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Birth Stories
My natural VBAC birth story--very long.
I recently gave birth to my second child, a son, and VBAC. My first child (a little girl) was born at 37 weeks via c-section. At the time, I completely trusted my OB, so when she told me that the baby's heart rate showed decelerations (after I had a 24 hour stomach bug) and needed a c-section immediately, I trusted that it was the last resort and needed to be done. After the birth of my daughter I felt as though I missed out on part of the female experience by not having a vaginal childbirth. In my mind, vaginal childbirth seemed impossible for me, even though I was told I was a good candidate for a VBAC for my next child. I didn't have a lot of faith that my body would do what I wanted it to do. This was something I would have to work out in my head over the course of my pregnancy.
When I got pregnant with my second child I knew I wanted to try for a VBAC. My OB said she was supportive but the statistics showed that I had better chances of a successful VBAC at a different practive. At 32 weeks I changed practices and went to an OB practice with two midwives on staff.
My birth story:
At 41 weeks and 2 days I woke up at midnight to what felt like a small gush and bloody show followed by a pretty intense contraction. I had been contracting for weeks and had many bouts of false labor. This time there was bloody show and I was VERY excited. I was sooooo ready to be done with the pregnancy. For the next two days I contacted...sometimes irregularly, but often they would come about 5 minutes apart. They always seemed to dissipate. I had bloody show over the course of those two days. Both days I was checked by the midwives and both days I was still 1cm, 80% effaced. On the second day I also had a non-stress test and the baby looked great. I was sent home to contract! We all knew I had about 1/3 to 1/2 more amniotic fluid that the average woman carries and the midwives told me that the baby's head was bobbing pretty high because of it. This was probably the reason for my drawn-out early labor.
Friday night (that morning had been the NST) at about 8pm my doula came over. I felt like I was at my breaking point. I was headed into night #3 of contractions that were painful enough to keep me awake. My doula suggested we go to hospital triage just to get checked and see if they could tell us ANYTHING about my progress. Thanks to a great nurse at the hospital, I left triage to go home that night at 3cm. Basically the nurse told me my water needed to break so he could come down. So I went home to wait.
At 3am, after about an hour of being home, I went back. My water had not broken, but the stretch to 3cm had made my contractions more regular and more intense. I felt like I couldn't function and did not have any energy with the multiple nights of sleep lost. When I got to the hospital, the nurse started Stadol in order to stop the contractions and let me get some sleep. I was very conflicted by this. On one hand, I wanted sleep BADLY. On the other, I had waited with baited breath though this whole pregnancy and then some to go into labor and here I was stopping what little labor had started. At 4am on Saturday I got the stadol. At 8am I awoke to find Alison, the midwife, there to talk to me about next steps. I could either go home and wait for this to start again or I could get a little bit of pitocin to get it going. Again, I was conflicted! I wanted to do this naturally and I had heard pitocin horror stories. Alison assured me I would just get the teeniest bit to help get things going again. By 9:30am my doula had arrived and the pit had started very regular, very manageable contractions.
For the next 3 or so hours, I walked around the L&D floor, talked to my doula between contractions and sat in bed a little. Toward noon or so, my doula gave me a foot massage focusing on pressure points. She used wonderful aromas which really helped me to relax and I had a washcloth of Clary Sage oil that I would smell every now and then. I was very, very relaxed in that bed getting that massage. As a result, the contractions became much more intense and I felt myself slipping into, what felt like another world, between them. During this massage or shortly after (my memory is a bit fuzzy to exact details), Alison came to check me and I had progressed to 5-6 cm! I was so relieved. This is the first time that my body had ever progressed past 1cm on its own in two pregnancies. That news gave me such reassurance and motivation that my body DOES know what its doing. From that point forward, (about 12-12:30ish) until 2:30ish I continued to labor. It got more intense and I was very focused. I walked more...laying in bed seemed unbearable, yet walking made the pain very manageable.
At 2:30 ish (I think!) I was checked and was at about 8cm. At this point, my doula allowed me to get into the tub (she hadn't wanted the relief of warm water to slow my labor). I got in and this was the beginning of the most intense portion of my labor. I have no idea how far apart my contractions were or how long they lasted. I just know that with each wave of one I would tap on the side of the tub. I think during this part of labor I was silent except for my breathing but in my head I was saying a mantra to the rhythm of my tapping which was: "I can do this. Women do this." I remember nodding my head up and down with the rhythm I was tapping with my hand. I remember feeling nauseated too during this part of my labor, which I was told was both normal and a good sign of progress. I kept thinking "This must be transition. I hope this is transition." Between contractions I would fall off into that other world again. I don't meditate but I imagine that it was like what people who meditate experience. I would even have what seemed like full dreams between contractions. With each contraction, I would be pulled back into the physical labor again and would tap, think of my mantra and then slowly slip away as the pain faded. I was only barely aware of my doula and my husband in the room.
After some time in the tub I felt hot and got out. My doula wanted me to sit on the toilet thinking it might help my water to break and things to progress. I told her no and that I wanted to walk. She asked me why I did not want to sit on the toilet and I said "because it's intolerable." She said "Look at me." I looked her in the eye and she said "Before it's over it's going to feel that way." I realized what she meant was that I had to give into the pain, not fight it and let my body do what it needed to do. So I sat on the toilet and labored. It was incredibly intense. She and I were locked wrist to wrist with our foreheads touching as she was breathing and moaning with me through contractions. It was at some point during this time of moaning during a contractions that I yelled "I have to push!" It was amazing how I could feel that very moment when my cervix disappeared altogether and I felt an overwhelming pressure and urge to push. I got onto the bed and tried to squat a few times to push. I hated that position so I sat back and held he backs of my knees during contractions. My husband, doula and nurses held my feet. I began pushing at around 4pm.
After I got the hang of the pushing things rolled along...I was exhausted between pushes but no longer was I in the very relaxed state between contractions that I could maintain even during transition. Now, I was very aware between contractions. It's like I literally woke up and had the strength to do this even after a full day of labor. I surprised myself at how I had the energy to push like that after days of early labor and a full day of real labor. I felt between contractions like I couldn't do it anymore but I never said that out loud while I pushed. I needed tons of encouragement during this time. When Alison told me I was a "good pusher" that gave me a lot of mental strength to keep going. At some point between contractions/pushes I looked at Alison with an annoyed expression and said "Aren't you going to break my water?" I was bossing her around. She said "I will if you want me to." And that's when I decided not to boss her around anymore. Clearly she was going to let this happen on it's own! And it did. A few contractions later my water broke and shot right out at Alison. Everyone in the room laughed and I was elated that actually saw progress from a push. I knew the end was near and it's thanks to Alison, for letting me push my bag to rupture, that I had even more motivation to get through my exhaustion. From that point forward my son began to show himself. He would begin to emerge and then recede again after each contraction. I remember wishing that my contractions would be longer because I wanted more time to push. I felt like if only I could have more time, surely I could push him right out...I was getting impatient! With each emergence of his tiny head the whole room would cheer. It was incredibly motivating.
At 4:47pm after 47 minutes of pushing, his little head came out...I had always heard about the "ring of fire" feeling when the head comes out, but I barely remember that feeling. It wasn't nearly as painful or memorable as I was told it would be. With another push I felt his shoulders come through and then the rest of him flew out on a wave of amniotic fluid so strong that Alison caught him like a hot potato. We all laughed, my husband cried and I couldn't say anything but "Oh my god!" I was so relieved, so happy, so proud of myself and so overjoyed at my little slimy, screaming bundle of joy!. A nurse in the room told my husband that she had been an L&D nurse for 18 years and rarely does she see a birth with that much fluid. My little guy was almost 2 weeks late and weighted a mere 6lbs. 14oz...like a little fish who could only grow to his environment.
We named him Chase Harrison.
The adrenaline rush afterward is not a myth...for both baby and me. My husband and I marveled at him and spent the next few hours holding him and talking about what we had just gone through. Much of that time with our baby was uninterrupted. Chase nursed for well over an hour. I was amazed at how alert he was compared to my daughter right after birth. I hadn't seen my daughter for 8 hours after her birth and here I was with my little baby just minutes and hours after his.
Chase's birth was life changing and can only be characterized for me as a spiritual experience. After years of doubting the abilities of my body, it had finally done what I had always hoped it would do. I was able to have this experience because of an incredibly patient midwife, a terrific and flexible hospital/nurse staff, a wonderfully supportive husband and the most amazing doula I could have ever asked for.
When I got pregnant with my second child I knew I wanted to try for a VBAC. My OB said she was supportive but the statistics showed that I had better chances of a successful VBAC at a different practive. At 32 weeks I changed practices and went to an OB practice with two midwives on staff.
My birth story:
At 41 weeks and 2 days I woke up at midnight to what felt like a small gush and bloody show followed by a pretty intense contraction. I had been contracting for weeks and had many bouts of false labor. This time there was bloody show and I was VERY excited. I was sooooo ready to be done with the pregnancy. For the next two days I contacted...sometimes irregularly, but often they would come about 5 minutes apart. They always seemed to dissipate. I had bloody show over the course of those two days. Both days I was checked by the midwives and both days I was still 1cm, 80% effaced. On the second day I also had a non-stress test and the baby looked great. I was sent home to contract! We all knew I had about 1/3 to 1/2 more amniotic fluid that the average woman carries and the midwives told me that the baby's head was bobbing pretty high because of it. This was probably the reason for my drawn-out early labor.
Friday night (that morning had been the NST) at about 8pm my doula came over. I felt like I was at my breaking point. I was headed into night #3 of contractions that were painful enough to keep me awake. My doula suggested we go to hospital triage just to get checked and see if they could tell us ANYTHING about my progress. Thanks to a great nurse at the hospital, I left triage to go home that night at 3cm. Basically the nurse told me my water needed to break so he could come down. So I went home to wait.
At 3am, after about an hour of being home, I went back. My water had not broken, but the stretch to 3cm had made my contractions more regular and more intense. I felt like I couldn't function and did not have any energy with the multiple nights of sleep lost. When I got to the hospital, the nurse started Stadol in order to stop the contractions and let me get some sleep. I was very conflicted by this. On one hand, I wanted sleep BADLY. On the other, I had waited with baited breath though this whole pregnancy and then some to go into labor and here I was stopping what little labor had started. At 4am on Saturday I got the stadol. At 8am I awoke to find Alison, the midwife, there to talk to me about next steps. I could either go home and wait for this to start again or I could get a little bit of pitocin to get it going. Again, I was conflicted! I wanted to do this naturally and I had heard pitocin horror stories. Alison assured me I would just get the teeniest bit to help get things going again. By 9:30am my doula had arrived and the pit had started very regular, very manageable contractions.
For the next 3 or so hours, I walked around the L&D floor, talked to my doula between contractions and sat in bed a little. Toward noon or so, my doula gave me a foot massage focusing on pressure points. She used wonderful aromas which really helped me to relax and I had a washcloth of Clary Sage oil that I would smell every now and then. I was very, very relaxed in that bed getting that massage. As a result, the contractions became much more intense and I felt myself slipping into, what felt like another world, between them. During this massage or shortly after (my memory is a bit fuzzy to exact details), Alison came to check me and I had progressed to 5-6 cm! I was so relieved. This is the first time that my body had ever progressed past 1cm on its own in two pregnancies. That news gave me such reassurance and motivation that my body DOES know what its doing. From that point forward, (about 12-12:30ish) until 2:30ish I continued to labor. It got more intense and I was very focused. I walked more...laying in bed seemed unbearable, yet walking made the pain very manageable.
At 2:30 ish (I think!) I was checked and was at about 8cm. At this point, my doula allowed me to get into the tub (she hadn't wanted the relief of warm water to slow my labor). I got in and this was the beginning of the most intense portion of my labor. I have no idea how far apart my contractions were or how long they lasted. I just know that with each wave of one I would tap on the side of the tub. I think during this part of labor I was silent except for my breathing but in my head I was saying a mantra to the rhythm of my tapping which was: "I can do this. Women do this." I remember nodding my head up and down with the rhythm I was tapping with my hand. I remember feeling nauseated too during this part of my labor, which I was told was both normal and a good sign of progress. I kept thinking "This must be transition. I hope this is transition." Between contractions I would fall off into that other world again. I don't meditate but I imagine that it was like what people who meditate experience. I would even have what seemed like full dreams between contractions. With each contraction, I would be pulled back into the physical labor again and would tap, think of my mantra and then slowly slip away as the pain faded. I was only barely aware of my doula and my husband in the room.
After some time in the tub I felt hot and got out. My doula wanted me to sit on the toilet thinking it might help my water to break and things to progress. I told her no and that I wanted to walk. She asked me why I did not want to sit on the toilet and I said "because it's intolerable." She said "Look at me." I looked her in the eye and she said "Before it's over it's going to feel that way." I realized what she meant was that I had to give into the pain, not fight it and let my body do what it needed to do. So I sat on the toilet and labored. It was incredibly intense. She and I were locked wrist to wrist with our foreheads touching as she was breathing and moaning with me through contractions. It was at some point during this time of moaning during a contractions that I yelled "I have to push!" It was amazing how I could feel that very moment when my cervix disappeared altogether and I felt an overwhelming pressure and urge to push. I got onto the bed and tried to squat a few times to push. I hated that position so I sat back and held he backs of my knees during contractions. My husband, doula and nurses held my feet. I began pushing at around 4pm.
After I got the hang of the pushing things rolled along...I was exhausted between pushes but no longer was I in the very relaxed state between contractions that I could maintain even during transition. Now, I was very aware between contractions. It's like I literally woke up and had the strength to do this even after a full day of labor. I surprised myself at how I had the energy to push like that after days of early labor and a full day of real labor. I felt between contractions like I couldn't do it anymore but I never said that out loud while I pushed. I needed tons of encouragement during this time. When Alison told me I was a "good pusher" that gave me a lot of mental strength to keep going. At some point between contractions/pushes I looked at Alison with an annoyed expression and said "Aren't you going to break my water?" I was bossing her around. She said "I will if you want me to." And that's when I decided not to boss her around anymore. Clearly she was going to let this happen on it's own! And it did. A few contractions later my water broke and shot right out at Alison. Everyone in the room laughed and I was elated that actually saw progress from a push. I knew the end was near and it's thanks to Alison, for letting me push my bag to rupture, that I had even more motivation to get through my exhaustion. From that point forward my son began to show himself. He would begin to emerge and then recede again after each contraction. I remember wishing that my contractions would be longer because I wanted more time to push. I felt like if only I could have more time, surely I could push him right out...I was getting impatient! With each emergence of his tiny head the whole room would cheer. It was incredibly motivating.
At 4:47pm after 47 minutes of pushing, his little head came out...I had always heard about the "ring of fire" feeling when the head comes out, but I barely remember that feeling. It wasn't nearly as painful or memorable as I was told it would be. With another push I felt his shoulders come through and then the rest of him flew out on a wave of amniotic fluid so strong that Alison caught him like a hot potato. We all laughed, my husband cried and I couldn't say anything but "Oh my god!" I was so relieved, so happy, so proud of myself and so overjoyed at my little slimy, screaming bundle of joy!. A nurse in the room told my husband that she had been an L&D nurse for 18 years and rarely does she see a birth with that much fluid. My little guy was almost 2 weeks late and weighted a mere 6lbs. 14oz...like a little fish who could only grow to his environment.
We named him Chase Harrison. The adrenaline rush afterward is not a myth...for both baby and me. My husband and I marveled at him and spent the next few hours holding him and talking about what we had just gone through. Much of that time with our baby was uninterrupted. Chase nursed for well over an hour. I was amazed at how alert he was compared to my daughter right after birth. I hadn't seen my daughter for 8 hours after her birth and here I was with my little baby just minutes and hours after his.
Chase's birth was life changing and can only be characterized for me as a spiritual experience. After years of doubting the abilities of my body, it had finally done what I had always hoped it would do. I was able to have this experience because of an incredibly patient midwife, a terrific and flexible hospital/nurse staff, a wonderfully supportive husband and the most amazing doula I could have ever asked for.
This discussion has been closed.
Re: My natural VBAC birth story--very long.
Powerful, motivating, incredible!
I didn't see this on the Natural Birth board, but I'm sure it would be inspirational to the women there as well!
Congratulations and thanks for sharing
~Sweet Girl *8/18/08* c-section ~ Sweet Boy *12/2/10* VBAC ~ Sweet Boy *8/14/12* VBAC~
VBAC Birth Story 2VBAC Birth Story