A friend of mine emailed me last week a query for HARO-Help A Reporter Out. The reporter was writing a story on home birth and looking for people to interview. I responded and said I would be happy to share my story. Today the article ran in the New York Times! "Demand Growing for Giving Birth at Home" by Roni Caryn Rabin ran in the Health section.
I spoke to the reporter for about forty minutes last week. Overall I'm pleased with her story but it is interesting rereading it how little details stray a bit from their intention. For example "she narrowly avoided getting a Cesarean section" isn't exactly true. I said that had I had one of the other two doctors in the practice I probably would have ended up with a C-Section because I don't think they would have let me labor as long as the OB that was on call that day did. The OB on call was very aware of my intentions for natural, vaginal, childbirth. We got along very well and she understood my stance on childbirth. The other doctors were not as understanding.
I find the statistic published by The American Journal of Obstetrics & Gynecology that "babies born at home are three times as likely as those born in a hospital to die before they are four weeks old" astounding.
While I agree that some factors should be taken into consideration before deciding on a home birth or hospital birth I don't think women who are pregnant with twins, have a breech baby, or want to attempt VBAC should be deterred from using a midwife. Midwives are trained to assist women in these situations and many women who have these "risk" can have a successful home birth. As a side note, many women who want to attempt VBAC are discouraged by their OBGYNs to do so and it is the midwife who opens her arms to these women.
The one thing I wish the reporter would have shared in her article is the simple need for women to better educate ourselves on pregnancy and labor options. I don't care which route you go- hospital or home birth- epidural or natural- vaginal or c-section we just need to be more responsible for EDUCATING ourselves on the process. We will research a product we want to purchase or a location for a vacation we want to take until we are blue in the face but when in comes to OUR BODIES, OUR CHILDREN we assume that doctor knows best and don't take this journey into our own hands! We need to steer this ship, not be mere passengers aboard for the ride.
Showing posts with label pregnancy; labor. Show all posts
Showing posts with label pregnancy; labor. Show all posts
Tuesday, August 09, 2011
Tuesday, March 15, 2011
Emma's Birth Story (Part 3-Compare and Contrast)
Now that I have experienced both a hospital birth and a home birth I have done a lot of comparing and contrasting the two births.
I don't begrudge the way Sophia was brought into this world at all. It was what we felt was right for us at the time. We lucked out with our OB and she understood that I desired a natural birth and helped maintain that as much as possible.
There are a few main things that made the home birth such an amazing experience.
First of all just being in the comfort of my own home, in my pajamas, on my bed, with my family around helped to maintain a calm and loving atmosphere. I loved not having to put on that dumb hospital gown!
Secondly, I was able to eat and drink as I saw fit. I had coffee and a bagel the morning I went into labor. Not knowing if it was real labor at first and not knowing how long it was going to last it was nice to be able to eat and drink. I also had a Popsicle mid way through the labor. Yum!
Thirdly, after delivering I felt great. If you look back at the photo of me in the tub moments after delivery you will see how alert and awake I am. Not only do I think the water birth contributed to that but also the low stress of being at home helped to keep my energy level up. This also has to do with the very quick labor I had with Emma compared to the full 22 hours with Sophia.
Fourth, I didn't tear hardly at all. Peggy and Kim confirmed that I had a small nick that did not need to be mended. With Sophie, I tore, a lot. It hurt! I attribute the lack of tearing to being able to deliver in the water, control my pushing much better, and being able to adjust my body accordingly to a position that maximized the ease of the delivery rather than convenience of a doctor being able to see what was going on. The lack of tearing has kept me much more comfortable in regards to sitting, walking, getting in and out of bed, hemorrhaging, etc. Because I didn't have complications there I have more energy and want to be up and out of bed more.
With Sophia I wanted to stay in bed and my pajamas for a long time! With Emma I have had the energy to be up and a bit more active. We even took a trip to the grocery store yesterday!
All in all I just feel great. I feel more confident but I'm sure that has a lot to do with this being our second go around at being new parents. Emma is for the most part a very calm baby. She was very alert upon birth and has been very mellow and relaxed since then.
My biggest hope for anyone reading this is to just educate themselves and realize there are more options out there than we initially think. Having a baby is a NATURAL process but we allow ourselves to get trapped and blindsided by the medical community thinking they know best. A hospital birth can be a wonderful, rewarding experience. But there are other options. Regardless of which option a woman chooses I just wish more would look at the possibilities of home birth, water birth, using a birth center, VBAC, etc. My only regret with Sophia's birth is that I didn't follow my gut and use a midwife and do a home birth for her too.
For more information about midwifery and home birth check out my midwives' website.
I don't begrudge the way Sophia was brought into this world at all. It was what we felt was right for us at the time. We lucked out with our OB and she understood that I desired a natural birth and helped maintain that as much as possible.
There are a few main things that made the home birth such an amazing experience.
First of all just being in the comfort of my own home, in my pajamas, on my bed, with my family around helped to maintain a calm and loving atmosphere. I loved not having to put on that dumb hospital gown!
Secondly, I was able to eat and drink as I saw fit. I had coffee and a bagel the morning I went into labor. Not knowing if it was real labor at first and not knowing how long it was going to last it was nice to be able to eat and drink. I also had a Popsicle mid way through the labor. Yum!
Thirdly, after delivering I felt great. If you look back at the photo of me in the tub moments after delivery you will see how alert and awake I am. Not only do I think the water birth contributed to that but also the low stress of being at home helped to keep my energy level up. This also has to do with the very quick labor I had with Emma compared to the full 22 hours with Sophia.
Fourth, I didn't tear hardly at all. Peggy and Kim confirmed that I had a small nick that did not need to be mended. With Sophie, I tore, a lot. It hurt! I attribute the lack of tearing to being able to deliver in the water, control my pushing much better, and being able to adjust my body accordingly to a position that maximized the ease of the delivery rather than convenience of a doctor being able to see what was going on. The lack of tearing has kept me much more comfortable in regards to sitting, walking, getting in and out of bed, hemorrhaging, etc. Because I didn't have complications there I have more energy and want to be up and out of bed more.
With Sophia I wanted to stay in bed and my pajamas for a long time! With Emma I have had the energy to be up and a bit more active. We even took a trip to the grocery store yesterday!
All in all I just feel great. I feel more confident but I'm sure that has a lot to do with this being our second go around at being new parents. Emma is for the most part a very calm baby. She was very alert upon birth and has been very mellow and relaxed since then.
My biggest hope for anyone reading this is to just educate themselves and realize there are more options out there than we initially think. Having a baby is a NATURAL process but we allow ourselves to get trapped and blindsided by the medical community thinking they know best. A hospital birth can be a wonderful, rewarding experience. But there are other options. Regardless of which option a woman chooses I just wish more would look at the possibilities of home birth, water birth, using a birth center, VBAC, etc. My only regret with Sophia's birth is that I didn't follow my gut and use a midwife and do a home birth for her too.
For more information about midwifery and home birth check out my midwives' website.
Sunday, March 13, 2011
Emma's Birth Story (Part 2-Labor and Delivery)
* Disclosure: I may use words that may make readers squeamish...I gave birth, in a pool of water. You've been warned.
7:00am
Phillip got Sophia up and out of our room so he could start filling up the birth tub. There was no way we could send her to school/daycare at this point. We were too involved in my labor, she had a runny nose and a terrible cough.
I labored on my exercise ball for a while longer. Sophia asked several times if I was okay and I assured her I was. At one point I got very cold and put a blanket over my shoulders. She stood by me and gently rubbed my back. She busied herself with juice and toys. She even indulged me in a little music that she played on her recorder. I intended to have music playing while in labor-a toddler playing the recorder was not what I envisioned but at least she was content.
By the time my mom and sister got home from the grocery store I had moved into the bedroom so I could sit on the exercise ball and rest against the side of my bed. Phillip had prepared the bed according to the instructions of the midwives-top sheets, waterproof mattress cover, pillows in trash bags and then cases etc. The tub continued to fill but obviously a standard hot water tank can only pump out so much water. He started heating water in pots on the stove to speed up the process.
Since I was recording my contractions on paper I knew they were between seven and five minutes apart and lasting for one to one and a half minutes each. At 8:15am I had Phillip call the midwife again. He told her she should head on over.
Kim was on her way to pre-natal appointments when she received the call from Peggy that I was in labor. She got to the house about 9:00am. She changed into scrubs, set up her supplies and checked my vitals.
I asked when I could get into the tub. She said at any point but the closer I was to delivery the better it would feel. In between contractions we would chat. She asked if I wanted to be checked to see how far along I was. I think we were both a little surprised...I was 8cm to complete! Emma would be here soon.
Kim added this "When I arrived, I never would have thought you were as far along as you were. I thought maybe 4-5cm. But, then, you started sounding much more vocal, and I thought you might be more like 6-7cm. But, by the time I checked you, you were 8 to complete, and your cervix was literally melting away as I checked. Definitely more like really soft butta :)"
I think I did one or two more contractions and was ready to get in. I was still in very good spirits upon being nearly fully dilated and entering the tub.
Entering the tub was amazing. The warm water just enveloped me. My mom said she wished she could have had a recording of me. I went from moaning through most all of the contractions to relief, relaxation (as much as I could be), to a sense of focus on the next step.
Being in the water is like stepping into a hot tub after a good work out. The feeling of having your muscles melt away from you and the buoyancy of the water helping to remove the tension from your body.
Through the next round of contractions I labored mostly on my knees with Phillip outside the tub on a step stool. We held hands and breathed through the contractions. By this time Peggy, the other midwife and woman who started Birth By Design, had arrived to assist with the birth. Everyone was in the master bedroom gathered around the tub. I realized I hadn't alerted Phillip's mom that I was in labor. My mom called her and she was able to hear me moaning through a contraction. Mom asked Kim if she had a guesstimate on how much longer it would be-while always hard to guess Kim erred on the side of caution and said an hour.
I knew it was getting close to time to push. By now I had gotten off my knees and was sitting. I could brace with my toes through each contraction by pushing my toes into the sidewalls of the pool. I had Phillip on my left and Julia on my right. Sophia was right next to Julia. A gripped each of their hands through the contractions. I told Kim I had to push and she said to go ahead. I gave a little push with the next contraction. The next contraction was the big one.
I felt the baby come through each of the stations of the pelvis. Including when she hit whatever nerve runs from the leg to the pelvis. OUCH! I think that could have been more painful than some of the contractions. As I pushed it was like a cork had popped. I could feel the mucous plug pop, the water break, and then she was really on her way out. The one thing I did yell during the whole process? "SHE'S CROWNINGGGGGGG!!!!!" And very quickly I could feel the rest of her body come through the birth canal and out. She was born at 10:15am.
I don't remember seeing her swim through the water. Phillip saw Emma make her way from between my legs and literally swim up to the surface. Kim reached into the water, caught Emma and put her on my chest. Once she took her first breath of air she cried with delight. She was here. We are now a family of four.
Emma laid on my chest for about 15 minutes. I continued to contract. Once the cord stopped pulsing Peggy and Phillip clamped and cut the cord. We finished the rest of the birth process on the bed. This is the only part of the whole labor and delivery that we didn't have Sophie witness. Kim checked to make sure Emma was healthy, had all the right parts, and was declared "perfect."
She weighed in at 7lbs 10oz. and 20 1/2" long.
Emma has been alert and calm since birth. I was in bed eating lunch and calling family and friends around 12:00pm that day. We know we want one more child (hopefully our boy!) I will do a home water birth that time too. Even my mom said she is a convert!
Next post: Emma's Birth Story (Part 3- Compare and Contrast between Sophie's Birth and Emma's)
7:00am
Phillip got Sophia up and out of our room so he could start filling up the birth tub. There was no way we could send her to school/daycare at this point. We were too involved in my labor, she had a runny nose and a terrible cough.
I labored on my exercise ball for a while longer. Sophia asked several times if I was okay and I assured her I was. At one point I got very cold and put a blanket over my shoulders. She stood by me and gently rubbed my back. She busied herself with juice and toys. She even indulged me in a little music that she played on her recorder. I intended to have music playing while in labor-a toddler playing the recorder was not what I envisioned but at least she was content.
By the time my mom and sister got home from the grocery store I had moved into the bedroom so I could sit on the exercise ball and rest against the side of my bed. Phillip had prepared the bed according to the instructions of the midwives-top sheets, waterproof mattress cover, pillows in trash bags and then cases etc. The tub continued to fill but obviously a standard hot water tank can only pump out so much water. He started heating water in pots on the stove to speed up the process.
Since I was recording my contractions on paper I knew they were between seven and five minutes apart and lasting for one to one and a half minutes each. At 8:15am I had Phillip call the midwife again. He told her she should head on over.
Kim was on her way to pre-natal appointments when she received the call from Peggy that I was in labor. She got to the house about 9:00am. She changed into scrubs, set up her supplies and checked my vitals.
I asked when I could get into the tub. She said at any point but the closer I was to delivery the better it would feel. In between contractions we would chat. She asked if I wanted to be checked to see how far along I was. I think we were both a little surprised...I was 8cm to complete! Emma would be here soon.
Kim added this "When I arrived, I never would have thought you were as far along as you were. I thought maybe 4-5cm. But, then, you started sounding much more vocal, and I thought you might be more like 6-7cm. But, by the time I checked you, you were 8 to complete, and your cervix was literally melting away as I checked. Definitely more like really soft butta :)"
I think I did one or two more contractions and was ready to get in. I was still in very good spirits upon being nearly fully dilated and entering the tub.
Entering the tub was amazing. The warm water just enveloped me. My mom said she wished she could have had a recording of me. I went from moaning through most all of the contractions to relief, relaxation (as much as I could be), to a sense of focus on the next step.
Being in the water is like stepping into a hot tub after a good work out. The feeling of having your muscles melt away from you and the buoyancy of the water helping to remove the tension from your body.
Through the next round of contractions I labored mostly on my knees with Phillip outside the tub on a step stool. We held hands and breathed through the contractions. By this time Peggy, the other midwife and woman who started Birth By Design, had arrived to assist with the birth. Everyone was in the master bedroom gathered around the tub. I realized I hadn't alerted Phillip's mom that I was in labor. My mom called her and she was able to hear me moaning through a contraction. Mom asked Kim if she had a guesstimate on how much longer it would be-while always hard to guess Kim erred on the side of caution and said an hour.
I knew it was getting close to time to push. By now I had gotten off my knees and was sitting. I could brace with my toes through each contraction by pushing my toes into the sidewalls of the pool. I had Phillip on my left and Julia on my right. Sophia was right next to Julia. A gripped each of their hands through the contractions. I told Kim I had to push and she said to go ahead. I gave a little push with the next contraction. The next contraction was the big one.
I felt the baby come through each of the stations of the pelvis. Including when she hit whatever nerve runs from the leg to the pelvis. OUCH! I think that could have been more painful than some of the contractions. As I pushed it was like a cork had popped. I could feel the mucous plug pop, the water break, and then she was really on her way out. The one thing I did yell during the whole process? "SHE'S CROWNINGGGGGGG!!!!!" And very quickly I could feel the rest of her body come through the birth canal and out. She was born at 10:15am.
I don't remember seeing her swim through the water. Phillip saw Emma make her way from between my legs and literally swim up to the surface. Kim reached into the water, caught Emma and put her on my chest. Once she took her first breath of air she cried with delight. She was here. We are now a family of four.
Emma laid on my chest for about 15 minutes. I continued to contract. Once the cord stopped pulsing Peggy and Phillip clamped and cut the cord. We finished the rest of the birth process on the bed. This is the only part of the whole labor and delivery that we didn't have Sophie witness. Kim checked to make sure Emma was healthy, had all the right parts, and was declared "perfect."
She weighed in at 7lbs 10oz. and 20 1/2" long.
Emma has been alert and calm since birth. I was in bed eating lunch and calling family and friends around 12:00pm that day. We know we want one more child (hopefully our boy!) I will do a home water birth that time too. Even my mom said she is a convert!
Next post: Emma's Birth Story (Part 3- Compare and Contrast between Sophie's Birth and Emma's)
Emma's Birth Story (Part 1-Pre-Labor)
* Disclosure: I may use words that may make readers squeamish...I gave birth, in a pool of water. You've been warned.
Emma was due March 6. I could tell she was not going to arrive that day. I tried to follow my own favorite advice "Babies are born on their birthday, not their due date." But I was anxious.
I had had some Braxton Hicks contractions, cramping, and other pre-labor feelings but still felt way too good for labor to be knocking on the door. I had kidded with my colleagues that I would be there on March 7. I could have gone...but opted not to. I declared my maternity leave as of March 7 and stayed home. The last thing I wanted to happen was to have labor start and be over an hour away from home.
I was okay on Monday not being in labor yet. We ran some errands, did a few things around the house and started reupholstering a chair. I figured if we began a big project that labor would of course start because we were onto other things. No dice. For three more days, Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday, I waited-impatiently.
We tried a few "home remedies" - chicken Parmesan, acupressure, pineapple, black licorice, "what got you in, get's you out," raspberry leaf tea. Nothing seemed to be jump starting the process. I was really thinking I should have gone to work and I was wasting my maternity leave.
Wednesday afternoon Sophia came home from school with a cold. This turned out to be the perfect storm. We put her to bed that night and I told my mom and sister to be prepared. Now I'll go into labor because I have to focus on Sophie too.
Sophie was up around 11pm and needed her pull-up changed and was coughing and couldn't get comfortable. I changed her and settled her into her sleeping bag on the floor. Around 2am she was awake again coughing a lot and generally miserable. I needed to sleep so gave in and let her come to bed with us. I didn't want to catch her cold but sleep was a priority at that point. She tossed and turned and flopped and fussed. Sleep was a joke.
Thursday, March 10, 2011
At 3 or 3:15am I realized I was having contractions. They were manageable and about 20 minutes apart. I would wake with each one, check the clock, go back to bed. The alarm was supposed to go off around 4:30am but because I wasn't really sleeping I was able to preempt it and get Phillip up. He was supposed to travel to Gettysburg with his students for a two-day trip. I told him he wasn't going, I was having contractions. We talked about him heading to the the school to see the other chaperon and the students off. Within the hour I told him he couldn't do that either.
So at 4:30am I got up, told Sophie I would come back to bed in a bit, showered, had coffee, ate a bagel and checked the internet to confirm I could be having contractions without my water breaking or loosing my mucous plug.
I sat in the living room on my exercise ball, having contractions, watching the news, and cleaning out my Crackberry for about an hour. I was most certainly fully in labor-I wasn't going back to bed. I called the midwife around 5am to let her know I had been having contractions but my water was still intact. She said to call her when my water broke or 8am which ever came first.
Sophie continued to sleep-probably the most restful sleep she got that night. I continued to have contractions and just wrote down the timing on paper to gauge if they were getting closer and stronger. Phillip sprung into action cleaning, gathering, organizing. He got the bassinet down from the attic, did laundry and sundry other things to prepare for the birth. I was totally fine laboring through the contractions on my own at this point because they were manageable and I didn't really realize how strong or close together they were!
At 6:30am I had him wake up my mom and sister. They came into the living room, sat on the couch with their coffee, and stared at me. It was like they were watching television. "Hey, what's going on?" "I'm in labor. What are you doing?" I sent them to the grocery store for some last minute items I knew we needed. Milk, butter (salted and unsalted), apple juice, and ice cream. After all, if Emma was going to come we needed ice cream.
Emma was due March 6. I could tell she was not going to arrive that day. I tried to follow my own favorite advice "Babies are born on their birthday, not their due date." But I was anxious.
I had had some Braxton Hicks contractions, cramping, and other pre-labor feelings but still felt way too good for labor to be knocking on the door. I had kidded with my colleagues that I would be there on March 7. I could have gone...but opted not to. I declared my maternity leave as of March 7 and stayed home. The last thing I wanted to happen was to have labor start and be over an hour away from home.
I was okay on Monday not being in labor yet. We ran some errands, did a few things around the house and started reupholstering a chair. I figured if we began a big project that labor would of course start because we were onto other things. No dice. For three more days, Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday, I waited-impatiently.
We tried a few "home remedies" - chicken Parmesan, acupressure, pineapple, black licorice, "what got you in, get's you out," raspberry leaf tea. Nothing seemed to be jump starting the process. I was really thinking I should have gone to work and I was wasting my maternity leave.
Wednesday afternoon Sophia came home from school with a cold. This turned out to be the perfect storm. We put her to bed that night and I told my mom and sister to be prepared. Now I'll go into labor because I have to focus on Sophie too.
Sophie was up around 11pm and needed her pull-up changed and was coughing and couldn't get comfortable. I changed her and settled her into her sleeping bag on the floor. Around 2am she was awake again coughing a lot and generally miserable. I needed to sleep so gave in and let her come to bed with us. I didn't want to catch her cold but sleep was a priority at that point. She tossed and turned and flopped and fussed. Sleep was a joke.
Thursday, March 10, 2011
At 3 or 3:15am I realized I was having contractions. They were manageable and about 20 minutes apart. I would wake with each one, check the clock, go back to bed. The alarm was supposed to go off around 4:30am but because I wasn't really sleeping I was able to preempt it and get Phillip up. He was supposed to travel to Gettysburg with his students for a two-day trip. I told him he wasn't going, I was having contractions. We talked about him heading to the the school to see the other chaperon and the students off. Within the hour I told him he couldn't do that either.
So at 4:30am I got up, told Sophie I would come back to bed in a bit, showered, had coffee, ate a bagel and checked the internet to confirm I could be having contractions without my water breaking or loosing my mucous plug.
I sat in the living room on my exercise ball, having contractions, watching the news, and cleaning out my Crackberry for about an hour. I was most certainly fully in labor-I wasn't going back to bed. I called the midwife around 5am to let her know I had been having contractions but my water was still intact. She said to call her when my water broke or 8am which ever came first.
Sophie continued to sleep-probably the most restful sleep she got that night. I continued to have contractions and just wrote down the timing on paper to gauge if they were getting closer and stronger. Phillip sprung into action cleaning, gathering, organizing. He got the bassinet down from the attic, did laundry and sundry other things to prepare for the birth. I was totally fine laboring through the contractions on my own at this point because they were manageable and I didn't really realize how strong or close together they were!
At 6:30am I had him wake up my mom and sister. They came into the living room, sat on the couch with their coffee, and stared at me. It was like they were watching television. "Hey, what's going on?" "I'm in labor. What are you doing?" I sent them to the grocery store for some last minute items I knew we needed. Milk, butter (salted and unsalted), apple juice, and ice cream. After all, if Emma was going to come we needed ice cream.
Friday, March 04, 2011
Baby on the horizon
I had my 39 week appointment with the midwife yesterday. I am 2 cm and 60% effaced. She said my cervix was soft, very soft. I asked "How soft? Like a rotten banana?" She said "Like Butter." My cervix is "like butta" that's one for the quote book!
So here we go! I'm working from home today tying up some loose ends. I feel pretty good but it is a comfort to be here just in case I start to go into labor.
For the curious I will be blogging and on Facebook when I can be. My sister will be ghost writing for me and posting in both places. You can follow me on Twitter too. I'm going to label posts "labor" so you can easily find and follow my home birth experience.
Hopefully by the time the weekend is over I'll be the mother of two girls!
So here we go! I'm working from home today tying up some loose ends. I feel pretty good but it is a comfort to be here just in case I start to go into labor.
For the curious I will be blogging and on Facebook when I can be. My sister will be ghost writing for me and posting in both places. You can follow me on Twitter too. I'm going to label posts "labor" so you can easily find and follow my home birth experience.
Hopefully by the time the weekend is over I'll be the mother of two girls!
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