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In honor of my sweet boy's birthday tomorrow, I am posting the birth story I wrote to an online forum called GCM (Gentle Christian Mothers). This day and memory continues to be a source of joy.
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"I was planning a homebirth (had one for my dd too) but not planning an unassisted childbirth. But you know what? It was really awesome. And you know what is even better? My husband is a true stud rock-star. He was so wonderfully great through the whole thing.
Basically to make it short, I didn't even really KNOW I was in labor until 1pm when I finally lost my mucous plug and things started getting more serious. I had been having contractions since 6 am but they were always 5 mins or more apart and not very painful at all. I did housework all day. I did several loads of laundry, put dinner in the crockpot, scrubbed my bathroom, vaccummed, all that stuff. But I still wasn't positive it was real labor because I hadn't lost the mucous plug and the contractions didn't seem to be getting closer together. Anyways, I did call my husband to come home from work at noon because although I wasn't sure I was in real labor, I did know that we would probably have a baby in the next day or so and I wanted him home to help take care of our daughter. At 1 pm when I did lose my mucous plug I thought I had hours of labor ahead of me. We called the midwife to give her a heads up. But my labor kept getting harder and harder really fast. I started getting incredibly irritated and snapped at my husband to GET OUT of the bedroom. Thinking from this side of things I should have known I was in hard active labor and entering transition, but when it's YOU and you're in the middle of it all, it is really hard to believe that things could be progressing so fast. The contractions started getting more and more intense and I was having to breathe deeply and concentrate to get through them. I kept pacing around my bedroom like a distracted animal. I swear it hurt more lying down. It was better to just walk walk walk the same path around my bedroom and then stop and do this toe-to-toe heel grind dance through contractions.
Anyways, after I bit my husband's head off to GET OUT of the bedroom I just started crying and sobbing. I was emotional, in pain. I decided to get into the shower to feel better. The contractions were getting so hard. I started crying out during the contractions. This primal high-pitched howl that reverberated against the shower walls.. And there it was. That moment when you feel during a contraction to just relax and bulge your kegel out. Part of you wants to hold it in because you don't WANT the pain to get worse. But it's like you know, you have to do this. You must go forward. So I bulge my kegel out and there it is...the grunting. And it hurts so bad. I'm in transition and I'm grunting at the same time and I suddenly know I'm going to be having this baby soon.
I yell to Jason from the shower to "Call LORI!!" He calls her to come, but doesn't yet know how serious things are. I get out of the shower and dry off and walk back into the bedroom. I'm still crying and I head over to brace myself against our dresser when another contraction comes. And it really hurts. I scream out during because I just have to. I have to let it out somehow. I moan out "Jason I'm pushing...the baby is coming!" And he hears me grunt through a contraction and then he knows. This is real. This baby is coming. I tell him he needs to catch the baby. So he throws down towels and chux pads onto the floor and puts a pillow in between my feet. He asks if I can kneel down or move to the bed and I tell him no I can't. And it comes again. That contraction that makes you understand why women get epidurals. And then I start talking to God asking in whisper "What is happening to me?"
My Jason, though was amazing. Right when I needed to hear it he says to me so calmly "You're fine. You're fine. You're having a baby sweetheart. You've done this before." With my world turning inside out, my man was there for me. My calm strong comfort. Letting me know it was ok. And his words did ease my pain a little bit. It made me less afraid of all that I was feeling. It was happening so fast. And then a contraction comes again and this time when I push through it, the pushing feels good. I know the baby is moving down. I feel my skin start to stretch. I don't want to tear, so I endure the stretching. I push some more and I can feel this baby's head pushing through the center of my thighs. That BIG stretch between my legs, a pop of water...and the head is out. I can hear my husband crying with excitement telling me the head is out. I ask him to feel around the neck for a cord and he says nothing is there.
This whole time I was not afraid for the baby's health. I have always heard that fast babies tend to be very healthy. I knew once he told me there was no cord, that my baby would be born alive and healthy w/ no problems. During that time when the head was out Jason says he saw the baby's eyes were closed but the mouth would open. He thought I should hurry up and push "eh...honey? Can you push him out?", but I knew it was ok, and I knew to wait for the contraction. When the next contraction came I pushed the rest of his body out into Jason's hands. It was a little more than 20 minutes since I had told him to call the midwife. Less than 2 hours after I lost the mucous plug.
We learned in that moment that we'd had a son. Something we'd waited to know. My legs were shaking. I was still standing up with the baby born behind me. Glad this big part was over. Adam cried the moment he came out. I could hear that he was healthy. Jason was crying. I was too tired to cry.
The baby stayed behind me for a bit as I gathered myself. We had to shuffle over to the bed and do this uncomfortable twister move to get the baby to the front of me so I could see him. THAT'S when I cried. When I could see him. I was kind of worried about the placenta so I tried putting the baby to breast, but I soon started to feel another contraction and I was relieved when the placenta plopped out. I knew it was over and we were ok.
5 mins later Lori arrived, probably ready for a mother in active labor. She was NOT expecting the whole thing to be over already!
Ok, so I said this would be a short story, but I guess I lied!!!
All in all, this birth was more painful than the first, but my recovery has been shockingly easy. And my husband and I just have this deeper love. It was like that with our first birth too.
Thanks for all the support you've given me during this pregnancy!
Love,
Jamie"
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Happy Birthday my sweet baby boy!
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"I was planning a homebirth (had one for my dd too) but not planning an unassisted childbirth. But you know what? It was really awesome. And you know what is even better? My husband is a true stud rock-star. He was so wonderfully great through the whole thing.
Basically to make it short, I didn't even really KNOW I was in labor until 1pm when I finally lost my mucous plug and things started getting more serious. I had been having contractions since 6 am but they were always 5 mins or more apart and not very painful at all. I did housework all day. I did several loads of laundry, put dinner in the crockpot, scrubbed my bathroom, vaccummed, all that stuff. But I still wasn't positive it was real labor because I hadn't lost the mucous plug and the contractions didn't seem to be getting closer together. Anyways, I did call my husband to come home from work at noon because although I wasn't sure I was in real labor, I did know that we would probably have a baby in the next day or so and I wanted him home to help take care of our daughter. At 1 pm when I did lose my mucous plug I thought I had hours of labor ahead of me. We called the midwife to give her a heads up. But my labor kept getting harder and harder really fast. I started getting incredibly irritated and snapped at my husband to GET OUT of the bedroom. Thinking from this side of things I should have known I was in hard active labor and entering transition, but when it's YOU and you're in the middle of it all, it is really hard to believe that things could be progressing so fast. The contractions started getting more and more intense and I was having to breathe deeply and concentrate to get through them. I kept pacing around my bedroom like a distracted animal. I swear it hurt more lying down. It was better to just walk walk walk the same path around my bedroom and then stop and do this toe-to-toe heel grind dance through contractions.
Anyways, after I bit my husband's head off to GET OUT of the bedroom I just started crying and sobbing. I was emotional, in pain. I decided to get into the shower to feel better. The contractions were getting so hard. I started crying out during the contractions. This primal high-pitched howl that reverberated against the shower walls.. And there it was. That moment when you feel during a contraction to just relax and bulge your kegel out. Part of you wants to hold it in because you don't WANT the pain to get worse. But it's like you know, you have to do this. You must go forward. So I bulge my kegel out and there it is...the grunting. And it hurts so bad. I'm in transition and I'm grunting at the same time and I suddenly know I'm going to be having this baby soon.
I yell to Jason from the shower to "Call LORI!!" He calls her to come, but doesn't yet know how serious things are. I get out of the shower and dry off and walk back into the bedroom. I'm still crying and I head over to brace myself against our dresser when another contraction comes. And it really hurts. I scream out during because I just have to. I have to let it out somehow. I moan out "Jason I'm pushing...the baby is coming!" And he hears me grunt through a contraction and then he knows. This is real. This baby is coming. I tell him he needs to catch the baby. So he throws down towels and chux pads onto the floor and puts a pillow in between my feet. He asks if I can kneel down or move to the bed and I tell him no I can't. And it comes again. That contraction that makes you understand why women get epidurals. And then I start talking to God asking in whisper "What is happening to me?"
My Jason, though was amazing. Right when I needed to hear it he says to me so calmly "You're fine. You're fine. You're having a baby sweetheart. You've done this before." With my world turning inside out, my man was there for me. My calm strong comfort. Letting me know it was ok. And his words did ease my pain a little bit. It made me less afraid of all that I was feeling. It was happening so fast. And then a contraction comes again and this time when I push through it, the pushing feels good. I know the baby is moving down. I feel my skin start to stretch. I don't want to tear, so I endure the stretching. I push some more and I can feel this baby's head pushing through the center of my thighs. That BIG stretch between my legs, a pop of water...and the head is out. I can hear my husband crying with excitement telling me the head is out. I ask him to feel around the neck for a cord and he says nothing is there.
This whole time I was not afraid for the baby's health. I have always heard that fast babies tend to be very healthy. I knew once he told me there was no cord, that my baby would be born alive and healthy w/ no problems. During that time when the head was out Jason says he saw the baby's eyes were closed but the mouth would open. He thought I should hurry up and push "eh...honey? Can you push him out?", but I knew it was ok, and I knew to wait for the contraction. When the next contraction came I pushed the rest of his body out into Jason's hands. It was a little more than 20 minutes since I had told him to call the midwife. Less than 2 hours after I lost the mucous plug.
We learned in that moment that we'd had a son. Something we'd waited to know. My legs were shaking. I was still standing up with the baby born behind me. Glad this big part was over. Adam cried the moment he came out. I could hear that he was healthy. Jason was crying. I was too tired to cry.
The baby stayed behind me for a bit as I gathered myself. We had to shuffle over to the bed and do this uncomfortable twister move to get the baby to the front of me so I could see him. THAT'S when I cried. When I could see him. I was kind of worried about the placenta so I tried putting the baby to breast, but I soon started to feel another contraction and I was relieved when the placenta plopped out. I knew it was over and we were ok.
5 mins later Lori arrived, probably ready for a mother in active labor. She was NOT expecting the whole thing to be over already!
Ok, so I said this would be a short story, but I guess I lied!!!
All in all, this birth was more painful than the first, but my recovery has been shockingly easy. And my husband and I just have this deeper love. It was like that with our first birth too.
Thanks for all the support you've given me during this pregnancy!
Love,
Jamie"
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Happy Birthday my sweet baby boy!
5 comments:
What a beautful birth story Jamie! I haven't seen you in so long and I can't believe Adam is already a year old. (Ethan is almost 19 months...can't believe that either) Lot's of Love to you and your family and I hope to see you soon! Happy Birthday Adam! :)
I remember reading this on GCM way back when, but being so close to my due date now, this was touching. I'm SO hoping that for me (well, that's what I hoped the last time too, and was far from it. Always thinking I'm further along than I am. lol ).
Thanks Melissa! I hope house-hunting is going well. I miss you too. You guys were my first mama group you know!
I'm praying for you Amy. I know the last time wasn't easy. You are in my heart for a peaceful delivery and healthy baby.
Hey! You've been posting. Every time I checked for a while it was Dad's babies still. I kind of gave up on you, but look at you go! :)
Great story!
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