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When did you realize you were really in labor?
I woke up at 4:30am and felt really strong contractions in my belly! It was so different than my last labor because I had really painful back labor.
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What was the most challenging thing about going natural?
I had a 4 hour labor with 30 minutes total of pushing! It was fast and furious. It felt like I couldn’t get in-front of the waves to relax enough to avoid the pain. My last labor was 15 hours with 3 hours of pushing so I had loads of time, this was so fast I couldn’t believe it when it was time to push! My midwife walked in to me pushing the head out and in the next push baby Jonah was born!
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What was the most helpful thing you did to prepare for childbirth?
Bradley method classes when we had our first. It was still a key role in the delivery, I also spent a lot of time on the ball because my baby kept trying to turn posterior and I did not want back labor again! It worked wonders when I had horrible sciatica pain. I also had to learn to trust that my body was made for this, it knew how to deliver my perfect Baby boy at the right time for us!
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What surprised you about your birth?
That it was 4 hours long and my midwife almost missed it! I expected hours and hours of labor but instead I flew through contractions. I also never had consistent contractions, honestly, I would have never made it to the hospital if I had planned a hospital birth. The only reason my midwife made it was because she called to check in on us and listened to me and a contraction I was going through. She dropped everything and came running.
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What pain relief strategies worked best?
The tub was a major role in my pain relief. I got out for about 20 minutes of the 4 hours and it was significantly more painful out of the water.
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How did it feel to hold your baby for the first time?
It was wonderful. My husband caught him and brought him up to my chest. I meant to catch him but he came out with his hand up on his chest and it was a lot more painful than I expected. (Wasn’t the head supposed to be the worst part!?)
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What did you name your baby, and why?
Jonah
We love J names and this one just stuck. My daughter who was 2 also loved saying the name which made it more real.
Honestly, she chose the name.
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What advice can you give to other mamas who want to go natural?
Trust yourself, know you were designed and created for this moment of bringing your baby into the world. You are strong and capable! Read tones of positive birth stories and trust yourself
