I've had two births. Both births were very interesting (from my point of view). One the placenta didn't dislodge on it own, mom was bleeding heavily and the placenta had to be manually removed. Mom had a good birth, baby is healthy and after the placenta was removed and a dose of pictocin was administered the bleeding stopped. The second was a beautiful birth and I have a great story to share.
I wear many hats. One of a HypnoBirthing Practitioner, one of a Doula and one of a Midwife Assistant. Sometimes all of them blur together, other times they are very separate jobs. I was hired to be a Doula at a home birth attended by the Midwife I work with. It guaranteed mom a constant companion throughout the birth and the Midwife had to hire another assistant.
Mom had latent labor all week long (41wks) and was eager for birth to start but knew that the baby would come on his own time. I got the call while I was out to a movie with my family, her contractions were much stronger and more frequent than they had been all week and she was hopeful that it would be the day. I left the movie and arrived at her house almost immediately after the Midwife had checked her. She was happy to hear that she was 9cm and the baby would be there soon. She was coping well, quietly focused on what her body was doing and smiling between contractions. I prepared the birthing tub for her and she climbed in. She remained quiet and focused during the next hour. She breathed through each contraction and showed no signs of severe discomfort.
She then quietly said, "I think the baby is ready to come now". The Midwife reached down to see if she could feel crowning and I have to say she got all excited, because she did. She asked mom if she could turn on the lights so that dad and "helpers" could see something amazing. Mom was fine and relaxed and agreed. We all looked down and there was the baby's head, already out, and en caul. Mom had one more gentle nudge and breathed the baby out. The Midwife slid the caul off the baby's head and is preserving it for the family to keep. The baby was so happy, alert and bright eyed. Mom was radient, had minimal bleeding and was taking a shower less than 2 hours after the birth.
It's been a year since I started "officially" being a labor support person. I've seen, many peaceful un-touched births. I've helped a mother go all the way through labor and then helped her decide that she needed a cesarean. I convinced a mom she needed an epidural at the beginning of her labor and helped her have a happy birth memory even though it didn't happen the way she wanted it to. At a homebirth, I've seen a 9lb baby with shoulder distocia pulled from a mother (using the gaskins maneuver) not moving and with a 0 apgar and then recesitated by the CNM. I've seen episiotomies and hymenectomies. I've helped mom's deal with uterine flushing and treatment for toxemia. I have seen a few tears one of which was third degree and required transport for a surgeons hand. I have had many students, all of which, have thanked me for the class even when their births didn't go as planned but because they were able to feel like they were a part of their birth experience and not simply something that birth happened to. It's been a very interesting year in my life.
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