Ianah Alyssa's Home Birth
My first two births started with my water breaking. Both times I was in bed when it broke, so when I woke up Sunday morning and my water hadn't broken, I just assumed that I'd be waiting another day to meet my daughter. Faulty logic, I know, but it's the only pattern I knew! We were at church when I felt the first contraction. The next contraction came 25 minutes later, and the one after that came another 20 minutes later. Then they stopped for about an hour and a half. I knew it. No baby today! They started up again on the way home, so I told my husband about them. He asked if we should cancel our afternoon plans to go to the movies with some of my family. I said no, knowing that my labor could stall or take a long time.
At 4:22 pm we were in the movie theater and I decided to start timing contractions again. They weren't strong, but they were about 8 minutes apart for the next hour or so. On the way home from the movie I texted my midwife, Chris Duffy, the times and let her know that I didn't think I was in active labor but that I'd keep her updated. The family members who had gone to the movies with us had been invited over for dinner, so I called my mom (who would attend the birth) and told her about the contractions and our dinner plans. She and my dad also came to dinner. We joked that we were having a labor party!
I was really anxious for my labor not to slow down or stall, so I paid close attention to how things progressed. I noticed that when I sat down my contractions were less intense and further apart, so I stood up and walked around constantly. My family kept asking if I wanted to sit down (trying to make me comfortable), but I insisted on moving around. Not only did I want labor to pick up, I was restless! I spent my time tidying up the little stacks of papers, books, etc. that always seem to pile up. It made me feel good to have something to do. I also drank lots of water. I didn't want to get dehydrated, but I knew from my last birth that too much water during active labor would only come back up. In the meantime, my husband and sister-in-law cooked dinner while the rest of the family watched the kids. Including my two, there were five children 3 and under in our apartment. The constant activity was absolutely the best distraction while I waited for my labor to pick up.
Eventually I called Chris again to tell her that I was having more frequent contractions (about every 3 minutes), but they were only 10-35 seconds long. She suggested going for a walk and rubbing my belly. She said rubbing my belly during contractions should make them last longer. I decided to wait until after dinner to go for a walk, but started rubbing my belly right away. It worked! I rubbed my belly between contractions and they got closer together. I rubbed my belly during contractions and they intensified and lasted longer. I was finally having to stop talking to get through a contraction and they were lasting 45 seconds to 2 minutes and 10 secounds! I was so excited!
After I ate I talked to Chris again and told her I was about to go for a walk. During my walk the contractions started intensifying even more and continuted to be about 3 minutes apart. I started having to stop and close my eyes during contractions, focusing on my breathing and trying to relax to allow the contractions work. I called Chris to tell her how intense they were and she told me she was on her way. I also called my friend Nicole, who would take pictures of the birth. That was about 9:30. After that I headed back home.
When I got back to our apartment, my family was leaving. I headed to the shower to rinse off from the walk. My mom came in and I asked her how far apart she thought the contractions were. She raised her eyebrows at me and said, "Not very!" I knew then that it wouldn't be a long labor! Chris and Ashley arrived a few minutes later, followed by Nicole. I spent the next several minutes trying to find a comfortable position to labor in. I finally settled on the bed in a sitting position with my hands behind me, supporting me. The only trouble with that position is that my hands and arms started going numb! My sweet mom suggested I might be more comfortable leaning back against her (as if she were the back of a chair), and I was. I was able to relax more during the contractions than when I was supporting myself. I started looking for support for my legs at that point and Chris suggested I prop them up on the end of the bed. I found myself in the classic birthing position! My husband said he saw me in that position and knew I was getting ready to deliver our baby!
During the next few contractions I felt my body start pushing and found myself unable to stop. This frightened me a little. I think I expected that my body wasn't quite ready, but Chris assured me that if I felt like pushing, my body must be ready. She offered to check and see if she could feel the baby's head, and I agreed. Sure enough, our daughter was down very low and I was fully dilated and effaced, ready to push. My mom laughs in retelling the story, saying that as soon as Chris said I was ready, I pushed without any further hesitation! Apparently that was all the "permission" I needed! Very quickly her head was out and Chris was encouraging me to breathe so that they could slip the cord over her head. With another push or two, our second daughter was born!
Ianah Alyssa was born at 10:44 pm, two hours after starting active labor! She weighed 6 pounds 14 ounces and was 20 inches long. And she is absolutely perfect! I remember she let out a little cry and then just laid on my chest and let out little sighs. It was the sweetest thing to see how content she was so soon after birth! About 10 or 15 minutes after the birth we invited Isaac and Isabel (her older siblings) in to meet her. We had intended to allow them to see the birth, but things went so quickly that it didn't quite happen that way. When my husband went to go get them, my brother and sister-in-law were surprised because they didn't realize she had been born! They thought they heard a baby cry, but when they didn't hear her again, thought they must have been mistaken.
Even though I was anxious about how fast the labor was, I would definitely choose that kind of birth again! The recovery has been by far the easiest of the three births I've had. So easy that I sometimes forget that I shouldn't be lifting things or doing too much. I just feel that good! I am so blessed that I've been able to have three home births. Thank you, Chris, for helping me to have the births of my choosing!