My Fast Birth

I still get emotional re-reading my birth stories, so I thought I’d share them here. This is the story of the arrival of my secondborn. It was written a few weeks after her birth. After having my first birth successfully at home, I was excited to try it again. I am not saying it is the right choice for everyone, but it was a great choice for me. I am so thankful that I was blessed with another uncomplicated birth.

And yes, this story has accounts of body fluids and bodily functions, so if anything like that makes you uncomfortable, proceed with caution.

We still lived one state over from the state where our Home Birth Dr was, so again, we planned on having our baby at my In-laws home. I drove over almost 2 weeks in advance since my sister was able to help me pack and drive me and baby Ms Action. I stayed a week at my families’ house and then my husband came down as soon as his spring break started and spent the week with me at his families’ house.

Everything was ready to go, the birth supplies were all pulled together, I was really uncomfortable, my hips were really sore and I was ready to have that baby!! At my Dr appointment a week before my due date, I was almost completely effaced and dilated to 2 centimeters. I was surprised because with my first birth it took 7 hours of consistent pre-labor contractions to get to that point! I really wanted to go into labor that week while my husband was down, because after spring break was over he would have to go back to school. I was uneasy about him not being there with me, because I worried that he would not be able to make it down in time to be at the birth. Everyone kept telling me there was no way that my labor would be shorter than the 3 hour drive and that my husband would be able to make it down. And even though I completely agreed (no labor would be that fast!) I was still nervous. But Spring Break was coming to a close, and nothing was happening. We went on lots of walks, had lots of sex, nothing! Everyone kept asking if I thought it was going to be soon and it was driving me crazy because even though I was really uncomfortable I wasn’t having any signs that it would be soon. (No contractions, no bloody show etc.)

5 days before my due date I was pretty emotional because I knew that my hubby would be leaving the next day and I was worried. That afternoon I went to a baby shower for a friend and told everyone there that no, I wasn’t in labor yet. That night we went to sleep. I was feeling like it would never happen. I woke up a few times to pee (like usual) and I had some crampiness. At about 4 in the morning I kicked my hubby to wake him up because I was so uncomfortable I couldn’t go back to sleep and figured that if I couldn’t sleep he could at least keep me company.

So we got up and walked around the kitchen a little and I started having contractions. They were really inconsistent and didn’t seem very productive at all, they were less than 30 seconds long and I could still talk thru them. However, my husband was convinced I was in labor, so he showered and dressed. By 4:30 I was breathing thru the contractions because they were getting stronger. They were about 3-5 minutes apart and pretty strong, but still very short, 30 seconds at the most. I wanted to wait on calling the Dr because I was sure that even if this was the real thing, it would be a while yet and it was so early in the morning I felt bad for waking him. But by 4:45 my husband called anyways and the Dr said that he was on his way.

I walked around, stopping to breath through contractions. The Dr got there at about 5:15 and I was pretty sure I was in labor by then, the contractions were about 3 minutes apart and getting stronger and longer. He checked me and I was at 4 cm. My husband said “so we are going to have a baby this morning?” and the Dr said “I think we’ll have time to set up the pool”. They started throwing together the birthing pool and I lay down on my side to help with the intensity of the contractions. I vomited, and then over the next 45 minutes I wondered why I was reacting so strongly to these contractions?

 I was having a hard time remembering to breathe through them, and I kept tensing up with each one instead of relaxing. I kept shaking and trying to regain control. The commentary in my head was something like, “I can’t be more than like 5 cm right? Why am I making such a big deal out of this? I knew I was going to fall apart this time, I made it through labor just fine last time, what is wrong with me?” With my first labor I would get a contraction and then have a few more of that intensity and then I would have a slightly stronger one and then a few more like it etc. etc. This time each contraction was that much stronger and they were coming right on top of each other.

So I lay on my side and held my husbands hand and whined that I wanted to get in the pool, (it wasn’t full yet). In between each contraction I kept saying “I’m not ready yet, I’m not ready” and my husband and the Dr kept reassuring me that yes I was! I’m not sure what I didn’t feel ready for, the next contraction or the labor itself! The Dr kept saying “let me know if you want to push”, and I remember thinking “how could I want to push? I’m not even dilated yet.” At around 6 the Dr said I could get in the water (there was about a foot of water at this point) and I was soooo happy to get in finally! The tension in my lower back got better right away.

My water broke with the very next contraction and I suddenly felt like I had to go to the bathroom and I told my husband “I need to get out and go to the bathroom” and the Dr said “that’s the baby, you can push any time” At this point I still couldn’t believe that the birth was actually that close and I kept protesting until the next contraction hit and I HAD to push, and I felt the baby move down. I reached down and I could feel the head right there, I remember saying “this baby has alot of hair!” In that little moment of calm my hubby felt the babies head too and we marveled as how close we were to having this baby. With the next contraction the head was crowning and I had that incredible urge to push like crazy, it was like the contraction that wouldn’t end, (or maybe they were so close together that it felt like one big one!) I just kept pushing and the head was born, and the shoulders didn’t move, at that point I was saying that I needed a break, but the contraction just kept going, I was on my hands and knees and the Dr turned the baby a little and the shoulders came too. The shoulders actually stung more than the head, the pressure with the head was so intense I don’t think I noticed the stinging as much.

As soon as the baby came free, I shifted and pulled her up out of the water to my chest. She didn’t really cry, she just looked at me. I couldn’t believe that she was there! My husband was crying, but I was just so happy to have her in my arms, I was almost laughing! I got to hold her for a good 10 -15 minutes just sitting in the water resting. My one year old daughter came in to check out the baby and laughed and tried to get in the pool too. It was so special to hold my new baby girl and just revel in that moment! That incredible feeling of empowerment. I felt great, full of energy, and a little shell-shocked that it was all over and I was holding her in my arms.

Ms Drama made her entrance at exactly 6:30 AM, 4 days before her due date, after 2 ½ hours of labor. She was 22 inches long and exactly 8 pounds. She was born with a ton of black hair, and looked completely different from her older sister and she was a great nurser! I had no tearing at all and it made such a difference with the recovery! I felt like myself a few days later! This birth was totally different than my first one. It was nice to have the baby there so quickly, but a shorter labor is definitely more intense! I think that shorter labors are a little more embarrassing too, it’s kind of like your body has taken control and you are desperately trying to hang on for the ride. But it was an awesome birth.

Stick around for the home birth story of Baby Girl. Again, it is completely different than either of my other two.