welp...I don't know where to begin on this birth story of Edmund John...so just bear with me....
Conceiving a child after a loss comes with immense joy and immense fear...and the constant attempt to dwell on the joy, not the fear.
We conceived Edmund roughly 15 months after Laban was born...And he was due, same timing, as my two living children - that was a strange comfort to me...like "been there, done that."
So his due date came and went...this pregnancy had been relatively easy physically, but I had been having pretty severe hip pain, that was semi-manageable, for weeks. I was TIRED. Under the guide of my midwife, she suggested I start some inducing herbs. My daughter had been 11 pounds and 10 days late...and I think she saw I was fading physically, and that would be too hard on me. So at 39 weeks and 4 days - a Thursday, I started on a tincture from my local herbalist that knows me and I highly respect.
I took those herbs pretty religiously for 4 days...and outside of a few random contractions, nothing was happening. My due date came and went that Sunday.
Monday, I decided to stop the herbs and give it a rest. I went to my daughter's dance class and had two really strong contractions in her class....I decided to resume the herbs and see if something was going to happen.....I had lots of strong contractions, and even bloody show that evening...but alas, nothing started.
The next morning, Tuesday, rolls around....I'm tired, I hadn't slept great, I was so eager to meet this baby. The few contractions I had throughout the day were inconsistent and mainly annoying. I went to the chiropractor at 10:30am and she was like "less than 24 hours mama!"...I did take a bit of a nap that afternoon...
Dinner time rolls around....I had a few inconsistent contractions...told my mom to go home...nothing was happening tonight.
9pm rolls around, I post on Facebook a very defeating "nothing is happening post" and then I started getting solid, painful, contractions around 8 minutes apart...I tried to go to bed at 10 pm...and ended up struggling to find sleep at all...my midwife came over and it was definitely go time!
My doula friend Katelyn came, my bff Melany came, my birth photographer Lauren came, both my parents came...and the midwife assistant! It was a full house, kids were in bed...and it was time to have a baby!
Contractions came steady....eventually transition phase came...the part where your contractions are super intense and back to back and never level out!? That awful part? Yea........as that part passed, my contractions started to spread out...and then lessen in intensity...and I was at the push phase...and was not having much urge to push and only seeking the comfort of the birth pool, not the actual birth of the baby...silly me. Everything was pretty much textbook till that point...and a change needed to be made. I was coming out of the pool and heading to the bed for a "land birth". I had been pushing for close to an hour in the pool...
I'm on the bed. Pam, my midwife for all four of my babies, gave me the "show this baby who is boss", "you need to get this baby OUT" speeches...she coached me into a position best suited for that...and as contractions came, I had to bear down and PUSH. Ya'll, I cannot begin to describe to you the amount of pain that I was in. I was WRITHING in pain, sick of all this taking so long, and found the gumption, with the support of the many women around me, to push.that.baby.out. I could feel him moving through the birth canal, my waters broke at some point - they were clear- no meconium staining! A huge relief, especially with "late" babies - he was 3 days "late" at that point....and then we were waiting on him to crown...Pam was working her magic on my cervix - I didn't tear - and when that last contraction came - I passed his head AND his shoulders in ONE push....and the rest came right on out - 6:25 am - he was here. I pushed for an hour and a half. Pretty long, all things considered...he was a big baby, and total time in labor was 8-ish hours, if you are counting from late Tuesday night. I held him just a minute or two, we all cried, admired him, etc. and then the placenta was on its way already. Normally that is the worst part for me as far as pain, but it happened in a few contractions and very smoothly. I was soooo thankful!
We did not know his gender before the birth. So finding out it was a boy was exciting! I honestly had no idea...my first trimester was SO similar to Samuel's, but my other two trimesters were just like Emilia's.
Once delivering the placenta, it was intact, his cord was BEAUTIFUL, he was beautiful...my mom made me my favorite post-partum meal - scrambled eggs and buttered toast with a large glass of OJ. I got cleaned up in the shower, we did the newborn exam with the midwife and her assistant. Edmund passed with flying colors - excellent reflexes, his lungs were super clear, nursing great, already pooped, etc. and just a beyond perfect little baby! His stats: 9 pounds 4 oz and 22 inches long. As tall as Emilia, but not as fat - LOL! but bigger than Samuel overall, by weight and length. So midweight for my 3. His head was 14 inches - just like the other two babies.
The kids were awake at this point...Samuel is THRILLED it is a boy, and Emilia is still a little salty about it...but overall seems okay with the baby being out.
It was a beautiful home birth, even for the struggles at the end with delivery...my baby is everything we hoped for. We are praising God for a wonderful delivery and safe arrival...I'm SO thankful for circle of women that came around me as we brought this baby earthside. So thankful for my parents and their involvement at so many junctures....really truly blessed on so many fronts. I just keep staring at this amazingly perfect, beautiful baby...just overwhelmed with thankfulness...
We finally decided on a name for him after he was several hours old - Edmund John. John is a family name on both my parents' sides. Edmund is just a wonderful name we like! LOL!
I hope you enjoyed this birth story. I'll post the professional birth photos when they are done, here's the ones from my phone for now <3
Becca H.
