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6 lbs. 4 oz.

19 ½ inches long

Head circumference 11 ¼ cm.

Kaya Brielle - Born July 10, 2009

Mother’s height: 6 feet

“Began pregnancy weighing 229 lbs, ended pregnancy weighing 209 lbs.”

I had lost 20 lbs during pregnancy, which was actually 10 lbs. less than I lost with her older brother.  I had a pregnancy condition called hyperemesis gravidarum. I was hospitalized twice to receive IV fluids because I was severely dehydrated and unable to keep any liquids down.  It got to the point where I required a pump with a continuous infusion of medicine.  I hated the pump- I hated sticking myself every day, the welts that would be left from the infusion site, and sometimes having to get up in the middle of the night to change the syringe.  But as much as I hated it, it got me through and allowed me to at least continue to work.  After a few months I was able to finally wean off the pump and start looking forward to planning my homebirth.

I was really excited.  My son’s birth had been a traumatic c-section for my water having been broken “too long” before going into active labor and variable decelerations in his heartbeat.  I had just started active labor with him when I was wheeled to the OR.  I was determined that this time it would be different. 

When I first started having contractions, I was in denial that I could be in labor.  My baby had been breech, and neither my midwife nor my backup OB was comfortable delivering a breech vbac.  When I started feeling something at 2 am, (after only having an hour of actual sleep) I told myself that all the attempts at trying to get her to turn were working, and what I was feeling was her turning.  An hour later I realized that the movements I was feeling were routinely about 10 minutes apart.   I didn’t want to be in labor because that would mean a repeat c-section, so I told myself that they were just Braxton Hicks contractions and I just needed to get something to eat.  By 6 am they were around 7-8 minutes apart and I could no longer deny that they were in fact contractions.  I called my doula, who recommended that I take a shower to relax enough to try to get some rest. 

After a shower I was able to grab another hour of sleep, but another contraction woke me up, and when I started timing them they were about 6 minutes apart.  It was around 8 am when I called my midwife.  I was already scheduled to see her that afternoon, but she said she would go ahead and come down to check me.  She got to my house around 10 am, and after palpating my stomach said my baby was vertex.  I was ecstatic!!!  During the night I had pretty much resigned myself to a repeat c-section, and I was so happy that I could still give birth at home like I had planned.  I encouraged my midwife to go ahead and go to another prenatal visit on the other side of town and told her I’d keep in touch. 

One thing that threw everyone off the entire time was the duration of my contractions. When my midwife had been there they were around 5 minutes apart, but only 10 seconds long, and not intense at all. I wasn’t really timing them after that, but I don’t think my contractions *ever* got longer than 30 seconds long. Shortly after 11 am I lost my plug.  Everyone, including myself, thought that I still had plenty of time before things really started picking up.

I continued to labor, usually on the toilet since I had a lot of meconium coming out.  I was a little concerned about the amount of meconium, but not overly so.  It wasn’t until after 1:00 when I was finally ready for some help during contractions, and my doula said she was on her way even though the contractions still weren’t very long in duration.  Trying to pass the time and have someone to complain to until the doula arrived, I called my midwife.  She said she was finished at the prenatal, she was just going to grab a bite to eat and she would be back.  I said OK, knowing things were picking up, but still thinking we had plenty of time, especially since I was still able to laugh and joke between contractions.
The contractions had continued to get stronger, but just before 2 pm I realized that the most recent change in intensity was actually my body pushing.   I briefly panicked, but reassured myself that the midwife & doula were already on the way.  Women usually push for at least an hour, right?  They’d still have time to get here.   My poor husband had been downstairs with my son, but now was frantically calling, the doula, and the midwife, and the person that was going to watch our son during the birth. 
I finally decided I should probably check myself.  It didn’t make any sense that what I was feeling was completely smooth.  I remember wondering to myself, “Where’s her hair?”  But then another contraction came and thinking was no longer possible.  At some point I remember hearing relief in my husband’s voice, and I realized that someone must be here, although I didn’t know whether it was the childcare, the doula or the midwife.  He left to go downstairs to let them in.  Alone in the bathroom, I had another contraction, and when it was over I looked down and saw feet hanging from my body.  I was in total shock at that point.  Despite the obvious signs, my brain had refused to acknowledge that she could be breech.  I heard my husband and whomever he had let in talking downstairs.   I yelled down, “She’s here!  HELP ME!”  I was very relieved to hear someone (literally) run up the steps. 

My doula came in the bathroom and helped me support my baby’s legs.  My husband stood in the doorway on the phone with the midwife.  At my doula’s suggestion, with the next contraction I put my foot up on a stool and lunged a bit, and Kaya slid out.  The cord was wrapped around her neck 6 times, but not tightly.  The cord was a full 3 feet long. She was a little slow to start, but was fine after just a few breaths.   After a bit the midwife arrived to check us out, and both of us were doing great.  I had a tiny tear, but not even enough to need stitches. My 3 year old got to cut the cord long after it had stopped pulsing.

Recovery from a vaginal birth was worlds different than recovery from major abdominal surgery.  Between breastfeeding difficulties that were a direct result of hospital policy and post partum depression, the first month of my son’s life was a nightmare.  In contrast, my daughter’s first month was peaceful and enjoyable. 

Kaya is now 3 months old, and the powerful lesson when I think about her birth is that when given a chance, birth works.  My body did what was necessary to keep my brain (and therefore fear) out of the way of what it needed to do.  My baby knew she needed to be breech, and my body knew how to give birth with her in that position.   Yes, you can give birth to a breech hbac baby!