Magical Birth
Your Birth, Your Way.
Diane
Scott phoned me at 3am and said contractions were 5 minutes apart and lasting a good 90seconds or so. Diane is leaking waters, but they've not fully broken. I quickly decided against a shower and threw some clothes on, thinking that they would be needing me fairly soon! I arrived at 3.15am and found Diane in the dimly lit lounge room, standing upright, rocking over the back of the couch, coping beautifully. Within a few minutes Diane told me that she wanted to push and was unable to stop. I suggested a change of position, down on all fours to relieve the pressure she was feeling. For a brief 5 minutes Diane lay on her side on a big beanbag, purpose bought for the birth. Hindsight tells me this was her transition, regrouping, focusing, readying for the earthside emergence of her baby.
I put some gentle music on and asked Scott for a hot water bottle as Diane had complained that her back was aching! By the time the kettle was on, Diane had returned to her all fours position over the beanbag, and had begun pushing! A brief glance confirmed that she was indeed ready to give birth! The baby was almost here! I exclaimed to Scott that the baby was crowning and in a matter of moments, the baby's head was out!
Diane managed to give a few gentle breaths through the next contraction and then Faben Willow was born at 3.44am at only around 30 minutes after I had initially arrived!
Hours and hours of talking and planning this birth has resulted in the most beautiful, peaceful, tranquil, perfect homebirth surrounded by Diane's mum, her youngest son, her husband Scott, and myself.
Their 2 eldest boys slept happily whilst their brother was born and what an honour it was to wake them at a reasonable hour to share the news that their brother was here. Their response and excitement was priceless.
Following his amazingly fast birth, Faben latched onto mums breast like a true champion whilst we waited for the placenta. A few slices of hot toast and a cup of tea for mum and about 40 minutes passed before the placenta delivered.
Whilst waiting for the placenta to deliver, we sterilised the scissors and realized that the cord peg that the midwife had given us at the last antenatal appointment had disappeared, never to be seen again! After a while searching for it, we realized that we would have to go get another!
Scott decided that he wanted to drive to the hospital to get it, even after I insisted that I go and that he stay with Diane and baby Faben!! Scott had just caught his 4th son and was soooo happy, he was walking on air! He wanted to go tell the midwife at the hospital all about it, so off he went!
By the time he returned with the umbilical peg, we had an audience of boys all in awe at their tiny brother! It was very interesting cutting the cord and sharing the placenta for them to look at as they were very intrigued to see how their brother had been nourished in the womb.
I helped Diane into the bath for a nice long hot soak and Scott held his new baby for only the second time! I took plenty of family photos with them all after Diane was bathed and dressed.
I made sure the washing was in the machine and turned on and with a quick whiz around the kitchen to tidy up the tea and toast mess, and mop of the floor where baby was born, I decided to leave the new family basking in their babymoon.
It was a truly beautiful sight to walk out and witness the sunrise on this perfect day, Friday 13th April, the birthday of Faben Willow.
Thank you so much Scott and Diane for allowing me to share in this most beautiful birthing experience. I feel so proud to have been there with you.
Mel
At first you were
happy to go naturally, then as the EDD drew nearer, you felt fed up and worn
out, like you couldn’t go on any longer. A plan for
induction a week after your EDD, was hatched, but fortunately, it wasn’t meant
to be. Fate had taken the reins and your baby would chose his own birthday.
Bernie called me
at
I arrived at the
hospital around
My instinct was to
reassure you that you were doing really well and that you wouldn’t be too long
in delivering your baby. You were ready to get back into the shower around
I made the most of
the time you were in the shower, in the labour ward, setting up the oil burner,
preparing for your birth. I got my camera ready and made sure it was working. I
set up some music jotted down some notes and introduced myself properly to the
midwife. We quietly discussed my studies and then we turned our attention back
to you.
You were sipping
Gatorade between contractions and were quite focused during each one. Bernie
held your gaze as you breathed your way through and during your breaks, we
laughed and joked about what time you would deliver. It was a very calm and
loving environment. A lovely way to bring a baby into the world.
At
It was during this
time that you mentioned how much easier the contractions were to focus on if I
talked you through them. So Bernie would warn you one was coming and I would
hold your focus through them, Breathe, Open, Focus, Open, Good Girl, Breathe.
The three of us were making a great team and we could see your contractions
become more purposeful.
At
Around
You headed back to
the shower for another 15minutes or so, but you couldn’t get comfortable and
the contractions started to slow. We were still talking between contractions
and the vibe in the room was awesome. You were doing so well, calm, happy and
in control. As transition happened, you decided that we needed to get the baby
out and now was a good time to start!
At
At around
At last your
waters broke with a trickle, filled with dirty brown staining of meconium.
Despite having a great strong heartbeat, I could see Millie was anxious to have
baby out fairly quickly. Another contraction and then you exclaimed that you
felt him move around the bend! He was coming! With another couple of good strong
pushes, you could see the difference in your strength once the waters had
broken, baby started to crown. How amazing to see your darling boy edged into
the world, inch by inch, push by push, breath by breath as Millie encouraged you
to slowly but surely bring him to this world.
Once his head was
born, Millie could see that he hadn’t rotated fully so as to be born easily with the
next push. She instructed the Doctor on hand and I to grab both your knees and
bring them to your chest, and quickly! This would mean that Millie could manually
rotate his shoulder and bring him out carefully. I must say that was the most
intense moment of the birth, but absolutely amazing to see such a skilled
midwife use her ability to birth your boy safely. He was followed out by a rush
of meconium stained amniotic fluid.
After Millie guiding
you to bring him up to your chest briefly, baby was taken by the doctor for a
thorough check. They swabbed his ear and took a stomach sample where they found
an amount of stained fluid. He was otherwise well and oh my god, so BIG. 9lb 1oz. Wow, such
a whopper for such a small girl and not even a tear.
After a small
time, baby was bought to you and I took your first photographs together.
Mel and Bernie, I congratulate you on the birth of your baby boy. Mel, I admire your strength and courage and I feel honoured to have witnessed your son being brought into this world. Your expressions of calm and tranquillity during your labour and birth reinforced to me that I am on the right path in my life and I thank you for allowing me to be part of your special day.
Gayle
At
At
I was pretty brave and
when the numbness took over my lower half of the body, it gives you a feeling
of ‘out of control’, which is a disturbing state to be in. However, with the
wonderful staff reassuring me and not forgetting Richard, the incision was
made. My Obstetrician and my
Anaesthetist talked us through the delivery.
With the sound of U2’s
‘One’ song playing in the background, a little girl was born at
We remained in this
position as a new little family, the three of us, Ella Jade lying on my chest
until I was stitched up with the music of ‘beautiful day’ by U2 being played
and ‘Brown Eyed “Girl’ (for me) playing in the background. That was very special
to us. When this procedure was complete, I was then wheeled on the bed, to
recovery by my Midwife,
They closed the curtains
and my upper body was made naked, Ella was unwrapped and placed skin to skin on
my chest. This moment is such an
incredible experience and nature unfolded before our eyes as a dear little girl
tried and suckle on my breast all within an hour of being born.
I am overwhelmed with this
experience and in that time felt a real connection with my little girl, a real
bonding that I had not experience with my other two children. I had my darling partner, Richard beside me
and my baby taking her colostrum from her mother’s nipple.
I was wheeled with Ella
still placed on my chest skin to skin through the passageways from Recovery to
my ward. Here Ella was weighed in front
of me. We were able to contact family
and firstly to Jake and Chloe to notify them that they had a little baby
sister. Chloe was always confident that
the baby was going to be a little girl and it was irrelevant to her, the name
of the baby sister. Later telling her
classmates at school that she had forgotten the babies name but after an hour
said ‘I remember now, its Bella!!!’ Jake
was super proud to have a little baby sister who will no doubt, grow up
thinking her big brother is just wonderful!!!!
The children came after
school to meet their little sister and that moment will be held in our hearts
forever. We are a family!
Ella’s first bath that day
was in the ward in front of me, Richard, Jake, Chloe and Ella’s Nana, Merrilyn,
by a Midwife Sally. This is usually done
in the nursery where the Father gets to witness and in my previous two
caesarean births, I did not get the option to view.
The birth in this manner,
gave me an inner strength that empowered me to take control and care for Ella
in my own beliefs and ways. I kept Ella
in the room with me at all times and we had such a different bonding experience
than I ever did with my other two children.
