September 29, 2022 was a crazy day for Jacksonville. Hurricane Ian was passing through, and while it was thankfully nothing compared to how it hit other parts of the state, the storm brought lots of babies with it. Mary Kate and her husband David had asked me to be the doula for the birth of their first baby, and at 8am on that windy Thursday morning, she called me, and from her voice, I knew that this was going to be a day to remember. Mary Kate was definitely in the early stages of labor…and I was ready to head out the door to another client who had been laboring intensely through the night, to join her as her birth videographer!

Thankfully these two tiny baby girls took turns, and I was able to send my amazing backup doula Erin Heuser over to Mary Kate while I documented the last few hours of another beautiful birth. I was able to join Mary Kate and David at St. Vincent’s Southside and support her through the last 10 hours of her birth.

This is her birth story in her own words! Enjoy!

I naturally went into labor on September 29th at 5am at 40 weeks and 5 days of my pregnancy. I woke up feeling like I was having period cramps and my stomach felt upset. I thought I might be in a labor but the contractions were very irregular and I just couldn’t get comfortable or figure out how to ease the pain. I was having back labor that I felt during and between contractions so it felt impossible to actually rest.

At 8am, I felt like it was time to get up and tell my husband David that I thought I was in early labor. Then I contacted Dallas to see if I was really in labor. She thought that I was and advised me to rest and eat if I could. The thought of eating made me feel sick so I managed to eat banana and that was it.

At 11:30am, I contacted Dallas again to let her know I wasn’t feeling great and contractions were still irregular. She suspected that baby was OP, so she recommended trying the Miles Circuit. I felt like I was needing doula support, and Dallas was at another birth, so she sent her back up doula, Erin.

At 12:45pm, Erin arrived. We continued the Miles Circuit, we tried the side lying release, and we tried sacral pressure. Nothing seemed to bring relief.

At 3:00pm, we decided it was time to start heading to the hospital. Contractions were beginning to come more regularly and longer, but I was still having bad back labor.

At 4:00pm, I was admitted to the hospital. I was 6-7 cm, 90% effaced. This was my first cervical exam and it encouraged me that I was actually in active labor.

At 5:00pm, Dallas arrived. Our room felt very calm and peaceful, and I started to get into a rhythm with my contractions. Whenever I felt a contraction starting, I would focus in on my breathing. I realized that if I took 6 slow, deep breathes, the contraction would be over and I could rest. I felt very in control of my breathe and I believe that helped me stay calm throughout my entire labor.

At 6:45pm, I decided to ask for another cervical check. I didn’t feel like the intensity of contractions had increased much and I wasn’t feeling the urge to push, but I was curious. I was 9.5 cm, 100% effaced. I couldn’t believe I had progressed that much and that I still felt in control. My water still hadn’t broken. I decided to just keep breathing through the contractions and wait to feel the urge to bear down.

At 9:00pm, the midwife confirmed I was fully dilated and I decided to let her break my water in hopes that would increase the urge to push. We did a few practice pushes, and then I rested more.

At 10:00pm, I felt like it was time to start pushing even though the urge never came. The nurse coached me through pushing which was much more intense and physically demanding than I thought I would be. The nurse suspected that the baby was in ROA position and that might be the reason why I wasn’t feeling the urge to push.

Around 1:45am, after hours of pushing, I started to feel like I didn’t have the energy to keep pushing that hard. Dallas and I discussed our options to help things move along because I felt like I needed some kind of help. She reminded me that we had the option to use the vacuum, but I would have to have some energy left for the doctor to use it. I decided it would be best to try that and to rest between contractions until the doctor arrived.

Around 2:30am, the doctor began using the vacuum. She used it for 2 contractions, and I then the baby was close to crowning. I pushed the rest of the time on my own and the midwife guided me through crowning. Somehow I was able to push slowly and in control which I believe helped me not to tear at all.

At 2:53am, our baby girl, Sara Louise, was finally here! She weighed 6 pounds 10 ounces and was 19.5 inches long. She was perfect, and we couldn’t believe we had a baby!

Dallas’ doula support was absolutely phenomenal for the birth of our first child! She was the perfect fit for our birth team. Her calmness and warmth definitely helped me have the natural birth I had hoped for. Dallas helped me make informed decisions and advocate for myself before and during my labor. An absolute expert in the field! Couldn’t have done it without her!

Mary Kate was absolutely amazing! I was in awe of her control through her entire labor; I told her she was a textbook Hypnobirther without ever having taken a class! She advocated for herself so well, declining what she didn’t want and using the options at her disposal to achieve the birth she wanted. Mary Kate and David, I’m so grateful that you put your trust in me to walk along this journey with you as your doula. You rocked it!

Big thanks to Full Circle, midwife Carol and Dr. Adams for once again taking such amazing care of my incredible clients!

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