Laurel Jade Porter
Born April 16 at 7:06 pm
8 lbs 10 oz, 22 in
What we were expecting:
- To go into labor early, at least a few days before the due date (April 10). We expected this because Paisley was born right on her due date and first babies are usually later than second ones.
- Less early labor and more predictable/regular contractions.
- Little to no back pain during labor, since we were actively monitoring baby's position and trying to promote ideal positioning.
- A much easier and more comfortable birth than with our first.
- A faster labor and delivery - about 8 hours.
- More freedom during labor to do what feels right
- Minimal monitoring
- A perfectly healthy baby with plenty of time to hold her immediately after the birth.
Luckily, we got most of what we were expecting! But there was plenty unexpected. Here's how it went.
Sunday morning April 14 (4 days after my due date) I woke up early with some crampy contractions. I timed them for a little while and they were irregular and I knew it could still be a while before real labor started. Sure enough, they slowed down a lot as the day went on and we decided to go for a walk/short jog to see if it would help get things going. That helped a little and caused more birth show but not much else happened that night.
Monday morning I woke up with contractions again and this time they were consistently 5 mins apart! Thinking this was the real thing, I decided to take a bath to help with the discomfort. Unfortunately, after my bath the contractions got very irregular again. I called my midwives to see if they had any ideas on how to get things moving again. They asked me to come in so they could check my cervix and see where to go from there. We took our stuff just in case. When I got there I found I was only dilated 1-2 cm. They asked if I wanted a "sweep and stretch" (stripping membranes) and I told them to go ahead. It was far enough past my due date and I had experienced enough early labor already that I figured it could only help! They went ahead and did it right there. It was very uncomfortable. After that I had more contractions but they were still irregular. The midwives suggested we eat a good meal and get some rest so we thought we might go out to eat, but the contractions were too close and intense so I decided not to leave the house. That night at bedtime I wanted to get as much rest as possible because I knew labor was coming soon. I took a bath and said a prayer that I would be able to get some rest that night and then have the baby the next day. I went to bed and managed to get about 4 hours of sleep.
Tuesday morning the contractions woke me up again, this time extra early. They were about 7 mins apart. This time they felt different. They were more intense and over time I noticed back pain with them. I knew these were the real thing. I went through all morning breathing through the contractions and timing them but they would not get closer!
I called the midwives again to update them on how I was doing and see if they had any advice. They were so great about answering all my questions and concerns and I felt like they really cared about me and were thinking about me even before I called. When I told them what I was experiencing they asked me to come in again so they could check me. We drove off to the birth center again, wishing they would ask us to stay but not expecting much. They told me that my pattern of labor suggested that the baby was probably posterior and then confirmed that she was indeed in posterior position. (Not again!) They checked my progress and this time I was dilated to 4-5! The midwives suggested that I get some rest while the contractions were still irregular. They gave me the option of resting at the birth center or at home. I chose to stay. It was about 3:00 and Myles and I slept on the couches (it was more of a doze for me since I was still having surges every ten minutes or so) in one of their rooms for an hour. They gave me a specific position to rest in which would help the baby turn.
When we woke we found that they had prepared a room for us and wanted us to stay! They said they could tell from my moaning during surges that it was the real thing. haha! I'm noisy. I tried resting a little but I was too eager to turn the baby and get the labor moving.
About 30 minutes later (4:30) I had my sister/doula/
hypnobirthing instructor
Fiona meet me at the birth center and things really started moving. She tried a few rebozo techniques to change the baby's position and it seemed to help things move along. Unfortunately the back pain persisted. I wanted to get in the big jetted tub but midwives wanted me to labor outside of the tub as long as I could until the baby turned. I labored on my hands and knees for a while to promote the best possible position. I asked again to get in the tub and then the midwives gave me the go-ahead but wanted to check me first. I was at an 8! I put on my swim suit and climbed in the tub.
As soon as I got in the tub I felt relief... But then the contractions started coming really close together and stronger! The tub was a large deep jacuzzi-like tub with a special system for sanitizing every little crack and crevice. I have a video of myself laboring in the tub and it looks a lot easier than it really was. Those contractions came with a lot of pressure and I was still feeling the burning back pain, not to mention that I only got a 30 - 60 second break in between them. However, I still felt completely capable and in control. Fiona was fanning my face and Myles was giving me cold wet wash cloths to cool off my face. It seemed like this time the water made things really pick up and get moving.
It wasn't long before I felt like pushing so I gradually started pushing a little with each contraction. I wanted to push harder but I was still worried that the baby was not in a good position for pushing. I had heard that pushing out a posterior baby is much harder than other positions. My midwives checked the position with the doppler and confirmed that she was not posterior and she was in a great position for pushing. Yay!
Then I started pushing with more force but not yet at full power. At this point my waters had not yet broken and I was feeling a LOT of pressure with each contraction. I reached down to see if I could feel the head and there it was! Well, it was the bag of waters around the head. As soon as I felt that I got really focused. I told the midwives I could feel the bag of waters. "Yep, that's the bulging bag of waters" they said. "OK... let's break it." I said with determination. I guess my tone of voice and confidence was surprising to everyone because they all laughed. "That was awesome. I wish we had gotten that on camera" they said. I was so focused and determined to get her out! It took the student midwife a few surges to break the water and I was pushing at full force during each one.
Once my water broke the pushing was easier. The pressure was relieved and I could make progress much faster. It was only a few more pushes before I felt the "ring of fire" telling me her head was almost out. I knew that if I slowed down at this point I would reduce the risk of tearing, but I was IN THE ZONE! Nothing was stopping me from meeting my baby! One more big push and her head was out! "Look at that hair!" I said breathlessly. Two more surges and the rest of her body was out.
Heaven! The midwives immediately put her on my chest with a towel over us. "Talk to your baby" they said and all I could think to say was "Hello", "I love you" and "you are so beautiful" over and over. I also felt so great that I had done it! I pushed out my baby completely drug-free! Myles came really close to meet her and I said "This is your daddy! You are so lucky, you have a really great daddy, one of the best!" Myles wished we had gotten that on camera! ha! Then we told everyone her name...
Laurel.
While Laurel was on my chest the midwives rubbed her to make sure she could cry. She made noise but didn't cry much. That's ok! She was just so content to be with me that she didn't feel like crying! Then they started suctioning some mucus out of her nose and throat. I remember the doctors had to do the same thing with Paisley but they took her away to do it. I was so grateful that this time I could hold Laurel while they did everything they needed to.
Once the cord stopped pulsing Myles cut it. She had a lot of mucus in her nose and throat so the midwives had to spend a lot of time getting it all out. Eventually they did take her away to do it, but not until we had plenty of time to get to know each other and Myles got to hold her while they did it.
We moved out of the tub and into bed where they worked on my uterus and I finally birthed the placenta. They said my uterus was tired from having such a long early labor. I was tired too! They also checked for tears. They said I had one tiny tear they compared to a paper-cut then they triumphantly declared that I had a "intact perineum"! I attribute that to the water birth. It helps prevent tears.
Then I finally nursed Laurel for the first time. She did so good! She latched on like a little vacuum hose and her suck was so strong! I could definitely tell she was getting plenty of colostrum because I could hear her sucking and swallowing. I remember one of the student midwives looking me in the eye and thanking me for breastfeeding my baby because it was such a great gift I could give to her. *warm fuzzies* I so appreciated her taking the time to tell me that. What a great first experience nursing Laurel!
We spent the next little while just admiring Laurel and holding her and loving her... The midwives continued to monitor her vitals. Eventually they informed me that her respirations were a little high. They said if her breathing rate didn't go down she would have to be transferred to the hospital NICU. However, her rates were on the borderline where she might be fine, but she might not. I felt confident that everything was going to be okay and that Laurel was fine. However, the medical advice we were getting was very clear that it would be a big risk to take her home in that condition. We made the decision that we would take her to NICU if we needed to. I was disappointed that we would have to take her because I knew it would mean a lot less snuggling, skin-to-skin contact, more difficulty nursing, and of course the emotional struggles that come with being away from your newborn when she is not well.
Thankfully, the midwives came back and said that they would stay and keep an eye on her a while longer and see if her respirations would go into the normal range on their own. I loved that idea! Especially because I knew in my heart that she would be fine and I wanted to avoid going to NICU if possible. Sure enough, it wasn't long before her resps were normal and they told us Laurel would be perfectly fine. What a relief!
I finally took a shower and got into bed and the midwives left us to rest. Myles and I got a few hours of sleep in our nice big bed next to Laurel, then we took her home. Paisley loved meeting her that morning. She loves giving Laurel hugs and kisses. She is a great sister.
Overall, I loved the birth center, I loved my midwives, my doula, hypnobirthing, and I had a great experience while I was there. I did not love waiting till 6 days past the due date, my long early labor, and the back labor. However those things were completely out of my control. The experience at the birth center was much better than the hospital.
Now Laurel is exactly 8 weeks old! She is 24 inches tall (100th percentile!!! Wow!!) and 11 pounds 15 ounces (93rd percentile). She wont fall asleep or stay asleep anywhere but my arms or her swing. But she has more alert time now when she will laugh, smile, hold her head up, and push up with her legs! She is strong and perfectly healthy. We love her to infinity and beyond!
