I'd been predicting a Friday morning birth for a few weeks. I was 40+5 and woke up at 1:15 in the morning Friday the 8th. I felt 2 contractions and knew this was it so I got DH up and we went to work filling the pool and geting everything settled for the impending birth. My birth with DD was 5 hours and I was feeling like this one would be even shorter so we called our MW to give her the heads up but not to come yet and had our doula head out. I felt like a peed a little during a contraction and then again with the next one so I went to the bathroom and put on a pad. After another contraction I realized my water had broken. So my contractions started out about 3 minutes apart and strong but not painful. I could still talk through them mostly and it felt good to sway. Our doula arrived at about 2:15 and by then I was having to pause and focus on them. I was using hypnobabies but hadn't felt like listening to my CDs or anything at that point. I was just using my switch and affirmations and clary sage (LOVED the clary sage, it was very calming and felt like it soften things, I highly recommend it). We hung out and chatted between contractions and waited for the pool to fill. I could tell I was progressing and things were getting stronger but I was still totally in control and felt really good using the hypnosis. I got in the pool around 3 I think. It was really comfy and I loved how easy it was to move. I had my doula play the birthing day CD and I stopped being so chatty and focused on my hypnosis for a while starting at about 4:30. My parents arrived a little after 5 and were great at staying in the background and not being intrusive at all. I checked my self for the first time at about 4 and could feel something, it didn't feel like head but it wasn't me so I was confused (remember my water had broken). I just figured we were having a bald baby but that was suprising! I couldn't really feel any distinctive cervix, everything was really soft other than the head but it was still pretty high. I decided to wait to call the MW. I checked again at about 4:20 and it felt like the baby was a little bit lower but nothing dramatic, still pretty high. I started to feel good "breathing down" during the contractions, not pushing so much as giving a little downward breath. I was having a fair amount of intense pressure in my back and needed counter pressure during contractions. I was still able to be really relaxed but I was getting more uncomfortable and a little frustrated that I hadn't given birth yet, I thought it was going to be faster! 
I checked myself again at 4:45 and I no longer had any doubt that I was fully dialated but the baby was still high so I thought we better call the MW. She arrived at about 5:30 and I just kept laboring the pool. At this point our doula got a call that another mom was in labor. They wanted her to come soon, we weren't paying her (She volunteered after we hired her for our first birth and it was so fast and she was excited for a homebirth on top of it) So then I felt bad that she was doing my birth for free and having to call someone in for a paid birth! I decided to have the MW check me at that point so she would have more info as to what she was going to do (she wasn't going to leave me, but if to have the other couple call from the hospital or call backup right away). I got out of the pool and MW said I was complete with a buldging bag. I was suprised because I know it had broken but relieved that what I was feeling wasn't really my baby's head! I told her to break it, I needed to be done at that point, I was losing my "zen"ness and wanting to be done with it (plus I'm certain I was complete for probably an hour or more by now) I had to roll off my back for a contraction while she got the amnio hook and my water broke on it's own. I got back in the pool. I had a few more contraction and tried pushing with them but it didn't feel quite right. I checked myself again and felt a distinctive bag of water. Geez! 3 water bags!?! 
: (I know one could have been a high leak but still!) So I got back out and had the MW break my water. Everything went absolutely crazy the moment that broke.
Oops, I totally forgot about my DD getting up so I'm going to back track a little. She woke up at 6 and hung out with my parents and checked in with me on and off. She is 27 months old and was absolutley awsome! She wasn't phased by my noises (which weren't much amazingly!) but she watched her birth video a lot and knew what to expect. She was sweet and loving and wonderfully unphased by the whole scene!
So when the MW broke my water I had to get off my back as fast as possible. I got on my hands and knees (MW broke water at 6:56) and immediately felt to urge to push. I felt myself passing stool too and they always say you won't care, but I did, and I was aware of it, but there's just nothing you can do! I felt him move down into my pelvis (he was still at -2 when my water broke) and felt my spine "breaking" it was pretty intense and very painful to be honest! I had a very forceful ejection reflex and no breaks in contractions. I was pretty much pushing the entire time. I was pushing between contractions because it felt a lot better to have a little control over them, I really wanted to be done with the whole thing, and I wasn't getting any feelings of rest or relaxation anyway. I felt him move down into my vagina, it was awsome! I don't remember feeling that with my DD. I felt him move down, then a little more and then back up. I remeber saying, come on baby, stay down, come on! Of course everyone else was like it okay, it's normal, your stretching, its good....I knew all of that, but I wanted him OUT at that point! So I felt him coming down and I was a pushing fiend for about 15 minutes. I was in such an intense fully immersed place at that time. I was aware of things around me but my own physical feelings were so utterly intense there was a point that I felt like I was going to pass out. My DH was at my head and putting pressure on my back and I whispered to him that it was really hard, it hurt a lot, he owed me. Nothing like you did this to me or anything like that, it was simply, I'm working super hard right now and I need you to repay that in some way. It was just something I had to express!
So he was born at 7:14 fully posterior, I had to really push to get his sholders out and the MW suctioned him quickly. I didn't want her to do that and told her to stop and pass him to me (between my legs, was still hands and knees) she said he needed it, but handed him to me and came around to give him a little more suction, but while I held him. He came through so quickly he didn't get squeezed out and was really full of fluid, it took several seconds for him to get a good cry but his color and tone were great and his cord was still pulsing so no one worried (except my dad). Grace was behind me and watched him be born. Someone said it was a boy and she came around to see and said "I want to rock my baby brother!" I just melted!
. What an amazing little girl, she wanted a baby sister this whole time and when it was a brother there was never another thought about it for her! (She did mention naming him Lydia though
) So when we all saw him we were suprised that he didn't look as big as we all thought he was going to be, but we were suprised when he was 8 pounds 13 ounces!
and 21ish inches long (he didn't want to stretch). I had a small tear and we decided it should be stitched. I was really scared and need reassured by the MW and our doula because of a pretty tramatic amount of stitching and complications from my first birth. I was able to use my hypnosis to calm down and relax enough to get it done and it wasn't so bad at all! Just a minute or two and we were back in the pool for a nice soak. He nursed right away for a very long time and has been doing great ever since. I have been doing really well as well. I am still swollen and sensitive but nothing terrible at all. My tailbone is really sore, it's bruised or possibly out of place from the posterior position. I'm going to the chiroprator on Tuesday so maybe that will help. The one thing that sucks is that he was in perfect position through pregnancy and labor, but apparently my pelvis is made so that I have to birth posterior babies (DD was too, but had been in pregnancy as well and turned before coming out) He turned posterior when he finally came into my pelvis (hence the extreme change in comfort I experienced I guess) and stayed that way. I guess I'll just plan on having back labor again, I've done it twice and made it through so I guess I can again. I love homebirth and will do it again, I think my DH is feeling pretty good about it too!
I checked myself again at 4:45 and I no longer had any doubt that I was fully dialated but the baby was still high so I thought we better call the MW. She arrived at about 5:30 and I just kept laboring the pool. At this point our doula got a call that another mom was in labor. They wanted her to come soon, we weren't paying her (She volunteered after we hired her for our first birth and it was so fast and she was excited for a homebirth on top of it) So then I felt bad that she was doing my birth for free and having to call someone in for a paid birth! I decided to have the MW check me at that point so she would have more info as to what she was going to do (she wasn't going to leave me, but if to have the other couple call from the hospital or call backup right away). I got out of the pool and MW said I was complete with a buldging bag. I was suprised because I know it had broken but relieved that what I was feeling wasn't really my baby's head! I told her to break it, I needed to be done at that point, I was losing my "zen"ness and wanting to be done with it (plus I'm certain I was complete for probably an hour or more by now) I had to roll off my back for a contraction while she got the amnio hook and my water broke on it's own. I got back in the pool. I had a few more contraction and tried pushing with them but it didn't feel quite right. I checked myself again and felt a distinctive bag of water. Geez! 3 water bags!?! : (I know one could have been a high leak but still!) So I got back out and had the MW break my water. Everything went absolutely crazy the moment that broke.Oops, I totally forgot about my DD getting up so I'm going to back track a little. She woke up at 6 and hung out with my parents and checked in with me on and off. She is 27 months old and was absolutley awsome! She wasn't phased by my noises (which weren't much amazingly!) but she watched her birth video a lot and knew what to expect. She was sweet and loving and wonderfully unphased by the whole scene!
So when the MW broke my water I had to get off my back as fast as possible. I got on my hands and knees (MW broke water at 6:56) and immediately felt to urge to push. I felt myself passing stool too and they always say you won't care, but I did, and I was aware of it, but there's just nothing you can do! I felt him move down into my pelvis (he was still at -2 when my water broke) and felt my spine "breaking" it was pretty intense and very painful to be honest! I had a very forceful ejection reflex and no breaks in contractions. I was pretty much pushing the entire time. I was pushing between contractions because it felt a lot better to have a little control over them, I really wanted to be done with the whole thing, and I wasn't getting any feelings of rest or relaxation anyway. I felt him move down into my vagina, it was awsome! I don't remember feeling that with my DD. I felt him move down, then a little more and then back up. I remeber saying, come on baby, stay down, come on! Of course everyone else was like it okay, it's normal, your stretching, its good....I knew all of that, but I wanted him OUT at that point! So I felt him coming down and I was a pushing fiend for about 15 minutes. I was in such an intense fully immersed place at that time. I was aware of things around me but my own physical feelings were so utterly intense there was a point that I felt like I was going to pass out. My DH was at my head and putting pressure on my back and I whispered to him that it was really hard, it hurt a lot, he owed me. Nothing like you did this to me or anything like that, it was simply, I'm working super hard right now and I need you to repay that in some way. It was just something I had to express!
So he was born at 7:14 fully posterior, I had to really push to get his sholders out and the MW suctioned him quickly. I didn't want her to do that and told her to stop and pass him to me (between my legs, was still hands and knees) she said he needed it, but handed him to me and came around to give him a little more suction, but while I held him. He came through so quickly he didn't get squeezed out and was really full of fluid, it took several seconds for him to get a good cry but his color and tone were great and his cord was still pulsing so no one worried (except my dad). Grace was behind me and watched him be born. Someone said it was a boy and she came around to see and said "I want to rock my baby brother!" I just melted!. What an amazing little girl, she wanted a baby sister this whole time and when it was a brother there was never another thought about it for her! (She did mention naming him Lydia though) So when we all saw him we were suprised that he didn't look as big as we all thought he was going to be, but we were suprised when he was 8 pounds 13 ounces! and 21ish inches long (he didn't want to stretch). I had a small tear and we decided it should be stitched. I was really scared and need reassured by the MW and our doula because of a pretty tramatic amount of stitching and complications from my first birth. I was able to use my hypnosis to calm down and relax enough to get it done and it wasn't so bad at all! Just a minute or two and we were back in the pool for a nice soak. He nursed right away for a very long time and has been doing great ever since. I have been doing really well as well. I am still swollen and sensitive but nothing terrible at all. My tailbone is really sore, it's bruised or possibly out of place from the posterior position. I'm going to the chiroprator on Tuesday so maybe that will help. The one thing that sucks is that he was in perfect position through pregnancy and labor, but apparently my pelvis is made so that I have to birth posterior babies (DD was too, but had been in pregnancy as well and turned before coming out) He turned posterior when he finally came into my pelvis (hence the extreme change in comfort I experienced I guess) and stayed that way. I guess I'll just plan on having back labor again, I've done it twice and made it through so I guess I can again. I love homebirth and will do it again, I think my DH is feeling pretty good about it too! 
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