Monday I drove 1.5 hours each way to check on the new baby and her mama. They were both doing well, baby nursing great and mama amazed how different home birth was. She commented how much she liked being able to move around and get into any position she wanted. It was a lovely visit. My 16 year old son drove me there and back so he could get more supervised driving time to count toward his driver license. We had a nice time chatting during the trip.
Tuesday I had to hustle to get my home-office paperwork done and drive to my Springfield office by 10 o'clock am for my first scheduled checkup. I was pleased to see progress on the office remodeling, and the construction workers had been considerate enough to cover my furniture with plastic to keep the dust off. At 11 am I drove to the north side of Springfield for a home visit, followed by another home visit down on the south side at noon. I grabbed a quick lunch and went back to the office for more checkups, finishing at 6:00pm.
The Springfield chapter of the International Cesarean Awareness Network (ICAN) met at my office at 7pm, construction mess and all! If anyone has had a c-section or other traumatic birth experience, I hope you will find a support group as great as this one! The discussion tonight was informative and reassuring. I wish more people could have been there!
I was home and in bed by midnight. Around 1:00am I awoke to the windchime sound of my text alert. Evelyn, my second-time client, was texting to say she had one contraction. If a first-time mother told me she had one contraction I wouldn't think much of it, but this five-time homebirther knew her body. And at 40 weeks, 6 days, she was *ready* to have this baby! I replied that I was ready when she needed me and tried to get back to sleep. At 3:00am she texted again that she was too uncomfortable to sleep. I wanted more sleep so I alerted my apprentices and rolled back over. I slept only lightly, though, so when her husband texted me at 6:37am that the contractions were stronger and he wanted me to come, I leaped out of bed, dressed and was on the road only ten minutes later.
My apprentice who would be acting in the role of Primary Midwife Under Supervision was herself almost 36 weeks pregnant, and has a history of having her babies early. To take some of the physical workload off of her (and me, I'm getting old!) another apprentice was also coming to lift, carry, clean and do the charting for us.
I arrived at the house after a short drive (short for me, anyway) and found Evelyn squatting in the driveway, supported by her husband. I waved and drove past them to the house. Inside was all excitement. Grandma was helping one child finish her breakfast. Grandpa was looking for someone's lost shoe. Two kids were zipping around trying to find beach towels and swimming suits. The floor was strewn with oats and the sink full of dishes. It was a mild form of chaos! No wonder Evelyn had escaped outside to labor.
I carried my supplies into the master bedroom and started setting up, glancing out the window every couple minutes to keep an eye on the laboring couple. They were walking up and down the drive, stopping to squat through a contraction every 3 or 4 minutes. My apprentice, Jess', car came down and soon she was helping me with setup. "Let's put some supplies in our pockets and receiving blankets under our shirts just in case she starts pushing out there and can't get to the house in time," I advised. "And be ready when the kids leave. I predict she will come inside and have a baby as soon as they are gone!" I sent Jess out with my doppler to get hearttones. She returned with Crystal, my Primary apprentice for this birth, who arrived as the grandparents were loading the kids into their car. The birth team was in place!
As predicted, Evelyn came into the house as soon as her parents' car left the driveway. She went straight into the master bath. We placed chux underpads on her bed, as she planned to give birth side-lying in bed. From the bathroom, we heard her working through transition and groaning that she lost the mucus plug. After the next contraction she got on the bed in a semi-reclining position. My apprentice's pregnant belly hung over the bed as she stretched the doppler to Evelyn's belly. Everything was going smoothly except Crystal was working extra hard! Baby's hearttones were great and Evelyn was completely focused on her labor.
After only a couple minutes, Evelyn whispered that she was already feeling some pressure. She was too uncomfortable to stay in bed, though that was where she planned to give birth. She crawled out and knelt on the floor, leaning forward on the side of the bed and gave her first push. Crystal and I half-knelt and bent to get a good view of her perineum. Lucky for Crystal, we were not stooped over very long. The baby's head crowned after only two or three pushes and was born. The whole baby emerged easily and we pushed it forward for Evelyn to reach down and pull him up. "I can't believe it! I had the baby already?!" Evelyn whispered breathlessly, astonished how much faster this birth had gone compared to her last birth. We helped her into bed and her husband climbed in with her. Baby boy, 8 lbs 3 oz, perineum intact, everything perfect. As we left the family bonding in bed, we overheard Evelyn announcing to her husband, "Never again!" LOL! It may look easy, but it sure doesn't feel easy!
I stopped and got some breakfast and started another long drive to check on Sunday's mama and baby again. I do a lot of follow-up visits, standard care for my practice. I usually do a postpartum housecall on day 1, day 3, day 7, and 3 weeks after the birth, but more often if needed. The 6-week postpartum checkup is back at my office. I don't mind all of these visits. It's just part of my work.
This was a busy week, but I feel so blessed to be able to do this work. It is my honor and privilege to serve these women in birth. I hope I am able to do it for many years to come.
Tuesday I had to hustle to get my home-office paperwork done and drive to my Springfield office by 10 o'clock am for my first scheduled checkup. I was pleased to see progress on the office remodeling, and the construction workers had been considerate enough to cover my furniture with plastic to keep the dust off. At 11 am I drove to the north side of Springfield for a home visit, followed by another home visit down on the south side at noon. I grabbed a quick lunch and went back to the office for more checkups, finishing at 6:00pm.
The Springfield chapter of the International Cesarean Awareness Network (ICAN) met at my office at 7pm, construction mess and all! If anyone has had a c-section or other traumatic birth experience, I hope you will find a support group as great as this one! The discussion tonight was informative and reassuring. I wish more people could have been there!
I was home and in bed by midnight. Around 1:00am I awoke to the windchime sound of my text alert. Evelyn, my second-time client, was texting to say she had one contraction. If a first-time mother told me she had one contraction I wouldn't think much of it, but this five-time homebirther knew her body. And at 40 weeks, 6 days, she was *ready* to have this baby! I replied that I was ready when she needed me and tried to get back to sleep. At 3:00am she texted again that she was too uncomfortable to sleep. I wanted more sleep so I alerted my apprentices and rolled back over. I slept only lightly, though, so when her husband texted me at 6:37am that the contractions were stronger and he wanted me to come, I leaped out of bed, dressed and was on the road only ten minutes later.
My apprentice who would be acting in the role of Primary Midwife Under Supervision was herself almost 36 weeks pregnant, and has a history of having her babies early. To take some of the physical workload off of her (and me, I'm getting old!) another apprentice was also coming to lift, carry, clean and do the charting for us.
I arrived at the house after a short drive (short for me, anyway) and found Evelyn squatting in the driveway, supported by her husband. I waved and drove past them to the house. Inside was all excitement. Grandma was helping one child finish her breakfast. Grandpa was looking for someone's lost shoe. Two kids were zipping around trying to find beach towels and swimming suits. The floor was strewn with oats and the sink full of dishes. It was a mild form of chaos! No wonder Evelyn had escaped outside to labor.
I carried my supplies into the master bedroom and started setting up, glancing out the window every couple minutes to keep an eye on the laboring couple. They were walking up and down the drive, stopping to squat through a contraction every 3 or 4 minutes. My apprentice, Jess', car came down and soon she was helping me with setup. "Let's put some supplies in our pockets and receiving blankets under our shirts just in case she starts pushing out there and can't get to the house in time," I advised. "And be ready when the kids leave. I predict she will come inside and have a baby as soon as they are gone!" I sent Jess out with my doppler to get hearttones. She returned with Crystal, my Primary apprentice for this birth, who arrived as the grandparents were loading the kids into their car. The birth team was in place!
As predicted, Evelyn came into the house as soon as her parents' car left the driveway. She went straight into the master bath. We placed chux underpads on her bed, as she planned to give birth side-lying in bed. From the bathroom, we heard her working through transition and groaning that she lost the mucus plug. After the next contraction she got on the bed in a semi-reclining position. My apprentice's pregnant belly hung over the bed as she stretched the doppler to Evelyn's belly. Everything was going smoothly except Crystal was working extra hard! Baby's hearttones were great and Evelyn was completely focused on her labor.
After only a couple minutes, Evelyn whispered that she was already feeling some pressure. She was too uncomfortable to stay in bed, though that was where she planned to give birth. She crawled out and knelt on the floor, leaning forward on the side of the bed and gave her first push. Crystal and I half-knelt and bent to get a good view of her perineum. Lucky for Crystal, we were not stooped over very long. The baby's head crowned after only two or three pushes and was born. The whole baby emerged easily and we pushed it forward for Evelyn to reach down and pull him up. "I can't believe it! I had the baby already?!" Evelyn whispered breathlessly, astonished how much faster this birth had gone compared to her last birth. We helped her into bed and her husband climbed in with her. Baby boy, 8 lbs 3 oz, perineum intact, everything perfect. As we left the family bonding in bed, we overheard Evelyn announcing to her husband, "Never again!" LOL! It may look easy, but it sure doesn't feel easy!
I stopped and got some breakfast and started another long drive to check on Sunday's mama and baby again. I do a lot of follow-up visits, standard care for my practice. I usually do a postpartum housecall on day 1, day 3, day 7, and 3 weeks after the birth, but more often if needed. The 6-week postpartum checkup is back at my office. I don't mind all of these visits. It's just part of my work.
This was a busy week, but I feel so blessed to be able to do this work. It is my honor and privilege to serve these women in birth. I hope I am able to do it for many years to come.
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| Me with 'Evelyn' and her sweet baby! |
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