Homebirth Surrounded by My Village - Alana, The BirthNest
This was the birth of my third baby. I have previously experienced a Pre-term Hospital vaginal birth, and a posterior birth centre birth. This was my final birth and I was excited to go through a Private Midwife and birth this baby at Home, surrounded by family. My story starts on Halloween, with my appointment meeting my back-up midwife (the second midwife to be called for my birth). I had been seriously nesting the previous few days, finally setting up my birth space, putting the car seat in the car and washing my pram which had carried my other two children. My Mum was currently staying with me as we waited for this baby’s arrival but I was adamant that I didn’t need her help with these tasks. As I was talking to my back up Midwife, during my appointment she made the comment ‘you have the face of a woman who would be having her baby very soon’. I didnt realise how much truth would unfold with these words.
At over 38 weeks pregnant, going Trick or Treating with my children was the last thing I felt like doing, but I saw it as an opportunity to help my body go into labour. Trick or Treated started around 430-5ish and we live in a very hilly area, so I spent the next hour curb walking up and down hills, knocking on doors and laughing with friends how ‘this better put me into labour’.
After walking as much as I could handle, I noticed I was a bit uncomfortable but assumed it was my body letting me know that I needed to rest and that I had done too much. I dropped my son at his piano lesson and organised my husband to pick him up so I could organise dinner. After dinner, I noticed again, a few cramps here and there but didn’t think anything of it as I still had the bed time routine to continue on with. As I was holding my daughter to sleep, I noticed these tightenings and cramps were continuing but were short and sweet and no real pattern to them. I said to my Mum and Husband, that I thought something was happening, but still not 100% sure. My husband still in denial, continued to potter around and get his things ready for work the next day. He gets up super early so was quite relieved when I suggested he he heads to bed and that I knew that I had my Mum there if I needed support at this time.
I had planned for my sister to be here to photograph the birth, as she had photographed my previous births. My Mother In Law also was at my last birth and she was also invited into the space. They both live approximately 30min away, so I gave them both a call at about 8pm and asked them to head this way as I felt something was happening. I contacted my Midwife at about 830 to let her know that I was definitely niggling, although she lives around the corner from my house, she was on the other side of Perth with a first time mum. She felt she could prioritise me after hearing what I was experiencing but asked me to contact her again if my surges were lasting about 40seconds or so and quite regular. I was still contemplating that this could still fizzle.
“I would have to close my eyes, stand behind my kitchen bench swaying, and as I have always done during my surges, I would tap my finger on the bench and continue deep slow breaths until it settled”
My sister and my mother-in-law soon arrived and by 9pm my surges were coming more regularly and lasting a bit longer but I was still able to talk through most of them. By 1030pm my surges started intensifying and began getting stronger. I would have to close my eyes, stand behind my kitchen bench swaying (always behind my kitchen bench) and as I have always done during my surges, I would tap my finger on the bench and continue deep slow breaths until it settled. I called my Midwife to tell her that things have ramped up and she was here soon after at around 1130pm. I woke my husband up to help get all her equipment out of the car and everyone started setting the pool up. My husband would rub my back as a swayed, breathed and tapped through each surge. I find I’m quite a social labourer, I liked to labour majority of the time in the kitchen so I could talk and laugh with my team. My midwife suggested I get in the pool a few times, but I think that due to my previous birth, where I was asked to get out of the pool, I had this in the back of my mind, so didnt want to get in ‘too early’. I tried the tens machine but found that this labour progressed so fast, I may have missed the boat to get any comfort from it, plus I was coping well without it.
At some stage, Im not sure when, maybe at about 1245ish, I felt like a shower. While I was in the shower enjoying the warm water on my back, my mind started to question if this baby was too big. During my pregnancy, many people would comment on how big I looked, and I thought this wouldn’t affect me, but it showed its little head when I became vulnerable. So a mantra started in my head to help. “You have birthed a posterior baby, you can birth this baby, no matter the size!” At some stage in the shower, I suddenly felt like I needed water everywhere. Just after 1am I decided to get into the pool. My next surge in the pool I felt a pop feeling and knew my waters had gone. Things intensified significantly after this. I asked someone to wake up my kids. I became very hot, and irritable, changing position in the bath and demanding things like fans and cold cloths. My 7yo son was super enthusiastic and asking me what I needed to help, I could hear the excitment in his voice. We had spoke about him getting in the bath to maybe catch the baby, but after he noticed I pooed in the bath, he decided against it…
I started feeling a lot of pressure, and my body started pushing involuntarily. All fours in the bath, i felt my baby slip into the world at 0136am. I reached down, into the water with him looking up at me, and pulled him onto my chest.
We stayed in the bath, although I have a tendency to bleed after birth, so we decided that I would hop out of the bath to get a more accurate gauge of my bleeding. I layed on the bed, feeding bub until I had the urge to birth my placenta. Once the placenta was born, my son cut the cord and my kids had skin to skin with him. By 430am I was tucked up into my bed with my beautiful baby boy.
