The Birth Story

Rayna will turn one year old tomorrow. TOMORROW! It definitely does not feel like it was a whole year ago that our tiny little baby was born. But it's true that exactly one year ago today, I went into labor. I didn't post the birth story right after she was born because, at the time, it was a little too fresh... if you know what I mean. Haha. I didn't really want to relive it, plus my time was precious and I was using it to enjoy my baby and get some sleep. Then we moved a couple weeks later, and by the time things settled down, it seemed a little anti-climactic to type it all up on here. Plus, I have a hard time keeping it under 3000 words. It was quite the ordeal for me. Haha, I'm being serious. This is long and my feelings aren't hurt if everyone decides to skip reading this post. But in honor of the one year anniversary of my "labor day" I will share the story:

When I started looking for a doctor (around 13 weeks) I asked for lots of opinions and friends' experiences. I wanted a doctor who I felt comfortable with, who would respect my opinions, and who would ultimately help me have the kind of birth I wanted. When one of my friends told me she had used a midwife with her baby, I was intrigued. A midwife? Like a witch doctor woman? I was a little skeptical. I wasn't into that kind of thing: expensive herbs, drums, incantations.... haha. Kidding. (Nancy, you read this blog, right? THANK YOU!) I looked up a few in the area though, talked with some birthing centers, and spent a lot of time thinking about it. While I wanted to do a natural birth, I wasn't so sure about laying on an uncomfortable hospital bed without the option to move around while doing a natural birth, so I gave one of the midwives a call. She and I talked several times and after talking with Bowman and plenty of prayer, I decided to do a homebirth with this midwife and her assistants.

When I told people I had a midwife I got quite the spectrum of reactions. It didn't bother me, because I realized that a midwife was exactly what I was looking for. Personally, I consider myself pretty far from the stereotypical home birth client: I buy food that's yummy and on sale, not the organic stuff. I go to the doctor when I'm sick, not to the health food store. But I chose my midwife because 1) I was totally comfortable with her and her philosophies, and 2) I got to choose exactly what I wanted and didn't want as part of the pregnancy and birth experiences. I'm so glad I chose who I did to give me the care I had. If you're ever considering a midwife.... call me! I will tell you all about Richelle Jolley and why I liked her.

So after a lovely pregnancy without any major problems or issues (not many minor ones either), my due date came and went. I wasn't worried, just impatient. The only thing to do was wait! I had an appointment the day after where I found out I was already dilated to a 3. Woohoo! But I went home and didn't feel a bit different for days afterward.

My original due date was Tuesday, January 19, and five days later, on Sunday, I woke up early. I wanted to practice the piano at church before sacrament meeting started, so I got in the car to drive over when I noticed a funny feeling. Water..... gushing.... everywhere...... just kidding! No, I noticed a little cramping feeling and I thought, "Hey, is that a contraction?" But it wasn't painful, wasn't scary, so I took note, 8:30 am, and kept going. I practiced the piano, went back to get in the car (I had to go home and pick up Bowman), and walked out to the parking lot. Let me paint a picture for you: icy parking lot, 40+ weeks pregnant lady, dress, nylons, heels.... I fell flat on my back. It was awesome. I gingerly stood up, waved to the stunned bystanders, and limped over into the car.

For the rest of that Sunday I had contractions every 20-30 minutes. I told Bowman not to freak out or get his hopes up, because I was doing fine. I didn't have to stop, breathe through, freak out, nothing like that. We cleaned our house top to bottom that night anyway, just in case. I called my mom, called my midwife, and told them both I'd let them know when things started to pick up. Bowman and I went to bed, but I never ended up falling asleep. I laid there in bed, feeling the contractions, which had started to become a little more painful. Eventually I gave up on sleep and moved to the couch where I tried to read a book. No luck. I knew by now that things weren't going to die down. I tried to relax and sleep or at least just rest, but I was excited and nervous and the contractions really were getting strong enough that they hurt. I woke up Bowman when I couldn't wait anymore, around 3:00. He got dressed, chatted with me for a while, and then went to the store to get all the last minute food we wanted to have around. Haha, why did we need food at 3:00 am? Now I look back and I'm not entirely sure. I guess we wanted snacks and things we didn't have at the time, and we didn't buy them before because it was Sunday? I'm not sure, haha.

He was gone for about an hour and a half and that was the worst part up to that point. I laid in bed, trying to relax from contractions but they hurt and I was alone and tired. They were coming every 5-10 minutes. Eventually he made it back, filled up the fridge and freezer with the goods, and went back to bed. I told him to get the rest he could since we had quite the show ahead of us.

I called my midwife around 6:00 when I thought it was getting close enough for her to come over. She arrived around 7:30 with her two assistants and the party started!! One person helped me relax, did some massage, monitored the baby's heart rate every so often. The other two got busy setting things up. They covered the floor and the bed with plastic, and started getting the tub ready. I wanted to do a water birth and I am SO GLAD I did. I had a big plastic tub (actually a horse trough, but I don't like to think of it that way!) lined with pillows and blankets, then covered with a big plastic sheet. They filled it up with warm water, and when it was ready, I got in. It was so comfortable, like a big soft hot tub, and I loved it. Before I got in though, I asked my midwife to check my progress, and I was dilated to a 7 and 100% effaced! I was so glad that my night of contractions hadn't been for nothing!

Several hours later, around 10:00, I was feeling great. Bowman and I were drinking a smoothie (made from the midnight shopping spree's food, so maybe it was worth it), I was fully dilated, and life was good. I was using my Hypnobirthing relaxation techniques and they were awesome. Bowman was a great help, and even though the contractions were tough, I felt totally in control. My water still hadn't broken though, and the baby was still pretty high up because of it. I decided to have my water broken, because I didn't want to get tired out going through more contractions before the real work of pushing even started. So they broke my water and all the sudden the contractions started getting different. I got scared and started freaking out in my mind, saying, "There's no going back now!" Haha what? Of course no going back! When was that ever an option?

After several hours of trying to relax and "breathe the baby down" (according to Hypnobirthing) and plenty of actual pushing, they told me if I reached down I could feel the head. I reached down, and holy smokes, I could! At that point I was so relieved because I was a total mess. I was tired and anxious and probably blubbering all over (I can't remember) because I just wanted to be finished. With two more huge pushes her head, then her body came out. Bowman got to catch her and bring her out of the water. She was tiny and clean and beautiful! She was born on Monday, January 25, at 1:40 pm.

The thing I loved most was the peacefulness of the whole thing. I mean, I was at the breaking point and it was the hardest thing I have EVER done, but when it was over, it was quiet, and we were at home, and there was no pressure or stress. My midwife took care of me (pitocin to help stop the bleeding, stitches, IV, etc.) while Bowman got to hold the beautiful baby. It was calm and really wonderful.

It took us 3 days before we decided on her name. I thought Rayna Suzanne was the most beautiful name in the world. I still do! We chose Rayna because it was just so pretty, and Suzanne because it's my mom's name. I love that name. :) I was so lucky to have family, friends, and a ward who took care of us after Rayna was born. We were totally spoiled and I was so happy. Rayna is the most wondeful baby we could have asked for and I'm so glad she's ours!