More Babies Prefer Home Birth

The Birth of Myles Kade Johnson - My first birth!

February 9th, 2011 3:50am

7lbs 2oz and 21in





On Tuesday, February 8th, I woke up and was feeling a little “off” and kind of crampy, not a big deal or something out of the ordinary when your 41-43 weeks pregnant! Around 11am went to the bathroom and discovered I had lost part of my mucous plug. I texted my midwife to let her know but did not think much about it since you can lose it multiple times and it really had no indication of when labor will start. A little after lunch my crampy feeling started getting more intense and figured it was my body preparing to start up labor. I went outside at 4pm and fed the horses grains so I was up for about 45min walking around in and out of stalls and riding on the bumpy ground in the Gator going from barn to barn. I went inside and started doing some laundry and realized were pretty regular and started wondering if my “crampin” was easy contractions. They did not feel like the contractions I had been feeling for weeks with prodromal labor so I just brushed them off all day.



Around 6pm I decide to time them even though I did not think they were contractions, I did noy want them to be contractions and them get too close before I relized it. I sat on my birthing ball and rocked my hips during my “cramps” and it relieved some of the preasure I was feeling. Between 6pm and 6:30pm I had 7 “cramps” putting them at 5-6min apart and lasting about 40 seconds. I decided they were really contractions but that since they were so easy that nothing was happening anytime soon or that like they had in the past several weeks that they would stop.

Mark came in from work and we decided to go to the Chuckwagon to eat dinner. We shared Jalapeno & Rib Meat Potato “Nachos” for an apitizer and I had a Chicken, Onion & Pepers Quesadilla. I had contractions all through the meal and they stayed pretty consistant and seamed to get a bit stronger in intensity.



We got home a little after 9pm and jumped in the bed and tried to encourage my contractions (if ya know what I mean)… of course having to stop every few min for contractions!! After we were done I went to the bathroom and lost more of my mucos plug and had some bloody show. It was around 10 and I decided to start timing my contractions again, 4min apart!! I was trying not to get too excited because for weeks I had contractions (some as close as 4min apart) and these were not as bad as those so surley it couldnt be labor, right? I also figured if it was labor it was just starting and this being my first child it would be a while before my labor was in full swing and he was born. We went to bed to try and get some sleep and I was guessing that everything would cool down a little bit. I was having trouble falling alseep so a little after 11pm I decided to get into the bath tub and try to relax to help me go to sleep, I listened to a few of my hypnobabies tracks and started fe! eling tired so I went back to bed hoping to get some sleep because at this point I knew I was in the begining stages of labor and needed to rest up.



That did not happen! At midnight I started feeling my contractions MUCH stronger and quiet often so I woke Mark up and told him he needed to wake up because I was in labor for real and I was not going to be up all by myself! For some reason it was irritating me seeing him asleep peacefully while I was having contractions. It took a good 15min for him to get up and he was a bit annoyed! My contractions were 3min apart at this point so we pulled out the birth pool to get it blown up, I totaly forgot we did not have a wall plug for the air pump so Mark had to take the birth pool outside to his car and plug it into the lighter plug in the freezing cold to blow it up. While he was blowing up the pool most likely was the most stressfull part of my labor because all I wanted to do was get into the water. I was going back and forth from laying in the bed, being on my hands and knees leaning over my birthing ball, snugling my pillow on the floor, and walking from room to room. He st! arted filling up the pool around 1:30am and I texted one of my midwifes because I couldnt talk through my contractions and they were right at 2min apart from begining of one to the begining of the next. They both live about an hour away so I knew it would be a little while before they got there but I had no worried because I thought I was still at the beginning stages of labor because the pain was not that bad at all. I decided to wait until they got there and we saw how things were going to text any family members and let them know he was coming.



I got into the tub and it was instant relief on my back, the water felt so good! Our hot water from the house ran out and we started boiling more on the stove. I wanted to be completely submerged in the water so we kept adding more. During contractions I got on my knees and leaned over into the water, in between them I leaned my back against the birth pool and stuck my legs straight out. I was talking with Mark and laughing in between contractions.



My midwifes, Aimee & Desiree, got there at 3:10am and I was in the pool and decided to get out to let them check me, I was going to ask not to be told how far dilated I was. The minute I got out I felt like I had to go poop so I sat on the toilet and tried to use the bathroom but nothing was happening, got on my hands and knees and tried, squated and tried but no poop! My midwifes told me it was the baby I was feeling so I stopped trying to poop and layed on the couch for Dessire to check me. My contracting were so strong and often that before she could check anything I had to roll off the couch and get on my hands and knees because my contractions were coming so strong. I kept telling them, “I seriously have to shit so bad” and they said no that it was babys head making it feel like I needed to. I continued to go through contractions on the floor hugging my pillow and leaning forward onto Marks chest. I was pushing in different positions (trying to go poop) for about 10min.! 



They then told me if I wanted to have a water birth Id better get back into the tub so I started crawling back into the kitchen and on my way back to the tub my water broke and there was a huge decrease in pressure. I got back into the tub and got on my knees leaning against the edge of the pool holding onto Mark and biting his hand with every contraction. I kept telling (im not sure who) that I wanted pictures and videos, my exact words were “Im not having a water birth and not having video proof”. But things were moving too fast for anyone to worry about getting video or pictures! When I felt his head starting to crown I said something about was this seriously it, I couldn’t believe he was about to come out! I told Mark to hurry and grab my phone to text my Mom and Dad because they would be mad if I had him before calling, I promised my Mom I would not wait to call until after he was born, oops! He sent a text that said, “Kade is on his way, dont call please” because I kne! w she would be calling and we were a little far into labor to be talking on the phone. My body then took over and started pushing itself and after 5min of being in the birth pool his head emerged, I was so excited for the pause in between birthing the head and the body that I always heard people talk about but my midwifes said to keep pushing because he had opened his eyes and was looking like he was about to take a breath and they did not want him to breath the water in. I gave two pushes and his body was out. I started pushing at 3:35am and he was born at 3:50am.



I think my mind went blank for a second out of shock that he was here because I was in my own little world and it took me a second to capture my thoughts, they told me to reach down and bring him up out of the water. I pulled my little boy from the water and snuggled him to my chest and was speechless. It took him seconds to cry but his eyes were open and looking at me, it was a wonderful quiet moment where I connected with my son. I sat back but could not sit down because his cord was too short to keep him out of the water unless I was squating. Mark came behind me and had his arms around us and I was in pure heaven. My first words were “That’s it? Im ready to have another one”. I had to get out of the water after a few minutes since I could not keep him out of the water and did not want him to be cold. We layed on the couch and he latched on wonderfully and nursed for a good 30min before I got on the birthing stool to deliver my placenta. After it was delivered we wrapped ! it up in a chux pad and laid back down on the couch and he continued to nurse for at least another 45min while I got checked out. I had a tiny tear but nothing bad thank goodness! After about an hour Mark cut the cord and they did newborn vital checks and Mark held him for the first time while I used the bathroom and used a sitz bath in peri bottle to help with the slight stinging and swelling.



My labor and birth with Kade is by far the most amazing thing ive ever experienced. I can not believe how easy and natural it was. My body knew what it was doing and I believed in the ability I have as a woman to give birth. I feel very lucky to have felt what I thought was the “easy part” beginning of labor when I was in my last two hours and what ive always heard to be the most painful part. My birth was very minimal pain and Kade had such a beautiful passage into the world.

{If you’d like to share your own home birth story, please use the form at right to submit it.}

I woke up at 1:00am having contractions. They didn’t feel quite right, so I assumed they were Braxton Hicks (practice contractions). I alternated walking and laying down, praying they would stop so I could get some sleep.

About 3:00 I “felt the call of nature” and while finishing up there felt “something” at the opening to the birth canal. It was smooth and the size of a babies head. I am afraid I sort of panicked! I woke Andy and called the midwife and my mom. After everyone was on the way, I realized it couldn’t be the baby’s head since the water hadn’t broke yet. It must be the water bag formed like a water balloon.

Everyone arrived by 4:30, my parents took the older children to their house, and M and A (the assistant) set up for the birth. They checked the baby’s heart beat and it was 140, very good. M did an internal and said the baby was still high, but I was almost dilated.

I felt the need to walk. I have never felt that strong of the need to move around before. Strange how each birth is different and how our bodies can communicate to us.

Again the call of nature (almost 5:00am). Just as I sat down, the water broke. They got me into the other room and checked the heartbeat. 70 beats per minute. VERY not good. M did another internal and I have read enough midwife material to know what she would find (head high, then water breaks)- cord prolapse.

This is not a fun complication (as if any of them are). 200 years ago it meant the death of nearly every child it happened to.

What happens in a normal birth is the head engages with and presses on the cervix, then the water breaks. The head keeps the cord up by the body where it can continue to supply Little One with oxygen. With a cord prolapse, the head is still high when the water breaks and the cord washes down past the head. Gravity then pulls the head down onto the cord cutting off the baby’s oxygen. In the hospital this now means an immediate emergency c-section with good survival rate for the babies. At a home birth this means transport to the hospital and a c-section. Thankfully, this is a rare complication and most midwives will never see one. Mine has had the misfortune of seeing four now, in twenty years of practice.

M had me flip to the face and knees position and she held Baby’s head up off the cord.

“Time to pray and make decisions.”

I was already adjusting to the idea I was going to have major surgery in less than an hour.

Andy prayed for wisdom for all of us.

M said “Let me try…” and fiddled around. “The cord just went back up!” She had pushed it back up where it belonged! We listened to the heartbeat…140; back to normal.

“Are we going to the hospital or do we push this baby out now?”

“We are going to push.” said Andy. I pray during all of my pregnancies for Andy and the midwife to have wisdom and I determine I will do whatever they say, trusting God to tell them what we need to do.
M helped me off of our daybed and onto a birthing stool, checking the heart beat every 30 seconds. It stayed at 140.

I pushed from the top and M moved the cervix from the bottom. I don’t know how long it took and it was a lot of pain but the cervix moved and I was soon pushing just like a normal birth.

“The head is crowning.”

I pushed it out but something was wrong. In a normal birth you push the head out, then feel a relief at the neck. Another push and the shoulders come out followed by the rest of baby. In a breech, you push the body out (which feels like it takes forever!) then the rest of the neck, and then the head. This time, I pushed the head out but felt no relief at all. We had what is called Shoulder Dytocia. The shoulders were wedged behind my pubic bones. Baby was stuck! Doctors in hospitals have no more tools than a midwife at this point. It is too late for a c-section and no drugs will help. There are a half dozen maneuvers that can be tried and usually will un-stick Little One, but babies do die from this. You have less than two minutes before brain damage begins.

M kept repeating “Push your baby out Betty.” while she began on the list of maneuvers. Usually the top shoulder is born first and the midwife will try to maneuver it out first. If that doesn’t work (which it didn’t this time) she tries to get the bottom shoulder out first. That is what worked.

Jane Kathleen, 10.8 pounds, was born at 5:37 after 37 minutes of pushing. She was blue and white and had trouble figuring out how to breathe for a few seconds, but since the cord was now pumping to beat the band she is fine. In fact, at three weeks she is already learning to smile.

There were five people at this birth: Me, Andy, M the midwife, A her assistant, and God. He is so good to us and had His hand on my baby the whole time.

{If you’d like to share your own home birth story, please use the form at right to submit it.}

LIKE ANY 8-DAY-OLD BABY, Jimmy Gaffney spends most of his time either nursing or sleeping. Peacefully alternating between the two while cradled in his mother’s arms in the family’s sun-dappled Hamilton backyard, the robust newborn looks like a promotional photograph for parenthood. And yet, so far as the state and city of his birth are concerned, this baby does not officially exist.

He was born at home, in May, with only his mother and father, Alana and Matt Gaffney, in attendance (his two excited siblings, who had slept through most of the five-hour labor that culminated in his 4 a.m. birth, came in just as their father was placing the freshly born baby on his mother’s chest). The family is in no rush to notify the authorities about Jimmy’s birth; they have been taking it easy for the past week, sticking close to home and bonding with the new addition while Alana recovers. A call to register his birth with the Baltimore City Health Department will summon a visit from a home nurse, and the Gaffneys are not quite ready for outsiders, particularly bureaucrats asking a lot of questions about a process they regard as utterly natural—and completely private.

Read More…