From the moment I was pregnant I had been reading a book called "Supernatural Childbirth", which discusses how to believe God for the
supernatural throughout your pregnancy and delivery. I learned that God
wants the best for us and that children are a gift from God and pregnancy and
delivery were never meant to be painful or horrible. He created our
bodies to stretch and push that baby out.
I immediately believed this and started confessing the Word of
God! There are prayers and scripture references to stand on in
“Supernatural Childbirth” by Jackie Mize.
God's Word works! I had no morning sickness or pregnancy complications. I had a great pregnancy, and it went by fast and was enjoyable. It is not
just because the excitement of my first baby, I had great and enjoyable
pregnancies with my second and third as well.
The birth of my child was a miracle and a testimony of faith and the
Word it was absolutely one of the greatest days of my life. I can't even
truly explain the experience, there is nothing that compares.
I was due July 30th, 2007 and as the end of July approached every day I
wondered if today would be the day. The morning of Thursday, July 26th,
2007 was that day. I woke up in the morning about 6 AM feeling different. I felt what was like menstrual cramps, and I
just felt different. I never experienced Braxton hicks or contractions, I
remember thinking “how will I know I am in labor?” I went downstairs, walked
around the living room, prayed, spoke the Word and wasn't sure if it was time,
this being my first baby and all, I wasn't sure really what to expect or what
it would feel like. So I would lie down and rest for a while, then get up
and walk around the living room. I ate breakfast around 7 AM and told my
husband as he was getting ready for work that I thought this might be the
day.
We had a scheduled appointment with our OB at 4 PM later in the day, and I
thought early in the morning maybe I could wait and make it to our
appointment. I didn't want to be sent home from the hospital with false labor
and I did not want to be stuck in the hospital waiting for hours upon
hours. I was believing God that my labor and delivery would be short,
quick and easy, and I wanted to labor at home as much as possible. My
husband went off to work and said he would come home to check on me around 9
and if I needed anything to call him.
I kept walking around the house as I confessed the Word. Jeff
arrived home around 9 AM to check on me and I said "I think this is it", my contractions
were 3 minutes apart at this point and I was certain I was in labor. I
called my Dr.'s office to check to see if I should go to the hospital or
possibly see my Dr. earlier at her office, they suggested I go to the hospital,
we made a stop at my husband’s work office on our way to the hospital. We
called the church and family to pray for us and to let them know we were on our
way to the hospital. I believe it helps to have others in agreement with
you praying for you. There is a peace
when you have prayers and the support of others. We arrived at the hospital around 10:30 AM,
we got all checked in and I was dilated to 5cm.
I was excited about that, I remember saying “okay we are half way there,
I can do this”.
We told the nurse we wanted to have a natural delivery drug free and she
was very helpful, which we had prayed for; all the right Dr.'s and all the
right nurses. I told her I did not want an IV, and I wanted to be able to
walk around and get in the tub if I needed.
She agreed and said okay, I will monitor the baby’s heartbeat every
thirty minutes and as long as everything is good you can do whatever you
like. This was important to me because
so many people had told me that hospitals like to force unnecessary procedures
and interventions, and people had told me this being my first baby, they were
not going to let me not have an IV or anything.
I believe because we prayed, and because we walked in with confidence
and kindness they were happy to work with us.
I think if you walk in shouting and screaming and demanding your rights
you will find opposition, in the same sense you should not walk in and not
voice your desires. They have policies
and procedures that they follow, but I find will modify with communication. Work together with the medical professionals,
they have you and your baby’s safety at heart.
I also believe due to reading “Supernatural Childbirth” and Jackie Mize
suggesting that if you get to the hospital and realize you cannot handle the
pain, then receive the help, know what you can handle. You will do a lot better having your ideal
birth plan but also being flexible with the situations that arise. Especially if you have labored a long time,
and need some rest, know you are not any less of a woman because you used pain
medication. Having a baby is a giant
feat, there is a lot involved. You do
not have anything to prove to anyone, I think different women have different
pain thresholds, I think each delivery is different; I think every woman should
have the labor and delivery she dreams of whatever that may be. I think too many people put too much emphasis
on if you should have a home birth, hospital birth, no drugs, some drugs, each
woman should decide what is right for that delivery. I have always liked the idea of a home birth,
but I also like the “safety” of being at a hospital if something were to go
wrong. For me I choose to have my babies
at the hospital. I also don’t mind
staying at the hospital, some women like to leave as soon as possible, I enjoy
having someone bring me meals and the bed’s that move and the lactation
consultant to help those first couple of days.
I have stayed two nights with each of my births except one. We also prayed we would have our own room,
because sometimes you have to share, we were blessed with our own room which
was nice.
My nurse said we should have a baby by 4 PM and I remember thinking “4
PM that is a long day”, I was already getting hungry for lunch and that was a
great motivator, I started saying we are having this baby by noon as we walked
the halls and confessed the Word, Jeff by my side, praying and encouraging
me. I was grateful to have my husband by my side a strong supporter, I am
grateful to God for him in my life. The time went by really fast, between
walking, checking baby’s heartbeat, getting in the tub, which I really enjoyed
the warm water, it seemed to relieve the pressure or take my mind off the
pressure I was feeling, the time seemed to breeze by.
I had mentioned to my husband before going into labor that I wanted him
to massage my back, hold my hand, be my support but do not pep talk me. I know myself, when I am doing a difficult
task I appreciate encouragement “you can do this”, “you got this”, but only so
much. This is important, ultimately the
wife is the one who walks through the labor and delivery process, I find some
husbands feel helpless and do not do anything and the wife feels abandoned,
while others want to take control and tell you what to do and the wife feels
like “look I am the one doing this you are not feeling what I am feeling don’t
tell me what to do”. It is a good idea
to discuss what you would like before getting in the delivery room. This is also important for the husband, I am
grateful my Dr. asked him at some of our appointments, “Would you like to catch
the baby?” “Do you want to cut the umbilical cord?” “Where do you want to stand during the
birth?” We both had an idea of what we
desired and expected.
The nurse checked me a little after noon and I was dilated to 8cm, they
brought in all the stuff to prepare for delivery, put a call into my Dr. and at
1:15 PM we had a baby. My delivery was not
completely painless, but it was definitely manageable, I stayed focused on my
scriptures, I could hear Jackie Mize voice in my head, I rehearsed the audio
version of “Supernatural Childbirth”. I
felt a lot of pressure but did not feel like I was dying as you often hear, I
was not screaming (I did have a screaming moment on my second birth I will blog
about that later). My Dr. was great in
coaching me how to push. This being my
first baby I had no idea how to push until I was there. You can only imagine so much what pushing is
like until you experience it. I now
realize after having two more babies, I used too many muscles instead of
focused controlled pushing. With my
first birth I remember after delivery every muscle in my body ached, my arms,
my legs, my chest, everything, like I had run a marathon. I did much better with pushing with my second
and third deliveries and did not have that same aching feeling afterward. My recovery was great, other than feeling
like I did a major work out the day before, I felt great.
The whole process was miraculous and reminds me of what a BIG GOD and
GREAT GOD that we serve. My labor and delivery was supernatural I am
grateful for the wonderful experience and reminder that the Word and prayer
work. I am grateful for our church and the training we receive, they
had prayed with Jeff and I over the baby the last six weeks at each church
service standing in agreement with us for God's best and that is what we
had!
After having
a baby you leave the hospital with a new set of eyes. Everything, the way you drive, what you eat,
how loud the music is playing is filtered through a new set of lenses. You feel love in a whole new way, it is
unexplainable, I can't put it into words.
You see and feel differently, there is nothing that compares. I felt as if I knew the love of God in a
greater way, knowing how much I love this little human, helped me receive God’s
love in a greater way. I am His child,
as I love my child how much more does He love me. When
you have a new baby, you think how every action and decision affects your baby,
there schedule, God has good thoughts toward you and He desires the best for
us.
If you are
expecting a baby, I strongly encourage you to read “Supernatural Childbirth” by
Jackie Mize. I encourage you to attend
birthing classes, we attended classes with all of our babies and it all helps
get your mind and emotions prepared for birth.
This one is a little more difficult, but only listen to good birth
stories, you do not need to hear horror stories that can bring fear in
you. While pregnant I would often watch
birth stories on TLC while pregnant, but if it was turning bad or a woman
having a super difficult time I would turn that episode off.
Thank you for
reading if you’ve enjoyed the content you’ve read above please share with your
friends.
I purchased "Supernatural Childbirth" at Family Books & Gifts:
Product Description:
Pregnancy and childbirth are often depicted as a time of
sickness and mood swings for women followed by 12-24 hours of pain and hard
labor. Many women have been told they can never conceive. Others have suffered
the pain of conceiving and miscarrying. Supernatural childbirth is a practical
and realistic look at God's promises for conception, pregnancy and delivery.
You will learn how to put faith principal into actions for your child's birth.
Audio (3 CDs) - $19.99 Link to Audio: http://www.familybg.com/node/2279
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Cleaned up ready to snuggle with mom. |
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Getting all checked out. |
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My mom, Grandma Ortiz (Abuela) |
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My dad, Grandpa Ortiz |
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My brother, Uncle Robert |
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My sister, Aunt Gaby |
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My in-laws Grandpa & Grandma Briggs |
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Grandma's counting toes! |
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Uncle Steve & Aunt Eleanor (Jeff's brother) |
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Aunt Colleen (Jeff's sister) |