A Swift, Unmedicated Birth at St. Vincent’s Riverside
Location: St. Vincent’s Riverside in Jacksonville, Florida
OB: Dr. Miller of Women’s Care OBGYN
Doula and birth photographer: Dallas Arthur Birth Stories & Support
I woke in the early hours of the morning to a phone call. It was Jen…and labor was starting. I was so thrilled for her! But was I dreaming? I had just gotten a few hours of sleep after a marathon birth the night/day before, and I had another doula/birth photography client going in for an induction in just a few short hours. But no, it wasn’t a dream. I knew it was going to be a busy day, but when you are living your calling and have the best job in the world, even the crazy days are absolutely incredible!
Jen, Tom, and I had spent months preparing for this birth. Between their 6 week childbirth education class, hands-on prenatal visits, and lots of back-and-forth texting, they were so well prepared for this birth and I was excited to support them as their doula and birth photographer.
“At about 10:00pm, I felt like I had to have a bowel movement, but nothing happened. At 11:00pm, I tried to fall asleep using my sleep meditations, but kept being woken up by the sensation to use the bathroom. After over an hour, I finally realized there was a pattern to them and started tracking.
At 2:00am, once I started timing them and realizing there was some consistency, I woke up Tom and called Dallas.”
“Dallas got to the house at 3:15am. After breathing through contractions, an inversion, and a shower, at 4:00am we decided to start heading to the hospital.”
I had recently taken a Spinning Babies workshop, and I had learned the benefit of doing stretches like the Forward Leaning Inversion in early labor. I was proud of Jen for holding this position…it isn’t easy!
Her contractions got stronger and stronger as they made their way to St. Vincent’s Riverside.
“The ride was uncomfortable, but doable and we arrived at the hospital close to 5:00am.”
We arrived to a quiet labor and delivery floor, and were delighted that the staff welcomed all three of us into a triage room.
“Once in triage was when my water broke, at 7:00am on the dot in the triage bathroom while I was changing. It was the gush! It actually really surprised me, since it was exactly like a water balloon popping.”
Still in disbelief that things were happening so swiftly, Jen texted her coworkers to let them know that she was actually going to be missing her scheduled last day of work before maternity leave.
We got into a room and Jen quickly found her rhythm. Tom rocked the hip squeezes while Jen swayed through her surges. She was supported in her choice to use intermittent fetal monitoring, so she labored for 40-60 minutes at a time untethered, then periods of 20 minutes in bed with the monitors on.
Tom supported Jen through some deep squats, using a baby carrier wrapped around his chest and shoulders to give him stability.
Sacral pressure, heating pads, cold compresses, and her TENS unit all played a large role in helping Jen find comfort. She had all the tools she needed for comfort measures.
“I was so thankful that I took the birth course that I did and had Dallas there to provide gentle reminders and offer suggestions in the thick of it all. And I did lots, and lots, of breathing.”
“Everything happened way faster than I anticipated. Tom and Dallas helped me by offering and suggesting the comfort measures we had already discussed. It was nice to just be able to focus on my breath, while they stepped in and provided heat, cold, counter pressure, etc. They made sure I stayed hydrated, and helped me rest, use the restroom, and shower.”
“I even did two inversions during labor with their help! One at home, and one in the hospital bed.”
When Jen was around 7cm dilated, she had a strong urge to push with each contraction. Not wanting to put pressure on the cervix and cause swelling, we worked to find a position that would reduce her urge and allow her to continue dilating.
She found that side lying with a half-inflated CUB between her legs was a position that allowed her to rest and removed her urge to push. She labored peacefully, listening to music, as Tom and I gave massage and encouragement.
“I made the decision to not look at the clock throughout labor. I even purposefully left my watch at home.”
Before long, the urge to push had returned. She asked for a cervical check and found that she was 9.5 cm! A long shower and some upright laboring on the squat bar brought her cervix to full dilation.
Jen pushed upright for a while, bringing her baby lower and lower. The intensity of her sensations was a little overwhelming, but she kept a positive attitude through it all!
Soon she was pushing with Dr. Miller. There was so much excitement in the room!
“I'm not sure how long I pushed, but I feel like it was long-ish, but short at the same time. I pushed using the squat bar, on my hands and knees, side-lying, and on my back playing tug of war with one of the nurses.”
“I remember farting--right in Dr. Miller's face! This was exciting because constipation was a huge pregnancy symptom for me, and I was excited things were already starting to get moving again.”
“I remember feeling the ring of fire burn, but it was most intense getting his shoulders out. It felt like I was pushing out a bowling ball, which made me hesitant to push. Reminders to catch my breath and lots of encouragement helped.”
“I remember the doctor saying look before the last push, and there was his head!”
“One of the nurses bet I'd have the baby out by 6:40pm, and sure enough, at 6:38pm, Theodore was here.”
“It was such a relief he was here!”
“It was special for Tom to announce that it was a boy, and I remember looking up seeing tears in Tom's eyes.”
“I had a growth scan ultrasound at 36 weeks gestation. One of the ultrasound pictures looked exactly like Tom. I was not the least bit surprised when Theodore did indeed look exactly like Tom.”
“Dr. Miller was great and explained a lot to Tom and even gave him a placenta tour.”
“I loved having him on my chest and taking in all of his features.”
“My doctor and hospital team followed our birth plan, and for that I am thankful. I still can't believe I did all naturally/unmedicated!”
“Theodore knew how to find the breast. Getting a good latch was a learning curve for both of us, but I was thrilled that my body was doing exactly what it was supposed to and hand expressing the colostrum was relatively easy.”
“David came the next morning to meet his little brother. He was VERY excited and did such a great job holding him. Tom was leaning over the back of the chair and David was holding Theodore. It made my heart melt seeing all of my boys there together.
I cannot say enough great things about Dallas! We hired her for doula support and as a birth photographer, but left with a friend. She was a great support system throughout the entire pregnancy, labor and after. She was attentive, caring and such a comforting presence during labor, while also capturing beautiful moments from our baby’s birth. She is supportive of whatever birth goals you have for your birthing experience, and can also provide information or resources to help you make decisions. She is a knowledgeable resource for the area. She provided recommendations for birth classes and other services we were interested in. Dallas is professional and extremely helpful in all things birth. She answered questions, provided reassurance and was a confidence builder. She taught my husband ways to support me during labor and helped plan comfort measures so I could go confidently into laboring time. During labor she was a calm, supportive, uplifting presence. Based on how I was progressing or feeling she’d make recommendations of things to try. Choosing Dallas to be part of our birth team is a huge reason our birth experience was a good one! I highly recommend her and will hire her again in a heartbeat for any future babies!”
Jen, I’m so proud of you! It was a joy to support you through your pregnancy and birth and I’m so grateful for your friendship and trust.
Big thanks to Dr. Miller and the nursing staff at St. Vincent’s Riverside for supporting my client in her goals! And thank you to my wonderful backup doula and photographer Erin Heuser; she came to relieve me at about an hour postpartum so that Jen would be supported and still get those sweet newborn exam photos while I headed out to prepare for my next birth!
Click the tags below to see related blog posts:
