There are few things more special than the birth of a brand new life. The miracle of life never ceases to amaze me. We start out as a little tiny dot, no bigger than the period at the end of this sentence, and then we transform into this person, this life, this wonder.

The birth of our little boy was a day of so much joy, as is the birth of any baby, of course! One of the things that I love about where we live is the freedom to choose the setting in which we would like to bring our bundles of joy into this world.

My friend, Erin, from The Humbled Homemaker, is in the middle of a natural pregnancy and birthing series. I have been learning so much! She has asked me to share about our wonderful experience with labor and delivery in a birth center. We chose a birth center over a hospital and home birth for several reasons. Join me at The Humbled Homemaker today where I share 10 reasons we opted to give birth at a birth center. {Click here to continue reading…}

What about you? What do you think of giving birth at a birth center?

This is a guest post from Brenda at Triple Braided Life.

Photo Credit: Creative Commons: Lina Smith

The double line showed up before I could even put the stick down – the stick that revealed to me that there was not only one person in the small powder room of the downstairs in our house, but that there were really two.

Disbelief crowded my mind especially since only four days earlier a similar stick only showed one line. I guess He didn’t want me to know yet. This day was the day after Valentine’s Day after all. That would make the date easy to remember at least.

But the disbelief didn’t last long before I began pacing around the house, my husband still at work, and saying out loud, “Oh my gosh. Oh my gosh. Oh my gosh.”

Finally, I landed in a chair with my head in my hands bawling my eyes out and thanking God over and over again. He heard me. He answered my prayers. Finally I was a mother. At 35 years old, after a season of discontented singleness, and now a wife of four years to a husband who underwent a heart transplant two short years after the wedding, I often wondered, “Why God?” Today my “Why God?” became “Thank you, God, for hearing me.”

Standing back up with tears now matted to my face making it hard to move my cheeks, I was ready to get on the phone, log onto Facebook, and write a post to the world saying “I’m a mommy!”

But something held me back.

In the back of my mind I remembered “the rules” I had heard other women talk often about announcing pregnancies.

“Wait three months.”

“Don’t tell your employer.”

“Just make sure everything is o.k. first.”

“Have your first appointment.”

“It’s best to keep it a secret for a while.”

As I contemplated the best time to make my grand announcement, the thought of waiting too long became heavy on my soul. I couldn’t help but sense that behind all of these well intentioned words there was more than just a proper time to announce a life. There was an anchor of fear that gave the words their weight. Fear of all the what-ifs that could go wrong with this life inside of me.

I did tell a few people. I couldn’t help it. But I was still holding back from telling others, and the more I held back the deeper the anchor of fear settled.

A few days later my sister-in-law and I finally connected after playing phone tag, and I told her the news. I mentioned that I had not told a lot of people, and the fear of what might happen in my young baby’s life was holding me back.

Without hesitation she replied, “Even from the beginning I thought of my babies as lives worth celebrating, and I told people I was pregnant whenever I wanted to. But I did things a little different than most people.”

Her words helped me to see my baby’s true worth for the first time.

This baby deep inside of me, ever so small, is a child of God. A child that God gave to me to take care of whether for a day or for years. That care began at conception. Whether he or she lives or dies each day I am with him or her is a gift and has a purpose with eternal consequences. My baby is now a part of my life, my testimony.

God did not give me a spirit of fear, but a spirit of power, love, and a sound mind (2 Timothy 1:7), and I did not want to make decisions out of fear. From that moment on I prayed for God to release me from a spirit of fear. I did not immediately make a grand announcement on Facebook, but I became aware of my motives and guarded my heart. I specifically called the people closest to me and told other people as I saw them. I asked every person I told to pray for the sweet soul that was now with me. And slowly, after overcoming all the “what ifs”, there was an army of prayer warriors praying for my new baby.

When have you announced your pregnancies to others? Do you feel like it was our of discernment or fear?

Brenda Rodgers: After years of living a discontented single life, Brenda laid down her dreams and began focusing on the only One who can truly give her the desires of her heart. A few years later she found herself laying down her dreams again as her new husband underwent a heart transplant. Now she encourages other women to live a life surrendered to Jesus through every season – singleness, marriage, and motherhood – at her blog Triple Braided. She is also learning to be a mommy for when she welcomes her first baby in October!

Disclaimer: This is a birth story. One in which certain terms will be used and details given in the hopes to give a complete and accurate picture of my experience. Please read at your own discretion.

If you missed the first part of Samuel’s birth story you can read it by clicking here.

When we arrived at the birth center contractions were about 2 minutes apart and literally coming one on top of the other. Back labor was also something that I began experiencing that I simply did not expect or prepare for.

What is back labor? For me, it was an intense pressure and throbbing that took over my entire back that only counterpressure applied with the force of a mack truck could help make it subside even a single degree. Truthfully, the contractions in the front were nothing compared to the intensity of what my back had to offer. The back labor did not subside between contractions. It was ever present and many times took my breath away.

For the regular contractions, abdominal breathing and allowing my entire body to go limp with each contraction helped with the pain – often eliminating it altogether. Soon the birthing tub was full and once immersed in the water the contractions became much more mild. The water helped me get into a rhythm of relaxing. Unfortunately, the back labor did not seem to be phased by the warmth that my front side was enjoying so much. The only comfortable position was leaned over the side of the tub while Mark applied counter pressure to my back.

It was a glorious feeling when I was able to take my mind off the pain and allow myself to focus on my baby’s body moving further and further down. What a sensation when I felt him turn over entirely. It was encouraging to feel his each movement because I knew that we were moving closer and closer to seeing his beautiful face. Of course, I wouldn’t have long to feel him as another contraction would flood my mind requiring my full attention yet again.

It wasn’t long until I felt the urge to push. I remember doing a little tester push to see if it made it all feel better or worse. When it definitely felt better to push than to not push, I knew it was time to begin the pushing phase. I asked if it was ok if I started pushing and got the go ahead from both Mark and Lisa. It was so neat to know that I knew exactly what to do. God truly has designed a wonderful process. I loved knowing that God created me and this process to work just this way precisely.

From this point forward, the details get much more blurry, as I entered what is known as transition.

Transition is the hardest part of labor. It’s the point when the woman generally wants to give up and when most epidurals are asked for. I now understand the temptation for an epidural. Thankfully, the thought never crossed my mind to ask for any pain medication. In all honesty, I do remember saying, ”I can’t do this. I know I can’t do this.” However, our Bradley Class fully prepared us for these comments. Even as I said the words, I knew it wouldn’t be long before we met our baby boy. We were truly at the end.

After several pushes, Lisa decided to check me with the next contraction. She wanted to be sure I was fully dilated and thinned out. Since my water had not yet broken, she had a feeling that our pushing wasn’t getting us very far. Once she checked, we discovered that the bag of waters was in tact and not allowing the baby to descend down with each push. She gave us the option to break my water and we graciously agreed.

Unfortunately, for her to break my water, I had to be removed from the tub and moved to the bed. We had to wait for the next contraction. I will never forget this particular contraction. I was forced to lay on my back and try to relax through the contraction. My friends, laying on your back while laboring is painful! I was overwhelmed by the difference and was begging to get back in the water or at least get back on all fours.

After my water was broken, things progressed very, very quickly. I moved to all fours in the tub. Mark was rubbing my back with each contraction while I held tight to my mother’s hands.

I think it is safe to say that I could not have done it without their help. I was ever so grateful to have them both with me coaching and helping me stay focused and hopeful that it would soon all be over. I am a firm believer that a woman can do anything without medicine if she has a good support team. Mom and Mark were the perfect pair for me. I know Mom found strength in her that she didn’t know existed as well. Additionally, Lisa guided me wonderfully through the whole process and informed me that grunts and even yells are beneficial for helping push baby down. I confess - I took her advice and got in touch with my primitive side.

At this point, I remember the contractions were coming one on top of the other. I was pushing with all my might each and every time. I was not prepared for this sort of pushing phase. I had been told it was more likely that I would have several minutes between pushes to rest adequately, especially since this was my first. However, this was not the case. They flooded in one on top of the other and even seemed that a new contraction was starting before the one before had fully finished what it was trying to accomplish. It was at this point that I felt the need to throw up, which I continued to do several times.

This was the most intense part of the entire labor, which is why I think throwing up was inevitable. I did get to reach down somewhere around this point and feel Samuel’s head. It was not something I thought I would want to do, but since the option presented itself, and I needed to know that I was almost done, I embraced the moment. Mark was also primed and ready to catch baby boy when he came out. I was excited that Mark decided this was something he would want to do. Unfortunately, this isn’t the way it worked out.

Once I began throwing up, I found it hard to breathe. They were also checking Samuel’s heartbeat every so often. Toward the end, his heart beat began to drop. I was put on oxygen to help me breathe, and given a few more pushes to try to push him on out. But when Samuel’s heart beat got down to 85 (140 was his normal), I had to move from the tub to the bed. Yes, my friends, Samuel was crowning when I had to move. I will let your imagination and reasoning figure this out on your own. I don’t need to write about it so as to remember it. Let’s just say – this.was.not.fun.at.all. Mark and Mom carried me to the bed, and I was instructed to get on all fours.

I was so impressed by our midwife and nurse’s efficiency and care during this time. They were calm, professional, and ever so encouraging. I never once became concerned even though it was a situation that could have elicited much fear. I remember just thinking on the scripture that God never leaves us or forsakes us and that He never gives us more than we can handle. Once on all fours, it was only a few more pushes and baby boy popped right on out.

He was immediately whisked away to be put on oxygen and checked out. Since he was taken to another room, Mark went with him as was planned. My mom stayed with me, and I remember saying, “It’s over. It’s really over. He’s out isn’t he, Mama?” She said, “Yes baby he is.” And then we heard him cry. What a sweet sound that was. He checked out perfectly and was handed to Mark to bring to me.

Samuel was born at 4:35 am on Wednesday, January 12th. He weighed 6 lbs 12 ounces and was 20 1/4 inches long. He was a healthy and alert baby boy who seemed very glad to be out in the new world.

To sum it all up, I was in first stage labor for 7 days. Active labor for 5 hours. He was born 3 hours after arriving at the birth center. We were able to go home before lunch on Wednesday, which was less than 12 hours after active labor began. It was wonderful being able to recover in my own bed and in the comforts of my own home. I am so grateful for our experience, and although it didn’t go exactly as we planned, it went exactly how the Lord had planned and it was wonderful.

If and when I do this again, I might opt to deliver outside the tub again. Truthfully, I felt as though I was much more effective on all fours and felt much more in control of the pushes. The water was wonderful for eliminating some of the pain, but in the end, I think pushing on all fours on a bed was more effective for me. Oh, and I didn’t tear at all, which was such a blessing. Since it all happened so quickly, we were afraid this was something that would happen. But Lisa was wonderful and guided the process with perfection.

And with that, friends, we are a family of 3 …

Disclaimer: This is a birth story. One in which certain terms will be used in the hopes to give a complete and accurate picture of my experience. Please read at your own discretion.

It’s nine days after the birth of our little boy, and I am still amazed that he is actually here. We’re settling into a routine and adjusting much more quickly than I ever dreamed possible. What amazing grace! He’s snuggled into the baby bjorn now, and I’m hoping he will stay asleep long enough for me to get the bulk of his story written. So here goes nothing …

Labor began looooong before his arrival was even on the horizon. At 38 weeks, we had a check up at Lisa Ross to check on his position. He was confirmed head down and very, very low. We went home wondering and making guesses on when he would arrive. Because he was so low, I was incredibly uncomfortable and truly wondered if I could make it to 40 weeks if he chose to take that long. Fortunately, call it the mother sense, I had a feeling it wouldn’t be long before labor would begin and our little boy would begin his descent into this world.

The night of our 38 week check up, first stage labor began. The contractions began that evening after dinner. While playing games, I began to keep track of my contractions. When the contractions were only 2-3 minutes apart, we thought surely they would intensify at any given moment. Alas, they did not, and we all went to bed a little disappointed. However, we were hopeful that tomorrow was a new day. Surely tomorrow would be THE DAY!

This went on for 7 full days. Contractions all day every day. They would get as close as 4 minutes apart, but they never once hurt. I thought surely this wasn’t what real labor would be like. Thankfully, I wasn’t naive enough to believe that it was “this easy.”

At our 39 week check up, Tuesday, January 11th,  we chose to let the midwife check our dilation and effacement. Much to our amazement I was 4 centimeters dilated and 90% effaced. Wow! The contractions I had been experiencing were actually doing something. We were so encouraged.

As the day wore on, the contractions slowed down. I took a nap around dinnertime because I knew I needed some extra rest. After dinner, the contractions began again. I wasn’t excited. To be frank, I ignored them entirely. I was very accustomed to the starting and stopping by this point. However, Mark and my sister were determined to help these contractions and this labor along. They were tired of waiting. So what did they do to take matters into their own hands?

At 10 pm, they cranked up the dance music and proceeded to have a dance party in our bedroom. I think we literally laughed me into active labor. Here take a look …

What a sweet memory we made that night. Obviously, we were goofing around and never dreamed that this was actually the night labor would begin. There is a video as well that I might post soon, but it needs a little bit of editing first.

In addition to the dance party, I drank a strong cup of Raspberry Leaf Tea, did some acupressure (thumb to the roof of my mouth), and we even did a little nipple stimulation. These are all natural ways to induce labor. I’m not sure I would ever do nipple stimulation again though. The reason is that it’s supposed to increase the intensity of your contractions to get labor moving along. I have to wonder if they were more intense because of the nipple stimulation. Unfortunately, I can’t prove or disprove this theory.

Once the dance party came to a close, we decided to pile up in our bed and watch a movie. Check out this sight to see …

Mark was reviewing the Bradley Method of labor, I’m doing the acupressure, and Mandi is keeping track of the contractions. The movie is primed and ready to begin. However, we never made it to the movie. I simply could not get comfortable in the bed. I was restless and asked Mark to make me a hot bath. Something told me that I needed to relax and rest.

I dissolved into the sea of warm and goodness at 11:32 pm. I listened to music and just allowed my whole body to relax. Mark and Mandi took turns sitting with me as everyone else began to prepare the birth center bags – contractions were about 3 minutes apart. Mark intermittently warmed the tub for me, and took the liberty to call a midwife to let them know that we were having contractions 2-3 minutes apart (again). The midwife on call told us to continue doing what we were doing and call back in 30 minutes to let her know how we were doing.

Around 12 – something, things took the turn we had been waiting for. I felt my first active labor contraction and told Mark, this is it and I think we need to leave now. My contractions were 2-3 minutes apart already, and I will never forget my first active labor pain. It was … very different. I had one and then another and then another … Mark called the midwife on call and told her that things were definitely picking up and this was in fact the real thing. Come to find out the midwife we were talking to was already at the hospital with another birthing mom, and we would be meeting the 2nd on call, Lisa! I was elated!!! This was the midwife I had been praying for to be at my delivery.

Once out of the tub, I told Mark to have a talk with the ladies who would be attending the birth and let them know that I needed them to not talk when I was in the middle of a contraction. Each one then proceeded to carry out our plan with such perfection that even my planning brain couldn’t think of a single thing we had forgotten. I probably asked Mark a million questions in between each contraction, “Do we have food?” “Do we have blankets?” “Don’t forget my toiletries.” And with each question or statement I was informed that everything was already taken care of. I am so thankful for my amazing birthing team (Mark, Mom, Mandi, Susan, and Mary Beth).

At this point, the contractions definitley took extreme concentration, and leaning into Mark while swaying was the only comfortable position. Since they were coming one on top of the other, I began to worry if I was actually going to make it to the birth center. With each one, I’d stop and grab Mark and try to relax my whole body. They would subside and we would continue our rush to get out the door.

Now would be a good time to mention that our little southern town got its first REAL snow in years the night I went into labor. The roads were all covered in snow and did I mention … ice? Yeck!

The ride to Lisa Ross is the only time that I cried during the entire labor. The bumps and railroad tracks were brutal to the contractions. They were not conducive to relaxing, and I felt every. single. contraction. with. great. intensity. Thankfully, we only live minutes from the birth center.

We arrived at the birth center at 1:30 am. Lisa began filling the birthing tub immediately. I got undressed and she checked my progress. I was 6 centimeters and 90% effaced. I remember thinking, “Only 6 centimeters? You have GOT to be kidding me…” However, I didn’t have time to dwell on this as the contractions got stronger and stronger and the infamous back labor began. I moved to all fours while I waited for the tub to fill.

To be continued …

You can read Part 2 here.

As we’ve discussed before, Mark and I desire to have a natural, un-medicated birth for our son. We also hope to give birth in a birthing tub full of luxurious water. Since water birth is something that’s not talked about often (at least not in our circle of family and friends), we thought we’d share our reasons on why we desire to have a water birth.

5 Reasons Why We Want a Water Birth

1. Reduce pain of contractions. Since we believe that epidurals have a negative effect on the health of both me and our baby, a natural way of coping with pain is a bath full of warm water. When you have aches and pains, do you not just want to soak in a warm bath? The water has the same effect on the pains of contractions.
2. Reduced risk of episiotomy and tearing. Episiotomies are becoming more and more routine in birth. We believe that the increase in routine episiotomies is a direct result of the rise in epidurals. An epidural leaves the woman unable to feel her baby coming down through the birth canal thus limiting her ability to control the pace at which the baby emerges. By giving birth in water, not only do I still have control over my body, the water also softens the perineum reducing my risk of tearing.
3. Can birth in any position I want. In the water, I’m still able to get into any position I desire for birthing. The natural birth position is the squat. However, because of our way of life, many of us are not able to squat for long periods of time. Being in water makes it easier for me to hold this position for much longer periods of time, if I so choose.
4. Increased ability to relax. One of the keys to a successful natural birth is the woman’s ability to relax completely and give in to each contraction. Tensing during a contraction will only make it hurt worse and can slow down labor. It only seems common sense to us that one of the most relaxing places is a warm tub.
5. Gentle transition for our baby boy. Our little man has been floating in warm water for nine months. Moving from the birth canal to cold air is probably a bit shocking! This option gives him a smoother transition allowing us to slowly bring him into our environment. Additionally, it slows the cutting of the cord too soon allowing our baby boy to transition from receiving his oxygen from me to breathing on his own.

Now that you know why we want to birth in water, let me tell you about one of the main concerns that we hear over and over from those who are not familiar with water birth.

“Won’t the baby drown?”

You know … we’ve never thought about that…

Ok, I’m being facetious. Seriously though, the baby will not drown.

There are five inhibitory factors involved that keep a baby from sucking in the water upon emerging from the birth canal.

1. Increase in prostaglandin E2. Twenty-four to forty-eight hours before labor starts, our baby will experience a notable increase in the prostaglandin E2 levels from the placenta which causes a slowing down or stopping of the fetal breathing movements. When he is born and the prostaglandin level is still high, his muscles for breathing simply don’t work, thus engaging the first inhibitory response.
2. Babies are born experiencing a lack of oxygen. It is a built-in response to the birth process. Hypoxia causes apnea or swallowing, not breathing or gasping. If for some reason the baby is not getting enough oxygen during the labor process, the midwives are there to let us know, and we will move from the tub. They would have us move from the tub in this case because once the baby emerges from the canal due to the fact that he will most likely gasp for air.
3. There isn’t a huge difference between the temperature of the birthing water and the water the baby is coming from. Therefore, he will not feel the need to gasp for air since it’s so close to what he’s used to. Babies do not breathe until they detect change in temperature.
4. Water is a hypotonic solution and lung fluids present in our baby is hypertonic. Even if water were to travel in past the larynx, it could not pass into the lungs based on the fact that hypertonic solutions are denser and prevent hypotonic solutions from merging or coming into their presence.
5. The dive reflex. The larynx is covered all over with taste buds. Surprisingly, the larynx has five times as many taste buds as the whole surface of our tongue. When a liquid hits the back of the throat and crosses the larynx, the taste buds interpret what substance it is and the glottis automatically closes; the liquid is then swallowed, not inhaled.

So, you see … God has built reflexes into our newborn allowing him to know exactly when to breathe. He has placed several inhibitory factors in place to ensure that our baby boy only breathes in air. Therefore, we are confident that giving birth in the water is not only safe but ideal for both mother and baby as we make this new transition.

I’ve begun working on my list of things to do before the baby arrives. It feels good to be moving forward! It feels even better to be enjoying the process.

Last week, I sent several women an email loaded with questions. Some of the questions had to do with labor and delivery. I asked them if they delivered vaginally and if so what methods did they use to help them through labor (i.e., Lamaze, Bradley Method, Birthing From Within, etc.)? The reason I was most interested in vaginal deliveries is because, Lord willing, we plan to have a natural childbirth. Yes, I’m telling you that we’re going into this saying no epidural and no pain meds. That’s part of our plan.

However, I think this is as good a time as any to say that because of my discussions with several women who chose to have an epidural and those who have had induced labors, I feel more prepared to deliver my baby as safely and quickly as possible. We feel blessed and even empowered now that we have this information underneath our belts. We have a plan, but it is truly the Lord’s plan that will stand. We’re not against medicine. We do believe there are special situations in which medicine is essential. If I had to make the decision between getting my baby out safely and swallowing my pride, I would take the epidural or have a c-section in a heart beat AND I will feel as though my baby’s birth was a success. I don’t think I could have said that without the wise counsel and humble advice that I received from so many women.

With that said, we do go into this with a plan to deliver vaginally and naturally without medication. We believe that a woman’s body was created perfectly for this purpose. God has given us all that we need to bring our baby safely into this world.

We’ve opted to give birth at Lisa Ross Birthing Center. We chose a birthing center over a hospital for several reasons.

• We want the freedom to listen to my body.
• Neither of us have a “comfortable” feeling in hospitals.
• We liked the at home setting that Lisa Ross provides.
• We will not be hooked up to monitors the entire time, and therefore, this gives me free range of motion.
• Access to a birthing tub, showers, and many other tools to help ease labor pain. We are planning a water birth.
• Support for a natural birth without medicine. The midwives are trained in helping us get into positions that will ease pain without the aid of medication.
• Support for breastfeeding.
• The baby never leaves our side.
• Our family can be present, along with a birthing team if we so choose.
• We won’t stay over night. We’ll be able to come home within hours of the birth and recover in the comforts of our own home.
• It’s cheaper. Let’s be honest. That is a nice perk!

For concerned readers, there is a cap on how much time I can labor at Lisa Ross, as well as the fact that they are trained to detect any problems along the way. If a problem arises, I will be transported to St. Mary’s Hospital where they work closely with doctors and the midwife will not leave my side. In addition, I am familiar with St. Mary’s Hospital and it is our hospital of choice in the Knoxville area.

This is not a deliver naturally at all costs sort of plan. Common sense is involved.

We’re really thankful that we have this sort of facility so close to home. The drive to Lisa Ross is about 7-10 minutes from our house. The only thing that would slow us down is if we decided to go into labor during football season. But since this is a January baby, I think we’ll be ok in that arena.

In summary, we are looking forward to experiencing the birth of our little boy the way God intended for it to be. I pray that this little boy and I can work together to bring him safely into this world without medical intervention. However, if medical intervention is needed, God has provided competent doctors and medical staff to help us deliver our baby safely. For that I am grateful, and a safe mommy and baby in whatever form it comes will be a successful birth story.