I'm an accidental UCer! First birth was at home and beautiful, but painful pushing for 2 1/2 hours. Total of 22 hours labor. The docs from Homefirst were there and lovely. I was so tired and realized there had to be a way to have a baby in a more relaxed way. So about 2 years later I discovered hypnobirthing and practiced the visualizations with my husband. He would sound like Stuart Smiley, "Relax your spleen...uncoil your inner ear..." But, it worked--I learned to consciously relax myself through my breath.
At a book store, I had skimmed through The Farm midwives book (I'm blanking on the name of it) and it mentioned people making love during labor! I thought that sounded fantastic but I was a little incredulous too.
So, when I went into labor 5 days early (I had been 6 days late with my first), I just thought they were braxton hicks contractions. I would breathe down and relax and the sensations were almost euphoric--NOT like my tightening up and experiencing pain with my first. So...I didn't think I was in labor. My husband and I did make love (I was really thinking about the book!) There are some things I can not do, but I'm kind of proud I was able to relax myself to that point, especially after not truly being able to relax for my first labor.
I was in denial that the baby was coming...until the contractions were coming one on top of the other and I woke up my husband who called Homefirst and talked with a midwife there. Meanwhile I felt the amniotic sac protruding while my husband was frantically trying to get our waterproof mattress pad on the king size bed without disturbing our almost 2 1/2 year old son asleep on a toddler bed next to our bed. I was also trying to keep quiet as my husband asked the midwife what to do with the amniotic sac-- she said tear it open. And he did like a bag of potato chips. I pushed once in the hall when I felt the amniotic sac, once when I got on the bed and once after my husband tore the sac...and she was born!
It was incredible. My son woke up to his sister's cries, saw a little bit of fluid and blood on the bed, said "Mess!" then looked at my daughter in my arms with awe and wonder and said, "Baby!!" He was so sweet! He scooted close to me and gently touched her and me.
The doctor from Homefirst came about 20 minutes later. He helped move a rocking chair into the room, assisted as I labored with the after birth and checked out my daughter and me. We were fine!
It was a fantastic experience. It would have been even more amazing had we planned it. I sort of did in the back of my mind but really I was just in such denial because the experience within my body was so easy and fluid and calm. How could the hypnobirthing I learned be so powerful?! How could I not be experiencing the same pain as my uterus tightened?!
Oh well. The four of us thought it was great.
At a book store, I had skimmed through The Farm midwives book (I'm blanking on the name of it) and it mentioned people making love during labor! I thought that sounded fantastic but I was a little incredulous too.
So, when I went into labor 5 days early (I had been 6 days late with my first), I just thought they were braxton hicks contractions. I would breathe down and relax and the sensations were almost euphoric--NOT like my tightening up and experiencing pain with my first. So...I didn't think I was in labor. My husband and I did make love (I was really thinking about the book!) There are some things I can not do, but I'm kind of proud I was able to relax myself to that point, especially after not truly being able to relax for my first labor.
I was in denial that the baby was coming...until the contractions were coming one on top of the other and I woke up my husband who called Homefirst and talked with a midwife there. Meanwhile I felt the amniotic sac protruding while my husband was frantically trying to get our waterproof mattress pad on the king size bed without disturbing our almost 2 1/2 year old son asleep on a toddler bed next to our bed. I was also trying to keep quiet as my husband asked the midwife what to do with the amniotic sac-- she said tear it open. And he did like a bag of potato chips. I pushed once in the hall when I felt the amniotic sac, once when I got on the bed and once after my husband tore the sac...and she was born!
It was incredible. My son woke up to his sister's cries, saw a little bit of fluid and blood on the bed, said "Mess!" then looked at my daughter in my arms with awe and wonder and said, "Baby!!" He was so sweet! He scooted close to me and gently touched her and me.
The doctor from Homefirst came about 20 minutes later. He helped move a rocking chair into the room, assisted as I labored with the after birth and checked out my daughter and me. We were fine!
It was a fantastic experience. It would have been even more amazing had we planned it. I sort of did in the back of my mind but really I was just in such denial because the experience within my body was so easy and fluid and calm. How could the hypnobirthing I learned be so powerful?! How could I not be experiencing the same pain as my uterus tightened?!
Oh well. The four of us thought it was great.
