A Positive VBAC Birth Story Of A Big Baby
Hey friends! I’m so excited to be able to share a positive VBAC birth story of a big baby with you! It’s not just any story, it’s my story! I longed to experience a natural birth after our oldest was born. So I began reading all the books and talking to all the people. I hope that if you are in a similar situation this story will bring you some inspiration and encouragement!
The Caesarean Birth
I’ll be honest, I didn’t expect to have a baby so soon after we married, but God had other plans! We married in June and the end of August we found out I was pregnant. I didn’t have a clue what I was doing or how important birthing a baby would be to me. Overall my pregnancy was easy, no complications of any kind. My doctor checked me at 41 weeks and said my water was leaking (I’ll still argue to this day it was not). But she sent me on to the hospital for induction.
When we made it to the hospital they told me to get in bed and not to get up. After 12 hours of labor, I had been loaded up with Pitocin, an epidural, and still no baby I was rolled away for a caesarean. I remember sending in a request from my records and reading the reason for c-section. “Failure to dilate”.
Recovery
I remember being in recovery and the nurses handing me our daughter, looking over at my husband telling him, “you have to take her, I’m going to drop her, I can’t hold her.” I felt so weak and defeated. Honestly, I couldn’t believe I just went through this surgery, I couldn’t believe what they expected me to do with my body afterwards. I was trying to get up and walk right after surgery, I’m sure that’s supposed to be good for me, but I was sure I was going to die!
To make things worse, the hospital pediatrician took our daughter for an exam, but didn’t return with her. Our daughter was placed in the NICU for a million different tests because of something they noticed in an exam. So there we were new parents, recovering from surgery, trying to learn how to breastfeed, and now our baby that wasn’t even a preemie was in the NICU.
So after lots of tests and staying in the Ronald McDonald house, she was discharged 5 days later, with all normal results. Since then she has been a happy, healthy girl, we are so thankful for.
The Aftermath
I just assumed that everything we went through was “normal”, just the way it was meant to be. But it was for sure having a negative impact on me. My husband still talks about it today, how upset I would get when other mom’s shared their natural birth stories. I started realizing I did, in fact, have a chip on my shoulder about this whole thing. It took me years before even considering another child because I didn’t want that experience again. And I found out I didn’t have to have that same experience again. That’s when I discovered “VBAC”…
Preparing for a Positive VBAC Birth
Fast forward 3.5 years, I felt like I was finally ready to have another baby. But this time I asked tons of questions, switched care providers three times, read several books, hired a doula, took a 6 week birthing course, and prayed. It still wasn’t a walk in the park.
The pregnancy again was fairly easy other than I knew this baby had to be big! I could feel the baby super low but felt the feet up to my throat! With my husband, doula, and midwives all on my side and all my positive birth affirmations I thought I was going to rock this birth. But guess who was 42 weeks pregnant without any signs of labor coming? That’s right, me! At one point I didn’t even want to leave the house because everyone kept asking me when I was going to have this baby.
Induction #2
So there I was at 42 weeks and being induced for a second time. This time was different. I was determined to not use pain meds, to move as much as I wanted, and basically just be in control of my birth experience. I was more at ease having the loving support of my midwives, a doula, and of course, my husband. This induction started with a Cooke cath, similar to a foley bulb. The cath was supposed to fall out once I dilated to 6cm. But after 12 hours, it had not fallen out! My midwife decided to remove it and check dilation, I was 6cm dilated after all! I was ecstatic and cried like a baby!
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My contractions were still all over the place, so my midwife suggested breaking my water to get things moving along. I was trying different positions, going back and forth from the labor tub to walking, I even tried a breast pump for nipple stimulation. In the end I needed some Pitocin again. I knew things were about to get real and hard. The contractions are so much stronger with Pitocin. I kept telling myself I can do this, just a little bit longer and I’ll be holding my newborn!
My Positive VBAC Birth
In total the birth was almost 30 hours long. But I birthed a 9lb3oz 23″ healthy baby boy! My adrenaline was in overdrive even after being up for so long and laboring and birthing, I was ready to go climb a mountain! This experience was everything I needed so much, it was what was missing in me for so long. I held him as soon as he was born, right on my chest! We felt the immediate bond, we nursed, I held this sweet, big, long, baby just on my chest in peace.
I can’t really put into words how it felt, the difference, the impact this has had on my life. I know this story maybe isn’t for everyone, it’s not the wish of every caesarean mother, but I know there are caesarean mothers that long for this birth, for the peace, for the confidence in doing what your body was made to do, if you’re one of those mamas I hope this positive VBAC birth story brings you hope, brings you encouragement, brings you confidence.
If ya wanna see more, check out this video from his birth!
Here’s some advice too, you need these postpartum products! These are my must haves, can’t live without, will never do another birth without them okay! And if you have a positive vbac birth story to share, please e-mail it to me! I’d love to read it!
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