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When did you realize you were really in labor?
At 2am my husband had returned from a night out with his best friend. When he came to bed I started to feel cramping, but this was different because it radiated down my thighs and around to my back. I didn't tell my husband until the 8am because I knew that if I was in labor, which honestly I was in denial, I knew he would need as much sleep as possible! I had been up all night. It wasn't until afternoon that I really had to breathe through the discomfort and finally decided to call my midwives and doula.
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What was the most challenging thing about going natural?
I knew if I went natural I would have to do it at a birth center where the option of an epidural wouldn't be available and I desired freedom of movement and believed in minimal interventions while laboring. I struggled for 6 months in my pregnancy trying to figure out how to deliver outside of the military hospital because I am an active duty Army soldier and was told by my OB's and hospital administrators that it was not allowed. Being a nurse taught me that in health care the patient always has her rights and knowing your options is important. I chased this issue and finally found a way. It was difficult having double the appointments (at the birth center and the military hospital as backup) but it was worth it!
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What was the most helpful thing you did to prepare for childbirth?
My husband and I found a doula who also taught natural childbirth classes, essential oil classes, and had a lending library. She discussed anatomy and physiology, stages of labor, and several methods of laboring and managing pain. Although we didn't know anyone who had ever delivered at a birth center, this class gave us a small community of people who were like-minded and desired the birth experience we were in search of without calling me crazy. It gave me confidence that natural birth was normal and should not be feared. Also, getting to see my doula more frequently for the classes strengthened our relationship and allowed me to trust her and comfortably labor with her on my team.
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What surprised you about your birth?
That I actually did it and that I had a baby girl! I knew I could do it because of the education and that millions of women before me had done it...but when you're actually in labor, you don't know your true strength until you come out the other side a mother. I look back on it in awe and still cannot believe how strong I was and how strong my husband was for me the entire 36 hours of labor. The gender was a surprise and it honestly gave me that extra adrenaline to push her out.
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Educate yourself and decide how YOU want to birth your baby. Ignore the negative comments and horror stories because for every one of those there are many more successful ones of woman who delivered naturally and were reborn mothers. No matter how bad the pain can be, your body will only give you what you can handle. You have more strength than you know and the natural high that you and baby both feel after an unmedicated labor is like nothing you can imagine. Pure bliss.
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What pain relief strategies worked best?
Counter pressure on my back, warm shower/bath, and controlled deep toned breathing. It was very difficult, but once I stop fighting the contractions I was able to labor and push more effectively.
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What position did you end up delivering in?
I started off pushing on the bed, but felt completely helpless on my back and could not understand how to push. At that moment I felt like squatting sounded a lot better. My midwives set me up on a birthing stool where I felt powerful and finally understood where to push down into. I was able to touch her head and feel my progress in between contractions. My husband sat behind me, and my doula was able to put cold towels on my back and give me drinks of apple juice for energy.
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How did it feel to hold your baby for the first time?
Holding her warm tiny body on my chest was the best moment of my life. Love at first sight. I finally got to meet the little soul that had been growing inside me. There was also a lot of laughter when we discovered she was a girl and that she had daddy's dimpled chin. I relive this moment in my mind every day.
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What advice can you give to other mamas who want to go natural?
Educate yourself and decide how YOU want to birth your baby. Ignore the negative comments and horror stories because for every one of those there are many more successful ones of woman who delivered naturally and were reborn mothers. No matter how bad the pain can be, your body will only give you what you can handle. You have more strength than you know and the natural high that you and baby both feel after an unmedicated labor is like nothing you can imagine. Pure bliss.
