She was born yesterday, at 39 weeks sharp at our birthing center! I'm eternally grateful to the midwives and my doula! She weighs 6lb 4.5 ounces and is 19.5 inches tall... She was super alert for the first 6 hours and nursed a ton, but is now in the sleepy phase... I am a tad worried now that she wants to sleep and not to eat, but we will see at our 24h checkup at the birthing center what they suggest... I guess it is normal, but I'm a worrywart.
I had moderate contractions for a very long time (7 hours) before we went in to get checked, I was only 3cm, but we did a membrane sweep since I had contractions every 3 minutes for hours already... After walking for 2 hours, it got really painful, I mean vocalizing was necessary... So we headed back, I was 5cm and hopped into the tub, which helped a lot! After 2 hours I felt like pushing, and I was ready to do so. I pushed for 90 minutes and felt the amniotic sac and her head with my fingers, I was so close, but somewhat the bag of waters was in the way so we agreed to rupture it. It took a little to pop it and the midwife said it was quite a strong amniotic sac - she probably would have been born in the caul, but I am glad we ruptured it, she immediately dropped 1cm lower and things got going from there - we decided to get out of the water and on all fours on the bed, and within 20 minutes she was born! It was a very slow process, I think her head was born for 3 minutes before the rest was born and I felt an intense burning on my pubic bone, I thought my clitoris would rip open. Her head wasn't positioned perfectly and pushing right on that spot, it was extremely intense. But the slow easing her out left me with an intact perineum, no skidmarks - just bruised and swollen, which will go down so soon! I am sooooo glad that I did not tear this time!
congrats mama! welcome eloise! sounds like a beautiful birth...
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