On December 21st I woke up around 3 am with what felt like ѕtгoпɡ Braxton Hicks. I hopped in the shower and it felt nice. I got oᴜt and tried going back to sleep. I couldn’t sleep and they were coming every 15 minutes, but I was really fine so I didn’t say anything to anyone haha. You would think after giving birth 3 times, I would trust my body and know this is labor, but nope.
Mike woke up and I told him I might be in labor but to go to the gym {around 5:30} and he {thankfully} said I was сгаzу and he’s not going. I texted my mom, sister, midwife, and photographers and said this might be the day but just ѕtапd by. By about 7 am I was breathing through them fine but had to focus more. I couldn’t talk through them and I was sweating profusely, not sure why. Haha
My brother headed over to our house to sit with the kids and I knew now we needed to һeаd to the birth center as soon as he got there bc I did not want to be in transition while driving. It sucks not being able to move how I want to during the hardest part! Haha jokes on me We got to the birth center. I went up the stairs, said hello to the midwives, and asked them to fill the pool. I got a cervical check and lo and behold I was at 9.5 cm already. I started laughing and said, ‘Okay that explains it!’”
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.I was in the pool for maybe 20 minutes total and then he was here! It was MAGIC. This first pictures purely describes the euphoria I was feeling! I helped catch him and brought him straight to my chest and kissed him 100 times. He was here within one short hour of me arriving at the birth center.
I am SO lucky and happy that my birth unfolded as amazing as I could have imagined! Thanks to Arrivals Birth Center and my awesome midwife team I was able to have a seamless and wonderful experience!! I felt safe and comfortable and empowered the whole time. I was encouraged to listen to my body and all my choices were respected. It truly was the best experience I’ve had!”
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I have a wanted a water birth for a long time but it was a hard no for Mike. And although he wouldn’t grab his swimming suit and jump in with me, he was fully supportive and am glad he jumped on board with an out of hospital birth. I was questioned a lot during this pregnancy about my choices around it, but I was fully confident in myself and my providers. Pregnancy (in MAJORITY of cases) is not a condition to be treated. It is a natural thing that should be supported and the process should be trusted. It shouldn’t be “something is/could go wrong til you prove otherwise” it should be “all is well and healthy until proven otherwise”. That is the difference I felt with this experience. I once upon a time thought not delivering in a hospital is crazy and water births were strange, but look at me now! I have done SO much research and gained SO much knowledge in the past 5 years of having babies and so much of my mind has grown in regards to it. Knowledge truly is power. This is not taboo- it should be celebrated! I am not a claimed “professional” in any way, shape, or form….. but I do have some knowledge and passion that I’m happy to share!”
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