Rising Moon Midwifery

I really wanted to have my first daughter, Molly, naturally. I had planned her birth at the Bryn Mawr Birth Center. But to make a long labor story short, my water broke and I did not dialate. I ended up being in labor for 69 hours with a complete lack of support from a place that I thought would treat me completely differently from a hospital. I ended up having Molly in the hospital with an epidural, morphine, and pitocin. Vaginal, yes, natural, not so much.

After witnessing my friend Lisa's amazing homebirth with her son Hawthorne, I was completely confident, not only in homebirth, but with Kate and Jane. Coming from a very, very hospital/doctor/medical upbringing, I always had a fear of the whole homebirth thing. And after having the ridiculous labor I had with Molly, my birth confidence was a low. There is one thing that I don't lack and that is determination. I really credit Kate, Jane, and my Lisa with building my confidence throughout the nine months and allowing me to voice my fears and to have them be payed attention to and not just swept aside.

After a lot of visualization and work on my own, I felt ready. I could tell that the baby was big and my daily walks were growing shorter and shorter because of the heaviness of the baby. On the day Lilah was born, Kate came to the house and I had her check my cervix. I knew I was dialated, but I didn't think labor was going to happen that day. My husband, Molly, and I went out to dinner and I must have eaten enough for a 300 pound wrestler. We got home around 7, I put the key in the door and pop- my water broke. It was my greatest fear all over again. Here goes my water breaking without real contractions. I am going to have a nightmare labor again! I called Kate. When I "broke" the news that I was in labor she told me that another woman was in labor and we had some decisions to make. The other woman was in labor with her first baby, but she lived 45 minutes away. Kate asked me if I wanted to try castor oil to try to push labor along or if I wanted to wait it out and see. For anyone who knows me, I totally went for the castor oil. I had anxiety about my water breaking and not contracting again, plus I am about the most impatient person on the planet. I sent Nate and Molly out for the castor oil and I started to make phone calls and sent text messages to my family/friends who are pretty much family. Nate and Molly got home with the castor oil and I took my first dose. Kate and Jane arrived soon after. It was great because I was having contractions (yeah!!!!) and we were in my kitchen just hanging out and talking. It was so relaxed and fun (yes fun) that I quickly forgot my anxiety. Molly and my mother-in-law were watching movies on the couch and I soon put Molly to bed. After a little while and a shot of castor oil chased with gatorade (my stomach was so full from dinner I shot it down because I didn't think I could possibly fit another milk shake in my stomach) we moved into the living room and I hung out on the birth ball. We were still talking, but I could tell that Kate, Jane, and Nate (my husband) were pretty tired. I knew with another labor, they would need some rest and I was ready to have a little privacy. I labored in bed for awhile on my side with Nate laying next to me. Kate came in to check on me and I had her check my cervix. I was 5 cm. The contractions started to get very intense and I moved back out to the ball. Kate offered the birth tub, but I kept thinking it was too soon (still referencing that 69 hour labor). After a few more contractions, I changed my tune and moved to the tub. That was about when the castor oil took effect. The tub is amazing. I felt so much relief, but during the contractions, I was really, really tensing up because I was afraid to poop in the tub and get the water all dirty. Then I moved to the toilet, a laboring Jane's best friend. I was on the toilet, pooping and contracting. Pooping some more, contracting some more. I kicked everyone out for this part, including my husband. Jane, Nate and Kate kept checking on me, but they gave me my privacy. Then, the most incredible thing happened. I started to push. This may not sound incredible, but after having a labor that was completely drugged as my first experience, it was so mind blowing that my body was just instinctively pushing. When Kate came in, I told her about the pushing and she said, "Great!" She, Jane, and Nate all came into my teeny tiny bathroom and we pushed. I have never seen three more excited people. Jane was sitting in my bathtub and was so excited and smiling from ear to ear. Kate sat on the ledge of the tub and was calm, peaceful, and encouraging. This was the most amazing part of my labor. I don't think in any hospital or birth center you feel the love and excitement that I felt from those girls! I never hit the "I can't do it" part because their energy was contagious. Then we decided to move into the bedroom so I could pop out that baby.

Now, unlike most babies, mine don't pop out. Molly's shoulder got stuck and this baby was no different. I was pushing and pushing with all my might, but Little Lilah was not so little. Kate had to reach in and manuver her out because her shoulder circumference was bigger than her head (think linebacker pads). Lilah needed some oxygen, and suffered a little bit of a fracture in her arm on the way out the shoot. While Kate and Jane where getting Lilah to breathe, Nate whispered in my ear, "It's a girl." I was afraid to turn around because I didn't want to jostle the cord or get in the way of their work. I was thankful during these few moments for Jane's classes. I heard them talk about her cord still pulsing and I knew my girl was okay. It's strange to me, even as I'm writing this story how calm I felt at the time. I just knew everything would be okay and I had complete faith and trust in Kate and Jane. And it was. Nate and my mother-in-law brought Molly in to see me and the baby after she was situated and Molly got to see the birth of the placenta. She still talks about it to this day and whenever we go to visit Kate, she asks if the placenta is going to be there. I also hemoraged, and I got a shot of pitocin.

Oh, my beautiful little Lilah! Kate swaddled her so her arm wouldn't move. We nursed and slept side by side the rest of the night. Kate and Jane left to go be with the other woman who was laboring and came back in the morning after she delievered her beautiful little girl. They checked on me, fed me, and Kate went with Nate to get Lilah's arm checked out. Lilah's arm was fractured, not broken, and it took about 3 weeks to completely heal.

Bottom line: My birth was 5 hours. I had a 10 lbs 20 inch chunky peanut butter baby with a wicked shoulder circumference. You have no idea how proud it makes me to say, "I had a 10 pound baby, naturally, at home!"It makes me feel like a super hero!

It was one of the most powerful, insanely liberating experiences of my life and gave me complete trust in my body and in my caregivers. I could not have had a more amazing support system and to this day, I know Kate felt terrible about her arm, but I feel indebted to her for giving me the vaginal, natural birth I always dreamed of and wanted. I would have never had been given the chance to have a vaginal birth at a hospital and I truly believe that Kate's quick action and experience saved Lilah's life. I wouldn't trade any bit of this birth. To feel such love from caregivers is very rare now days. Kate and Jane will forever be a part of my heart and my family.