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When did you realize you were really in labor?
3:50 am. I woke up in the middle of the night with actual contractions. I had no idea what those felt like and had been thinking I had felt a few before the morning of his birth, but boy was I wrong. I definitely knew from the first one, "oh this is it!"
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What was the most challenging thing about going natural?
The worry from family and friends. Most of my friends and even my own mom had cesarean births and had never felt labor, so before and during, they were all skeptical and worried, especially about a home birth. But they were positively pleased with how amazing the whole experience was.
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What was the most helpful thing you did to prepare for childbirth?
I believed that it would all be okay. I know that sounds silly, but when the contractions really got going and the pain got worse, I was able to endure and breath through it because I had been telling myself in the months leading up to it that I could do this. I just kept telling myself that when I started feeling like I couldn't. I had already engraved that belief in myself and my body and that made everything so much easier.
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What surprised you about your birth?
How quickly all of the pain and struggle seemed to disappear from my mind. I was in labor for 18 hours and pushed for an hour and a half, but once he was born all of that seemed as if it were a dream. I was so overwhelmed with emotion that the pain just disappeared.
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You can do this! Labor is hard and it's not a walk in the sunshine, but it is the most amazing and wonderful experience of your life.
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What pain relief strategies worked best?
Breathing and moaning. I allowed myself to feel all of my pain and I just breathed and moaned through them and they seemed to be more bearable.
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What position did you end up delivering in?
Sitting up (see my picture). I had planned on a water birth but my water broke when I was on my bed and it was game on. I couldn't imagine moving off my bed. I then tried to labor on all fours to deliver that way, but was making no progress. Once I laid down against my pillows and the back of my bed, I was able to more effectively push. It was nowhere near what I had planned but I'm so glad it turned out that way. My family and friends were able to witness the whole thing and I was comfortable. Plus I didn't have to move much afterward!
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How did it feel to hold your baby for the first time?
Intense. Beautiful. Amazing. Like a relief. I was overwhelmed with emotion when I felt him.
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What advice can you give to other mamas who want to go natural?
You can do this! Labor is hard and it's not a walk in the sunshine, but it is the most amazing and wonderful experience of your life. I can't express how grateful I am to have had this birth experience. Prepare yourself for pain and a long day, but know that you were made for this, your body is built to do this! And what lies at the end of the hard work is the best reward a woman could ask for.
