Today my oldest turns 7 years old, what?! Time flies when you are having fun and adding lots of babies to your family with each passing year! In honor of her birthday, I want to share her birth story which also is my very first home birth. The experience was so wonderful I have gone on to have four more home births with all of our boys. Each home birth has been unique. Some even came with worrisome moments but because of our midwife’s knowledge and skill each home birth has been successful. Now let me take you down memory lane to my successful home birth with Baby #1, our daughter Olivia…
Pre-Labor Signs
A month prior to her arrival, I did experienced Braston Hicks a few times here and there most days. But it was nothing more than what felt like slight cramping and my stomach getting hard, so I didn’t think much of it. I also had some ankle swelling as I was working full time and on my feet most of the day. Wearing compression socks during the day and coming home to put my feet up helped reduce that.
Labor Begins with Baby #1
I woke up around 5a.m. on a rainy Monday morning needing to use the bathroom and felt some light cramping. I couldn’t go back to sleep wondering if this was the beginning of labor as they would come every so many minutes. Each contraction also made it feel like I had to use the bathroom. This continued for two more hours before I told Sam what was going on. I waited to tell him in case it was a false alarm.
The Midwife Arrives for the Home Birth
After telling Sam what I was experiencing he called our Midwife around 8a.m. Our Midwife said it did sound like labor and roughly an hour later she was at our apartment. She got the bedroom set up. Checked to see how dilated I was and informed me I might not be that far along. We were all pleasantly surprised when at that time I was at 6 centimeters dilated. She also took the time to listen to the baby’s heartbeat, which sounded great.
Delivery with Baby #1, Meeting Olivia
Labor dragged on for hours and I wanted nothing more than to take a nap! Since I had never been through labor before I didn’t know how much worse the pain would get. Nor did I know how slowly or quickly you dilate so I didn’t allow myself to rest much. I went back and forth from sitting on the bathroom floor, that is what felt comfortable to me. To sitting backward on the toilet, this can help speed up contractions. Then to having contractions in different positions on the bed to help my body move things along. At some point while in the bathroom laboring my water broke. A little before 5p.m., I reached 10 centimeters.
I began pushing and yelling, and our Midwife calmly told me to stop and focus on pushing. Yelling would just wear me out. After 5 or so pushes I was crowning. Our Midwife’s assistant asked if I wanted to feel the baby’s head. Considering I was feeling the “ring of fire” I took a breath and told her I just wanted her OUT! With one more push Olivia came into the world! She was placed on top of me, and I looked into my daughter’s eyes. I later told Sam even though I was seeing Olivia for the first time, it felt like I had known her forever. This has gone on to be the case with all my boys as well.
While cuddling Olivia I waited to birth the placenta which came quickly with the help of our Midwife massaging my now deflated stomach. A few minutes later when our Midwife gave Sam the all clear he was able to cut the cord.
Postpartum Care after My Successful Home Birth with Baby #1
Our Midwife then took Olivia to clean up, weigh and do anything else that is vital in the first few minutes after birth. She was born a few minutes after 5p.m. and weighed 8lbs. and 4ozs. The assistant helped me to the bathroom to clean myself up. Now I have since learned that after birth I need to let the Midwife care for the newborn first. This gives me time to eat, get my energy up, then have them help me get cleaned up. With my first homebirth I didn’t know. So mere minutes after giving birth I was being helped to the bathroom and feeling like I might pass out. I did make it to the toilet with the assistant’s help. I sat there for a few minutes while they brought me something to drink and let me rest before trying to get in the shower to clean up.
Once the bedding was changed, and Olivia and I cleaned up we were able to relax and cuddle. Sam left to get us Chick-fil-a, since that is what I wanted to eat. While he was gone, I was able to visit with our Midwife and talk over how the birth went, and anything I needed to know over the next 24 hours. Considering it was my first home birth she told me I did so well. Even if I didn’t see things that way. During this time, she also made sure that Olivia latched, and I didn’t have any nursing questions.
The Dog Meets Baby after the Home Birth
At this time, we did have a dog that had been a part of our family for almost four years. Since our bonus daughters lived full time with their mom, they were not at home to meet the baby. So, our dog was first in line. Our midwife took the towels used to catch Olivia and laid them near the kennel. This way our dog could smell her scent before physically meeting her. He was a great dog with her. While he was much bigger than Olivia, we never had to deal with him jumping on her as a baby. Or knocking her over once she got bigger and was pulling up on things while trying to walk.
What I Did Right after My Successful Home Birth with Baby #1
Honestly looking back, I think just making it through my first home birth was a huge win! With each home birth I have learned to better care for myself and make the recovery process that much better. Two days after having Olivia I felt great with minimal postpartum pain and decided to visit my coworkers at work and show off my new baby. A week after that I was shopping at Target with my Mom for a few things we needed. While these outings didn’t hinder my recovery in any way, they did wear me out quickly and I was usually sore after. I wish I would have taken the time to rest properly, eat better, and let others care for me while I cared for our new baby. This is something I have eventually started doing with each additional home birth. Let me tell you it makes the recovery process that much better!
For More Information on Home Births…
I hope this home birth story was informative to read, and it shows you a different way of doing things that may not be as scary as it seems. Wondering where to start when researching a Home Birth? Then check out my post Where to Start When You are Considering a Home Birth.
Leave a Reply