Sarah’s Natural Baby Birth Stories - #1

 I’m sure you’ve read my About Me page talking about the start of my journey of have two natural child births.  The first time around, I mainly took a Lamaze class and read Dr. Bradley’s book Husband-Coached Childbirth.  I did EVERYTHING both methods taught, and I did them nearly everyday.  I made my husband do his part with me (which I’m sure he hated really) because I was NOT going to be alone on this.  And yet, I did everything myself in the long run anyway.

I was never the type that wanted to give birth at home or in water.  Because I knew emergencies could happen, and having that baby in a hospital was the only option for me, as far as location.  I worked with my doctor through my whole pregnancy on my wished for a natural birth.  I asked him about this views, his policies, the hospital’s policies.  What were the state standard’s for procedures, etc?  I wanted EVERY aspect covered.  I didn’t want any details forgotten.

To my benefit, my doctor and the hospital were very accommodating and supportive.  But before I get there . . .

I was hugely pregnant through the summer, something that I rubbed in all my female relatives’ noses because none of them had ever experienced such.  I would get home from work each afternoon and just sit on the A/C vent in the floor of our dining room because I was always so hot.  I was a little swollen too which I could barely keep under control with exercise, but some things are uncontrollable (unfortunately).

Anyway, I was due on a Tuesday and I did NOT want to go back to work that week; I was ready for that boy to get out!  I had a doctor’s appointment the Friday before and he started discussing the possibility of having to induce me-something I wanted to avoid at all costs.  So the next day, Saturday, I opted for some perfectly natural methods of induction.  I walked around our whole neighborhood for TWO HOURS strait, taking thank you cards to ladies who had given me gifts at a shower the week before.  And then that night my husband and I decided to have some intimate time together.

Guess what?  Sunday morning I went into labor.  Of course I was a little nervous, who isn’t with their first birth?  But I was prepared.  I had my bag packed (probably with two many things), I had my goodie bag with all the little things I thought I would need during labor.  I had multiple copies of my birth plan, etc.  My husband kept shoving ice in my mouth and I almost pushed him away once.  But he did his job.

My water never broke and we had to have the doctor do it once I was fully dilated.  Pushing was a challenge because I didn’t know how to do it.  I certainly knew how to push out a bowel movement, but this was MUCH more than that.  It took me maybe an hour to simply figure out how to push properly.  But then the baby stopped moving down my birth canal.  Half way down he was stuck, and he was stuck for a little while.

So with guidance from our doctor, we decided to use the vacuum kiwi cap to help pull him out and to do a local anesthetic that would numb my perineal area so it wasn’t so tender.  Thus, I didn’t feel the ring of fire, but I sure felt everything else.

I remember just being in total AWE after I saw them pull that baby up and hand him to me.  It’s like I was in shock and forgot about all the hospital workers in the room.  I kept saying “Wow” over and over with my husband.  I couldn’t believe it!  But at the same time I did:  I had given birth naturally!  I did it!  I had proven it to myself and then I knew I could do it again and again.

Our first little boy has been so healthy and happy since that day and I know that I gave him probably one of the best gifts he’ll ever receive-the gift of a healthy life, full of joy.