Blog About It All: My Birth Story

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.

www.BlogAboutItAll.com

I purchased "Supernatural Childbirth" at Family Books & Gifts:

www.FamilyBG.com

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.

Book - $9.99 Link to book: http://www.familybg.com/node/2278

Audio (3 CDs) - $19.99 Link to Audio: http://www.familybg.com/node/2279