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When did you realize you were really in labor?
I went to bed Thursday night with the contractions consistently 10 or so minutes apart, I figured I'd have him sometime the next day but didn't end up having him till early Saturday morning. Most of Friday the contractions got much closer but never much stronger till around 7 or 8 pm after my midwife swiped my membranes. It was my longest labor but it was so completely amazing.
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What was the most challenging thing about going natural?
I really think that going natural is such a head game, if you can manage your mental thoughts and emotions you can get through anything. My baby got stuck and I had to push much longer than I ever have with previous births, but just focusing on what I had to do in that moment and nothing else was what got me through.
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jesse002
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What was the most helpful thing you did to prepare for childbirth?
I did yoga and squats pretty much every day in my last trimester, it helped lessen much of the discomfort of late pregnancy and I felt much more ready for a positive natural birth experience. My husband was also very involved in preparing and helping me through labor, he was a godsend.
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What surprised you about your birth?
How normal it felt to do a home birth. I had had 4 previous deliveries in hospitals and was excited to have this baby born at home. People in general were fairly weirded out about my having a home birth and even though I knew it was the right choice for me and was super excited, I guess I figured it would somehow feel out of the ordinary. But it just seemed like how it was supposed to be; quiet, intimate, and amazing.
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Going natural is amazing, just trusting and letting your body do what it knows what to do is so empowering.
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What pain relief strategies worked best?
My husband doing counter pressure on my lower back and hips worked amazingly. Just focusing on that moment and getting through right then, if I started thinking about how long I might have to do it, or really anything else it would start to freak me out and I'd loose my handle on things. Also, contracting my stomach muscles while exhaling really seemed to help the contractions not hurt as much.
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What position did you end up delivering in?
I was planning on delivering in a squat position but it was a long labor and by the end I was pretty tired so I ended up delivering on my back/side.
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How did it feel to hold your baby for the first time?
It honestly felt so surreal, you think of that moment, hope for that moment for so long that when it actually happened it didn't feel real. My husband caught the baby and handed him to me, the room was fairly dark and I was pretty exhausted so my hands were shaking but within a minute of holding him I was filled with so much happiness and energy, that energy seemed to last for days.
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What advice can you give to other mamas who want to go natural?
Going natural is amazing, just trusting and letting your body do what it knows what to do is so empowering. Your body is amazing, you are amazing, having a baby unmedicated allows you to see both of those truths so clearly and pull on that strength for years to come in many different situations.
