One baby due this week, and a house full of company, but no worries, usually first time moms go over their estimated due date…. Key word.. USUALLY! Not this one, it is her due day- her Birth Day! 5:00 AM I get a call, mom’s water has broken, she has been having contractions all night, and they are getting a little stronger now with a gush of water. I head on over (1 ½ hour drive) to find mom supported by her husband, her mom and her two sisters. They are serving her in such a loving supportive way. Contractions are fairly strong, however I know they are going to get stronger. There are 3 in our birth team with this birth, along with her family support.
Mid morning we can see mom is getting pretty tired, after being up all night with contractions, she is in need of some rest. She gets in the tub hoping to find some relief, and she was right. She was able to rest a little bit in between contractions, laying her head back on dads lap (he was sitting in a chair just outside the tub). In this position, mom was able to completely let go and relax during and in between these contractions, which were getting increasingly stronger and lasting longer. This feeling of calm didn’t last very long, mom was getting very anxious, and feeling like she couldn’t do this any longer, so we suggested going to the bathroom.
Every hour or so we like mom to go to the bathroom to empty her bladder, this does a couple of things, it makes more room for baby to descend into the birth canal as well as gets mom moving to help baby find the best position to move down through the birth canal. The toilet is another fairly comfortable position to be in during labor. It is a place where you normally let your body relax and open up, and as you sit there is an open space as to not put pressure on your bottom, so this was a place mom would spend another 20-30 minutes.
We decided to check for dilation to give us an idea of what was going on. Mom felt a little pushing pressure, and so just to make sure she was fully dilated she wanted to be checked. She was 9 cm, but when she gave a little push she closed down to 6 cm. This tells us, she’s not quite ready to push yet. I felt like there was some emotional thing going on subconsciously, maybe some fear?
We have wonderful tools in our birth bag to help with things that come up in labor. One of these is homeopathics. These work on an emotional level, and are very powerful. Like for instance, in early pregnancy we might suggest Ipecacaunha, this is actually a VERY, VERY, VERY small amount of what you might be more familiar with - ipecac. Ipecac is used to induce vomiting and the homeopathic remedy of ipecac actually prevents nausea and vomiting. Anyway, so we gave her a homeopathic remedy for fear, as well as one for energy. With in SECONDS, we noticed a difference.
Mom went back to the birth tub and was able to let go once again and completely relax. We gave her this remedy again about 45 minutes later because the same scenario was repeating itself. Up to the bathroom, 20-30 minutes of contractions there, then back to the tub.
We like to plan or have an idea of where baby is going to be born, but in the end flexibility is the key. Mom planned on the birthing tub, but in the end it felt best to be in a supported squat in her bedroom, so that’s where we ended up. We checked for dilation one more time to be sure of her progress, this time it was good news. No closing down, baby was already under the pubic bone and close to crowning. Heart rate sounds wonderful, grandma and one sister are supporting mom in a squat, other sister is taking pictures, and dad is receiving his baby! It could not have been a more perfect picture. This was a family affair, and our birth team was just there to support this family in their first baby, first grandbaby, and first niece! Born at 2:13 PM. Mom holds her baby up close, next to her breast singing, “You Are My Sunshine”.
