Mirella Rose
It all started 11 days before my due date. Prior to going into labor, I had felt extremely low and uncomfortable pressure all day and the day before. I asked Lucinda if the pressure was normal and she said that it was from the baby moving down and/or my pelvic bones widening to get ready for the birth. It didn't necessarily mean that the baby was coming that day or the next day, because some women can feel that pressure for another week or so until they give birth. Since I was so uncomfortable, I was praying that the baby would come that Sunday night, because I'm not sure I could tolerate it for another week and a half!
My in-laws came to visit us that Sunday (Feb. 9th) and the pressure felt progressively worse as they were here. After they left, my husband decided to set up the birth tub (since we were planning to have another water birth) that we rented to see how easy it was to get ready and fill. Once he set up the tub, he decided to leave it set up just in case I went into labor soon (little did we know it was going to happen that night!).
After we ate dinner and put my son to bed that evening, my husband made popcorn and we sat down on the couch to watch a movie. About half-way through the movie, I started shaking and felt more uncomfortable pressure. As I got up to go to the bathroom, I felt the first "wave" as I called it (my first contraction). The first contraction started around 10 :00 p.m. on Sunday, the 9th. They weren't too bad and about 5-6 minutes a part, lasting about 30 seconds to one minute each. As the next one came, I asked my husband to call Lucinda since I wasn't sure how fast things were going to progress (since my son was born in 6 hours). While I labored laying on the couch watching episodes of "What Not To Wear" to keep my mind off things, my husband started filling the tub and getting things ready. Lucinda and Brooke arrived about an hour later and my contractions were still pretty steady but not worse. Since my body was still shaking uncontrollably (which Lucinda said was due to all of the hormones raging through my body), Brooke gave me some pedialyte to drink, which miraculously helped to ease the shakes. Since my contractions were still 5-6 minutes a part and moderately intense, I remained on the couch (the only place and position that felt comfortable), breathing through each contraction while my husband, Lucinda and Brooke tried to take a quick nap before things really progressed. Lucinda took my vitals and checked the baby's heart rate periodically while I labored on the couch.
Around midnight, my contractions started getting stronger and closer together, and a little after 2 a.m. things got VERY intense. My contractions were coming on top of one another with hardly any break in between. Lucinda must have heard my increasing sounds of discomfort, because at the moment I was going to wake up my husband to get Lucinda, she came into the room and suggested that I get into the tub.
My in-laws came to visit us that Sunday (Feb. 9th) and the pressure felt progressively worse as they were here. After they left, my husband decided to set up the birth tub (since we were planning to have another water birth) that we rented to see how easy it was to get ready and fill. Once he set up the tub, he decided to leave it set up just in case I went into labor soon (little did we know it was going to happen that night!).
After we ate dinner and put my son to bed that evening, my husband made popcorn and we sat down on the couch to watch a movie. About half-way through the movie, I started shaking and felt more uncomfortable pressure. As I got up to go to the bathroom, I felt the first "wave" as I called it (my first contraction). The first contraction started around 10 :00 p.m. on Sunday, the 9th. They weren't too bad and about 5-6 minutes a part, lasting about 30 seconds to one minute each. As the next one came, I asked my husband to call Lucinda since I wasn't sure how fast things were going to progress (since my son was born in 6 hours). While I labored laying on the couch watching episodes of "What Not To Wear" to keep my mind off things, my husband started filling the tub and getting things ready. Lucinda and Brooke arrived about an hour later and my contractions were still pretty steady but not worse. Since my body was still shaking uncontrollably (which Lucinda said was due to all of the hormones raging through my body), Brooke gave me some pedialyte to drink, which miraculously helped to ease the shakes. Since my contractions were still 5-6 minutes a part and moderately intense, I remained on the couch (the only place and position that felt comfortable), breathing through each contraction while my husband, Lucinda and Brooke tried to take a quick nap before things really progressed. Lucinda took my vitals and checked the baby's heart rate periodically while I labored on the couch.
Around midnight, my contractions started getting stronger and closer together, and a little after 2 a.m. things got VERY intense. My contractions were coming on top of one another with hardly any break in between. Lucinda must have heard my increasing sounds of discomfort, because at the moment I was going to wake up my husband to get Lucinda, she came into the room and suggested that I get into the tub.
|
As soon as I got into the water, things felt better and I could relax a little, though I started to feel a little nauseous, in which I know I was going through transition. My husband got into the tub with me to massage my lower back and offer counter pressure as I squatted and pushed back on his legs with each contraction. I stayed in the tub for what seems like a super fast blur, but it was really for the next hour until I started pushing. As each contraction got stronger, I just felt the baby being so low which made each contraction that much worse. For some reason, I felt like these contractions were a lot more intense than they were with my son (maybe it was my imagination!). As I felt the urge to push, Lucinda calmly encouraged me to grunt at the peak of the contraction and stand if I needed to, which was exactly what my body wanted to do, but I didn't know how or if it was the right thing to do. I pushed two more times (while standing) and I heard a giant "pop" sound, which signified my water had broken. Seconds later, Mirella's head had crowned and with one final push at 3:48 a.m. on Monday, Feb. 10th, Lucinda helped me to grab Mirella, pull her to my chest and sit back down in the water while leaning against my husband. We sat in the tub until her umbilical cord stopped pulsing before delivering my placenta and moving to our bed to cuddle with our new baby girl.
I'm so thankful that my labor was relatively short and I am blessed and relieved that everything went smoothly. Everything was perfect, including our baby girl, and I couldn't have asked for a better or more beautiful, natural birth. I'm so happy that we found Lucinda to be our midwife. Her and Brooke were wonderful. They offered their guidance and support in such a calming nature that made my pregnancy and the birth of our baby so much more special and unique. If we have more children, we will definitely be doing another home birth with Lucinda. |
|