My partner won’t be at our son’s birth: dealing with birthing almost alone
Due to circumstances beyond both of our control — a move, a job change for me, and my partner’s desire to really try the job it took him over a year to find — it looks like I’m going to be having this baby alone. There’ll be doctors and nurses and maybe a doula, sure, but I always thought my partner would be there with me. And while it’s possible that he may make it for the birth, it’s entirely possible that he will miss it.
An empowering home birth turned hospital delivery
I had already been experiencing pre-labour contractions for three weeks before my labour started. They had been strong and regular, seven minutes apart, for literally days at a time. Then they’d stop… and then start up again. By the time my due date came I was emotionally and physically exhausted, and thoroughly pissed off.
Our New Year’s Day baby was nearly born into the toilet
There’s a lot you don’t know as a first time mom and nothing showed how unprepared I was than my son Owen’s actual arrival. On New Year’s Eve in 2010 my husband and I met friends for a celebratory dinner. At dinner I ate an entire appetizer, entree, and dessert — in retrospect this probably should have been indicative of impending labor since I typically struggled to finish half an entree. Early that morning I wandered out of bed to use the bathroom. I had become used to needing to pee at least three times a night, and right as I entered the bathroom I felt a gush of water exit. I looked down and thought, “Hmmm…”
A polyamorous quad welcomes their first child
This is not a “normal” birth story. Which makes sense, since my family is not a normal family. Please note the lack of quotes that second time — it’s with good reason. While every birth is unique in it’s own way, and thereby not “normal”, most families in the United States welcoming a baby go through a fairly similar experience. And we had some of that, but when you are a family of four polyamorous adults, nothing is “simple”, “easy” or “normal” when compared to most people.
How my son’s teething reminds me of his birth
The poor little guy was in agony and couldn’t quite figure out what in the world was happening inside his mouth. My heart broke a little as his eyes pleaded with me to fix it Mama. So I scooped him up in my arms and spent much of the day rocking him and stroking his head. As I rocked him I thought back to the day he was born — it was the greatest and scariest day of my life.
I let go of my self-righteousness and had a Cesarean delivery — and I’m thankful for it
When I got pregnant last January I was stoked about the joyful, carefree unassisted birth I had always dreamed of. My husband and mom, though, were concerned about the safety of freebirths and so I compromised with them and hired a Certified Nurse-Midwife who only did home births. She was a mother of two who lives on a farm and works primarily with the Amish women in our area. When I caught her voicemail, I noticed she signed off with “Namaste.” I thought: “Wow, this is going to be so great! She’s just like me! I don’t have to worry that she’ll force me to have medicines or procedures done that I don’t want.”
I went into labor at 26 weeks while pregnant with twins
At 26 weeks pregnant with twins I went into labor while standing in the cleaning products aisle at my local grocery store. I called my doctor from the parking lot and explained to her that I was feeling a lot of pressure and what I thought could be Braxton-Hicks contractions. She told me to get to the hospital ASAP because it sounded like I was in labor. She wanted me go straight to the only hospital in the area that had a Level III NICU — one that I had never been to and one that she did not work at.
All about how our daughter Penelope came into the world right on time
About halfway through my pregnancy, I became committed to unmedicated childbirth by vaginal delivery. It’s something that I researched a lot and felt passionately about by the time I finally made the decision. Reflecting on it from the other side, I am insanely happy with this decision. My husband Josh and I put in a lot of work beforehand, but every second of preparation paid off, and I don’t even have the words to describe how empowered I feel after having experienced such an amazing birth.