the placenta out. No one was touching me or pulling on the cord and it didn't hurt at all.
All of our business was done so we went and got on the couch. The midwife checked my bottom and found that nothing was torn. Lilly's measurements were 8 pounds, 10 oz, 14 inch head, 15 inch chest, 20.5 inches. She nursed like a champ on our first try. I felt good right away. What a different experience from my first birth!
Lessons learned this time 1.It is totally worth waiting the extra few days for labor to start on its own 2.There's no point in rushing labor. If the contractions slow down there's a reason. 3.It is worth waiting for the water to break on its own. 4.It's ok to be scared and in pain during labor. I can work through it. 5.I am super woman!
Read more birth stories or share YOUR birth story now!
0400- I woke up with contractions too strong to sleep through. I did a cervix check- 2cm. That was about what it had been, but I did my GBS+ rinse just in case.
0530- I did another cervix check- 3cm, small bulging membranes. Finally, a change! That's probably labor so I sent an email to mom. Contractions 3-6 minutes, pain about 4/10. No blood, no leaking.
0600- Called Mom and sister in law, all are on the way. Toddler woke up and nursed a few minutes. The contractions got suddenly so much stronger that I had to tell her no more.
0700- Contractions were getting stronger, pain 6/10, 3-5 minutes apart. I did another cervix check 4-5cm, lg bulging membranes. No blood, no leaking. That was a lot of progress in a short period of time. I started to get nervous about whether my mom would make it in time. Woke up hubby.
0715- Called midwife Kate, she's on her way. I got some bloody show with my next pee stop. Kate arrived a bit later. I felt better once she was there.
0800- Midwife apprentice Love here. Labor assessment done. Setting up the kitchen for the birth. Inflating the tub. Contractions getting more intense, every 2-3 minutes. Puttering around the house getting everything just the way I wanted. Stopping and breathing through contractions. We sent Toddler next door too play until the baby was about to come.
1000- Couldn't sit down through contractions anymore. The pain was radiating down through my hips and low back. Starting to feel some rectal pressure. Mom was coming at 1100 with sister and sister in law. Getting nervous that they're going to miss the birth. Starting to fill the tub. Nurse Sue here.
1100- Whew, everyone made it. Tub getting full. Still walking around, chatting between contractions. Final belly pictures taken. Belly pictures with sister in law too. Went to the bathroom to pee one more time before getting in the tub. GBS rinse done. Had trouble getting the douche bottle in so I checked to see what was going on in there. 8cm dilated with huge bulging amniotic membrane. Got the rinse done. I never would have guessed I was 8cm. I was so much more comfortable than at the hospital with the induced contractions last time. From my level of discomfort I would have guessed 3-4 cm. Went down and told the midwives what I found, they said it was tub time.
1200- Into the tub. The water was amazing, made everything fell better. Listened to nice music and talked. Mothers talking about their births. Everyone made guesses about gender, time and birth weight.
1300- Contractions suddenly more painful, especially low back. Tried a couple little pushes, but that was worse. Contractions started to space out, more every 5-10 minutes. Getting pruned up anyway, so out of the tub to walk around and so Kate could see what the baby was doing. Baby turned out to be direct OP, so I started with lunges on the stairs to try to turn baby around. Slow danced with hubby for a few contractions.
1400- Went upstairs to pee. Talked to mom for a few minutes. I was feeling pretty discouraged. I thought I was almost done down in the tub, now the labor was dragging on ahead of me. Trying to trust my body and wait it out. Got back down to the living room. Contractions spaced to 15 minutes.
1500- Baby still OP, slightly to the right. Baby's heart rate had been a little fast for about 2 hours. So we decided I should lie down and rest on my right side to help me gather some energy and help baby roll back to the right position. I had a liter of IV fluid to help with the baby's heart rate. The contractions hurt so badly, I just wanted to get up. I knew that I had gotten through 8 hours of this pain last time, so I could get through one hour now. I couldn't be still, couldn't relax. I watched the fluid drip into my arm and kept breathing. The contractions started to get closer together again. Finally enough was in and baby's heart rate was better.
1700- The midwife pulled the IV and I was free to get up. I stood up and got hit with a big contraction. I grabbed hubby's shoulders and hung on. My body started pushing and my legs fell half into a squat. My water broke in a huge gush that startled everyone in the room. Baby had turned the right way and way ready. Back to the tub. I got in on hands and knees. I wanted to push, but when I did it felt wrong. Everything was so intense and I was feeling frantic. I couldn't figure out what I wanted to do. I pushed a little, breathed a little, turned and crawled in the tub. Nothing felt right. I checked my cervix and was still only 9cm. I almost cried. Hubby was right at the side of the tub. I just looked up at him and tried not to think. I don't know what I would have done if he hadn't been right there. My sister ran next door to get my toddler.
Another contraction came and my body pushed, hard. I tried not to, but there was no stopping it. The baby moved down and felt so huge, like my hips were coming apart. The contraction passed and the feelings got less intense. I was afraid to push anymore because the baby felt so big, but I was afraid not to because I knew another contraction would come. I experimented with a couple of small pushes and baby slid down and started to crown. I stretched and wiggled and pushed a tiny bit. The next contraction pushed the baby's head most of the way out. A few more little pushes had the shoulders out. I expected the final gush of the baby leaving my body, but it didn't come. The midwife told me to push. I did, but the baby didn't move. The midwife pulled on the baby and pulled me back through the water. Baby was stuck tight.
1732- The midwife told me to stand up. As soon as I did the baby came loose and out. What a relief! We passed the baby between my legs and up to my belly, but I couldn't see between the legs, so I asked hubby what we had. He told me I had a daughter, Lilly. I was so happy. I sat with her in the water and snuggled her. Hubby and toddler came close to see. Toddler was fascinated. She wasn't scared by the birth, but she was concerned that the baby was crying. There was barely any blood. The water wasn't even pink.
After a while I felt like I was ready to deliver the placenta. They helped me stand up and I sat on the bedside toilet. The cord was really short so hubby cut it. Baby went to hubby just as I started to push the placenta out. No one was touching me or pulling on the cord and it didn't hurt at all.
All of our business was done so we went and got on the couch. The midwife checked my bottom and found that nothing was torn. Lilly's measurements were 8 pounds, 10 oz, 14 inch head, 15 inch chest, 20.5 inches. She nursed like a champ on our first try. I felt good right away. What a different experience from my first birth!
Lessons learned this time 1.It is totally worth waiting the extra few days for labor to start on its own 2.There's no point in rushing labor. If the contractions slow down there's a reason. 3.It is worth waiting for the water to break on its own. 4.It's ok to be scared and in pain during labor. I can work through it. 5.I am super woman!
Read more birth stories or share YOUR birth story now!
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