For the next couple hours I labored with the help of the nurse and my husband; who was my rock during the entire experience. At the beginning, I changed positions a few times, but nothing really eased the pain until I went and sat on the toilet. Experiencing contractions made things a little more bearable. I also understood that gravity would help encourage my baby to come out rather then laying on the bed.
From time to time, the nurse would ask if I wanted to move from the bathroom; for a while my answer was always no. At one point, the nurse told me that I could not have the baby on the toilet, and that I needed to move back out to the bed. This way she could check how far along I was. I guess I had been in there a while! Once I went back to the bed, she informed me that I was about 8cm dilated and 100% effaced. By this time it was about 7:00 a.m.; about 4 hours into the labor. The nurse left the room for a while and when she returned, she informed us that a new nurse was going to come in and take over. At first I was really disappointed because the nurse we had was amazing, but it turned out the second nurse was just as good. She really helped me during the really tough contractions that I did not think I could make it through.
By this point I still had taken no medications and I became determined to make it through without taking any. I was more afraid of the needle from the epidural, than the pain of the contractions. I moaned in pain as each contraction took over my body. Anthony kept reminding me to breath and told me how I should breathe. He also made sure I had water in-between each contraction. This really helped during each contraction; listening to his voice, got me through each painful contraction. At one point, I looked at Anthony and told him “I can’t do this anymore”. It hurt a great deal and I was exhausted, but Anthony never skipped a beat. He told me that each contraction I had was over, and I would never have to have experience that one again. He also constantly reminded me that, as a result of the contractions, I was bringing our baby into the world. He brought me back into motion, and I am so thankful that it was him by my side.
The nurse, informed me to tell her when my contractions started to feel different. This sounded confusing to me. How would I know? I asked her how I would know when they feel different, and she ensured me that I would know. I thought she was crazy. I thought to myself, “I am in a crazy amount of pain and you want me to feel my contractions to tell you if they feel different?!” However, about an hour or so after, this contraction felt different. I cannot really explain it. The first contractions were painful, but I knew the baby was not coming out. But when this one came over me, my body I started to feel, what I think was the baby’s head. I told the nurse and she checked me, and with a gigantic smile, she said “you are 10cm dilated and 100% effaced” and I could start pushing! By this point, I had been contracting for about 5 hours. I looked at Anthony, and we both knew, this was it. We were about to meet our baby!
When I started pushing, the nurse had told me that it would feel good; that I could use the contractions to my advantage at this point. Boy, was she wrong. Pushing did not feel good; they hurt. They hurt worse then anything I could have imagined. I pushed for what seemed like days, and the pain oftentimes became too much for me. I no longer wanted to push. It hurt, I was tired, and I felt like I was never going to meet our baby. The nurse told me that I had to keep pushing in order to meet our baby. The doctor came in and checked to see how I was coming along, but she informed me that I was not quite far enough for her to stay. Then all at once I remembered we longed to find out what the sex of our baby was! This gave me a second wind, and really motivated me to push my hardest. Two hours after I started pushing, our baby made its entrance into the world! The doctor let Anthony announce the sex and he called it out, “it’s a boy!” The moment I saw him, I was in love. I was crying, telling him how much I love him, and saying, “you’re finally here! In my arms!” I looked over to see Anthony crying too. I could have never asked for a better birth, and a better support partner to help me through. I still cannot believe I gave birth to a beautiful and healthy baby boy. And I did it all without medication. I am so proud of my body and what it is capable of! All of the fear and worrying was washed away when I held my baby in my arms for the first time.
I hope that, if you are reading this, and feeling scared about labor, that you could find some inspiration in my experience. You can do it. Our bodies were built for giving birth to our babies. Be proud of yourself, your body works hard for nine months to create another human, and now it is time to meet your baby!
Discovering Natural Motherhood 