Home Birth Stories

Amy’s Pregnancy and Birth Story 

I am excited to share my pregnancy and birth story with you! Let’s start at the very beginning. Right when I found out I was pregnant.

My Pregnancy Story

August 22nd 2020: we planned a day out on a boat tour of the inlet. It was a beautiful, hot day in Florida. The tour was amazing, had indoor seating and a bar. We saw beautiful mansions, boats and small islands with wild life. The kids and Corwin were having a blast, I got myself a Pina Colada and was half way through it when my phone dinged from a notification. I look down and it was a notification from my period tracking app saying I was five days late. I say “oh shit” in my head and start rationalizing on how I could be late cause there was just no way I could be pregnant. It must be the stress from Camren starting kindergarten or I’m still breastfeeding Lillian that can throw it off.. but I haven’t been THIS late though in a long time.

Once we got back home I told Corwin some lame excuse that I needed some dry shampoo and was just going to run over to Walgreens. He didn’t even questioned it. Head over to Walgreens telling myself I’m just over reacting and that its just a stupid pregnancy scare. I get my pregnancy test and dry shampoo (because I needed some). Took the test and immediately the first pink line appeared and then the second. It didn’t even take the full minute you normally wait; it was flaming positive!

The Unexpected News

I sat on my bathroom floor just staring at the test in shock. “I had my two babies, I was done!” I cried and texted my girl friends, they congratulate me and reassured me that everything was going to be okay. I went that night to one of my closest friends and cried and talked on her back porch till late in the night. I needed emotional and pregnancy support. Came home to a very sound asleep husband so I decided to wait until morning to break the news to him.

That morning I emerged from our bathroom with the test and a pair of scissors in hand. Hoping the humor would soften the shock. Cause we had no plans to have anymore babies. Handed him the test and scissors saying something along the lines of “you are going to want to get fixed in 9 months!” We cried, we laughed and took on this new change as best as we could given the circumstances, COVID-19, government shut downs, riots and protest happening everywhere. And our plans of not having anymore babies went out the window. The future felt uncertain. But we knew God had a plan and that we would get through this and we accepted the joy of having another child.

Planning a Home Birth

Nine months go by, had the most text book pregnancy, I did all the “hippy dippy” stuff as Corwin likes to call it. Taking herbal supplements, eating right, keeping my hydration in check and prenatal exercise. Etc. We planed how to prepare for a home birth together with our Midwife since my water birth at the birthing center with Lillian was so successful, it would be easier with the kids if we just had the birth at home and that I had no history of birthing complications with Camren or Lillian.

“(…) it was scary having an unexpected pregnancy to unexpected unassisted home birth. But there was a plan in place and God was there to keep our heads calm (…)”

My Labor Story

Saturday April 24th, 8:00 am: We start our morning, kids already consumed their breakfast and are running around the house making as much noise as possible. I start having on and off contractions, nothing consistent but sporadic. So I tell Corwin and head upstairs to shower to see if it will cause them to stop. I notice I have a bit of bloody show (pinkish brown spotting). I text my doula at 8:54 am letting her know what’s happening and asking if I should call the midwife or wait. I take an extra long shower, contractions not stopping at all. At 9:23 am I message my friend and neighbor Laura asking if she could let Camren go over to her house for a play date with her son in an hour or so. Corwin takes Camren over to Laura’s, it’s 10:47 am.

The Contractions

My contractions had been lasting for about 40-50 seconds 6-7 minutes apart. I call my doula at 10:47 am leaving her a voicemail letting her know what’s going on. At this point the contractions are bearable, I could breathe through them but definitely needed to concentrate on them. I call my midwife at 10:56 am stating the same information I had stated with my doula. The midwife on call tells me to call back when the contractions get to lasting 1 minute and are 3 minutes apart for 1 hour. I hang up and continue to labor, my contractions start becoming closer together, starting from 11:06-11:20 am they are lasting for 1min and are 4mins apart.

11:20 am Corwin comes back with Lillian who is crying so she comes up and wants me to hold her cause she’s upset that she didn’t get to stay with Camren. I hold her for a while slowing my contractions back down to lasting 1min and 5-6 mins apart. Corwin takes her back downstairs and settles her with play dough, lunch, and cartoons. I continue to labor and my contractions go back to being closer together.

Around 11:52 they start lasting for 1 min and are back at being 4 mins apart but start to become very intense, I had a lot of lower backpressure. At this point, I’m making a lot of low moans and really having to focus through each contraction. Corwin starts scrambling around the bathroom trying to set everything up, my fan, bath mats etc. I call my doula again at 12:08 pm and she answers and lets me know my earlier messages have just been received before I called again. (Thank you Sprint and your unreliable phone service!) I tell her I need her to come over now and she tells me she is on her way.

I labor for another 15mins, Corwin fills up the bathtub, I tell him we need to call the midwives back because the contractions are really intense but still haven’t reached lasting 1min and 3mins apart. 12:22 pm we call and he tells them the relaying message, I also wanted to ask if it was okay for me to get in the water at this point but decided while he was still on the phone that I was getting in the water. I mumble “fuck it” rip my dress off and get into the water. He informs the midwife I just got in the water. She tells him okay and that they are on their way.

The Birthing

The birthing came quicker than expected! As he hangs up the phone I blurt out “I’m in transition!” as I start feeling Cecilia dropping through my pelvic bone, and start having an out-of-body experience from the pain. I check my cervix just to be sure I was right and sure enough I felt her head within a finger’s length. I tell Corwin this and tell him to get the birth kit out and a towel. He starts getting these things, and I groan out through another contraction “we should have gone to the hospital!” In reply, he says “too late for that now!” And I growl back “I’m going to kill you once I’m done!” Which he gave a very calm “okay”.

He gets the birth kit out of our linen closet, sits it on the floor then grabs a towel lays it on the sink counter close to the tub. And I see him go back to the kit and start digging through it. Me knowing how much he hates biologicals I again growl at him “ You do not need gloves!” And he answers back “I’m not getting gloves!” Comes over to me holding up a bulb syringe. I go “oh..”

I then feel an urge to push, but struggling mentally with the fact the midwife isn’t there, I hold back my full strength and allow a half-ass push. Corwin reminds me to breathe and I prepare myself for another contraction. I support myself with my hands on both sides of the tub in a kneeling position. I reach my hand down to check and I feel her head crowning. I tell Corwin that she is crowning, bracing myself I pushed with my whole body, and her head is born. Corwin says “her head is out!” And I push one more time and she was completely born at 12:42 pm. She makes a soft squall/squeak. I sit up, look over and see her wrapped in a towel in her daddy’s arms. With the umbilical cord being so short he couldn’t hand her to me. So I had to pull my leg over the umbilical cord so it was in front of me. Corwin is holding her in the towel with one arm and holding the bulb syringe with his other hand, he asks me to take the bulb syringe, I take it and suction out some fluid from her nose and mouth. But really wasn’t needed and I assured him that she is breathing and was fine. I laid my head on Corwin’s shoulder and we both just sat there looking at Cecilia taking in all that just happened.

The Support

My doula Susan arrived around 12:44 pm, we hear her come through the front door and up the stairs. Upon her entrance to our bathroom, I say “we have a baby!”

Susan helped reassured us that everything looks fine, and my bleeding looked normal. We place a call to the Midwife at 12:58 pm letting her know that Cecilia was born. And the midwife in training let us know that she and the midwife were about 10mins away. While we waited for them to arrive. Susan assisted in helping me get out of the bathtub and I sat on a chuck pad in front of my bathtub. When the midwives arrived they helped me deliver the placenta. Leaving the cord still attached to Cecilia and the placenta, I got my lotus birthed as I had hoped for. Corwin cut her cord after I was moved to the bed with Cecilia. We got some birth photography as well.

From an Unexpected Pregnancy to an Unexpected Unassisted Home Birth

At the moment it was scary having an unexpected pregnancy to unexpected unassisted home birth. But there was a plan in place and God was there to keep our heads calm for those intense moments and He gave us the perfect textbook pregnancy to textbook birth. I thank God every day for my healthy pregnancy and the maternity care I was given at Abundant Life Birth Center. I also thank God for Corwin and his ability to think clearly during such a stressful situation. And I am so glad I physically and mentally prepared myself for this birth. I trusted myself, my body and made good choices regarding my health that helped produce such a positive outcome.

Thus far I have had an amazing recovery postpartum and so has Cecilia. I am grateful for it all. I hope me being raw with my story will encourage or help others. This birth could not have happened unless I had read and watched thousands of birthing stories, educating myself, taking my health seriously, and overcoming so much fear and anxiety. I thank everyone who has played a part in my pregnancy journey and birth.

 – Amy 

This birth story was written by our client with her authorization to share it with our community. The information contained on this site should not be construed as medical advice nor should it replace the advice and individual care of your health care provider.