It was early 2020, and I was just announcing my pregnancy around the same time as the world was shutting down. I already had a fear of all things medical, and now we were looking at my husband potentially not even being able to be at our birth of our first child. Our son. I was so excited to become a mom, but also nervous for the state of the world come September. Things were a little unpredictable at the time.

About halfway through my pregnancy, I became interested in hiring a doula. I hired Tory (Carrier) and she suggested why not look into a birth center. I didn’t really know if that was something I’d be capable of. I started researching, and my husband was all for it! I made the call to the Natural BirthHouse not even realizing how that would change my entire view and experience with birth.
Around 30 weeks into my first pregnancy, after many prayers and much encouragement from my husband, I switched fully into care at The Natural BirthHouse. At the time, Midwife Kira was the only midwife running it all….Super woman! Between my doula and my midwife, I was given a wealth of knowledge that I soaked in those last few weeks. I watched every video Kira made (@CajunStork). I read every birth story I could get my hands on too and even watched many births online- which, as a side note, is why I am choosing to share my story publicly today. I learned the how’s and the why’s, and about comfort measures and meditation. I prayed. I prayed a lot, actually! I let my worries fade into The Lord’s loving arms. Midwife Kira helped me to feel prepared because we planned and had back up plans from the first day. I planned out my ideal birth and of course prepared too for what I felt could be my worst outcome – to have to transfer to the hospital.

On Wednesday morning, September 23rd in the early morning hours at 40 weeks and 2 days, my water broke. I woke up to the feeling of it and immediately knew. I had some doubts about it, but figured I should get some rest just in case. So yes, I went back to sleep! When my husband kissed me bye for work later that morning, before I could even tell him what I suspected, he told me he was just going to go to the office instead of making a three-hour commute away from me as planned because he “felt like he needed to be close.” His intuition was right! He left and I went about my morning. I texted Kira a little later, and she instructed me on some exercises at home to help us confirm. Sure enough, my water was broken! I had a little “this is it!!” moment and called my husband, who headed home. We had lunch together, and I finished getting everything just perfect.
Kira called later that evening to check in and I remember saying I didn’t think I was having contractions. We went over our plans again on when to make the move to the birth center and I contacted my doula. She asked, “Are you crampy?” I was so busy, I hadn’t even noticed that I was in fact sort of crampy! She told me to start timing those cramps and get to bed early; I’d need my rest.

My husband and I went for our daily walk, and then I went to bed watching a show while he snored on the side of me. My cramps were about 30 minutes apart when I got in bed and then were about 15 minutes apart by the time, I was ready to go to sleep. Well guys, you guessed it, I never went to sleep! I couldn’t relax to go to sleep because I felt restless and had the urge to pee. I still didn’t accept I was in labor. It never crossed my mind. Before I knew it, I was in a downward dog position trying to relax to go to sleep without waking up my husband. My husband woke up to what he described as moaning noises and heavy breathing. Now that we were both awake, I was trying to get comfortable. I got up to sit in a rocking chair. It was so uncomfortable! I shot out of the chair! Leaning forward was better, so my husband got the birth ball for me to kneel over in bed. I was able to rest and breath through contractions as he timed them.

Around midnight, he wanted to call the midwife, but I insisted everyone was supposed to be resting. Finally, I let him contact our doula. By listening to me talk, she decided to come over to help us decide when to head to the BirthHouse since we had almost an hour drive. Before she got to our house, I threw up. Once she was here, we tried a few different tools to get me comfortable. I threw up again while my husband was loading the car. She said we should contact Kira. We agreed to meet there around 3:30am. I was nervous about the car ride since it hurt to sit. I knelt on the floorboard of the car over the seat with an ice pack and my labor playlist. My contractions spaced out a little and I was able to rest. When we finally got to the BirthHouse, Kira thought Tory had told us to come too soon because I wasn’t behaving like I was in labor. A hard contraction hit me as we walked into the room and Kira asked to check me. I was 8 cm!!! I knew this was transition. I asked, “It’s going to get worse, isn’t it?” Kira comforted me, “You’re already doing it!” I was dehydrated and needed an IV. Her birth assistant was so good I barely realized she was there. My husband and doula gave me popsicles and honey sticks to give me some energy.

I wanted to get into the birth tub. Kira needed to monitor my son’s heart tones out of the water a little longer because he wasn’t recovering well after a contraction. I was given oxygen through a mask to help him improve. She called an ambulance but sent them away because he perked up enough. She told us it was possible she’d have to resuscitate him when he was born, and she had the tools to do it. After many position changes, I was able to get in the tub. I was able to rest for 30 minutes. I got out and agreed to another check. I was complete around 5:30am. Kira said, “You can push whenever you are ready!!” I still wasn’t sure what to expect. I was in labor land. The next thing I know, I’m pushing on the floor with everything in me. They could see his hair, but he was coming at a true snail’s pace and his heart rate was concerning still.  Kira said I needed to go to the hospital because our heart rates were matching, and she’d feel more comfortable to have him continuously monitored. I was disappointed and I could tell my husband was worried. I was not afraid. God was with me.

I was in an ambulance transferring to the nearest hospital around 6:30am, with my body steadily and involuntarily pushing. Kira was with me in case my son was born, and my husband followed. I hated being separated from my support. The hospital quickly got me into a room, but I could only have one person with me because of the Covid mandates. Kira refused to leave me until my husband could meet me. She filled in the nurses and when he arrived she reluctantly left with me pushing with the nurses. The hospital was concerned because my water had been broken for more than 12 hours. They did a cervical check and because of all the commotion and stress, I was back down to 9 cm. I was focused while I labored more. I threw up again and had another check. I was so tired. My nurse was so encouraging though! I will never forget her. The doctor finally came in, but by then I had been pushing for about 4 hours! He used a vacuum to assist in my son’s delivery. He was born on September 24th at 9:35am. He was healthy and so tiny! We did it! I had a 2nd degree tear, so I got stitches while I snuggled my baby.

My “worst-case scenario” may have played out, but in the moment, I have to say I only had peace. God protected us. My husband did an incredible job of staying strong and comforting even when he was terrified because we were prepared and trusted our team. My son’s birth was the most spiritual thing I had ever been a part of! I learned a lot about myself, what a woman’s body is capable of, and came out stronger on the other side. I am so honored to have been chosen by God to be a portal, bringing my baby earth side, and I couldn’t wait to do it again.

…and I did! Check out my daughter’s birth story next week!!