Birth Story
I woke up at 5am from a pain in my lower back. I didn’t think too much of it until it happened again five minutes later. I lay in bed for about 45 minutes, counting the contractions. They were exactly five minutes apart. I woke Jason up and he was very excited. After a bit I decided to get up and walk around and see if the contractions went away or not. After walking around a bit they spaced out to about 7 minutes apart but they were increasing in intensity and length. We called my midwife and she said that we should call back when they are closer together and more intense. Jason called into work and cooked me breakfast and took care of Brooke while I walked around the house. Soon I was leaning on him and breathing through each contraction. Probably ½- 1 hour after I called the midwife I called her back and told her that they were now three minutes apart and very intense. She said she would come right over. I also called my cousin, who said she would be right down, and my sister and my mother. My sister wasn’t able to come until 11 and my mother was on a business trip but was going to try to make it back in time.
My cousin got there first and she and Jason started to fill up the tub. Our water heater was acting up and we had no hot water, so they were both heating up pots on the stove and filling up the tub as fast as possible. My cousin also did the baking of the birthday cake, as by then the contractions were too intense for me to concentrate on anything else. Then the stove and oven broke….luckily Jason had been able to fix the water heater by then, unluckily the birthday cake was ruined. My sister had also arrived and was keeping Brooke calm and happy, and doing a very good job of it. Eventually she took Brooke into the other room to read to her and they both ended up taking a nap.
My midwife arrived and she was wonderful. She just worked quietly around us, setting everything up, letting me do my own thing. By then I was fully dilated and feeling a lot of pressure, but not the urge to push. The pool was looking really good by then, but we had to wait for it to cool down because it was too hot. Every time a contraction came I would lean against Jason and we would both blow raspberries through our lips. Often I would stare into his eyes throughout the contraction. He would also put pressure on my back, which helped a lot. Finally the pool was ready and I jumped in. The water really felt good, it really relieved some of the pressure. The contractions were coming on really really strong by then and right on top of each other, but by blowing raspberries and maintaining eye contact with Jason I was able to remain calm. I never felt that I was out of control, just a little panicky because I did not realize that I was as far along as I was and I thought I had hours and hours to go. My midwife was checking the heartbeat and everything sounded good so she continued to let me labor the way I had been doing.
About the third or fourth contraction that hit me in the pool, my body started to push. I said, “I have to push” and my midwife told me to go ahead, my body knows what it is doing. Surprisingly, I found that pushing really hurt. I thought that the pushing phase was going to be the easiest phase, but it turned out it was the hardest. The other two midwives arrived and I was still pushing. My midwife wanted to make sure that there was no cervical lip, so I turned over (I had been on my knees facing the pool wall and Jason at this point) and when I did my water broke. It broke right in the middle of a contraction and it hurt! At that point I did freak out a little because 1) the pain of it breaking surprised me 2) I saw a lot of meconium come out in the waters and I knew that that might be a problem and 3) I was no longer maintaining eye contact with Jason. My midwife sensed that I was losing control and told me to look at her eyes, and that everything was fine. I was able to calm down and they checked the heartbeat in between contractions and it was still strong. I turned and faced the wall and Jason again and pushed through contractions in that position for a while. When I reached down I could feel the top of her head coming out but I was getting frustrated because she didn’t seem to be moving out any further…in fact at times I felt her move back up! My midwives suggested turning over so I did, although again that meant that I was a little more panicky because I couldn’t see Jason’s eyes. My midwife examined me and told me she could see the baby’s head and hair and she coached me through a couple of strong pushes. Finally I felt a POP and the head came out. She told me to push quickly again and I did and the rest of the body came out. It was 1:44 pm. They immediately put her on my chest above the water and checked her heartbeat, because a LOT more meconium had come out with the rest of her body and she was even passing more as she came out. Luckily her cries were strong and so was her heartbeat, she was perfectly healthy! She was so beautiful and strong and she was covered in a very thick layer of vernix. Jason just kept kissing my forehead and the baby’s forehead; I think he was at a loss of words!! The midwives helped me out of the pool and on to the couch to deliver the placenta and that is when Brooke woke up from her nap. She came out and met her baby sister but she was really shy at first. She did point to Summer and said “Baby!” very excitedly after a couple of minutes.
After delivering the placenta and getting Summer latched on for a little bit the midwives examined the baby and helped me to get cleaned up. Summer scored a 9/10 on her Apgars and she weighed 9lbs 4 oz. I had a slight tear and some bruising but nothing major enough to require stitches. The midwives were wonderful, they left Jason, Brooke and I alone with Summer in the bedroom for some family time while they cleaned everything up, the pool, everything!! My cousin, who was such a huge help to them and who took pictures so discretely I didn’t even notice her, set out food and champagne for everyone and we had a toast. The atmosphere was perfect, the pain was gone. I was surrounded by family and friends, and I had no IV’s stuck in me, no one sticking my baby, no strangers, only a loving atmosphere…..it was more than I had hoped for. My recovery this birth was so much easier, I was up and walking around later that day. The midwives and my cousin stayed for about another three hours then said goodbye and left. My sister quietly went to do stuff in her room to give us more alone time. My mom finally rushed home for a little bit to see the baby before going back to her trip. Then it was just the four of us, Jason, Brooke, Summer and I, peacefully sitting in our room like it was meant to be that way. Jason and I were amazed; we just kept looking at Summer and at each other with goofy grins on our faces. It was the most amazing experience of my life.
