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When did you realize you were really in labor?
I woke up at 1 am on Monday night. I thought I had food poisoning from the salmon I had made for dinner because my stomach was cramping so badly (contractions!!). I went to the bathroom and had diarrhea so I asked my husband how he was feeling. He said that he felt fine but I was still convinced it was just food poisoning. After about three hours of sitting in my bathroom, I looked down to see some blood in the toilet. That's when I realized that this was not just some stomach cramps. I called my husband and told him to call the midwife, I was in labor!
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What was the most challenging thing about going natural?
My greatest challenge about going natural was remembering to be patient with the process. Once I realized I was in labor and how intense labor was going to be, I just wanted to rush through it. But as we all find out there is no rushing labor if you want to do it naturally. I just had to continue to breathe, concentrate on opening and softening, and try not to let my mind go to a place of anxiety.
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What was the most helpful thing you did to prepare for childbirth?
I practiced with Hypnobabies for months before my labor. And while at the time of my labor I did not feel like I was "doing" the hypnosis work, my midwife told me that she thought I was during the entire process. This is a great reminder that the birthing process rarely looks exactly like what you plan for. I pictured myself walking around during my pain-free birth, but instead was greeted with incredibly rapid contractions that were even more intense when I moved. So I sat on the toilet and in the tub for the majority of my birth, not moving. I just made sure that with every birthing wave I relaxed, breathed, and let my natural tendencies (noises, rocking, etc.) take over.
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What surprised you about your birth?
I was surprised by how incredibly empowering this whole experience was! While I have never done something so challenging in my entire life, when it was over I felt like I could do anything. I always tell people, my home birth was nothing like what I expected, but everything that I wanted. And for a first-time mama, my labor was short and sweet, which I never expected!
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Keep your body active during pregnancy. Labor was the greatest workout of my life. But don't only exercise the body, also exercise your mind. Practice breathing and imagery techniques to keep you calm and relaxed. And practice all the time! The more you do it the more ingrained in your body it will be. And just remember that you are not alone in this process.
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What pain relief strategies worked best?
My only real pain relief strategy that I used was breathing with each contraction and reminding myself to relax and be soft. Getting tense only made everything harder. I totally tuned into my own mind and zoned everything else out. I barely spoke from start to finish.
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How did it feel to hold your baby for the first time?
Holding your child for the first time is the most exhilarating, exhausting, and amazing feeling in the entire world. You hear this all the time but the feeling really is something that can be barely be described by words. It makes all the challenges and pain of labor go away and you are filled with joy.
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What did you name your baby, and why?
We named our baby boy Jude Robert. We chose Jude because of our list of names this was the one that had no connection to any other person in our life. Jude is unique and special to us, just like our little boy. Robert is my father's name who we look up to because of his kind heart, generosity, and love; all things that we hope our Jude has in his life.
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What advice can you give to other mamas who want to go natural?
My greatest advice is to keep your body active during pregnancy. Labor was the greatest workout of my life. But don't only exercise the body, also exercise your mind. Practice breathing and imagery techniques to keep you calm and relaxed. And practice all the time! The more you do it the more ingrained in your body it will be. And just remember that you are not alone in this process. Millions of mamas have done this before you and you are in good company. Trust your body and know that you can do anything with the proper support and preparation.
