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When did you realize you were really in labor?
About an hour before I felt like I needed to push.I had been having false labor for about 2 weeks, so this seemed to be more of the same. Turns out, this time it wasn't!
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What was the most challenging thing about going natural?
I actually didn't fee like there was any particular challenge to going natural vs. the two other medicated hospital births I had. There was definitely some mis-givings about "do I want to go through all this pain when I can just sail through this with an epidural at the hospital?" But these mis-givings seemed to be more present during moments of exhaustion, because as you know, those last several weeks of pregnancy, you really aren't sleeping much!
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What was the most helpful thing you did to prepare for childbirth?
I used an exercise ball rather intensively for several days leading up to the birth. I think this really helped get the baby into position and ready to go.
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What surprised you about your birth?
Two things: 1. It was SOOO fast. One minute my husband was on the couch watching a movie and I was just casually checking in with my mid-wife. She and I agreed to talk on the phone again in about 20 minutes. Within 12 min, my husband was on the phone with the mid-wife saying "the baby's coming!!" and I'm yelling for all I was worth in the background. She didn't make it in time!
2. The moment the baby was born, I felt amazing. Not only physically (after I had been in major discomfort for months) but also emotionally. My other two deliveries, I was a bit drugged and had that detached and surreal emotional state, but with this home birth I was 100% in the moment and was literally sitting down on the couch having a casual conversation about how awesome our baby was, when the mid-wife showed up 10 minutes later. This mental state of being totally present and just thrilled beyond belief is NOT what I experienced in the hospital.
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Natural home birth was everything people said it was, including the amazing pre-natal care that you get in a non medical Dr. setting. The labor is also not as bad as you may expect since moving positions and being in the position that your body tells you to, really makes all the difference in the world.
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What pain relief strategies worked best?
Moving around as I wanted. I was bending over the counter in the kitchen, walking the living room and sitting down on the toilet.
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What position did you end up delivering in?
Squatting! My husband was on the phone with the mid-wife, in a bit of a panic as the baby was coming. She was telling him to get me out of the bathroom and onto the couch/bed etc. Mid way between the bathroom and the couch, I stopped walking, gave a big holler and push and voila! Baby was born in the hallway!
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How did it feel to hold your baby for the first time?
It was amazing! Especially since I had to pick him up off the floor! That mental image picture of him laying there and almost instantly crying is forever in my mind. It was awesome to lean down and pick him up.
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What advice can you give to other mamas who want to go natural?
After two medicated hospital births, I would say that natural is the way to go. Not only because of the amazing clarity you have without the drugs and how present you are, but also because the recovery without the medications (which I didn't have a negative reaction to) has also been much easier.
Natural home birth was everything people said it was, including the amazing pre-natal care that you get in a non medical Dr. setting. The labor is also not as bad as you may expect since moving positions and being in the position that your body tells you to, really makes all the difference in the world.
