So I didn’t realize how long it would take me to write all of my birth experience, so I figured while I work on that I would jot down the main highlights here. These are the main things I want to remember and share with expectant moms.
1. There was never a point at which I thought I needed drugs.
I kept getting told throughout my pregnancy to just take the drugs, anything they offer I needed to take or I was going to regret it. When people found out about my desire for an all natural birth, they said I would change my mind, I wouldn’t be able to handle the pain, I would get too tired, or told me about everything that can go wrong. Well, I can honestly say there was never a time that I said or even thought that I needed drugs to help me through. Now, the morning after, I could have used something to help me not feel like I had been run over by a freight train, but the hard part was over.
2. Labor was not as bad as everyone made it out to be.
I heard all the horror stories about birth while I was pregnant. The bad, the worse, and the downright traumatizing, but I had to block out all of that negativity as my due date got closer and closer because I wanted to go into labor with a positive attitude and outlook. Everyone would talk about how hard labor was or how painful it was (going back to why I would need all the drugs), but when I actually experienced it, it truly was not that bad. Now, it wasn’t something I’d want to do every day, it’s not pain free, and no, it’s not the most pleasant thing I’ve ever done; but it wasn’t as bad as it seemed like everyone made it out to be. And before anyone jumps on my case about how I’m belittling another mom, I’m certainly not, I’m just sharing my feelings from my personal experience.
3. While my birth experience didn’t go like I planned, it was exactly what I wanted.
I certainly had a plan laid out in my mind of how everything would progress throughout labor and while I may not have shared it publicly (mostly for fear of ridicule), I had these images in my head of mow picture perfect everything was going to be…then reality happened! Boy were my mental pictures so far off from what ended up happening, but regardless, there were still several picture perfect moments we had along the way I hadn’t planned. I wanted a calm, peaceful, intimate birth experience with my husband, and that’s exactly what happened. When I got in the tub to deliver Mordecai I had Immanuel right in front of me, holding my hands and giving me water, labor tea, and honey sticks to keep me going. It was exactly the intimate experience I wanted, Alice didn’t even come to the tub until shortly before Mordecai was born, she knew that I needed my husband there and I needed the peace and calmness he had to offer. When all was said and done, nothing went as I thought it would, but I did have the exact experience I wanted.
4. I honestly can’t remember the pain.
I would hear all these moms say that once they held their baby in their arms they didn’t remember the pain they had just felt moments before, but I didn’t believe them. Well now I do. As soon as Mordecai was born and I scooped him out of the water, I couldn’t remember what pain I had just felt, it all seemed so insignificant. The love that you feel in that moment really does make you forget any pain you have recently experienced. It was magical and powerful, and the purest love I think I’ve ever felt and there really is nothing like it in the world.
5. It was worth the travel to get what I wanted.
I almost regretted that we chose to use the Birth Cottage when it was almost a 2 hour drive from home, but I am so glad we did. I’m glad I took the time to research and educate myself on all the options I had for labor and birth and that I chose to do whatever it took to get the experience I wanted. My advice to every mom is to decide what you want, educate yourself about your options, and fight for your experience. Understand that emergencies happen, but don’t go into your labor planning on something bad to happen. I believe every woman should get to experience birth the way she wants to.
Well those are the main highlights, I am still working on the full story so be looking for that hopefully here soon. O yeah, and since my little man will be 3 months in a week, here are some pictures to update you on how much he has grown!
From a Cheerful Heart 