My first unmedicated birth ❤️

*I want to preface by saying that however you give birth, you are a rockstar!! This is just my story and how I wanted to do it ❤️*

The last week of my pregnancy was a whirlwind. I was totally ok with going into labor whenever, even if it was past my due date… until my grandfather suddenly passed away. Both of my sisters made quick plans to be in town for the funeral, and suddenly, I wanted baby to be born NOW so he could meet his aunts while they were in town! The downside though- if he was born in time for them to meet him, I would miss the wake and funeral. It was hard wanting both scenarios so badly, but I tried very hard to be patient, trust God, and know I had no control over the situation.

Fast forward to the end of the week- baby stayed put and I was able to go to the wake and funeral and see tons of family, some I haven’t seen in years. I even got to meet my six week old niece! I was so exhausted after it all that I slept a full eight hours for the first time in weeks, then headed to my parents’ house for a low-key game night. My mom said she knew I was going to go into labor that day as soon as I told her I had slept so well 😜

As we were playing Ticket to Ride, I noticed my Braxton Hicks, which had been happening daily since 25 weeks, were happening more frequently. I didn’t want to get too excited, but I said it out loud and my mom was sure I was in labor and made me start timing then. I was sure I was NOT in labor, but humored her anyway…. The “Braxton Hicks” were 7-10 minutes apart, mildly crampy, but not painful. My sister-in-law said I might want to text my doula (aka my best friend!) juuuust in case.

Suddenly, around 8 or 9, I had a couple “Braxton Hicks” that felt more than just crampy. I was starting to get the anxious shakes at this point and thought *maybe* I might be in labor, but hey let’s start a game of dominoes to distract me! Then I had a REAL contraction and decided at that moment I wanted to go home 😂

Side note- my oldest sister was still in town for one more day. I casually mentioned that if she wanted to attend the birth, she was totally welcome to. But no pressure. She was, in fact, dying to be there and I didn’t have to tell her twice!

Fast forward a few hours, and things got intense real quick. I had my team of my doula, sister, and husband at home and the contractions were coming on quickly and intensely. I also threw up everything I had eaten. So that was fun. After coordinating with the midwife on call, we all met at the birth center at midnight. I labored in the tub for a couple hours, and after asking to be checked discovered I was already 10 cm dilated 😳 I felt very proud to have made it that far and was expecting to push baby out any minute…

Long story short, that did not happen. I pushed for four hours in the tub, on the toilet, on my hands and knees, and finally, on my side with a leg over the midwife’s shoulder where I FINALLY got that baby out at 6:21 AM. Lesson learned: in order to get a baby out, you actually have to push really hard and it hurts a lot. In those final moments of pushing, I was delirious and exhausted, but what I remember is my doula, sister, and husband (and the midwives) all cheering me on with every push and telling me how strong I was. That was what got me through 😭❤️ And suddenly my baby was there, covered in meconium, with his eyes open and a voice that let us know he was very much here and he was okay. They placed him on my chest, and I can’t even explain how it felt. So much love, relief, and shock at what just happened. And then he peed on me.

I just want to say, after all we went through to get our baby into this world (four years of infertility, a miscarriage, and finally IVF), I so badly wanted to experience an unmedicated birth in a peaceful setting. And while it was a little different than how I expected it to go, I did it! And I am so proud of myself ❤️

This story was shared on my Facebook but I edited it a bit to share here 😊