Hello sweet girl, my name is Seanna, I am your mom’s doula
and this is the story of the day you were born.
I actually met your mom when she was a little girl, her mom
and my mom are really close friends and I babysat your mom a few times. It was a pretty cool thing for me to be asked
to be her doula all these years later.
Your mom is pretty great, she calls it like she sees it and just
kind of takes things as they come and she definitely approached her pregnancy,
labour and birth with that attitude. We
met a couple of times and talked about a birth plan, but her general attitude
was whatever will be, will be.
As your due date approached I checked in with her every
couple of days to see how she was feeling and if there had been any changes,
she never had any real complaints and always had a really positive attitude. On
June 18th she let me know that she thought she might be in early
labour, she had been having a few contractions here and there, nothing
unbearable and nothing really consistent.
She had an appointment with her midwife Natalie later that day and she
said she would update me after. Her
appointment revealed she was about 4cm dilated; this was great news and meant
she was already almost halfway there without much discomfort. She carried on with her day and called me at
10pm to let me know that things seemed to have completely stopped, no more
contractions and we agreed she should take a Gravol, have a bath and get some
sleep.
Around 420am, your dad called me to let me know that they
have slept for a few hours and had woken up to your mom having regular
contractions about 5 mins apart. A great
sign and I decided to make my way over to see how things were going. When I arrived, Natalie was already there,
and your mom was quietly labouring away in the doorway of the bathroom. She was so calm and coping perfectly. At around 630, she decided to move into the
bathtub to help with the contractions.
She loved the tub, so much so that she stayed in there for pretty much
her whole labour. Things seemed to be
moving very quickly and soon contractions were coming back to back, and at around
930am it was time to think about moving from the tub and heading to the
hospital. Your mom had always planned on
labouring as long as possible at home and then going to the hospital to deliver
but once she got into the tub she didn’t want to get out. She asked if she had to go to the hospital or
if having you at home was an option.
Natalie let her know that she could for sure have you at home if she
wanted and after a short discussion, the decision was made to stay home. Natalie had all the equipment needed in her car
and we got things set up. A second midwife,
Angela, was called to come over to assist and things were looking good.
Your mom continued to labour in the tub and before noon was
fully dilated and ready to start pushing.
She pushed for a while in bath tub but was having a bit of a hard time
really getting the hang of it so it was suggested to get out and try sitting up
for bit. Pretty quickly she got it all
figured out and started moving you down.
Your mom was amazingly strong and your dad was right there with her,
every moment, and every contraction. They make for an incredible team and you
are one very lucky little girl.
Now, so far, everything was going perfectly and I mean, we couldn’t
have asked for better labour and delivery conditions. Your heart rate was great every time they
checked it, things were moving quickly and smoothly and your mom was a rock
star. Things were perfect and then all of a sudden you started to give signs
that you didn’t really like the pushing anymore. Your heart rate started to drop a little bit
and the midwives decided it was time to move to the hospital to make sure you
and your mom were as safe as possible. Your
midwives were incredible and you and your mom were in the best of hands. An ambulance was called and within minutes,
your mom, dad and Natalie were being whisked off to the hospital. I stayed behind with Angela to quickly tidy the
house up, grab a few bags for your mom and dad and then we made our way to the
hospital. Your mom arrived at the
hospital around 110pm, I arrived at 130pm and at 136pm with a little bit of
help from the doctor at the hospital and a tool called a vacuum; your mom
pushed you out into the world. You were
healthy and perfect!! In fact you were so healthy that you were looking around
and blowing bubbles when just your head had been delivered and the rest of your
body was still inside!! When they tried to pass you up to your mom they
realized that your umbilical cord was very short, the shortest cord I have ever
seen actually and explains why you didn’t like it very much when your mom
started pushing, it was kind of like you were attached to a bungee cord! They
cut the cord and then you were free and in your mom’s arms. The doctors took you away for just a minute
to make sure you were ok and then you were back in your mom’s arms, pink,
healthy and perfect. Lots of tears of
joy when your mom and dad heard you cry!!
I called your grandma and told her she could come up to the
hospital to meet you and before she came into the room I gave her a quick
update on how things had gone, worried she would be upset that there had been an
ambulance ride to get to the hospital.
She wasn’t upset at all, just thrilled that you were here and everyone
was safe and then said she wasn’t at all surprised there had been some drama
and excitement because “that’s how Steph rolls!!”
You made quite an entrance into the world kiddo; your birth
has been by far my most dramatic and exciting. I learned a ton, I was blown away by how strong
your mom is and I my respect and admiration for midwives has grown even more.
Amelia Jean Meier -
June 19th, 2014, 6lbs 10oz
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