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When did you realize you were really in labor?
Immediately. I woke up in the middle of the night the night before and somehow knew labor would start the following morning and it did as soon as I got up.
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What was the most challenging thing about going natural?
Changing positions and the contractions that immediately followed before I found my rhythm again.
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What was the most helpful thing you did to prepare for childbirth?
Hired a doula, read other birth stories, bought a labor ball.
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What surprised you about your birth?
How quick things progressed once I hit transition. I went from a 6 cm to baby in my arms in less then an hour and my body did all the pushing on its own with no prior urge to push. Very different from my first birth.
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You were made for this. You can do it. Don't fight the contractions - take them one at a time and focus on letting your body do what it knows to do.
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What pain relief strategies worked best?
Labor tub. Leaning on my husband with my arms around his neck while swaying my hips. Breathing, deep moans and focusing on keeping my shoulders and face relaxed.
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What position did you end up delivering in?
Partly standing, partly sitting (my body was pushing as they tried to help me to bed)
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How did it feel to hold your baby for the first time?
Unreal. The delivery was such a blur, and unlike with my first I still had energy and I was very alert. In awe that he was finally here. No words can truly describe all the thoughts and feelings that go through a person
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What advice can you give to other mamas who want to go natural?
You were made for this. You can do it. Don't fight the contractions - take them one at a time and focus on letting your body do what it knows to do.
