My Birth Story

Labour1

Its crazy to think that my little Max has already been in this crazy world for nine weeks. Wowee how life has changed… but only for the better. This lil man brings so much joy to my life with his beautiful face, chubby cheeks and perfect button nose. Can you tell that I just LOVE him so much 🙂

I would share with you my labour story and how Hypnobirth worked for me…

When I first found out I was pregnant I was terrified of giving birth and my first thoughts were that I would book in for an elective caesarean. This to me seemed like the only way that I would retain control of what my body went through. I think it was the unknown that really scared me.

At about 15 weeks pregnant a friend told me about his friends that had done a Hypnobirthing  course and had a calm and natural birthing experience. I decided to look into this more and was really excited about what I read.

Hypnobirthing is as much a philosophy of birthing as it is technique. When a mother and her birth companion are able to approach their birth without fear and with knowledge, good support, and tools for the birth – then their birthing can be a positive and empowering experience.

The ‘hypno’ part of ‘hypnobirthing’ refers to the hypnotherapy that we use during the program to release fears and condition ourselves to release endorphins at times during our birth. With the help of hypnotherapy, the birth of your baby can be a more calm and relaxed experience; one where you are in the drivers seat, rather than feeling like a passenger. This is likely to reduce the need for interventions during your birthing (1)

With the help of the amazing Kate Jones from www.believingachieving.com.au we took a 4 week Hypnobirthing Course which my partner Michael and I absolutely loved. I went from being terrified of giving birth to being excited about the experience that was to come. I loved that Kate had over 20  year’s experience as a midwife too so she was hugely knowledgeable about child birth from both a medical and non medical point of view.

So I suppose you want to know, how did Hypnobirthing work for me? Let me share with you my birth story…

Leading up to the birth of Max I could have sworn I was going into labour 20 or more times with every little twinge or niggle that I felt. I think it was actually a daily occurrence… My OB told me that when it happens I will know for sure that it was labour and he was so right. At 5am on Wednesday 1st July (12 days before my due date) I woke up to my stomach tightening and what felt like really dull period pain. I lay with my hands on my belly and timed ten minutes until the next one happened. This went on until about 8am but the tightening’s didn’t really increase so I got up, got myself ready and decided that I would continue on with my day as normal.

I had a hairdressers appointment that I was desperate to get to as I thought to myself who knows when I’ll get there again…

As I sat at the hairdressers the tightening continued but weren’t really much at all and they were only coming once every 30 or so minutes. I’m grateful that I got out of there without going into labour!!

I had always thought that I would like to be as active as possible when I went into labour so I headed for a 4 km walk around The Tan with my mum. This really helped me relax and I think it was also really beneficial in getting lil Max into position and ready to come out.

After running a few more errands I went home to relax. The surges didn’t really get any stronger however I was losing my mucous plug so I knew something was happening. I got a little alarmed at the amount of blood that was coming out (Sorry I know that may be too much information…) so I decided to call the hospital. They advised that it sounded like it was completely normal but they would feel more comfortable if I came in for a check up.

I told my partner and we started getting ready to head to the hospital. He asked if we should pack the bags into the car and I said why not, we may as well have them with us just in case LUCKY!… I had a shower as he packed the car and I was feeling really calm but also excited at the same time.

As I came out of the shower and got dressed, my waters broke in a big gush and it was all on from there!!!!!  I think at this stage we were both a bit shocked and quickly got into the car and headed for the hospital. The surges were now coming on strong and fast and to be honest I felt pretty scared and overwhelmed by what I was feeling.

On the car ride to hospital I had my head phones in and was listening to my Hypnobirthing affirmations trying to get into the zone and relax a little.

Once we arrived at the hospital our lovely mid wife Penny could see that I was in active labour and took us straight into a delivery suite. Michael got the Bluetooth speaker set up and started playing the Hypnobirthing Surge of the Sea Meditation and was counting my breaths (breathe in for 4 and out for 8). This really helped me to relax!!

The surges continued to increase and when Penny examined me she advised that I was already 7cm dilated. Hooray!!! I knew that it wouldn’t be long until I got to meet my lil bub. While this all sounds quite nice at this point, I’m not going to lie, it was damn HARD. There was a whole lot of vomiting going on (salmon for dinner didn’t seem like such a good idea…) I swear no one told me that its common to throw up during labour.

At this point I had totally lost track of time… After some time I no longer felt comfy on the bed and moved into the shower where I stayed for the rest of the time until my body felt the need to push. Having hot water running down my back helped so much, not to mention the breathing cues and affirmations that Michael continually recited. Poor guy must have felt like a broken record.

There were a number of times where I said to Michael that I couldn’t do this, however he quickly reassured me that I was going so well and that each surge was bringing my baby closer to me. This really helped me get through each surge. Each one was really hard but I think one of the things that got me through it was knowing that it wasn’t going to last and I would get a break at the end of each one.

As I felt my body involuntarily start to push, we called Penny back in and once she checked me she said that I was in fact fully dilated and ready to go and that my OB Scott Pearce was on his way. I moved back out to the bed but continue to stand or crouch leaning against it. This upright position felt so much more comfortable and I could really feel my baby moving down. I ended up on my knees on the ground as the position that I delivered Max in.

It was such an incredible experience feeling Max move down the birth canal. I remember feeling his head come down and then it popped back up. I think at this point I almost cried because I felt like I was almost there and then all that hard work and the head sucked back up… With a few more pushes out came his head and then after one more surge out he popped into my arms. Weighing in at 8 pounds 3 ounces with a full head of hair, he was just perfection. It is so true what they say about forgetting what you’ve just been through as soon as you hold your baby in your arms.

Seeing this amazing little person that had being growing inside me for the last nine month is just the most incredible and amazing experience. I wish I had it on video so that I could relive it!!! Watching him adjust to the big wide world was just beautiful.

Labour

Max was placed on my chest and then he immediately bopped around until he found my breast and started to have a little feed. Again such an amazing experience. If you get a chance, watch this video on baby led breast feeding. It is amazing that a newborn baby can know exactly what to do when they come out.

All up I was in active labour for just under four hours and gave birth to Max without the use of any pain relief so I definitely give the big thumbs up to Hypnobirthing! I know it sounds a little hippie but I definitely suggest exploring it if you are pregnant 🙂

Childbirth has to be one of the best things you will ever experience in your life. I can’t wait to do it all over again!!!