06/16/2024
My Freebirth Story took place on June 14, 2024
After a last night of love making and some acupressure, me going to sleep after my toddler was awake twice before midnight, I fell asleep deep after being anxious the previous nights. I thought for sure nothing would be happening that night. I was woken abruptly from a very intense contraction around 4am.
I texted my doula at 4:25 but quickly followed up with a phone call as I could feel how productive these contractions were. I didn't tell her to come yet. My husband woke up to my phone call and I told him he'd wouldn't be going to work today. He got up and started making breakfast because I was starving. I set up our bed to be birthed on. Things were really intense. I texted my doula to head over soon, since she was an hour away, at 5:17, and she got there at 6:30 with her little one in tow. My older kids woke around that time. My daughter came out asking if there was going to be a baby today since I was sitting on the couch in my underwear with a cooling towel over my face. I told my husband there's no way I'm eating at this point. Every contraction I could feel how much I was dilating and I was instinctively breathing baby lower, almost pushing a little, and keeping as relaxed as I could to get things going fast. I felt so much pressure of descent. Around 7 I felt my first pushy contraction and I think everyone was surprised as I wasn't vocalizing. I told them and said I better move to my bed because I don't want my water breaking on the couch. I shuffled to my room and stripped off my underwear. I waited for my husband to lay the bed with pads and climbed onto all 4s. I had one weaker contraction then one big one and my mec stained waters exploded beneath me. I wanted baby out so badly. With the next contraction I bare down with it, I felt so much descent. I told them baby was coming fast. My husband was running around trying to get cartoons going for our 2 year old, and getting the video camera set up on the tripod. I felt inside and could feel baby's head an inch or so in. I thought it meant there would be lots if pushing because my last baby crowned for a long time. I decided to keep my hand on the head during my next contraction and felt how much baby came, baby's head wanted to retreat when I let up on the push and I didn't want it to so I gave it my all and it came out. It was intense. I waited for the next one, still with my hand on baby, feeling baby move but not sure if baby was fully rotated before I started pushing again. I pushed and could feels shoulders start to come out and they wanted to slip back so I pushed harder. Baby slipped down into my hands and I brought baby up to my chest. Baby was born at 7:20am. My 6 year old daughter got to witness the birth of her surprise gender baby BROTHER. My husband called out its a boy teary eyed. I didn't even look. I sat back but realized I was still wearing a shirt and put baby down to take it off before picking him up again. He came out screaming just like his big brother. My son came to meet baby and we all sat on the bed as a new family of 5. My 2yo wanted to 'pet the baby'. I laid down after about 10 mins. From here it gets a little fuzzy. I remember nursing my baby successfully one time, I started bleeding and my husband kept giving me dropperfuls of Angelica and juice for blood sugars and my placenta was still in. Maybe 40 mins later I felt a contraction and bare down and a big clot came out. My husband said it was shortly after this I lost consciousness, slumped with my eyes open. I came to with him holding my face and praying for me while my doula was on the phone with emergency services. It felt like I had been asleep for 20 mins in those few seconds. I felt a little better and minutes later 3 ambulances arrived. My blood pressure was 70/40 I think before they started an IV. Dad cut the cord before they transported me out as I didn't feel I could safely hold my baby. They both rode in the ambulance with me. At the hospital they poked a million needles into me trying to get a second line on my flat veins because they thought they'd need the OR to remove my placenta. The Dr on call started traction and I bare down as hard as I could. I had to push as hard as birthing my baby but thank God it came out. I hadn't had any more bleeding since home either. I was moved to the maternity ward and given a second bag of fluids and iv pitocin. I denied any blood but was recommended an iron transfusion due to low levels. We stayed at the hospital until that was done and were home again (against medical advice) by 5pm the same day. We had him weighed at the hospital, 8lb 5oz. I am so grateful to have had a wonderful birth at home with my family, and so grateful to God, and the access to medical care when needed!
