Beth and Tom spent the last several months doing everything they could to prepare for the birth of their son. They searched for providers that matched their birthing goals and decided an out of hospital birth at the local birth center with midwives felt like the best choice. They educated themselves on coping techniques and invested in Bradley Method birth classes. They added a doula to their birth team for extra support too!

On Monday September 30th in the early hours of the morning Beth’s water broke. She alerted her birth team and then continued to wait for labor to kick in. Beth and Tom labored at home until early afternoon, then as things picked up they made their way to the birth center. 

Tom and Beth worked together beautifully, Tom was essentially her rock. He was very hands on, applied counter pressure to Beth’s back, helped ensure she stayed hydrated, and was there for her to lean on every step of the way. 

Shortly after arriving at the birth center Beth made her way into the shower. She found the pressure and warmth of the water to be incredibly soothing. Standing was getting to be too taxing, Beth opted to kneel against a birth ball which made it so her back and abdomen were easier to spray with the shower head. 

Eventually Beth decided it was time to get in the tub for a soak. She spent a few hours in the tub switching positions and relaxing as much as possible in between contractions. The tub really allowed her body to soften and open as much as possible.

Beth and her baby worked tirelessly to get through the last little bit of cervix in order to start the pushing stage. Once pushing, the midwives noticed that baby’s head was in an asynclitic position. This means the pushing stage can take some major work for both the birthing person and their baby because the head isn’t in an optimal position to come through the pelvis and birth canal. 

Beth and her birth team needed to get creative. The midwives suggested a trick that required all of Tom’s support, he was to support Beth on his lap while she dipped low during contractions and pushed to help baby get more engaged. After about 10-15 minutes of this physically draining position, they both took a break to recover.

Once they gathered some strength back, they opted to do supported squats with the help of Tom and a rebozo. Knots were tied into the ends of the rebozo and then secured in a closed door.  This allowed her to do really deep squats without exerting too much energy, she pushed through several contractions like this and took another rest. 

During this restful period Beth’s team gave her and Tom some space. We tend to forget that instinctively we need dark, quiet, safe spaces to birth in. Sometimes we need to back up and allow the birthing family to have some time to exist on their own. 

This proved to be beneficial because Beth came back with a purposeful energy. She was steadfast and determined to meet her baby. Shortly after this round of pushing started Beth and Tom welcomed baby Leon Roger into the world at 11:06 pm.  He weighed in at 8lbs 6oz and was 21.5 inches long!