Wow!
Yesterday afternoon, after going to the hospital to monitor my elevated blood pressure, and being released to go home (with not one contraction all day) to wait for labor to begin on its own, I posted this as my Facebook status:
“Happy Due Date, N! I guess you wanted to celebrate by hanging out inside mommy some more? Just be aware son… eventually you DO have to vacate the premises. I am not interested in becoming the world’s first perpetually pregnant woman.”
And while I meant those words, I certainly did not think my unborn son would take them to heart and unlock the door to the fastest labor and delivery I have ever experienced! Typically, my labors do not go fast. I had a 14 hour hospital induction with K, and a 12 hour natural labor in a hospital with L.
This time, our plan was to again allow labor to begin naturally and hopefully labor at home longer than I have in the past with the help of our doula/neighbor/friend (I am so lucky to live so close to her!) and drive to the hospital to deliver with my midwife closer to transition and avoid any stalling of labor and augmentation that commonly happens in long hospital births. With that as our “plan”, we were not at all prepared for what actually took place!
I did not feel anything even remotely labor-like all afternoon or evening. No contractions, nothing at all to indicate labor was going to happen soon. We put K & L to bed around 8:30pm, and shortly after getting them settled, I started to not feel so great — mostly just crampy/sore lower back stuff that made me think I had just overdone it that day. Still no contractions, and certainly nothing timeable. So, I took a warm bath until about 10pm, which aleviated the discomfort, but the moment I stepped out of the bath, it all came back. I decided I needed to go to bed and just sleep it off.
About an hour later, I woke up in a LOT of pain. Still mainly cramping and lower back pain, so I waited until midnight before I woke J up. By then, the pain and cramping I was feeling had developed a pattern, and that was my first indication that I was in active labor. J was my hero from that point on. He does so well helping me relax completely and breathe deeply through each contraction. We timed contractions for just 30 minutes and found them to already be 2-3 minutes apart and lasting 60-90 seconds each. So, we called our doula around 12:30am to get her help and input on when the best time to go to the hospital would be. She arrived shortly after, and began helping and encouraging me through what I figured was only the beginning of labor.
However, by 1:30am, I began to experience a very familiar feeling in labor… self-doubt. And I remember saying to J and our doula, “I’m not going to make it to the hospital.” Of course, my sweet, encouraging doula friend whispered to me “yes, you will” so I felt like maybe I was just being crazy and not giving myself time and it was too early to go. But about 2 contractions later, I knew that if we were going to get to the hospital before I hit transistion, we had to go right away. I said that outloud and they agreed, but when I tried standing up to walk from my bedroom to the car, I could tell it was already too late. I could hardly stand, and each time I tried, I would have a massive contraction that almost gave me the urge to push the baby out right there.
Realizing that my only options left were to have the baby in the car en route to the hospital, or stay and have the baby at home, I chose the latter and immediately our whole game plan changed. Our wonderful doula had such a calm and peaceful spirit through the whole thing. What a Godsend she was! (J later told me that he freaked out a bit when he realized I was not going to get in the car, but he also kept such a coolheadedness and calm facade so that I had no clue — that is COURAGE, people!)
I immediately made my way to my bathtub, which we filled with warm water, and it was right about then that I noticed my contractions start to space out a bit and I had a strong urge to bear down through them. About 15 minutes, and 5 solid pushes later, the baby shot right out of me — no exaggeration — and into the water. Our doula scooped him up and placed him immediately on my chest at 2:24am. It was the most incredible, whirlwind of a labor and delivery that I have ever experienced.
And of course, because all of this was completely unplanned, it required some creative thinking on my doula’s part to take care of some of the details of after birth care. For instance, we had to boil our office scissors to sterilize them and cut baby’s cord. She used yarn from a hat she had been crocheting for N to tie-off and “clamp” his cord stump. She used our shower curtain to water-protect our mattress, and got all our towels warmed in the dryer so baby and I had a warm place to lay down after getting out of the tub. She was really amazing and on her game in such a last-minute change of plans birth!
Last night was probably one of the most invigorating, inspiring, unexpected, most wonderful nights of my life. And I am so grateful I got to experience something that I had thought would never be an option for me considering my history of pregnancy induced hypertension (high blood pressure) and pre-eclampsia. I will admit that I have been secretly jealous of those of my friends who have had the option and priviledge of delivering their babies at home. I can honestly say that even though it was crazy, fast-paced, and unplanned, it was by far my favorite labor experience and I feel so blessed that I got to bring my son into the world at home.
A HUGE thank you to those who played such instrumental roles and made it possible — my wonderful husband, my doula, and my mom. I could not have done it without you! I am so thankful!
You Go Girl! I am so happy you were able to have your beautiful baby at home. Thanks for sharing your birth story, it is such a blessing to deliver without being induced. Much love and blessings from our family to yours:)