Peta,

This makes me so glad I met your sister when I did.

My first birth was very much medicalized. I knew P at the time and I had SO MUCH information on both sides of birthing, but I wanted to satisfy my mother. I was scared of her.

My mom worked with the dr that delivered Aryeh. When I was in the hospital, my mom knew everyone attending me. I felt like I had to perform for her people.

I was induced on my duedate. Along with several other women due on or about that day. It was the dr's day on call! Big surprise!!

Four hours after my induction started, I was still at zero. I was told that if I didnt make progress in the next half hour that I would have a c-section. My contractions were peaking ABOVE the 10 mark (highest mark on the reader)

This is where I got my backbone. I told the dr to go eff himself. Then I told the nurse I was going to get up and go to the bathroom. She FREAKED OUT at me and I told her not to stop me because she'd be sorry.

JUST BY STANDING UP, I nearly had Aryeh on the toilet!!

This says to me:

Either They just wanted to hurry and get this over with so they decided to tell me I was making no progress.

OR

I really was at zero and standing up HELPED IT ALONG-- Imagine that???

BUT

They laid me back down and I didnt have her for 4 more hours. I went down to 9cm when they did that and then I had 2.5 lovely hours of pushing. The doctor AND nurse both went to lunch while I was pushing. They only occasionally came in during the process.

Her cord was wrapped twice. My mom says that was so life threatening and that if Id have had her at home she'd have died...

They cut it immediately. My husband didnt even get to help, either-- with his first child-- jerks.

Anyway, she had terrible nursing problems. It wasnt till she was 3 years old that we learned that she had a cleft soft pallate. Something they should have checked for.

ALSO, I overheard the nurse say "Boy, you sure werent ready to come out yet were you?" (She had a LOT of vernix on her still and the placenta wasnt deteriorated at all)

I was told I pushed for so long because she was 9# 3oz (btw, I had a friend who pushed for 3 hours and her boy was a teeny 5#!!)

On the flip side of all this, 11 months later I had Noah.

I didnt tell my parents I was pregnant till I was 4 months along. I had been seeing Laura, my midwife for that amount of time. I knew that I'd get an earful from the dr if he found out that I was pg so soon afterward.

I seriously didnt want to deal with it.


When my mom did find out, she shot everything she could at me about how stupid I was to go this route.

When I finally had Noah, I was 17 days 'overdue' (he was probably right on time when he was born-- Id have been induced for sure in the hosp and he would have been way too early!!)

He was 9# 12oz.

I pushed 5 times.

I had no idea I was in labor.

I had him at my midwife's HOUSE (in a completely different county!) We werent expecting to have a baby that day!

I cant say it was fun, but it was very very very much more like it should be for every woman. TOTALLY calm and yes, even wonderful (eventhough it was childbirth LOL.)

Laura didnt cut the cord until after I delivered the placenta on all the kids of mine she'd delivered.

Aaron was just as easy. He was out in 1 push. 9# 8oz. Victoria 2 pushes 9#4oz.

SO, my hospital birth "Such a big baby" was my smallest...

I cant stress enough how much having my kids at home has been totally awesome not only for me, but for them. They are born into their own home. GENTLY! I was able to eat when I wanted and I was also able to be in whatever position I wanted. Being on my back was the LAST place I wanted to be!!

I had some friends there that were telling my midwife "This isnt how its supposed to be, where was the screaming, etc?"

My midwife looked at them and shook her head-- they seriously had no idea what it was like to have a peaceful for everyone delivery.

(by the way, Noah and Aaron both had their cord's wrapped twice... showed my mom up a bit LOL)