My Third Birth Story – VBAC Home Birth!
Things have really come full circle, and I share this blog with such a grateful heart. I have the stories of my first birth and my second birth up on the blog, and today, I’m more than excited to share how the magic happened for my third baby’s arrival.
For those of you who don’t know, my first birth was a “birth center birth gone wild” that ended in a C-section.
My second birth was a VBAC (vaginal birth after caesarean section).
My third birth was a very quick VBAC home birth in the water! (Check out the below video for a photographic version of the events of my daughter’s arrival!)
A Quick Review
After having my first baby, I became extremely unwell. As I worked through what felt like thousands of doctors and diagnoses, I was at one point told that I would likely never have any more children, at least without the use of countless medications.
I was heartbroken. I was madly in love with my son, and I wasn’t ready to give up hope that he would have siblings.
Thank God, I found Medical Medium. His information was life-changing and quite literally live-giving as I sit here as a proud mother of three!
Better yet, using all that I have learned and experienced, this last pregnancy was my easiest pregnancy and the one where I felt the most supported from start to finish.
“Labor” Day!
As I was nearing the end of my pregnancy, I felt that baby #3 would be coming to me soon. However, as a mama at 41.5 weeks who birthed her first baby at 36 weeks + 5 days and her second baby at 42 weeks + 3 days, I was in full surrender and listening carefully to my body and my baby. We call due dates “guess dates” here at Reclaimers of Health.
“Mommy, sissy’s coming today.”
On the Saturday of Labor Day weekend, I woke up at 3:00 in the morning to my daughter saying “mommy, sissy’s coming today.”
As she said that to me, I realized that I was having pressure waves. So I got up, went to the bathroom and moved around a bit. As I was moving around, I soon realized that the waves weren’t stopping or going away like Braxton Hicks often do, so I knew that things were slowly getting started. I felt it with every fiber of my being, and thought, “today’s the day!”
My sweet daughter then said to me “she’s coming but she’s not coming ‘til later so lay down and snuggle me.” After that irresistible invitation, I laid down and snuggled my two big babies, and got a little bit of rest.
Once morning came, I knew that things were continuing to move in the right direction. I was excited to start our normal weekend routine. We juiced, we had breakfast, we went to a park, the kids rode their scooters a couple miles, and I walked.
Closer to the end of the walk, I recognized that I was getting to a point where I was having to pause for some of the waves as they were getting noticeably closer together and a bit more powerful. With every wave I smiled and thanked God for giving my body the strength and wisdom to move through effortlessly.
At the end of our walk, we took some time to let the kids play on the playground equipment. We laughed and played and I started to do some squats and lunges. I noticed I was having to stop and breathe through the waves a little more than when I was walking. We figured at that point that it was time to go home.
Once home, we prepped lunch, we batch-prepared a bunch of food including soups and potatoes, we made grain-free tacos, and focused on lots of hydration—juice, smoothies, tea infusions, coconut water, living water, all the things I knew I would need to keep my body hydrated during this very special time!!
Once it was all prepared, I ate lunch, then sat on my birthing ball a little bit, cleaned the kitchen, decorated the house, played with the kids, and decided it was time to take my last bath and oil up my pregnant belly for the last time.
I remember feeling so comfortable and supported when I was in the tub, just breathing through the waves.
I went upstairs, and I got into the tub. I listened to Hypnobabies—“my birthing day track”—and I focused on really getting myself in a grounded/centered place. I prayed, I visualized my birth, and I talked to my baby. I remember feeling so comfortable and supported when I was in the tub, just breathing through the waves. At this point, I was communicating with my doula and my midwife as my waves started getting closer together.
Let me say that my waves have never been “textbook.” For most people, they usually start more spread out and slow and gradually get closer and more frequent. My waves are usually closer together from the beginning, so I relied on intensity and my intuition while communicating with my birth team.
As I oiled my belly, got dressed, and felt a sense of deeper surrender come over me, I focused more on breathing, and spent more time on my ball before I went downstairs for dinner.
While prepping and cooking, I was having to hold onto the counter and really breathe through the waves that were now coming every 5-ish minutes. I was holding on for a minute or two and just breathing and riding the waves. I ate dinner, cleaned up, and really soaked in that last meal as a family of 4.
After dinner, I started to make my way upstairs where I planned to give birth. Based on our ongoing conversations, my midwife and doula made the decision to head to my house. At 10:00PM, my birth team arrived!
I continued to labor in the bedroom at this point, did some dancing with the kids, used my ball, and things started to get more intense. I found myself having to go more inward when dealing with the pressure waves. Outside of the waves, I was able to interact and play, laugh, joke, and smile. It was such a blessing to have my children there with me during this very special time. They repeatedly sang to me “I wanna see you be brave” which was a song on my birth playlist.
The whole process and experience was all guided by my body and my baby.
Things steadily continued to be more and more intense and progress in the right direction. I wasn’t aware of time, and I didn’t have any vaginal checks to tell me how many centimeters I was at any given time. I was simply relying on my body to give me the information I needed to provide feedback from moment to moment. The whole process and experience was all guided by my body and my baby. I share this because I truly feel that this is why this birth was so different from my other two.
As things intensified, I continued to visualize my birth, and my son instinctively started filling the tub. I got in. The labor was incredible and I knew I would be meeting my daughter soon.
Without induction, intervention, pushing, or medication, a woman’s body knows just what to do!
As soon as my body felt the water in the tub, it relaxed even deeper, at the same time that things intensified. I immediately felt my body performing the exact job it was meant to perform as it began the fetal ejection reflex. If you haven’t heard of this before, this is when a woman’s contractions allow her body to move the baby down on its own until a large amount of oxytocin is released and the baby is released. Read that again, without induction, intervention, pushing, or medication, a woman’s body knows just what to do!
Put another way, when a woman feels fully safe, supported, and peaceful, the baby will come with minimal effort. (This obviously makes for a preferable birth overall and can also result in less tearing.)
As the birth of my baby girl was nearing, I didn’t follow any forced or coached pushing, no counting, I just let my body do what it was meant to do. My body instinctively crunched over at my ribs, and I started to breathe my baby down.
Sweet Kayleigh was born into the water at 1:08 a.m. When she arrived, she was beautiful, pink, and just a dream come true.
We snuggled up in the tub, then moved to my bed where she latched and nursed for the first time. My team stayed with me for a while before they left, and I got some sleep knowing that my family was complete.
I’m eager to share my passion with you
After sharing this story, I am feeling even more grateful for having experienced Kayleigh’s home VBAC water-birth, but quite honestly, grateful for all three births I experienced.
Bringing babies into this world is nothing short of a miracle. I mean it when I say that all birth experiences are beautiful, regardless of the place of birth or method, and all mamas are absolute warriors!!
As a woman who has experienced several different births, years of pregnancy, and years of nursing, it is truly a passion of mine to work with pregnant, nursing, and postpartum women all over the world.
Check out my pregnancy page for more information, and to see how I can support you with fertility, pregnancy, and more. If today’s blog spoke to you, be sure to check out my blog on preparing for a natural birth.
Empowered Moms
In addition to consultations, we also support moms and moms-to-be in my Empowered Moms course. We get started on March 28th. Hope to see you there!!
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