Birth Story: Part 2

SO, where was I... Oh right, we decided to call both an OB & a midwife to see what the options were and what their opinions were on everything that had happened with my previous doctor. I got off the phone with the OB office, who I was really leaning towards because I believed I needed another hospital experience, I had tried unmedicated before and it just wasn't something I could do. I got off the phone with them and they said they would call me right back. Meanwhile, I called the midwife and left a message with them, a little relieved they didn't answer and feeling like maybe that was the sign that I was going to have it all work out with this other OB office. 

I was out to lunch with my sisters when I missed the call, 1 new voicemail. It was from the OB office informing me that I was too late to take on as a new patient. They told me how sorry they were that it wouldn't work out but wished me all the luck. Juuust what I was dying to hear (queue the sarcasm). As I was listening to this very disappointing voicemail, my phone cut off the message & started ringing. The Birth Cottage. I was hesitant to even answer but I knew my timing and options were running out. I answered the phone and had a very pleasant conversation with the office. She was sorry she missed my call but asked that I come in and meet with one of the midwives. I agreed and had an appointment the next day. 

During my appointment, I poured my heart out and confessed all my fears about this upcoming birth because of my past experiences. The midwife told me that this would be different and that she had a really good feeling about it. "Okay Lord, I'm going to trust that You led me here. It seems very apparent that You brought this all about and I'm going to believe that You are more than involved in all that is going on," I prayed as I walked next door to get pizza. 

I had only met my midwife twice before I went into labor. I had an appointment scheduled for exactly 41 weeks. I had been experiencing contractions for the previous two days before that appointment, so I assumed it was early labor or maybe just prodromal labor. I had two sleepless nights and was completely exhausted. I got to the appointment and burst into tears when I saw her. Thinking back now it was kind of silly, but its all I could do. I told her "are you going to check me for dilation? Because if you do and I'm only at 1cm I am going to be crushed and I will walk into any random hospital and get induced and get the epidural." I was crazy talking, but can you put it past me?! I was WORN and truly believed my body couldn't do this. She said "if you don't want me to check I won't, but if you are interested in finding out - I am more than willing to check as well." I gave her the go ahead, I was too curious anyways. As she checked me, she smiled and said "well you're definitely not 1cm." I said "okay....what? Am I 2cm?" rolling my eyes.  She said "nope, you're 6cm dilated and fully effaced. You're going to have this baby tonight" I yelled - "YOU'RE LYING TO ME! Are you lying to me?!" She laughed while saying she wasn't allowed to lie about this. She told me that when she first met me she truly believed God brought me in there and that she needed to take a chance on me. My mouth dropped open "So, what do I do now?!" 

We ended up going to Market Basket to get a couple things for the house and a few labor snacks for me. Then we headed on home to pack up. We got back to the birth center at about 8:30 and she checked me again. "You're 8cm dilated, Sawyer is sitting really low. She'll be here soon." I just kept staring at her in disbelief. I was handling the contractions like I had never done before, I was calm & I welcomed them instead of being scared of the next one. I got in the birth pool. Geez, was that the most amazing thing I had ever felt. The water was so hot and it immediately gave me relief. I sat there while Sam fed me grapes and peppermint hershey kisses. What a weird combo but it was more than amazing. I felt so relaxed, Sam and I took a couple pictures, had some great conversations, and dreamt up what we thought she would look like. Contractions at this point were consistently around 5 minutes apart. It wasn't anything crazy - I kept thinking they would get closer together and longer. 

I stayed like this for about 2 hours. At around 11:15, I felt the urge to push. In a hospital setting, this is when all the nurses and the doctor rush in to prepare for the coming baby. My mom called to the midwives in the other room "she's feeling like she needs to push!" To which they responded, from the other room, so nonchalantly "Oh awesome, go for it!" 

I laughed, I loved how normal and non-emergent everything was. It was the epitome of a natural experience. I mean, women HAVE been doing this without interventions for..well, forever. The urge to push stopped. I decided to check myself and see if her head had come down any further. When I checked, her head was still in the same spot. UGH. I wondered why she hadn't moved down more. My midwife suggested I get out of pool and get on the bed. So, I did. This is when my hormones took over and I couldn't stop shaking. What a crazy experience! She checked me and told me that my anterior cervical lip was keeping the baby from coming down anymore - I could wait it out or she could hold it down while I pushed. At this point, I was just ready to get. this. baby. OUT! She held down the lip while I pushed with all my might. I started to yell, it was extremely intense and I felt like couldn't take the pain anymore. I was yelling instead of pushing and that wasn't helping my cause. Finally, I realized I needed to exert my energy downward. With everything I had, I pushed down. That is when she started to crown, Sam yelled " I SEE HER!! Keep going babe!" Man, when they tell you its a ring of fire, they ain't lying. I stopped pushing and relaxed for a minute until I had another contraction to work with, the amazing thing was- I literally had the ability to rest even though her head was right there. I closed my eyes and took some deep breaths preparing myself for the last pushes. Finally, another contraction came, I bore down and her head was out. My midwife told me stop pushing and to take another break until I had another contraction. It is truly amazing how our bodies literally do the work for you. If we work with the pain instead of rejecting it, it will make things go ALOT smoother. On the next contraction she was out and placed up on my chest. I couldn't believe it. I was very emotional and overwhelmed at what I had just accomplished, all I could manage to say was "WOW, I'm such a badass," as I laughed.

And that was it! I was up and home within 3 hours of her coming out. No tearing, no stitching, no nothing! She by far has been my most calm baby. She's nursing like a champ and her brother and sisters are completely in love, as are we. This experience has even made us consider having more but for now we are just going to savor how completely perfect she is and how this experience went.