Christine & Anthony’s Birth Story
The day before I was 41 weeks due, my husband and I went to the doctor for an ultrasound to check on our baby to make sure everything was well and he was healthy. I planned to let labor start naturally if possible, and was thinking I would give birth close to 42 weeks since I hadn’t felt any Braxton Hicks. This did not end up being the case because during the ultrasound, they could not find any measurable amniotic fluid. Because of this, the doctor said an induction was necessary for the safety of our baby.
We were able to go home and grab our hospital bag, eat, and take a shower before arriving at the hospital. Upon arrival, I asked for a room with a tub, as I had heard this can help relieve pain during contractions. They settled us in and explained they would need to ripen my cervix since my body was not in labor. After five hours and placing two pills in my cervix, I began to feel contractions and started to bleed.
Contractions progressed and got more and more painful as the night went on. I was bouncing on a medicine ball and breathing through each contraction. Around midnight the contractions were at a point where I knew it would be helpful for Emily to come and provide support through my contractions. My husband called and she left for the hospital.
Once Emily arrived, she instantly provided encouragement and affirmed I was doing a good job. She prayed over me multiple times, suggested different positions to help the baby move down the pelvis, and continued to remind me to drink water.
The nurse came in and said the next step was for me to be put on Pitocin. With Emily supporting my decisions and helping me advocate for myself, I asked if I could labor in the tub for a couple of hours and then evaluate my progress. The nurse agreed and I worked through contractions in the tub for around two hours. When the nurse came back to check my dilation, she said I had made good progress and did not need Pitocin!
The rest of the night I continued to work through contractions and wanted to get as far along as I could before getting an epidural. After 11 hours of contractions, the nurse said I was at a 6/7 for dilation and I asked for an epidural. It was shortly after 8am when I received the epidural, and I was able to rest and sleep. The next few hours I caught up on needed sleep and hydrated before I’d begin pushing. Emily was always thinking of what would help me and gave me water with electrolytes to hydrate. Around noon I was at a 9 for dilation, and then finally around 4:40pm I began to push.
When I received my epidural, I was fortunate to still have some feeling in my legs. Because of this, Emily talked to the nurses about trying different pushing positions. I truly think this made a huge impact! Upon Emily asking if they had a squatting bar, the nurse attached one to the bed and I was able to push while squatting. I also pushed on my hands and knees, as well as on each side. Moving to different positions was really helpful and made an impact on the progress. When Elias’ head began to crown, they asked if I’d like a mirror to see. I surprised myself and said yes. It was helpful to see that my pushing was making an impact. After a little over two hours, at 7pm on the dot, Elias came into the world!
When asked how I felt about my birth experience, I reflected on how it was the hardest thing I had done, but it was a positive experience, and I sincerely believe a big reason it was positive was because Emily was there and provided the support and encouragement I needed. The whole birth experience was a long one, yet Emily stayed with us the whole time. She went above and beyond and I can’t imagine giving birth without her.
-Christine & Anthony
