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When did you realize you were really in labor?
My water broke at 6 am as I was rolling over in bed
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What was the most challenging thing about going natural?
Having the urge to push at 6 cm and having to hold that back.
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What was the most helpful thing you did to prepare for childbirth?
Take the Bradley birthing class. It really prepared not only me but my husband for everything that was coming and really made us both more secure in the belief that we could do this!
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What surprised you about your birth?
The thing that surprised me most was first of all how fast it went, 12 hours from start to finish. I was also surprised how quickly I forgot the pain of it all and wish already to go back to that day.
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You really can do it, take one contraction at a time and don't let yourself think about what's going to happen next. Live completely in the moment.
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What pain relief strategies worked best?
The things that helped the most were deep abdominal breathing and squeezing my husbands thighs as I was sitting on the edge of the bed.
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What position did you end up delivering in?
I was already laying on my side because that was the only position they could get a fetal heart beat on the monitor so I ended being on my side for the delivery
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How did it feel to hold your baby for the first time?
It is an indescribable experience. No words can express the joy and amazement you feel, especially when it is your first child. Your whole world truly changes in a second. I am not an emotional person and I heard the same thing from everyone but it is the honest truth
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What advice can you give to other mamas who want to go natural?
You really can do it, take one contraction at a time and don't let yourself think about what's going to happen next. Live completely in the moment. I am not sure this will be helpful to other people but I was far more fearful of an epidural in my spine than of the pain of the contractions!
