The Birth Plan (Normal Delivery)
NO IV
NO Monitors (except the first 30 minutes)
NO Respiratory in the room
Clothing: Loose tank top
NO Pain Meds
Camera/tri-pod
Positions to consider: standing up, hands and knees......
Midwife assisted labor and delivery
After the baby is born I want to hold my baby as long as I want before weighing etc...
No cutting of the cord for 3 or so minutes.
I'd rather respiratory didn't come in at all. Unless really needed.
My thoughts of womanhood have evolved since 2003 when I delivered my first baby. That was a good experience. Although I didn't have anything to compare it to. Everything went well. I had the expected epidural. I had the big mirror to see what was happening. I had no pain. It felt like an out of body experience. It felt like I didn't deliver my baby. I cheated. I just watched by body do it. It was a beautiful moment to see my daughter for the first time. I had easy labor, and pushed her out no problem, and very fast even though she weighed 8 lbs. After delivery it took awhile for the numbness in my legs to wear off. I felt totally exhausted. I was very sore.
My second delivery in 2006, I still wanted an epidural. I had the same out of body experience. This time the doctor put my baby girl on my chest as they wiped her off. I thought that was amazing. I had to wait a long time again for the epidural to wear off and was again very sore. She weighed 7 lbs.
Since then I have talked to a lot of women. (Relief Society activities ladies is the place to meet lots of different women!) Some women who have delivered natural told me their stories. I was totally fascinated. One woman said to me "my favorite part of delivery is the ring of fire." My eyes got big. One woman told me how she was in the tub at home, not expecting to be in full labor, when she stood up to get fresh air from the window above her when she felt her baby coming out. She called out to her husband, and delivered her baby right there standing up in the tub! Another woman was laboring standing up holding onto the side of the hospital bed when she delivered her baby. After hearing these stories, I felt that I hadn't experienced delivering my babies. I didn't know what it felt like to push out my baby. I am a woman. I am given this amazing gift to create life on this earth and I absolutely wanted to experience every part of being a woman. I wanted to feel the sense of accomplishment that I delivered my baby, and I know I did because I felt it. I want to feel bringing my baby into this world. I don't want to be numb ever again!
My son was born in 2008. I believe that an active lifestyle and intercourse put me into early labor. With little contractions my soft, stretchy cervix dilated fast to a 9 cm at 34 weeks with no time to do anything about it. It was completely pain free to get to that 9 since I had little contractions. Knowing how fast my other deliveries were, and the fact that I made it to a 9 already made the decision to go natural a no brainer. Let me tell you that my delivery was not pain free. I didn't have much pain until the baby crowned. And when he did.....WOW! It was the most amazing pain I had ever felt. There is nothing to compare it to. I yelled out, "HELP ME!" I was totally scared to push. I felt like if I pushed, all my insides would come out. It almost felt wrong to push. "You want me to push my guts out so that I will then die?" All of those thoughts and feelings were a matter of seconds and after a couple quick pushes, out he came. I did hold him soon after but he was working very hard to breath and they took him away. I don't want to talk about the rest of it. I spent the next 10 days in the hospital with him. It wasn't easy. But my recovery after delivery was easy. The easiest yet. I had energy in my legs after he was born. I could walk, I wasn't very sore because I didn't need an episiotomy. I felt so human. I felt soo good compared to the other deliveries. I was amazed at how much better my recovery was.
I am so happy to have made it to 36 weeks. Although I have experienced a natural birth I want to add more to the experience this time. This time I am using a Nurse Midwife, who is much like my regular doctor but with the womanly, midwife touch. She delivers in the hospital. I want her to be an active roll in helping me know what position I want to deliver in. What I want to add this time to the experience after birth is of holding my baby for an extended time. It is hard to explain exactly what I want but if all goes well with no complications and I can wait another week (because my CNM is out of town!) I hope to have the experience I want. Because of knowing what my body does during labor and delivery from my past delivery experiences it gave me the confidence to do these natural births. If I was in pain for 20 hours trying to get to that 4cm I would probably vote for epidural every time. I would probably think that I had experienced enough pain and enough womanhood. That simply isn't my experience and the way my body is. Every one is so different. But for me this is how it is and I am excited. I'm already 5 cm, so it should go fast and smooth! I'll keep you posted :)
