March 18, 2005

On a chilly March Friday night around 1am, Kathleen's water broke while she was in bed asleep. She got up to check things out and decided it was time. She called Doula Sue at 1:10am to ask some advice. She and Sue decided it was best to call the doctor and let him know what was going on. Kathleen called Sue back around 1:35am to tell her they were off to Upper Chesapeake Medical Center. Sue arrived at the hospital at 1:50am and Kathleen, Edward, and Big Sister Kerry(there was 19 years between babies!) were not far behind. She was checked in by Nurse Denise who put her on the monitor and an exam showed she was 2cm dilated and in labor. So everybody moved to room 7 where the new family would welcome their new addition. After getting Kathleen settled at 3am, the contractions were now every 2-3 minutes. She really didn't want to be in bed so at 3:30 she was up and walking around. Edward and Kathleen discussed his work schedule that day (they own their own business) and it was decided that he would go home, sleep a few hours, and go to pick up his work crew and get them started for the day. Then he would return by 9am or sooner if we called. Kerry decided to take a little snooze too. At 5am Kathleen was sitting on the birth ball and handling the contractions really well. The nurse returned to put Kathleen on the monitor for 10 minutes or so to see how the baby was doing. All was well and Sue advised Kathleen to rest while she could. At 5:14am the doctor arrived to check on Kathleen and baby. He said he would return shortly to do an exam. Kathleen was having back pain so Sue heated the rice sock for her back. Kerry was catching the A Candid Camera moments and giving her mom encouragement. At 6:15am she was pretty uncomfortable in the bed so Sue suggested she get in the shower on the birth ball. She had much relief in the shower. The contractions were becoming more intense but Kathleen was doing awesome. The doctor came in around 7:45am and Nurse Donna and Sue helped her get back into bed and on the monitor. The exam showed she was 5cm! Great progress! At 8:13am she was off the monitor but wanted to rest in bed for a bit. Edward arrived back to the room and Big sister Kerry went for a Starbucks run for her and Sue! At 8:19am Dr. Swanbeck wanted to do another exam and Kathleen was 6cm's! It wouldn't be long before the new baby would arrive.

Kathleen was really having a lot of back labor so we tried the rice sock again at 9:02am. At 9:15am Sue suggested she use the bathroom and sit on the potty for a bit to help relieve some of the pressure. She was back in bed on the monitor at 9:21am and lying on her side. She was feeling A LOT of bottom pressure. At 9:49 she was off the monitor and wanted the nurse to check to see if anything was happening. She was still 6cm's at 10:40am. Kathleen then got out of bed and sat on the ball leaning over the bed with the monitor still hooked up. The pressure was really getting tough to handle. But Kathleen was doing an amazing job of relaxing and listening to her doula. She relaxed totally with each contraction while doing her breathing. At 11am the nurse took her off the monitor and she remained on the ball. Sue was massaging her back using lavender lotion. It was now 12:05pm and time to get on the monitor for 10 minutes.

Nurse Donna sat on the floor holding the monitor so Kathleen didn't have to get back in the bed. We were all truly bless with this awesome nurse! At 12:15pm she again went to sit on the potty to help with the pressure and then back on the ball. Doula Sue was beginning to think that this little one was going to come out the hard way - sunny side up! She was comfortable on the ball until 1:27pm when she had to get back into the bed on the monitor. Nurse Donna did an exam at 2pm which showed Kathleen was complete! 10cm's 100% effaced and the baby was at +1 station. Now the pushing began at 2:15pm with a very exhausted Kathleen. Dad and Big Sister were right there for the big event. Kathleen was so tired she was having problems pushing long enough to bring the baby down. At 2:47pm the doctor ordered some Pitocin to get the contractions more even and longer so Kathleen could push more effectively. She was so exhausted she could not even open her eyes but she listened to everything Sue was saying to her and tried her best. The Pitocin worked its magic and at 3:26pm on March 18th, 2005 Baby girl Grace was born! She did in fact come out sunny side up. No wonder Kathleen had so much trouble getting her out and had so much back pain! Grace's Apgar scores were 8/9, she weighed 8lbs 10ozs, she was 21" long. Her head was 13. 2" and her chest was also 13 .2. She was absolutely gorgeous and had a sweet cry. Big Sister's were busy planning trips to the mall to buy cute pink clothes and talking about ballet lessons when she was old enough. There was even a discussion about when she would start to learn to play the piano! Daddy Edward was just in total amazement of his new daughter and his strong wife.

Kathleen, all I can say is WOW. You are an amazing woman. Your strength, faith and courage shown thru bringing your little girl into this world. You have now joined the ranks of natural childbirthing women who have done what you did without pain medications or an epidural! You are truely what natural childbirth is all about. Your commitment to having birth your way is what I wish for every mom I work with.

Thanks to you and your family for allowing me to be present to witness this miracle of birth. It is truely an honor to be asked to Doula at a birth and this is one I will never forget. Your loving family will always be in my thoughts and prayers.

Sue

I met with Sarah the day after she returned to the US. She was jet-lagged but very excited about the upcoming birth. She had been using relaxation tapes at night to help her fall asleep and we discussed comfort measures we would use during her labor. Brian was due to arrive in the US in the coming week, and since I was teaching them private childbirth preparation, we felt comfortable that we would have a chance to become better acquainted in the weeks leading up to her baby's birth. However, this baby had other plans.

The day after Brian arrived home (3 weeks before her actual EDD), he phoned me to say that Sarah's waters had broken. They called their midwife and arranged to meet for a "check". Sarah was 80% effaced and fingertip dilated. They returned home to rest for the pending birth. Since I was in the area, I stopped by to see how Sarah was doing. She had just started having contractions and found them to be uncomfortable, but was managing well. I encouraged her in some quickly taught deep breathing techniques, suggested she shower, and stay upright, and promised to return in the afternoon, or earlier, if they needed me.

By afternoon, Sarah was having strong, regular contractions. She had showered and had tried to take a nap. I coaxed her out of bed, sat her on the birth ball and started to massage her shoulders. Because we had been unable to have their childbirth preparation classes, I gave Sarah and Brian a "down and dirty" version of what was happening, what was going to happen, and what we would be doing.

Sarah did very well with plenty of breathing support and continued assurance that she was doing a great job birthing her baby! Within an hour, her contractions became very challenging, 3-4 minutes apart, and lasting 60 seconds long. Brian called the midwife at 5 PM and it was decided that everybody would meet at the birth center at 6 PM.

Sarah was checked at the birth center and she was happy to learn she was 7-8 CM dilated. She asked to continue birthing in the Jacuzzi and once she did, she said she was very happy with the pain relief the warm water provided. The midwife, her backup, Brian, and me (her doula), settled by the sides of the tub to quietly encourage Sarah through the intense contractions. Sarah was very much on top of her contractions and closed her eyes with each one, breathing quietly, vocalizing a little, and relaxing her body into the water. At 8 PM, Sarah felt like she wanted to push. She wanted to get out of the Jacuzzi, so we encouraged her to push wherever she felt most comfortable: the bed, the toilet, back in the bed! Positioning Sarah was very important, as there were some concerns that the baby might be large, and we wanted to open up Sarah's pelvis as much as possible.

Finally, with Sarah near exhaustion, she pushed her baby out into the world at 10:35 PM. Nathaniel cried lustily! He weighed in at 9lbs, and had fine large hands! Sarah was very pleased with her birth experience, despite a placenta that just would not deliver, and resulted in it being manually removed.

This is the delightful story of Abigail’s birth.

Leslie spent the last couple weeks of her pregnancy in great discomfort. Since her body was exhibiting signs of pending labor (4 CM dilation, 80% effaced, loss of bloody show), she and Chip agreed to try a “light” induction to nudge baby Abigail into the world.

At 1 PM, Leslie was started on a very low dose of Pitocin. She started contracting lightly within 20 minutes. Her dose was increased after about 45 minutes, with noticeably stronger contractions, but still very bearable. Leslie, Chip, and Cindy, their doula, used some comfort measures during this early phase of labor, and Leslie remained very bright and upbeat.

Leslie and Chip were soon surrounded by loving family members, eager to help in any way they could.

Leslie dilated easily to 5 CM. Dr. Hays was satisfied that the baby was tolerating the induction well, and decided to break Leslie’s membranes to speed labor. At 5 PM, her membranes were ruptured, and her amniotic fluid was clear indicating the baby was doing great.

From 5 PM onwards, Leslie had increasingly challenging contractions. Her birth team walked the halls of the labor and delivery ward with her, encouraged her to breath deeply, massaged her shoulders and back, and kept her focused on very strong contractions. Leslie also sat on the birth ball and said it helped keep the pressure off her sacrum.

Leslie started to approach the “I can’t take it anymore” phase, where most women discover they are fully dilated. Cindy encouraged Leslie to hold out for one more exam to see where she was. At 6:20 PM, Cathy Moir, their wonderful nurse, checked Leslie and told her she was 10 CM and ready to push!

Leslie gave a few tentative pushes and then worked very hard to push her daughter into the world. At 7:19 PM, Abigail Elaine was born! Leslie only had to push for one hour, but what a long, hard last hour that was!

Abigail weighed in at 8 lbs, 3 oz., and measured 19” long. Cindy, her doula, described her as a “roly-poly”, and it was noted that she was a very calm, alert baby - no doubt due to Leslie’s ability to remain epidural-free during birth!

Baby Abigail showed signs of wanting to breastfeed and latched on at 8 PM and nursed for 15 minutes.

Joseph's Home Birth (Midwife, Doula)

Pregnant with their third son, Jocelyn and Kevin started planning early in her pregnancy for a home birth. They decided, after previously experiencing a hospital birth with Samuel and a birth center birth with Joshua, that they would feel most comfortable giving birth at home with a midwife and doula in attendance. Jocelyn and Kevin felt confident that the birth would progress smoothly.

On Tuesday, May 18th, Jocelyn started experiencing light contractions in the wee hours of early morning. Kevin started assembling the birth team: Karen, their midwife; and, Cindy, their doula. Cindy arrived at 9 AM to find Jocelyn and Kevin walking around the neighborhood, after having played a game of Bocce Ball in the front yard. Karen, their midwife, calmly read the morning paper (after having had a nice breakfast prepared for her!) and awaited the strengthening of Jocelyn’s contractions. Since the morning started out humid, Jocelyn decided she would shower, after mentioning she did not think it would take much longer. (Note: Jocelyn was absolutely calm while contracting. One could hardly believe she was in labor by her calmness!)

Karen, Kevin, and Cindy talked about the birth while Jocelyn showered. Kevin made a wager that the baby would be here by 11 AM. Cindy and Karen wisely refused to make a bet!

Jocelyn emerged from the shower at 10:15 AM and she said she was going to rest a little and went to bed. Her birth team remained in the living room to allow her to rest. Cindy peeked outside the bedroom door ever so often to make sure Jocelyn was ok. After about 30 minutes, Cindy heard Jocelyn loudly vocalize and headed up the stairs. Jocelyn was contracting strongly and consistently. Cindy rubbed her back in between contractions while Karen started preparing for the delivery. As her contractions gained maximum intensity, Jocelyn preferred to be on her feet. Kevin held her in a dangle while Cindy rubbed her back and shoulders. Jocelyn got through contraction by vocalizing and breathing.

During one “dangle”, Jocelyn’s membranes spontaneously ruptured (12:09PM). Her contractions were very intense and coming closer together. She quickly started to push after the release of her membranes. She pushed quite strongly and the baby seemed to crown slowly, with a slow delivery of his shoulders. Immediately after Joseph was born, Karen gave him a few helping breaths to assist him in breathing. He remained somewhat blue (but was still getting oxygen from his umbilical cord), and Karen suctioned his airway and administered some blow-by oxygen. With a communal sigh of relief, his color started to improve and he gave some weak cries.

Joseph received Apgar scores of 5 (due to his slow start) and 8. He weighed in at 9.10 lbs and measured 21 inches. He was a docile and calm baby at birth, and simply charmed his birth team! Jocelyn received a perineal tear from his entry into the world, and mother, baby, and father settled in to rest when Cindy and Karen left at 2:30 PM.