Our Birth Story

Becket's birth day

Friday 4/11/14 at  3:50pm

8lb 9oz, 21in long, 14in head, my fabulous baby boy!

Thursday 4/10/14:
Thursday morning I had my standard OB appointment with Dr. Kochenburger and he reported I was 50% effaced, 2cm dilated and at 0 station (all those details in previous post).  Everyone in our house figured I wouldn't deliver until after my due date... I just didn't know.  I was unsure since I felt great, but was just tired of waiting, lol.  So for fun, we decided that this night would be a good night to have Zachary's pizza, famous for inducing labor with their signature stuffed spinach and mushroom pizza (we get pepperoni baked on top) Mmmm... Couldn't hurt right? :)

Friday 4/11/14:
3:30am - I woke up with a mild to medium cramp and thought "hrm..."  and then another one.  "Ok, this might be early labor, we'll hang here and see"
4:15am - had first contraction - "Yes, this is definitely a contraction, no mistaking it!"  So I woke Josh up and said so.  He started timing them so we could know where we stood and when to call Pearl.  They were 3 minutes apart.  What?!  Maybe we aren't timing these right...   From 4:14am - 6am they were pretty much 3 minutes apart, with the exception of 2 "breaks", one was a 5 min one was a 6 min apart contraction, and they were definitely intense.  I was not walking around, talking or able to be distracted through them.  I really couldn't believe they were really 3 minutes apart and didn't want to wake Pearl before 6am so we held out.  At about 6:00 Josh called Pearl and she said she was on her way.  Our midwife's apprentice, Ellen lives nearby so she arrived shortly and Pearl was there a little before 9am.  I overheard them tell Josh this was their 3rd birth that week... (Why did I get the tired crew?! I thought, Lol).  Pearl checked me and said "you've been doing a lot of work! 9cm!"  Holy crap that was fast! ...and then... it wasn't.  I stayed that way for many hours, mostly in the fetal position on our bed squeezing the life out of Josh's hand and trying to drink water, coconut water and a smoothie as they encouraged me so I could keep up my energy.  I kept my eyes shut for about 95% of the birth just trying to get through each contraction.  We didn't get the tub full enough before we lost hot water and by the time we had more hot water we didn't bother, I just got in the shower and had Josh use the shower head on my low back while I labored.  Then it was back to the bed.  As labor moved along and into more intense, bare-down contractions, I labored over the yoga ball for a while.

Within 2 hours his head had changed shape

As it got to be about 2:00-ish?  (I had NO concept of time)... It was time to push, but little Bean's head was still cocked a bit and he was still somewhat turned on his side. His favorite sleeping position as we later discover!  Pushing was obviously intense and at one point I was able to feel his head.  It felt so tiny!  (Thank GOD no one told me differently or I would not have been able to keep pushing, ha!!). Finally I needed to go squat by the side of the bed with my arms wrapped over Josh's thighs for support and I pushed 3 times or so and out came Bean!   Looking down his head was a giant watermelon and he was a little blue.  Josh and I both thought I gave birth to an Indian God at first ;). We couldn't see around Pearl as she was giving him air so we didn't know the sex and then... Yep, ha!  I KNEW it!!  Told ya'll ;)

The second he was born, those hours of pain and exhaustion were just... done, gone.  I mean I was definitely tired, but the flood of hormones made me feel so serene and relaxed it was quite amazing.  There was a very love-hazed hour or so that he laid on my chest as I got a few stitches and then Pearl & Ellen left us alone for a bit.  I passed him over to Josh so he could have some skin to skin cuddles and we just watched him, thinking we could stare at him forever!  About 7:00pm, Pearl came back in to do the cord, which Josh got to cut, and did his weight, measurements and another round of the APGAR test.  Ellen inspected the placenta to make sure it all had come out ok and then wrapped it up to take with her to prepare my placenta pills.  Before she did, they put a small bit into a smoothie for me and Josh was intrigued enough to try a small piece!  You'll have to ask him what he thought ;)

What Are The Benefits Of Placenta Encapsulation?

It is believed that consuming the placenta can:

• Help to balance your hormones
• Replenish depleted iron levels
• Assist the uterus to return to its pre-pregnancy state
• Reduce post-natal bleeding
• Increase milk production – this has been proven in a study
• Make for a happier, more enjoyable post-natal period
• Increase your energy levels
• Read More: Click Here

In hind sight, without having a prior birth experience without taking placenta pills to compare to, I'd have to say that all of the above are true for me, except helping my milk production, but that is a whole other issue due to my breast reduction surgery about 12 years ago.