Another Friday the 13th Baby -Waterbirth

roxane · April 2012

Leo is here. I almost can't believe it. The start of my labor was almost exactly like it was last time with DS#1.

At 9:32pm I had my first "Oh, this could be something" contraction. I sat on the balance ball and tootled around on the internet, keeping my ipod tracker close. The next one came 15 minutes later, and they rapidly kept getting closer together and stronger. By 10:20 we decided to call the important players to put them on alert, and then the hospital. I felt so much less panicked than last time. I walked around while they asked me questions feeling like after my 3 hour labor, no matter what they told me, we WERE going in. We gathered stuff, and waited for my dad to arrive to take care of the kids.

We got to the hospital, they checked me and I was 7cm (exactly the way I arrived with DS#1). They got us a room and started setting up the birthing tub. I know they have only been doing water births at my hospital since August, but no one seemed in charge. They were trying to figure out exactly how to setup and fill the tub as they went along. Not exactly confidence inspiring.

I discovered that I made my way through contractions a lot better if someone was pushing hard on my lower back with their fists. So that became DH's job pretty much the whole time. It took a good half hour to fill up the tub, and when they told me I could get in, I felt a little reluctant because I wasn't sure how DH was going to keep pushing on my back once I got in, and that was helping so much, I didn't want to give it up. I got in anyway, thinking I could always get back out.

Honestly, I think our birth photographer was the most experienced person in the room when it comes to water births. Thank goodness she was there. Having done a water birth twice, she knew some things to suggest. She was the only one who ever made any suggestions to help me labor successfully in the tub. The nurses seemed more concerned about the practicalities of managing the tub. Our photog. suggested that if I hung over the edge of the tub, DH could still push on my back this way. The contractions just kept getting stronger, but they were all in my back. It was so weird because no one was telling me what to do. They just kept encouraging me and letting things happen on their own. NOT what I have done in past labors, where I had an epi, and I just laid in bed until they started putting my legs up and telling me to get ready to push.

I kept having contractions. DH kept pushing on my back, my mom kneeled in front of me. People in the room gave words of encouragement. Pretty soon something changed and I could finally feel the contractions between my legs. My water still hadn't broken. It got really painful. I felt like I had to push, and though I didn't want to, I thought, "This is the only way. This is what you are here for." Through the contractions I tried to keep reminding myself to breathe out slowly, but once things got moving I was screaming. I know at one point I told my mom to shut up when she made a suggestion that I get up. But she was right and my legs started to cramp. I had to stretch them out a couple of times. I pushed through contractions so hard. I knew I had to keep going even though that "ring of fire" hurt so much.

Once his head came out, I guess I lifted up and his head came out of the water. At that point they were worried that he'd start breathing and then I'd take him back under, so they said something about needing to keep his head out of the water. They had to lift my hips out of the water for the rest of the delivery. Frankly, it was all a blur.

In the end, Leonardo Xavier was born at 12:53 am. They grabbed him and got him weighed & his umbilical clamped. It took a while for anyone to even tell me he was a he.

9 pounds, 6 ounces. Holy moly, of course the baby I decide to have without an epidural would turn out to be the biggest.

They put him on my chest while they set me up to stitch up my 2nd degree tear. I'm used to delivering the placenta and being stitched up pain free. I HATED having my legs up. it hurt and I couldn't relax with Leo while I tried to nurse him. We joked that maybe I could get that epidural now. ouch. He cried for a few minutes while we tried to get him to latch. Eventually he did. My perfect baby. I couldn't believe he was really here. I was so happy to not be pregnant anymore too.

I felt fantastic and didn't want to sleep at all the rest of the night. Big mistake, I knew, but I couldn't stop staring at him. I was so anxious to go home, and now that we are home, things are going really well. -Already had two BMs!!!! and my milk came in this morning. Leo is eating like a pro, and his brother and sister are over the moon for him.

I'm proud that I did a med free birth, and glad to have had the experience, but if I were to have another baby, which I won't be, I would probably go with the epidural or definitely look for someone with more water birth experience. My only hope is that they learned a bunch from what they did with me.

Also, I'm loving my Undercover Mama shirt, and the RnP is pretty darn handy.