Solstice birth story

Little Marvelene made her entrance earth side 11:23am weighing in at 8lbs 15oz and 21 inches long .

Long before she was born I had been wanting to use Hypnobabies for my next birth . I used it loosely with my 3rd child but never got the chance to do the whole program.

I found a great deal online and got the home study course . I've been practicing daily and listening to my hypnosis CDs regularly. I'm a huge skeptic on everything so for this to actually work for me was surprising not only for me but for those who know me as well.

Going for a natural birth after 3 prior births where I received epidurals was a shock to everyone. But it was something I felt I had to do. Apparently in the last 7 years the medical field has the same thoughts and are changing their practices to support this. Not only did I have a great nursing staff who had just trained for natural labors , I had my husband who despite his objections to seeing me put myself through unnecessary pain was the best birth partner and most positive , kind, caring presence that wasn't just appreciated by me... But desperately needed.

After feeling like I've been pregnant forever my labor began around 2 am when I woke up during one of my hypnosis tracks unable to get comfortable.. And uncomfortableness wasn't random so I started to time them . Apparently I had slept through the 5-10 minute contractions and woke up to 2-5 minutes apart.

I still wasn't convinced this was the real deal but thought I should wake the hubs up just in case. I took the dog out to use the bathroom , gathered my toiletries , dressed Fred while he got a shower and got the other kids ready. Finally I called my mom to let her know we were heading down and then the doctor just to touch base. I didn't want to be bombarded with messages so I didn't tell anyone we were at the hospital till we had the baby.

We dropped the kids off with my mom and I was having some pretty powerful waves of pressure. Despite this I instructed my husband to make a quick stop for Krispy Kreme donuts for my nurses ( one of the parts of the program was making sure to start off on the right foot with your caregivers)

This thoroughly annoyed my poor husband who was already frustrated because we had passed the hospital once already to drop the kids and the puppers off:p whereas I was in my bubble of peace... Calm... And quite honestly preparing myself for disappointment as I had determined I would be pregnant forever.

When we arrived at the hospital we laughed because some poor soul literally pulled up right to the door leaving his emergency blinkers on. We joked it must be their first baby.. We debated even parking in the labor spot but did since one of us had to carry the donuts and the bag.

When I arrived I happily handed the staff their tasty treats and again prepared myself to have not progressed at all. When they checked me I was at 5.5 cm already. That was so encouraging. I felt empowered. Quite honestly at that point in the last births I was asking for my epidural. This time around I was calm and meditating through each pressure wave.

Then shift change and my two nurses for my birth came in hyped up and ready for natural birth. Seriously these two were amazing. They wanted to use everything they had just learned and I was their test subject so I obliged , I rocked, I swung , I hung , I used the bar , but what worked the best was the toilet and being on all fours with almost near constant counter pressure they all took turns doing and then when Kevin started it was amazing and perfect relief.

At this point I hit 8cm things were getting intense but not awful. I was shocked , I made it that far and I wasn't writhing in pain .

My water still hadn't broken, and she was still -2 station so back on the toilet I went and the next time I was checked I still was 8cm and 0 station.

For some reason that made me stall in my seat and I looked at Kevin and said I am now getting nervous. He was my rock.. He reassured me that things were great and changed my track to the pushing stage since I was starting to have the urge to push .

At this point he was having a hard time keeping up with feeding me ice and the quickly switching to back pressure and laying wet washcloths on my back and face. I was vocalizing with moans and ahs and ums nothing major yet but it felt good to moan. It helped I was being reminded to breathe deeply as I kept feeling pushy and bearing down.

I don't remember when the doctor came in all I know is she didn't come in to do things her way.. She saw me on all fours and I got to stay there the whole time.

Things got tough fast, the pressure turned into another sensation all together I pushed into the burning sensation and it wasn't so much extremely painful as extremely agitating and frustrating . Like having a fly you can't swish off your ear for an entire year maddeningly buzzing and not a damn thing you can do about it frustrating . I felt myself opening up and her head coming so close only to go back inside , I bitterly pushed not with a contraction in my frustration.. Now I was just pissed off and in a rage that if Kevin wasn't there to tell me I was doing great I would have ripped the bed apart instead of screaming into the pillow. I literally screamed the most primal guttural scream and finally her head was coming out and I felt like I was so close and I kept pushing and bearing down and it felt so good and awful all at once . I was still in between moans and screams ravenously eating ice which surprised me I was still able to do. But breathing on the cubes on my pillow relieved the heat that I could feel coming off my body .

When she finally came out I felt an instant relief.. I did it.. I can't believe it I actually did it. I felt a huge release. I was able to lay down and birth the placenta with one little push and was told my water never broke and that my girl was born in the caul(the bag of waters ) I wanted pictures! However my husband was busy helping me accomplish my goal which if he wasn't there I would have given up.

Up until pushing time I felt like I was in complete control. I let doubt slip in my head and fear . Not once did my sweet husband tell me to tap out , or start to judge or doubt he stepped up and  told me how awesome I was.

I was way more tired than any of the other births and took some time to sit and take it all in. I kissed her head and snuggled... Apparently while in my rage I let off a solar flare which broke the AC , three baby scales, set the fire alarm off, and broke the hot water ... So we didn't know how much she weighed till later.

Everything I wanted happened, delayed cord clamping, skin to skin , instant breastfeeding, delayed bath till later ...

I know now after seeing her that my June 7th date was more correct that and the fact she weighs way more than she looks.

It always amazes me how tiny they are ... The kids got to FaceTime with me and see her until Kevin had a chance to go pick them up . William was shaking with joy. He has talked to my belly every morning and night telling her stories and wishing her well. And now seeing her he was so excited he couldn't contain his glee.

Amelia just wanted to touch her she was so glued to her. The nurses came to let the kids give her her first bath so both of them got their stools and wash clothes and bathed her. They are such sweet kids making sure to sweetly whisper everything is okay and they loved her .

After the bath she got to warm up and everyone got a chance to hold her.

Fred wasn't amused or interested and walked around with the bag of twizzlers I packed and then when everyone refused one he would eat it himself till the whole bag was gone.

After having my family visit and take pictures I got to eat and rest and reflect. I'm still in awe of my body. My nurses came in and called me the warrior princess :p I am still processing it all. I feel like I can't put this feeling into words. I'm beyond thrilled with the way things went ... And couldn't have asked for a better or smoother experience .

Now if only I could sleep because apparently no matter how I birth I stay up off adrenaline for 24 hrs...