Breathing through third stage
Birth story part 1/8~ I complete this amazing life creating chapter of my life with the most sacred & calm transition into mother of three! I wrote my birth story two days after my birth. My son is now 1 month old and I am ready to reconnect and share after this sacred quiet time. My first two births were beautiful natural deliveries in water, I got to catch and bring both of them to my chest. This birth was going to have me experience something totally different! My strong swimming & prenatal yoga practice also guided me well for a positive labour & postpartum period šš½
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The day of Koaās birth was the first sunny day after 2weeks of drizzle. I gardened with my kids at my Mums home walking up & down the hill, pausing for breaths. I rested with my kids in the afternoon & craved an iron rich nutrition meal for dinner that night. My husband & I had some special quiet time together as we travelled to a nearby town to get ingredients. After walking around the supermarket, I was definitely ready to come home. I prepared dinner for us all & while eating with the family I asked my husband if it was hot as I was getting hot flushes. He replied āNoā.
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I helped get my children ready for bed & after I showered I felt something was just different in my body. Then the first tightening unlike a Braxton hick it had a niggling sensation with it.
I gazed myself in the mirror & smiled, walked down the hall & had another in the kitchen, then another in the room. I seen my husband & said I was getting niggles different sorts of tighteningās. It was just after 8pm.
Birth space
Birth Story 2/ 8~ I continued on with my night and only 30 minutes later I knew things were different but as my previous labours ebbed & peaked gradually over some hours I didnāt want to jump the gun too much. As the kids rested my husband and Mum got things ready just in case things would amp up in the night. That they did. My husband pumped up the pool as I rested in bed.
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I sent my midwife Tanya Our Midwife a heads up message around 9ish before it got too late to let her know that I was getting little niggles & that I was going to get some rest. She had already caught a baby that day in hospital so said she would head to bed to. I rested but could hear the gentle hustle in my birth space as it was prepared & wanted to stand in it!
It was perfect, beautiful & just so right! Everything in the space felt familiar like home & had been painted, created or purposely placed with intention there by me in the weeks leading up to my birth. Each item on my birth alter had a rich meaning to me, my journey or the symbology of this special time in my life. The alter represented what my body, baby & the birth journey needed to do to open surrender & not only just do the task that laid ahead, but to soak in it, to surrender to the instinctual play of childbirth & bringing a baby earth side in the most peaceful way. I was smiling and gleaming in my birth space, ready for whatever the night or last days of my pregnancy would bring.
Riding the waves
Birth Story 3/8.
My husband seen me have a little surge and said he better go get some rest! We both did.
By this stage it was 10pm. I laid specifically placing my body to allow my baby the space into my pelvis. I had a deeper understanding of maternal positioning this pregnancy how to prepare & position my body in labour optimally to assist my baby for a smoother exit.
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I practiced with what visuals were resonating with me for this baby and this labour journey. Through my childbirth education training I had a deep knowledge of many tools to draw on to keep my mind calm, I just needed to explore which ones worked for this bubba.
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My breath! Deep breathing and gentle vocalizing when needing to. I explored riding and sinking in to waves, blooms of flowers opening & my cervix softening, floating on water which felt good for a while.
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But nothing felt better than grounding and anchoring in my happy place from the many camping trips we had that year through my pregnancy, to a special place near where we live in Cape York.
A bush shower at a friendās camp located at the base of a strong, tall native Australian tree, crackling fire, infinite hot water from a spring, the smell of the bush and the almighty mountain ranges which stood strong around me. This is what got me through.
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Each surge (contraction) my imagination would creatively add another layer to my visualisation as I imagined a protective bubble surrounding me. I was there in this peaceful powerful place! Roots were growing from the souls of my feet into the earth and branches were growing from my crown into the spacious sky. I felt the might and strength of the mountain ranges and knew I was grounded, I felt strong.
Ā In my mind, I would float in the creek for some surges with butterflies & the smell of the life-giving forest surrounding me.
Supportive Rebozo Anchor
Birth story part 4/8~ The contractions werenāt that strong but I was using them to find my flow, my state for this journey.
My side bodies were starting to ache from 9 months of laying on my side, it was catching up. I knew rest was important but felt my body had been deeply resting and retreating in the weeks leading up to this so felt like if I was going to go into labour this night I would let gravity into my body. So I got up out of bed, it was midnight 12pm. A total time warp from my first niggles a few hours earlier.
I walked down the hall, I felt like my birth space was calling me, it was set. The fairy lights were low but took a while for my eyes to adjust. I rocked on my exercise ball, kneeled on the bed, connected my TENS machine up and got used to exploring the sensations with the pulses on my back, I laboured on my own. I was like a toddler in a new play room exploring for the first time, all the knowledge & prep I had inside I was sampling as my surges gently ebbed & flowed.
I moved my body specifically and intentionally to allow my baby into optimal position and into the inlet of my pelvis. I was drinking lots of coconut water as I had a very bad leg cramp during the crowning stage of my previous birth. That was definitely NOT going to happen again š! I had two toilet breaks in this time.
Soaking In My Bubba
Birth story part 5/8~ I anchored myself to my rebozo anchor as I sat on my exercise ball rocking my pelvis forward & back & sleeping into the support of my rebozo sling in between the gentle surges. I reached for my phone to start timing only out of my own curiosity. Surges were lasting 1minute and were approx. 5 mins apart. It pulled me out of my birth space a bit to have to click the timer which was on the chair behind me. So when I felt the presence of my husband standing next to me I could relax into it more.
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He watched and timed & made all the calls from here on out. He knew it was happening it was 1am when he woke up, I had laboured for one hour by myself since waking at midnight and my Mum was now awake.
I went to the toilet again and in this space, I had another surge, this time 2 minutes apart. Now they were coming closer. Things started to speed up as Scotty and my mum realized I was grounding through my surges much more and needing to wrap my arms around Scotty during each. Without me queuing him to he called our midwife Tanya & said itās definitely happening. I wrapped myself into my rebozo anchor as my husband and Mum raced around to bring the pool to temperature, wake my daughter (who wanted to watch the birth) and support me in between with each surge.
Supported By My Midwife
Birth story part 6/8~ It was one hour from when Scotty woke to when our baby was born.
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Although the surge of power pulsing through me built rapidly, it still wasnāt as intense as my other labours. My waters still hadnāt ruptured & as I drew great comfort in my TENS machine, rebozo anchor & support from my birth team I remember feeling could it be happening this smoothly & quickly?.. As in between each raging surge I stood calmly and quietly watching everyone race around- (deep down I think I knew I was never getting in that pool)
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I started to get the urge to bare down and thought it couldnāt be happening this quickly, I havenāt felt nauseas or had hot & cold tremors like my previous labours. I also couldnāt feel my baby in my pelvis strongly (like my other labours where the water sac had broken) I started to breath out through my mouth like blowing a raspberry to divert the pressure from bearing down, I also thought to myself how can I do a vaginal examination (VE) here to see if Iām dilated enough lol š(was never gonna happen).
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I was now speaking to my daughter in between surges who was placed on the couch from her sleep, reassuring her that we were about to meet our baby.
She was so excited to birth our baby but as it happened so fast and in the night, No one could sit with her as all hands were on deck. I was sad I couldnāt be with her more or reassure her more that I was alright. Only when I could in between my surges. I was now vocalizing in a primal deep tone for each minute-long surge.
Birth story part 7/8~ Our midwife arrived around the corner to me hanging from my anchor blowing raspberries out my lips, a funny memory. She arrived to see that yes this really is happening!
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She had no time to get a foetal heart rate only the time in between surges to get her gear ready. She was there for 9 minutes & our baby was born. I remember saying for one surge āI donāt think itās going to be a water baby I think itās going to be a land baby!ā. These last three surges as everyone was still racing to get the pool to temperature I had Mum support me through one surge, Tanya my midwife for the next & for the last my amazing husband. Tanya was behind me kneeling. He crowned still in cased in the water, I yelled Iām crowning! I heard Tanya say to the rest āToo late baby is coming!ā.
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I knew now that I could bear down & as my legs were in a high lunge I bent more into a high squat, I felt that familiar crowning burn for only two seconds & he was born. Tanya caught him & in one motion swoop passed him through my legs & into my arms (it was very impressive). My birth team quickly undid my rebozo knots, took my TENS machine off from around my neck & got my nest (large pillow) to sit on that we pre-made, stitched & stuffed with shredded office paper. I was sitting, leaning up against my birth pool that never got used.
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As soon as my baby was passed through my legs I seen his face for the first time & knew he was a boy! As I sat there my husband with tears in his eyes kissing my head he asked what is it? My Mum & daughter behind him, I looked & announced it was a boy!
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Sitting down I then met my secondary midwife who had just arrived. My baby was on my chest he came out with colour, reflex & a good set of lungs. He only cried for a couple of minutes & happily started to suckle where he then stayed for 5 hours. It was 2am & no measurements/ weighing was done until lunchtime the next day just bonding together.
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My beautiful friend Gabe @gabrielle_eileen_ arrived & started tending to me bringing towels & taking pictures. My Mum & Father in law also arrived. All missing the birth.
Racing to get birth pool ready
Birth story part 8/8 we made it š~ As I tried to relax into third stage of labour & give it my full attention my amazing midwives guided me as I birthed my placenta. I had no tears only some membranes (not placenta) which didnāt release. With the close support of my midwife Tanya her trust in me & my bodyās natural wisdom to do what it is designed to do I passed this over the next week & a half.
Belly binding & herbal tinctures- @yourfamilynaturopath also helped me greatly postnatally. Overall, I was in two hours of active labour, I got to experience a labour where my waters didnāt rupture & a birth standing upright outside of water- a land baby! Staying calm in my beautiful familiar birth space, the use of key tools from my Hypnobirthing Aus practitioner experience & a deeper wisdom & understanding of the importance of birth preparation, support & mindset definitely played a part.
I did the bodywork this pregnancy! Yoga, swimming, specifically positioning my body to help my baby into an optimum position through my OMP knowledge & also through the stages of labour all contributed I believe to my smooth birth. There is a primal, instinctual trust & respect that needs to be given to the birth process. I truly gave myself permission to release & let go this birth & surrender to whatever it would be. I even had a c-section preference plan if a natural disaster happened (hypothetically speaking) which we have to be real about š.
But a deep trust in my body, a confidence in my choices & a belief in my support was all important āØšš½ Our son & daughter were ecstatic to finally meet their new baby Koa & Indie said how excited she was to teach him to ride bikes & do backflips.. šš„°
My home birth is a memory I will cherish forever. All my births have been special in their own unique ways. But there was something extra special about this 3rd ride- birthing in the home were I grew up, my own space- drinking tea watching the sun rise over the hills surrounded by loved ones, all my support & my beautiful baby Koa on my breast. Just BliSs- Oxytocin plus plus! ā„ļøšš½ #grateful
My Birth Team Oxytocin Sunrise
Proud Mumma
Baby Koa weighed next day
Golden Hour
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