I want to share a very powerful story with you. It might end up being quite long, but its worth the read. This story I have been given permission to share, and I was so moved by this experience that I thought it would touch you the same. A VBAC. A transfer. A Rainbow baby. A two hour drive to a new hospital. A powerful birth that a mom found healing and peace with. Last week I was contacted by a lovely doula who lives locally to me. She had some family issues arise and asked that id take over her VBAC clients support while she was out of town. I happily agreed and contacted the mama right away to let her know that she could reach out if she needed any emotional or informational support while her doula was gone. After passing her EDD, she decided to try to get the process of labor going using some natural methods. She had her membranes stripped twice by her OBGYN, saw a Webster Certified chiro, two rounds of acupuncture, an induction massage and a few other things. None of them seemed to work until she messaged me Saturday night saying contractions were starting up. I suggested that she try to sleep as much as she could and call me when they became more intense. I got a call early Sunday morning that they were 5 minutes apart and getting pretty strong. I lived over an hour and a half away from her and decided Id go ahead and head that way to be safe. I walked in to their beautiful home and was welcomed by her husband who showed me the way to their room, where a beautiful mama was laboring on the ball. She had just finished breakfast and we decided to go for a walk because the waves had spread out a little. Throughout the day I noticed that she had a posterior labor pattern and we worked on Spinning Babies positions and used the Rebozo to encourage baby to turn. That helped pick things up into gear! Mama labored on the toilet, straddling it and resting on a pillow with oils diffusing and in a dark room with the only sound of some calming music and encouraging words from her partner and I. Around 4pm we talked about calling a Chiro out to do a home visit and called him over to help. Over the next thirty minutes mama stayed on the toilet, where she made the most progress, and the chiro arrived. He came into the bedroom and I stuck my head in the door to let her know he was here. I heard her and her husband laughing randomly and she said, I think my water just broke?! She laid down to get the adjustment and more fluid came out so we all assumed it must be her water. The adjustment really helped and picked things back up. We talked over her birth plan- she wanted to wait close to transition and then go into the hospital that was 5 minutes from her house. During this time she had no bloody show, which really puzzled me. Surely we were making progress- we had been at this for almost 10 hours at this point. We went for a late night walk and I wrapped her adorable toddler on my back while daddy swayed with her during contractions. I had previously in the day talked to them about the different stages of labor and briefly mentioned how some moms mimic transition-like symptoms around 4cm AND 7cms. Without being at the hospital we had no idea where she was truly at. We decided around midnight to go to the hospital shortly after she said she was hot, nauseous and shaking. We arrived and got checked in. The nurse checked her and told her she was 4cm and 90% effaced. She put in a call to the OBGYN and gave her an update. They wanted mama on continuous monitoring, which is normal for VBACs in hospitals- except they did not have wireless available. She was not allowed to shower, birth off of the bed and they didnt even have birthing balls for her to use next to the bed. Her husband voiced his concerns to the OB over the phone and although she was extremely sweet and wanted her to be able to do those things, she had to follow policy. We all understood this and the parents decided it would be best to just go back home and then come in later on. They told her she would have 24 hours to labor before calling in for a repeat cesarean from the time her water broke. Ive never had a client sign out against medical advice, and you could tell they had never seen a mom do it either. After playing the dead baby card and informing her of the risks, she signed the papers and we went back home. We labored throughout the night, and got some sleep somewhere in between. By the following morning around 8 am we talked about all our options. They knew they needed to have baby monitored and that was the most important thing- but they wanted to have the freedom of movement and comfort. I told them that we did have another option, but Id have to make a call. The drive was going to be long, but worth it. I made a call to Carla Morrow, the CNM at Cleburne hospital. She laughed that I always bring her such unique situations (weve had some interesting births together, to say the least) and agreed to call Dr. Farzam to see if he was comfortable with the transfer. She called me back and said to bring her in and wed be taken care of. I talked to the parents, who originally were very against the idea (because it wasnt the pla, and the distance was almost 2 hours away) but they knew it was their best shot at a successful VBAC. We made the drive and got mama admitted. She needed a low dose of pitocin and antibiotics for her ruptured water that posed an increased risk for infection. Within a few hours, they checked her to see where she was at and confirmed that her water bag was intact. It had not broken, but a forebag could have possibly broken instead. She labored throughout the day and the care she received was nothing short of amazing. Our nurse Jenny was so helpful, Carla seemed to connect with her like they had know each other throughout her entire pregnancy, and things were picking back up again!! Maybe it was the lack of sleep over 45 hours, or how emotional I was over the wonderful care Cleburne gave them, but I looked at Daddy and pointed at the clock. It was 45 minutes past the time her original hospital gave her before a RCS was to be done. And here she was, laboring away beautifully just like her body was meant to do. I teared up and told them that most likely we would be going in for a cesarean right now had we stayed. I was so, so proud. When she finally hit transition we made our way into the water birth room, where she eventually met her beautiful Rainbow baby girl- born vaginally. She did it. Her body did it! She worked long and hard and the end result was worth it. They made informed and education decisions and owned their birth experience. This would NOT have been possible if it wasnt for the staff at Cleburne hospital. This wasnt their plan. Everything about this birth went differently. Mom had a different doula. Mom birthed in a different hospital. Mom had the option to use water. In the end, she says she is extremely thankful and glad it happened the way it did. Alls all we could ever want for a mom. For her to have support and feel safe, empowered and comfortable. To Carla Morrow, Dr. Farzam, Dr. Puentes, Lisa (the surgical tech who stayed on call and in-house for her to have the opportunity to VBAC) and our RN Jenny, I am beyond moved by your willingness to support this mom and honor her birth experience. The care you gave her will always be a fond memory for this family. Words arent adequate enough to truly thank you. Thank you for believing in her, for supporting her and giving her the best care in DFW. Now that theyve experience it, theyd happily drive 6 hours to birth with you again. It was all worth it. Thank you from the bottom of my proud doula heart!!!!
Posted on: Thu, 09 Oct 2014 01:17:37 +0000
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