I received a call late Saturday evening from my client saying her water broke... in the middle of a fancy restaurant. Every woman's fear, lol! Turns out, you can live through the humiliation. :) Having the water break before labor begins can be stressful. Sometimes contractions will start right away, but often, labor takes it's time to start. And moms find themselves in this weird state of almost being in labor. We kept in touch over the phone, and mom was contracting all night, but nothing regular. Just enough to ruin her sleep unfortunately.
Sunday brought fatigue and discouragement as contractions still hadn't settled into an active labor pattern. After taking an ambien for an afternoon nap, my client and her midwife decided to try some cytotec around 7:30 pm to get things going. It worked quickly and I joined them at 8:30 pm. I arrived to find mom listening to her labor music and leaning over the bed while her husband rubbed her back with a heating pad. They were doing awesome!
Contractions were definitely intense and her labor pattern was awesome. We worked on welcoming the new intensity and remaining focused on our breath. And at 9:50 mom was already 8 centimeters! Exciting news! At 10:30 mom decided to try the tub for some extra pain relief, and by 11:00 she was already starting to feel some pressure and grunt through her contractions.
We tried lots of positions to encourage baby to descend.
It's common for first time moms to have to work hard to get their first baby through the pelvis, and this woman was no exception. She was a trooper, and tried every suggestion from myself and the midwife. Progress was happening, but it was happening slowly.
Shortly before midnight mom decided to try some nitrous to help her relax. She asked for her pushing song and found her inner strength. It was amazing to see how this song helped her find her power! We kept the song on repeat until her baby was born, and I think I found my new favorite pushing song! (Sia, Unstoppable.) She tried the birth stool, squatting, hands and knees, you name it.
Most women don't go into their births hoping to deliver on their backs, but when no other position works, flat-on-your-back usually does.
And at 2:25 am, Raven Dawn was finally born!
Raven Dawn
Born Monday, February 6th, 2017
2:25 am
8 pounds 3 ounces
This mama truly was unstoppable! Her strength was amazing to witness.
By 3:40, Raven was nursing like a champ. I snuck away as my clients enjoyed their new baby and as "Sweet Child of Mine" played in the background.
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