Here is the
short story of her birth:
I started into labor just after 2:00 am on
October 19th. Taylor was born at 6:04 am!! The labor was short and everything
went great! I couldn't be happier with how things went. She weighed 7lb, 7 oz
and was 20 inches long.
Here is the long story of her birth for those who like details :)
Taylor was "due"
on October 15th. I knew she wouldn't be born early but I was hoping for
sometime between the 16th - 18th. On the night of the 18th, when she hadn't
come, I resigned myself to the fact that she would be coming late! So I gave myself a little pep talk and geared up for another
week of pregnancy. I went to bed early, with no thoughts of labor.
Just after 2:00
am, a strong contraction disrupted my dreams. I was half asleep and half awake,
trying to figure out what was going on. Then I felt a second contraction about
5 minutes later. It was SO strong! So powerful! I got up immediately and went
into the kitchen to rub some essential oils on my back where I could feel the
back labor coming on strong. Then I went back to my room, ready to crawl in bed
and go back to sleep. But another contraction hit me so strongly again. I woke
Nate up in the middle of my contraction and told him I might be in labor. I
felt so confused because this was only my third contraction but they were so
strong!! I felt like I was in shock. I was shaking and shivering. I was even a
little panicked. How could it be coming on so strong? Nate called our midwife
and she seemed to think we had good reason to get headed to the birthing center.
That also took me by surprise, I thought she would want me to wait for a while
and make sure I was really in labor. I kept saying to Nate that maybe we should
wait and that I wasn't sure if this was the real thing. He finally said to me,
"Tami, I know what it looks like when you are in labor. We are
going." I was grateful he was there with a calm head and able to make the
call for us.
I began to calm down at this time and remember how to handle the
contractions better. Nate called our sister in law to come ever and stay with
the kids and I called my mom at about 2:50 am to tell her we were headed over.
We gathered all our stuff and headed out. I was previously worried about the
car ride but it wasn't bad at all. I only had one contraction in the car and
there was no traffic or other cars on the road at all. We arrived at the birthing
center, together with our midwife, Richelle, just after 3:00 am. Her and Nate
started to get everything set up while I just worked though the contractions on
hands and knees and then rested my head on the seat of the couch in between. I
felt in control, confident and so excited at this point. Around 3:30, Richelle
had me lay on the bed and she checked me. I was pleasantly surprised to find
out I was dilated to a 6!!
They got the
birthing tub all filled up and I got into my cute swim skirt. Climbing into
that warm water felt so good and relaxing. I loved every second of being in there!
I remembered about doing the wash for group B strep and I had to get out to do
that. It wasn't great to have to be on my back for a few contractions but
Richelle pushed on my knees and it made it bearable. I was still at a 6 at this
point but more effaced. It was during this time that Richelle's assistant,
Shanlee, got there. After waiting 10
minutes, I was able to get back in the water.
My Mom got there
about 4:15. It was so good to have her there. She was pretty excited. My
sister, Tausha, got there about 4:45. I would just sit in the tub and relax and
talk and even snack a little. When I would feel a contraction come on I would
roll over to hands and knees and someone was almost always behind me pushing on
my back. That helped so much with the back labor. In between contractions I
felt great and almost like I needed to entertain everyone there. The lights
were dim, calm music was on, everyone was calm but excited. It was perfect.
Around 5:30 my
contractions started to feel different and more powerful. I started to really
make some noise at this point. I remember my throat hurting a little, I felt
like a growling mama bear! I stayed on hands and knees from time point on, that
just felt the best. The tub perfectly supported my knees out to the side a
little and the water helped me to feel light and more relaxed. I kept saying
how much I loved the water tub!!
I began to
really feel my baby moving down after this. It was amazing to be so present and
to really feel it all. With my other births, I was so out of it at the end. I
was so much more aware and present this time. As she started to move down more
and more, the stretching sensation was incredible! I remember saying, "I must be in transition,
because I am so done doing this!!" Things got more and more intense. I panicked
a little and got really loud for a while. I am grateful my mom was right by my
side, and she helped me to calm down! I took some deep breaths and pulled
myself together (at least in part ;)
Richelle helped
me so much in the pushing phase to do some small pushes and little coughs that
helped move the baby down gently. I felt my water break and that was amazing. Not
long after that my baby was crowning. They had me reach down and feel her head.
That was incredible! I knew she was so close. I didn't really have to do a lot
of hard pushing. I just did slow gentle pushes and just let my body to most of
the work. Then I felt her head come out. I waited a little and then pushed her
body out at 6:04 am! It was incredible! I was on hands and knees when she came
out and my midwife gently pushed her under to me and I picked my baby up out of
the water and held her onto my chest. It was the most amazing and incredible
feeling in the world!!
She wasn't
breathing right at first and that scared my mom and sister a lot but Richelle
was so calm about it and reassured me that there was nothing to worry about
since she was still getting oxygen from the cord. Richelle did a few breaths
for her and soon she started to take her first breaths of air. I was able to
just hold her there, in the water, on my chest for quite a while. She was
pretty blue at the beginning and covered in vernix. She began to pink up and she just laid there,
totally relaxed and calm. It was so amazingly beautiful!
I stayed there
in the water for about 30 - 40 after she was born. My placenta came out around
6:30. They put it in a little metal tin and it just floated in the water there
by me! I got out of the tub around 6:45. They moved me over to the bed. The
cord hadn't stopped pulsing yet, so they put it in a little grocery sack and
Nate carried it and the baby over to the bed. I nursed her for the first time
and it took a while for her to latch on but she finally did it. After that the
cord had stopped pulsing and my mom actually got to cut the cord. That was
pretty cool. She weighed in at 7lb 7oz and measured 20 inches long.
This birth was so amazing and so healing for me in so many ways. I literally spent years and countless hours preparing for and hoping for a birthing experience just like this. It went better than I could have hoped for. I had only the tiniest little tear and didn't bleed too much. Considering the bad tears and blood loss I had with the other deliveries, this was a miracle for me (but one that I worked hard for!)! It was all so beautiful and so amazing! I am so in love with my beautiful angel girl!
