Abish and Jared were my first clients. I know them from church and approached them to see if they would be interested in having a Doula for the birth of their second child. They actually looked at me with blank stares, and wanted to know what a doula was? I explained briefly, and then sent them to few websites where they could read all about the benefits of having a doula. We then met in their home to discuss what having me as part of their birth team would mean for both of them. They decided to include me, but Abish insisted that an epidural was a MUST! I told her that was totally fine, but inside I was thinking, "we'll see!"
At our pre-natal visit, we discussed her previous birth and what sorts of things she could do differently this time. Her first labor was induced and she had an epidural for most of the labor and didn't really experience any really hard contractions. I assured her that she could do it, she could do anything that she put her mind to. As with all my clients, I advised her to labor at home as long as possible. Staying at home affords more freedoms. Women in labor at home can walk around, they are able to really listen to their bodies and are able to find coping measures. Well, she did! She had called me to check in after a doctor visit and gave me a lot of clues that she would be going in to be induced the following week. But in fact this baby was preparing itself for a grand entrance. When Jared called me at 3:30 the following morning they were getting ready to head to the hospital. I would find out later that she had been laboring for hours all on her own. She seemed to be handling the contractions well, and they were going to call me when they got to the hospital and let me know where things stood. Well, I was up, so I thought I would go ahead and meet them there. Again, we would figure out later that while she was in the shower before they left for the hospital, her water broke. The contractions were of course a lot more intense and she felt she could not get to hospital fast enough to get her epidural! When I got to the hospital they were already in a room and I had to wait for the ok to go back. Jared and Abish both seemed really relieved to see me!! But when I walked in the room I was shocked at all the activity. It was clear to me that the baby was coming, NOW! She was an 8 when she got there at about 3:58 and baby Caleb was born at 4:15 epidural free!!
I loved the conversation we had after everything had settled down. We talked about all that had gone on, since she had done most of the work on her own. Her cervix had been a little posterior when she had been at the doctor, this can sometimes cause labor to take a little longer. To help with this I would have had Jared stand behind her during a contraction and gently lift up her belly. This gives the cervix room to move forward where it should be. When I told her about this, she responded emphatically, "I did that!" She then explained that while she was laboring at home, during a contraction she wrapped her arms under her belly and pulled it up. She said it felt really good so she continued to do it. I was amazed! A women's body will always tell her what it needs if she really listens. I also loved when she told me she would have NEVER said, let's have natural childbirth. but that she felt so much better after this birth than the first when she had an epidural.
At our pre-natal visit, we discussed her previous birth and what sorts of things she could do differently this time. Her first labor was induced and she had an epidural for most of the labor and didn't really experience any really hard contractions. I assured her that she could do it, she could do anything that she put her mind to. As with all my clients, I advised her to labor at home as long as possible. Staying at home affords more freedoms. Women in labor at home can walk around, they are able to really listen to their bodies and are able to find coping measures. Well, she did! She had called me to check in after a doctor visit and gave me a lot of clues that she would be going in to be induced the following week. But in fact this baby was preparing itself for a grand entrance. When Jared called me at 3:30 the following morning they were getting ready to head to the hospital. I would find out later that she had been laboring for hours all on her own. She seemed to be handling the contractions well, and they were going to call me when they got to the hospital and let me know where things stood. Well, I was up, so I thought I would go ahead and meet them there. Again, we would figure out later that while she was in the shower before they left for the hospital, her water broke. The contractions were of course a lot more intense and she felt she could not get to hospital fast enough to get her epidural! When I got to the hospital they were already in a room and I had to wait for the ok to go back. Jared and Abish both seemed really relieved to see me!! But when I walked in the room I was shocked at all the activity. It was clear to me that the baby was coming, NOW! She was an 8 when she got there at about 3:58 and baby Caleb was born at 4:15 epidural free!!
I loved the conversation we had after everything had settled down. We talked about all that had gone on, since she had done most of the work on her own. Her cervix had been a little posterior when she had been at the doctor, this can sometimes cause labor to take a little longer. To help with this I would have had Jared stand behind her during a contraction and gently lift up her belly. This gives the cervix room to move forward where it should be. When I told her about this, she responded emphatically, "I did that!" She then explained that while she was laboring at home, during a contraction she wrapped her arms under her belly and pulled it up. She said it felt really good so she continued to do it. I was amazed! A women's body will always tell her what it needs if she really listens. I also loved when she told me she would have NEVER said, let's have natural childbirth. but that she felt so much better after this birth than the first when she had an epidural.
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