My Natural Hospital Birth Story

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Before becoming pregnant, I knew that I wanted a medication free childbirth. I was terrified at the thought of getting an epidural. Not to mention I didn’t want my baby to be affected by the medication. 

When I became pregnant, I decided to prepare myself for labor not only physically but mentally as well. I purchased a Hypnobabies study book about middle ways through my pregnancy. I found different birth affirmations that I would say to myself daily, I also recited Philippians 4:13 “I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me.” I watched natural birth stories on YouTube. Only positive one so that I could picture child birth as a positive experience. Finally the day had come. Here’s my retelling of my birth story. 

My Birth Story 

The day before I went into labor I was working. I was pretty uncomfortable that whole day. I was probably in labor that day, but I just didn’t know it. I’m going to be honest with you, I did not have extremely painful contractions. Honestly, I thought I was finally having Braxton Hicks. That night after I got off I did the usual made dinner and watched TV with my hubby. However, this night I was EXHAUSTED! I pushed through until it was time for bed. I recall tossing and turning that night. I also woke myself up a few times moaning. Which was odd because, like I said my contractions weren’t unbearable. 

Active Labor

6:00 am

My alarm when off to get ready for work.  My husband looked at me and asked if I was ok since I heard me moaning in my sleep. I told him I was fine and proceeded to get ready. I texted my SIL to ask her what the mucus plug looked like. Sure enough, I had lost the rest of the plus that morning. I think my instincts started to kick in because I started to get things together. I was scheduled to go in at 9:00a, so I had plenty of time. 

6:30am 

My contractions seemed to be getting more steady. I decided to track them using an app. I believe it was the Baby Center app. My contractions lasted about a minute long and were about 6 minutes apart. I couldn’t remember the rule, but I knew this seemed real. I called my job to let them know I wouldn’t be in. I tracked my contractions for about an hour. They went from being 6 minutes apart to being 4 minutes apart. My goal was to stay at home as long as possible. 

10:00am 

Since I didn’t have to worry about work I could relax a little. I continued to pace, finding things that I thought should go into my bag. I never “nested” so my bag wasn’t completely packed. Oops! By this point my contractions hadn’t really changed. I made sure to drink some water. I tried listening to my birth affirmations. I also worked on breathing through the contractions.

11:15am

My contractions started coming closer together. By this point they were lasting about 45 seconds and were about 3 minutes apart. Again, they weren’t unbearable, so I was still pacing. I should’ve been sleeping! 

11:30am 

I decided to call my OB to see if they thought I should go ahead to the hospital. I was told that since I was “Able to talk” that I probably wasn’t in labor… That was complete nonsense! Everyone labors differently! I held off for a little longer before going in. 

12:00pm 

My husband and I went for a walk around the block. I figured walking would help move things along. At one point during our walk, my contractions started to get a little stronger. I had to stop a few times. I called my mom to tell her my symptoms and of course she thought I should go in. 

1:00pm

I decided I wanted lunch. My mom was in town at this point, so I thought why not go sit and have lunch. CRAZY IDEA! The whole time we were eating I kept making faces! I pushed through because I wanted everyone to finish their meals. Ha-ha!! Thankfully the hospital was practically across the street. 

2:00pm 

I get to the hospital to check in. They wheel me back to L&D. We go through the check in process and they start the IV site.  I didn’t have an IV they just did that Incase I needed one. 

2:30pm

They finally check me. I was 8 cm dilated! They couldn’t believe it because they said I was so calm. Finally I got into the labor tub. It was AMAZING!!! The heat from the water helped to ease any discomfort. 

I labored in the tub for about 4 hours. They came in a few times to check the baby’s heart rate. I had the midwife on duty thank goodness. She didn’t bother me at all. She let me labor in peace. I’m so thankful for that. Whenever things got a little rough in the tub I would say my trigger word “breathe.” I’d also say Philippians 4:13, by the time I finished the contraction was over. I stuck to low moans. My goal was to conserve as much energy as possible. 

About halfway through laboring the tub, they thought it would be a good idea to bring me a food tray WRONG!! It smelt awful! I’m sure it was just my heightened senses. I had to tell them take to take the tray away, the smell made me nauseous. 

Transition

7:00pm 

My husband decided it was time to come out of the tub. I’m pretty sure I was in transition at this point because I only remember what he said happened. He guided me out of the tub. Told me to go lay down and relax. Once I got in the bed, I managed to throw up, all over his shoes!! He still talks about it of course. 

8:00pm 

The nurses come in to check me. I started to get really hot. My moaning got louder I couldn’t really control it at this point. When the nurse checked me I was at a 10. Time to push! I wanted to deliver on all fours, but I was exhausted by this point. I just wanted to sleep! I chose to let my body push the baby out. I didn’t follow the coaching that the Midwife was doing. At one point during pushing I told the Midwife that I wanted to take a nap! My water never broke during labor, so to make it easier for me to push she broke my water. 

8:52pm

Sure enough, about 3 pushes after that she was here! My husband actually got to deliver her! That was such a special moment for him! Although he says he almost dropped her!!! Eek! LO weighed 5lbs 12oz and was 17 inches long! We did delay cord clamping and she was placed right on me. We latched immediately, and she had me hook from that moment on. 

After having a natural childbirth I wouldn’t want to do it any other way. God has done some magical thing when it comes to pain reducing, bonding, and healing. I know natural births are t for everyone, however, I encourage everyone to research the process before giving birth.

So tell me! Did you give birth naturally, or are you planning to have a natural birth? Let me know in the comments below! 

-xoxo

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