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When did you realize you were really in labor?
Real labor contractions always seem to have an extra edge for me. This time, they started waking me up repeatedly in the middle of the night. I was mostly aggravated that we didn't have a clock with lit numbers to see how far apart they were so I would know how much sleep I was missing.
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What was the most challenging thing about going natural?
This is my fourth home birth, so I knew what to expect, but I had a bad attitude about labor this time. I just didn't want to! I knew it was going to hurt, take too long etc. It was only when I was telling my birth story afterwards to a friend, that she said, "It sounds like it was pretty easy." I took a second to think about it, and realized that it was almost identical to my second homebirth, which was exactly what I had wished for-- minus my bad attitude.
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What was the most helpful thing you did to prepare for childbirth?
Read birth stories, from experienced women who have given birth at home. Watching birth videos of home births. More than anything my own experiences helped me, but the stories of other gave me confidence for my first home birth 8 years ago.
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What surprised you about your birth?
My most vivid memory is reaching down and feeling the bulge of his head emerging. For some reason, that really took me off guard, the feeling of his head coming out. Transition makes you think it will never happen, and you can't do it. The, "WAIT, I just DID it!" can take you by surprise.
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Trust your body. Really. You are built for birth. Fear is not your friend, seek out positive stories. Research. Know the warning signs of real trouble, so that you don't worry about normal things.
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What pain relief strategies worked best?
Change position! If it is really hurting, you are in the wrong position!
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What position did you end up delivering in?
Asymmetrically-- on one knee, leaning against the side of the bathtub, with the other leg out to the side. The cord was around his neck several times, and the placenta was anterior, and obviously on the one side, so he just needed to stay close to the placenta, and I had to stay asymmetrical. (Unwrapping the cord was no big deal. It is a normal thing to happen that the baby gets wrapped up.)
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How did it feel to hold your baby for the first time?
It is like meeting a stranger, an almost surreal experience, and discovering that you know and love them already.
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What advice can you give to other mamas who want to go natural?
Trust your body. Really. You are built for birth. Fear is not your friend, seek out positive stories. Research. Know the warning signs of real trouble, so that you don't worry about normal things.
