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When did you realize you were really in labor?
I had contractions all day on Christmas Eve, but they were spaced about an hour apart. When I got home from celebrating Christmas Eve dinner with my family, I had several very intense contractions in a row. I tried to take a bath and slow them down. When that didn't happen, I knew I was really in labor.
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What was the most challenging thing about going natural?
Managing the pain for the second birth, when I was more aware of what giving birth was like.
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What was the most helpful thing you did to prepare for childbirth?
Choosing my midwife. For my second birth, I wanted to have more control over who my midwife would be (my first birth was at a birthing center with a coop of midwives). I knew how important she would be to having a good birth experience. She was an angel.
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What surprised you about your birth?
My little guy came out sunny side up - I couldn't have prepared for that!
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Make the decision and don't look back. I knew that giving birth at home without interventions was the right choice for me for my second birth and it also took away the opportunity to make a different decision when I was in the thick of giving birth.
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What pain relief strategies worked best?
Laboring in water and working through the contractions rather than against them.
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What position did you end up delivering in?
In my bed, on my back with the help of three people and a knotted towel...did I mention he was sunny side up?
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How did it feel to hold your baby for the first time?
Amazing. He was perfect.
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What advice can you give to other mamas who want to go natural?
Make the decision and don't look back. I knew that giving birth at home without interventions was the right choice for me for my second birth and it also took away the opportunity to make a different decision when I was in the thick of giving birth.
