Baby Story

Introducing

Morgan Caleb
Born: September 10, 2007
4:12 am
Weight: 9lbs 5oz
Length: 21 1/4 in

This is a very long post. I was going to write it out then edit it to put up here but I decided to just post the whole thing. If you want the short version go back a post and read Caleb's entry! lol!

Morgan's Birth

Between 5 and 7pm I started feeling twinges. I didn't recognize them as contractions just pain every so often. I got the boys school lunches made and set out their clothes for the morning just in case. For some reason I didn't eat dinner...can't remember why. By the time we got the boys to bed at 7 I knew it was contractions, but thought maybe it might stop because they were so far apart. I asked Caleb to help me get the house clean, which we did. Thought it would be a good idea to try to get some sleep in case I woke up in "real" labor. So I got a shower and went to bed around 9pm.

As soon as I lay down I noticed that each contraction was coming sooner then the last and was a bit stronger. By 10pm they were between 5-6 minutes apart. Thought it was silly to lie in bed waiting for the next contraction to hit so I went downstairs to watch a movie while sitting on the birth ball. I had some toast.

I loved having the birth ball. I sat on it all the way up until I got in the pool. I found the hula hoop movement relaxing. We decided to call the midwife about 11:30 when the contractions were 3-4 minutes apart and they were strong enough that I had to breathe through them. I was 3-4 centimeters dilated and almost all the way effaced. I had some bloody show...my first ever.

The midwife arrived about 20 minutes later. I was expecting Sian (Shawn) as that is what Caleb thought was said on the phone, but it was actually Sharon who we hadn't met. I was so disappointed when she came in from the hallway. I will tell you how it made me feel even though I am a bit embarrassed by it because having a midwife/doctor that you don't know is a very normal thing. I didn't want to talk to her. I didn't want to see her and I didn't want her looking at me. She was a stranger invading my very personal private space...my haven that I had made to give birth to my child and I didn't want her there.

I was still uncomfortable but the contractions stopped. Sharon introduced herself. Checked my blood pressure...it was fine. Checked my progress and told us what we already knew. Asked for urine sample, but I told her no. She sat down to start her paperwork and said she would stay for a while to see if things picked back up. I cried and told Caleb I wished we hadn't called her. I was so uncomfortable with her being there that I got up and said I was going to walk around the kitchen for a while. Partly to see if it could get the contractions going again. Mostly because I would be alone.

Walking around in the kitchen nothing was happening. I decided to try visualization which I had read about in other birth stories. I closed my eyes and visualized everything opening and the baby sliding down. It worked! I had 3 contractions before Caleb came in to check on me. I told him not to tell Sharon because she said she would leave if nothing was happening. Caleb just laughed. After a couple more contractions I decided I needed my birth ball. So I asked Caleb if Sharon could do her paperwork in the kitchen so I could have my space back. I don't know what he told her but she went to the kitchen and stayed except to check the baby's heart a couple of times.

She called the back-up midwife, Iona, who (once she arrived) stayed in the kitchen with her. Caleb put on another movie. Hooked me up to the TENS machine and then made banana bread. I continued breathing through the contractions while hula hooping on the birth ball. I am not sure if the TENS helped or if it was just a psychological comfort. It did not take away the pain, but I continued to use it with each contraction. The dial goes from 1 to 8. I only got to level 5. By then the contractions were strong enough that I wanted to get into the pool. Caleb was rubbing my back and giving counter pressure through the contractions. I asked the midwife to check dilation. I was 5 centimeters. She suggested I wait until 6 before getting in the pool and figured it would be about an hour.

Caleb put on another movie. About the movies...They were to mark the passage of time for me. Except the first one I wasn't actually watching. lol! I went about 20 minutes more before saying I was getting in the pool NOW! After getting in the contractions slowed down to 3-4 minutes again, but they were still very strong. It was nice to be able to relax in the between time. This was my first birth where I had breaks in between contractions. Even while pushing I had about 1 minute between. About 3am I asked the midwife to check my progress. I didn’t feel like I was getting anywhere because the contractions were still 3-4 minutes apart. She said it was not necessary and she could tell I was making progress. I told Caleb that I really wanted to know so he checked. I was an 8.

By now the contractions were very intense and I was at the I-don’t-want-to-do-this-anymore! stage. Caleb was wonderful and continued to be great support. Rubbing my back and helping me remember how to breathe as I forget how to when the pain is intense. I started pushing about 3:45. My water broke just as his head was coming out. The midwife checked for the cord around his neck…it wasn’t. One more push and with a gush Morgan Caleb joined this world at 4:12am crying as soon as his head popped out of the water.

I held him and we rested in the pool waiting for the cord to stop pulsating. He was very, very clean…no blood or vernix or slimy stuff. He looked like he had already been cleaned up and handed to me. He had a beautiful birth. I felt powerful and in control of my body in response to the pain. Not that the pain was controlling me, but that I was working with it. I remember it all clearly while with the others I was overwhelmed with the pain and everything blurs together in memory. I wanted to feel him coming down and out the birth canal like I had read in other’s stories. And I did. It was amazing! Oh, and I did check to see if he was a boy! lol!

Besides the midwife thing (which was okay in the end) Morgan’s birth was just how I wanted it to be. Peaceful. He is a beautiful little boy and I am so glad he has come to join our family.