How do you picture your baby's birth happening?

Great idea Pepper!

Let's see...

I've been picturing going into labor in the afternoon (it's sunny, I can dream!) and for a long time I pictured myself laboring in my garden on my hands and knees pulling weeds and stuff. But I can't even pull weeds anymore and I don't have as much fun out there as I did when I was more mobile. So maybe nix that idea.

I picture my dh being at work and me calling him and calmly telling him I'm in labor, but not to worry about coming home early...I guess I like the idea of laboring alone in the beginning? Yup.

I've been telling myself that, like 4 sisters before me, I will be at it for 40 hours. But something tells me that won't happen, it feels more like maybe 15 or 20? Just a hunch.

And I picture dh coming home and hanging out with me during alot of the rough part...then us finally loading my butt into the car (after an exam shows me I'm 7-8 cm I will be so lucky to make it that far!) and then showing up to the hospital and eventually giving birth sometime the next day (another sunny one) drug free, on my hands and knees.

I guess I've really thought this thing out!

If I only get my dream labor in my imagination, well, it was nice! :LOL

--Grace

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Me too! I picture laboring in my bathroom while everyone sleeps and having candles lit, maybe a quiet cd playing (Bob Marley?), and a peaceful vibe going.

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That's some long labors in your family, Grace. I hope yours is shorter but even if it's long I know you will manage it well.

Yes, very good idea...this will be interesting to look back on after the birth.

I picture going into labor in the early afternoon. DH will probably be home since he is home at that time 4 days out of the week. I will take a shower and rest and make sure it's real labor. :LOL I'll call some of my relatives to let them know when I am sure. I'll try to rest as much as I can until the contractions are 4 minutes apart, lasting for a minute each, for an hour and then I'll go into the birth center. I figure it will be evening or late at night when I go in.

At the birth center I'll concentrate on relaxing while DH massages my back. It will be intense, but I'll meditate and use my inner strength to get through it. I picture giving birth while squatting, with DH supporting me. I figure this will be early morning, but still dark outside. I also sometimes picture the timing being different, where the labor begins in the middle of the night and I deliver in the late afternoon.

And all will be well in the world.

I have this completely insane picture of my water breaking while I'm driving somewhere. Isn't that WEIRD? The funny thing is, I confided that to my best friend today, and she said she had the SAME feeling when she was pregnant! :LOL Further proof that she and I share a brain :LOL

I have no guesses as to when labor will start, or how long it will be, but I think I'm going to give birth at night. I have this picture of me delivering in a kiddie pool in my backyard, under the full moon and all the stars.

Of course, that would be easier to accomplish if I HAD a kiddie pool ROFL

Ok, I can't envision my labor at all, so maybe that's my problem! Everytime I think of it, I end up at Samantha's birth, which was definitely less than optimal, so maybe that's what's "holding me back".
Maybe this will help, :LOL
(thinking positively)

Alright. I'm going to start labor late at night, right before bed. I'm not going to tell Alex right away, so that he can get some sleep, and I can labor alone for a little while. I'll go to bed with him, realize that the contractions aren't stopping when I lay down, and I'll tell him I can't sleep and I'll get up and go in the living room. I'll sit wherever is most comfortable--the birth ball, my favorite chair, or the floor, and concentrate on relaxing through the contractions, so that things can move along unhindered (a big part of my problem last time...I couldn't relax, didn't progress). Around 1 or 2, they'll get to be strong enough so that I have to do something about them. I'll get in the shower, which will probably wake up Alex. After the shower, I'll get on my birth ball, and need to breathe through the contractions. Alex will work on different pressure points, and find a rhythm for what works best. We'll move around the living room, maybe the bedroom, maybe my rocking chair on the back porch, and it'll be a pretty long time for this part of labor. Finally, I'll get in the bathtub, and find some comfort there, and stay there for about an hour. When I get out, I'll check my cervix, find out I'm about 7 cm, and my water will break. We'll go to the hospital, maybe around 4:30am, and will have to explain to them that no, I don't have time to fill out these papers, because I'm about to push out a baby. I'll get into my birthing room, say hello to Sharon (one of my mw), ask for the squat bar, and then get nailed by a contraction and need to push. I'll push through a few contractions before it gets set up, and push for another 15 minutes or so before Cullen is born. He'll be caught by Sharon and by me, and he'll be REALLY ticked off, but will calm down very quickly, and nurse.

OKAY. Now, I just need to just keep repeating this over & over in my head. Going to get in the shower, and then go for a long walk.

I think I'll go into labor in the afternoon. Active labor will be starting when DH gets home from work, I'll get in the pool and the baby will be born around 9 or 10 at night, in the pool. I expect a short labor, maybe 5 or 6 hours, and only 15 minutes of pushing, no tears. Baby will take to the breast right away and we'll all fall asleep cuddling on our bed.

Hey, a girl can dream, right? I believe in the power of positive visualization.

Wow, Emmy, that is a really detailed birth vision--I really like it and it sounds totally doable for you. Actually, it's very similar to mine It will be interesting to see how close our labors actually are to our visions.

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Heh...well, I know the details will be worked out :LOL but I figured the more detailed I am envisioning it, the more I *can* envision it and get on with things. I kinda feel like I'm not going into labor more for mental reasons than physical, so it can't hurt to replay it over & over in my head

I could write what I hope as in my "dream birth", but I do know better- so let me try to make a dream c-birth. It starts with a great sleep (something I am missing right now) followed by a slow sun rising and that kind of silent anticipation that can only be found in the too early morning. And still the stillness and excited air as we drive to the hospital with hilger's coffee smell hanging and wide empty lanes. Probably, at the last min, I will think of something extreamly trivial that I have forgotten. We will say, ok- and keep going.

When we arrive at the hospital I will ask to speak to the lactation consultant- she will be a real live caring and understanding person and will agree to help get eisa to me as soon as possible. Probably, I will cry.

I can't really think through the surgical preperations- I hope that I can keep a sense of humor. It makes me laugh now to think of hilger in hospital scrubs! I also hope that the dr. will tell me what is going on "behind the curtin" and that I will be feeling comfortable enough to ask them to lower the curtin so that I can watch it all. I found out that my arms will not be tied down- I hope that this is true and that I can touch eisa's face.

I don't have a clue what will happen in the recovery room, but I hope that my mw will stay with me to give updates from the nusery- all reasurring and then she will say- "here she comes!" And, of course, eisa will latch on right away. And then it is love-love and a little pain. Oh! if I can make it a dream- I won't have a roomate and hilger can spend the night! I think that will make the first night so much better.

What is maybe easier for me to think about is coming home- I have almost everything in perfect order- looking so nice and clean and her little sleepers ready.....that could go on forever......mcs

Part of the Hypnobabies program actually has you visualize your birth a couple times a week. The theory is that if you visualize it it becomes imprinted in your mind and your body will actually comply to make it happen. So this is what I did. I pictured myself starting labour early in the morning, because I'm so not one of those "all nighter" people. :LOL And I thought about how nice it would be to start labour early and have the baby the same day and still have time for sleep! Very idealistic, I know. I also pictured how I would fill the time during labour--by cooking, which is something I love to do. I pictured myself being relaxed and labour being fast.

What actually happened:
Labour started at around 5am on May 27. I spent that day baking cookies and organizing the house. DH and I watched a movie that night. It wasn't painful so I wasn't really sure what was going on. The next day it was more obvious. I spent that day cooking up a batch of chili, shopping, watching TV with DH. Active labour was only around 6 hours and pushing was 15 mins.

I think the visualizations and other relaxation techniques I was doing really helped make my experience a good one.

mcs, : I wish I had read this and responded before your baby's birth yesterday...you really have a way of writing and expressing yourself. I hope that your daughter's birth was gentle for you and that the hospital staff cared for you in the way you had hoped.

Selena, I think you have something there with picturing your birth and it unfolding in the way you anticipate. My first birth started early in the morning after a great nights sleep and my second birth started late at night (after my toddler was tucked in to sleep for the night and I could "let go").

This whole pregnancy I have pictured my labor starting after my little ones have fallen asleep and I can relax about them being safe and not needing me anymore. I would *love* to labor through the night and birth my baby in the very early morning hours...4,5, even 6 am...then we can all have a big breakfast and have the whole day to relish in our newest family member--of course, we'll all be really tired but the adrenaline will have kicked in and we won't mind so much

I keep thinking my labor will start with my water breaking. I'm afraid it will happen while I'm working which means either in the car or at someone's home; a stranger's home at that!!!
I'm afraid I'll be somewhere that I'll have to drive home. Even though I don't plan on being TOO far away from home, I don't want to have to drive anywhere in labor.
That said, my perfect idea of labor would be having it kick in sometime in the late afternoon or evening, baby born around 9 or 10, everyone asleep in bed by midnight. This is so we don't start off on a weird timetable. And I never thought I was into schedules lmao!!!! I just don't want to break my routine heheh!!!
Our power went out last night and my little guy wanted to go to grandma's house so we went over there and spent the night. I kept thinking how awful it would be to go into labor then. Not that it would be bad to have the baby where I grew up, but to have to move the production to another house, then essentially stay a day or so and then move the production back to our home. I've got everything we need laid out here in the house. Of course Murphy's Law would dictate otherwise but we can dream.
Alright now I'm getting paranoid!!!!
I am still living my life like I'm not expecting to give birth any moment (even though I do check the tp and try to reach my cervix lol). I accepted a case in a different territory on my due date, plus rsvp'd to a birthday party that is also on my due date. I don't expect the baby to come on my due date, but this is all pending that she hasn't come already and that I won't suddenly be miserable in 2.5 weeks.
It's exciting to know it could be anytime.... I can't say it enough; this is so much better than being induced. I think I've dreamed of saying "honey it's time" or something hehe!!!!
Take care ladies,
Karen
PS--Just remembered that my son told me he dreamt that the baby was born and I didn't yell and scream and there wasn't any blood at all. That's his version of the story. Sounds good to me!!!! He's not too keen on the blood part of this, he doesn't want any blood on his bed even though we're trying desperately to explain that the bed will be protected. He wants me to have the baby outside. So if we do that, there will be like a potential of 5 audiences!!!!