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Birth Stories
Tuesday, April 29, 2003 at 3:00 p.m. in the afternoon I received a call from Shay indicating that she was in early labor and that her surges were coming every 5-6 minutes. We decided that this could be the "real thing" so I got in my car and drove to her home to assess the situation. I found Shay to be notably calm and relaxed when I arrived. It was a beautiful sunny day and Shay had all of the windows open to allow the breeze to come in. We sat and talked for some time, Shay and Ellie danced to Princess Music and around 7:00 p.m. Shay made dinner for everyone with her surges now arriving every 3-4 minutes.
After dinner Matt bathed Ellie and put her to bed. At 9:00 p.m. we all sat in the living room and watched Frasier on T.V., surges still coming and Shay very relaxed and comfortable. There was some debate whether to call Matt's parents now to come spend the night or to just wait and see when things got closer. It was decided that Matt would call and his mother would come spend the night to avoid the need to drag his parents out of bed in the middle of the night (in hind sight it was a good choice!). Matt's mother arrived and I could sense her excitement. Since I had managed to convince Shay to try and fall asleep, we all got ready for bed. It was 11:00 p.m. and we all went to bed to try to get some rest before the baby arrived.
Around 3:10 a.m. I woke up. I heard someone in the bathroom and just knew it was Shay. I got up and Shay told me "you were right, I fell asleep and when I woke up things were happening!" She had a birth show and her surges were now 2 minutes apart. We decided it would be a good idea to call the midwife and let her know about the progress.
At 4:10 a.m. we arrived at the birth Center, Shay still calm and comfortable but with a little bit more excitement with the realization that her baby would probably be here by the morning. It was very lucky for Shay because her own midwife, Ellen, happened to be the midwife on call that night. We settled in and made ourselves comfortable. Meanwhile Ellen checked the baby's heart tones, Shay's blood pressure and temperature to find a very happy and healthy mom and baby! At this point Shay's surges had become a little more intense and she had to concentrate on relaxing through them.
At 4:20 a.m. Shay agreed to let Ellen do a vaginal exam. It was determined that she was 3-4 cm open and her cervix was more effaced but still posterior. Shay did a great job of not focusing on the "numbers" and stayed relaxed and confident after her exam. I offered to do labor support for Shay while Matt went in another room and got some rest. He was happy to take me up on my offer.
At 4:45 a.m. Shay was lying in a deep relaxation listening to her birth affirmations tape while I gave her a foot massage. Every once in a while Ellen and I would make eye contact and silently exchange the thought of "she is doing so well".
Ellen filled the tub around 5:30 a.m. so that Shay could get into the water and continue to relax through her surges. Shay was happy to get into the tub but seemed a little disappointed that it didn't help more with the sensation of the surges. Ellen and I sat next to the tub and provided support, talking Shay through many surges. After trying a variety of positions in the water, Shay's hands became "tangled up" (as Ellie would say) because she had been in the water for some time. She decided to get out of the tub.
It was determined at approximately 6:00 a.m. that Shay was 5-6 cm open, cervix still posterior but making good progress. Ellen recommended that Shay assume the hands and knees position on the bed to encourage her cervix to move to a more anterior position.
After a short time, Shay made the decision to return to the tub. Somehow Matt must have sensed the progress with Shay's labor because he woke up, put on his swim shorts and climbed in the tub with her around 7 a.m. Matt spent most of time doing light touch massage on Shay's back while they were in the tub together. Ellen and I could tell that Shay's surges were more powerful now and that she was making great progress.
It was around 8:10 a.m. and Shay was now laboring on the bed. She decided to have Ellen do another vaginal exam to see how open her cervix was and to release her bag of waters. Ellen assessed that she was 7-8 cm open and "really stretchy".
Now that her bag of waters was released Shay's surges became very powerful and it was more challenging for her to relax through them. At this point her primitive instincts kicked in. Shay became very focused on her body and the changes that were taking place within it. She seemed to have this instinctual connection with her baby saying things like "come on down Nate...mommy's ready to call everybody up and tell them you're here", "OK baby come on down...right out". Matt, Ellen and I watched in awe of Shay as she talked Nate through this intense final stage of labor. "He is right there... He is right there" then Shay reaching down to touch his head said..."well maybe"?
At 8:45 a.m. Shay very seriously announced, "I AM HAVING A BABY, good lord I can't believe it"! Ellen and I couldn't help but chuckle at Shay's discovery. Matt watched as his wife very gracefully made her way through the final stages of labor. I am sure he was not aware of how soon he would be meeting his son.
Shay seemed to labor most comfortably standing up next to the bed with her hands on the bed so that she could bend over. She swayed her hips side to side almost like she was dancing with baby Nathan. Ellen encouraged this by saying "that's right...go ahead, dance your baby out". Shay reached down and touched her son's head and we knew it wouldn't be long.
Shay returned to the bed on hands and knees but then turned over to a supported sitting position and began to breathe baby Nate down. After 3 or 4 surges Nate's head was visible and Ellen informed Shay that she could continue to breathe down her baby or she could bear down a little harder and get him born. After taking Ellen's advice, Shay pushed through two surges and birthed Nate's perfect little head. All it took was one more surge and Nathan Crawford Pokress was born and lifted onto his mother's abdomen. Time seemed to stand still as Matt and Shay first laid their eyes on their newly born son. Baby Nathan did not cry at all, he just looked into his parents' eyes with wonder. Matt was exhibiting quite a bit of emotion and Shay enthusiastically kept saying "thank you god, thank you god". Shay almost immediately reached down to feel for the umbilical cord that still connected her to her newborn son. Ellen and I reassured her that it was intact and that no one had cut it. Matt was in disbelief that it had happened so fast. I stood back and took pictures of this long awaited precious moment.
It was April 30, 2003 at 9:05 a.m. that baby Nathan Crawford Pokress was born, 10 pounds 2 ounces and 22 inches long, a gift to his loving parents and sister Ellie.
I'd love to post your HypnoBirthing story here! HypnoBirthing® - Taking the World by Calm
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