We had our last appointment with Melody and crew yesterday at the Birthing Center. So sad... We did a weight check for Isaiah and with his clothes on he weighed 8 lbs. 10 oz. At home I weighed him naked and he was 8 lbs. 5 oz.
Last week at the doctor he weighed 7 lbs. 7 oz., which means that he gained a total of 14 oz. in a week! That's 2 oz. per day!! Yes, we have a growing boy!!
And speaking of growing, Isaiah is rolling over already. It actually started when he was 3 weeks old, and he's done it many times since. He is so strong at such a young age! Now, he's actually starting to kinda scoot himself backward a bit when he's on his tummy somehow...just crazy.
Anyway, to prove it, here's a video of Isaiah rolling - sorry for the odd angle; I couldn't get it to rotate.
Wednesday, April 20, 2011
Monday, April 18, 2011
Friday, April 15, 2011
Tongue Ties and Breastfeeding
Breastfeeding has never been easy for me.
I had a rough time with both Bella and Balian. Different experiences, but equally as difficult. With Bella, I only lasted 2 months. With Balian, about 2.5. I wanted desperately to breastfeed, so I tried with everything I had for those 2 and 2.5 months. In the end, we ultimately decided that a happy formula-feeding mommy is better than a stressed-out breastfeeding mommy with low birth-weight babies. That decision still stung whenever people asked me about if I had breastfed my kids, and for how long...It just made me re-live the stress, the pain, the exhaustion, and the feelings of inadequacy every time.
So, this time around, I did all the research I possibly could. I learned more about technique - single side vs. double-side feeding, talked to the breastfeeding moms around me about their experiences, read articles on LaLecheLeague's website, rigged up a way to do a very accurate weigh/feed/weigh at home if needed, talked to the midwife a lot about how to deal with issues, and just hoped for the best, but prepared myself for the worst, I suppose.
When I first started midwifery care, we talked about the breastfeeding drama. The first thing Melody asked was "were they tongue tied?"
Tongue tied? I'd never heard of it, other than a figure of speech. I didn't know it actually existed as a condition - and how in the world did that relate to breastfeeding?
Melody had been trained to check for a tied tongue immediately after birth, and considering my breastfeeding history, she was definitely going to be checking. Sure enough, Isaiah had a VERY tied tongue. Heart-shaped in the front, and connected very near the front of the tongue. She didn't do anything at first, but after Isaiah's first feeding, I already had a blister on my nipple.
So, Melody cut his frenulum a bit - as much as she could with the scissors that she had with her, and said we would go from there.
This is not Isaiah. I got this picture from another blog that posted about a tongue-tied baby. But Isaiah's tongue tie was probably just as severe as this one. Notice the connection from the bottom (and tip) of the tongue to the bottom of the mouth. This is the frenulum.
The next day (Friday) we had a check-up with Melody. Isaiah's birth weight was 6 lbs. 8 oz., and now he was at 6lb. 2 oz. She wasn't super-happy with his latch, so she got better scissors and cut as much of Isaiah's frenulum as she felt comfortable cutting. She said that it looked like there was a lot more that was a lot thicker that needed to be cut, but she couldn't be the one to do it. She said to see how it went with what was cut and to go from there.
That night my milk came in and everything got 10x worse. Not only was I dealing with engorgement, but my nipples were in some serious pain. Each day got progressively worse. I got really stressed out about him not latching on right. It got to the point that I dreaded feeding Isaiah, and I was hurting so bad that I didn't want the kids to come within arm's reach when I was feeding...and there were many tears. I hated feedings. Bonding? What bonding? It was too stressful.
By Tuesday I would burst into tears at the thought of feeding him - and I cried the entire 30 minute drive to the Birth Center for my appointment with Melody. Of course, as soon as she saw me, she asked if I was ok, and I immediately shook my head no. She asked what was wrong and I responded "Just thinking about feeding him kills me." She immediately took me into a separate room to talk to me. We weighed Isaiah - 6 lbs. 2 oz. again. In the meantime, Kristin, the chiropractor, came in and started checking out Isaiah. She worked on his hard palette, because it was pretty high, and adjusted his jaw that was out of line. This definitely helped a lot. If nothing else, it helped Isaiah be able to open his mouth up wider. Melody looked at the condition of my nipples. She saw how blistered and cracked they were, gave me some nipple balm that a client's mom makes out of tons of herbs, and immediately called the lactation consultant. Dierdre agreed to meet us at the Birth Center for a consultation ASAP, which was about 2 hrs. later, since she was driving from Arlington.
The first thing Dierdre did was look at Isaiah. She didn't ask me any questions until she was finished. She concluded that Isaiah did indeed have more frenulum under his tongue that needed to get checked out by someone who could cut it. She also said that his upper lip was tied and his lower lip tight - keeping him from latching on with his lips flanged. Also, because of his tied tongue, his tongue movement wasn't great because he was moving the front of his tongue rather than the back of his tongue.
Next, Dierdre showed me how to get into the laid-back position to feed Isaiah. This, she said, would help him to get as good of a latch as he could, and because it keeps his chin steady, it would force him to use the back of his tongue more to suck, rather than using the front of his tongue and his cheeks. It definitely hurt significantly less to nurse, which told me that I could handle the pain that was there until we got the tongue issue handled.
She referred me to a Pediatric ENT in Dallas, Dr. Biovati, to get Isaiah's possible "posterior tongue tie" evaluated and potentially fixed.
She also told me that if I decided to pump that I would need a larger flange than the one that comes with the Medela pump. Apparently pumping is just like nursing - you have to stimulate a good amount of the areola to be able to get the most milk out - and to keep your nipples from being sore. The standard size would probably only get the nipple in my case. No wonder it hurt so bad to pump before!
I definitely left that consultation with hope and encouragement. Encouragement, because I didn't feel like I was doing everything wrong anymore. In the past I always thought it was me that was the problem. But (this time anyway) I was doing everything right, and the problem was something out of my control. I felt hope, because I left feeling like there was at least a glimmer of hope that I could continue to nurse Isaiah - and actually be successful at it in the end, rather than giving up like I did with the other two kiddos.
Monday, March 21 - We made it through another week - one day at a time - until we could go see Dr. Biovati. He took one look at Isaiah, and said that he definitely had a tongue-tie and that only about half of the frenulum had been cut. I held Isaiah, while Dr. Biovati used this contraption that looked like a metal tongue depressor with a slit in it to hold Isaiah's tongue in place. With one snip, Isaiah was no longer tongue-tied. He had me nurse him a bit to wash out whatever blood was present, and immediately his latch felt different.
The next day, Tuesday, we had a weight check. 6 lbs. 6 oz. He had gained about 1/2 an ounce per day. Considering the issues, not too bad!
Over the next couple of days, it seemed like things got worse. Dierdre had warned me that it may be like that for a couple of days. Isaiah had to get used to the ability to move his tongue more - and regain control of that movement. She said that it would take 36-48 hrs. typically to adjust.
It took us about a week, but at that one-week point, Isaiah started latching on a lot better, my nipples began to heal, and I was definitely in a lot less pain. Weight at this point: 6 lbs. 10 oz., so still about 1/2 an ounce per day.
The next week, he was 7 lbs. 1 oz. We're up to about an ounce per day of weight gain!!
This week, he weighed 7 lbs. 7 oz. at the doctor...again about an ounce per day!!
Things are definitely not perfect, but they're better, especially in comparison to where we were. We are not at the point of pain-free nursing yet, but like I said, it's better. There are still times that Isaiah gets lazy or is tired, and reverts back to lazy tongue-action (using the front instead of the back) which causes some soreness, but I know that over time his tongue will get stronger and using the back of his tongue won't be work anymore. We also still have the upper lip tie issue, which is causing us to still show a lot of the symptoms of a tongue tie. I've just in the past couple of days realized this, so I'm just learning about it. I read this blog, which was very helpful. It has a lot of good information from a chiropractor who has dealt with all the things we are dealing with in breastfeeding her kids.
I'm actually beginning to somewhat enjoy this whole breastfeeding thing. Definitely not loving it, but I'm not hating it either. The little accomplishments are what keep me going. I've never been excited about acne - ever - but when Isaiah broke out with baby acne, I did a happy dance, because I knew that acne meant a good dose of hormones, which meant he was getting a good amount of milk. Seeing the wrinkles in his thighs disappear a little bit at a time, watching him fill out more and more, and finding proof on the scale with consistent weight gain couldn't make me happier.
Maybe this time around I'll eventually get to experience the bonding associated with breastfeeding that I've only heard about. Perhaps we'll keep going strong and I'll be able to meet my goal of nursing for an entire year. We'll see. Right now, it's one step at a time, but I'm loving every step of the way.
Back to the question about the other two kids being tongue-tied:
Balian has a tied tongue and a tied upper lip.
Bella's upper lip is tied, but her tongue is not.
So welcome to my world of breastfeeding challenges. Praise the Lord that this time around we have had people around us to teach us about this thing called a tongue-tie. It has given me hope and demolishes the feelings of disappointment and inadequacy from not being successful with breastfeeding in the past. Knowledge is a wonderful thing!
For more general information about tied tongues go here.
For more detail, check out the blog I mentioned above.
I had a rough time with both Bella and Balian. Different experiences, but equally as difficult. With Bella, I only lasted 2 months. With Balian, about 2.5. I wanted desperately to breastfeed, so I tried with everything I had for those 2 and 2.5 months. In the end, we ultimately decided that a happy formula-feeding mommy is better than a stressed-out breastfeeding mommy with low birth-weight babies. That decision still stung whenever people asked me about if I had breastfed my kids, and for how long...It just made me re-live the stress, the pain, the exhaustion, and the feelings of inadequacy every time.
So, this time around, I did all the research I possibly could. I learned more about technique - single side vs. double-side feeding, talked to the breastfeeding moms around me about their experiences, read articles on LaLecheLeague's website, rigged up a way to do a very accurate weigh/feed/weigh at home if needed, talked to the midwife a lot about how to deal with issues, and just hoped for the best, but prepared myself for the worst, I suppose.
When I first started midwifery care, we talked about the breastfeeding drama. The first thing Melody asked was "were they tongue tied?"
Tongue tied? I'd never heard of it, other than a figure of speech. I didn't know it actually existed as a condition - and how in the world did that relate to breastfeeding?
Melody had been trained to check for a tied tongue immediately after birth, and considering my breastfeeding history, she was definitely going to be checking. Sure enough, Isaiah had a VERY tied tongue. Heart-shaped in the front, and connected very near the front of the tongue. She didn't do anything at first, but after Isaiah's first feeding, I already had a blister on my nipple.
So, Melody cut his frenulum a bit - as much as she could with the scissors that she had with her, and said we would go from there.
This is not Isaiah. I got this picture from another blog that posted about a tongue-tied baby. But Isaiah's tongue tie was probably just as severe as this one. Notice the connection from the bottom (and tip) of the tongue to the bottom of the mouth. This is the frenulum.
The next day (Friday) we had a check-up with Melody. Isaiah's birth weight was 6 lbs. 8 oz., and now he was at 6lb. 2 oz. She wasn't super-happy with his latch, so she got better scissors and cut as much of Isaiah's frenulum as she felt comfortable cutting. She said that it looked like there was a lot more that was a lot thicker that needed to be cut, but she couldn't be the one to do it. She said to see how it went with what was cut and to go from there.
That night my milk came in and everything got 10x worse. Not only was I dealing with engorgement, but my nipples were in some serious pain. Each day got progressively worse. I got really stressed out about him not latching on right. It got to the point that I dreaded feeding Isaiah, and I was hurting so bad that I didn't want the kids to come within arm's reach when I was feeding...and there were many tears. I hated feedings. Bonding? What bonding? It was too stressful.
By Tuesday I would burst into tears at the thought of feeding him - and I cried the entire 30 minute drive to the Birth Center for my appointment with Melody. Of course, as soon as she saw me, she asked if I was ok, and I immediately shook my head no. She asked what was wrong and I responded "Just thinking about feeding him kills me." She immediately took me into a separate room to talk to me. We weighed Isaiah - 6 lbs. 2 oz. again. In the meantime, Kristin, the chiropractor, came in and started checking out Isaiah. She worked on his hard palette, because it was pretty high, and adjusted his jaw that was out of line. This definitely helped a lot. If nothing else, it helped Isaiah be able to open his mouth up wider. Melody looked at the condition of my nipples. She saw how blistered and cracked they were, gave me some nipple balm that a client's mom makes out of tons of herbs, and immediately called the lactation consultant. Dierdre agreed to meet us at the Birth Center for a consultation ASAP, which was about 2 hrs. later, since she was driving from Arlington.
The first thing Dierdre did was look at Isaiah. She didn't ask me any questions until she was finished. She concluded that Isaiah did indeed have more frenulum under his tongue that needed to get checked out by someone who could cut it. She also said that his upper lip was tied and his lower lip tight - keeping him from latching on with his lips flanged. Also, because of his tied tongue, his tongue movement wasn't great because he was moving the front of his tongue rather than the back of his tongue.
Next, Dierdre showed me how to get into the laid-back position to feed Isaiah. This, she said, would help him to get as good of a latch as he could, and because it keeps his chin steady, it would force him to use the back of his tongue more to suck, rather than using the front of his tongue and his cheeks. It definitely hurt significantly less to nurse, which told me that I could handle the pain that was there until we got the tongue issue handled.
She referred me to a Pediatric ENT in Dallas, Dr. Biovati, to get Isaiah's possible "posterior tongue tie" evaluated and potentially fixed.
She also told me that if I decided to pump that I would need a larger flange than the one that comes with the Medela pump. Apparently pumping is just like nursing - you have to stimulate a good amount of the areola to be able to get the most milk out - and to keep your nipples from being sore. The standard size would probably only get the nipple in my case. No wonder it hurt so bad to pump before!
I definitely left that consultation with hope and encouragement. Encouragement, because I didn't feel like I was doing everything wrong anymore. In the past I always thought it was me that was the problem. But (this time anyway) I was doing everything right, and the problem was something out of my control. I felt hope, because I left feeling like there was at least a glimmer of hope that I could continue to nurse Isaiah - and actually be successful at it in the end, rather than giving up like I did with the other two kiddos.
Monday, March 21 - We made it through another week - one day at a time - until we could go see Dr. Biovati. He took one look at Isaiah, and said that he definitely had a tongue-tie and that only about half of the frenulum had been cut. I held Isaiah, while Dr. Biovati used this contraption that looked like a metal tongue depressor with a slit in it to hold Isaiah's tongue in place. With one snip, Isaiah was no longer tongue-tied. He had me nurse him a bit to wash out whatever blood was present, and immediately his latch felt different.
The next day, Tuesday, we had a weight check. 6 lbs. 6 oz. He had gained about 1/2 an ounce per day. Considering the issues, not too bad!
Over the next couple of days, it seemed like things got worse. Dierdre had warned me that it may be like that for a couple of days. Isaiah had to get used to the ability to move his tongue more - and regain control of that movement. She said that it would take 36-48 hrs. typically to adjust.
It took us about a week, but at that one-week point, Isaiah started latching on a lot better, my nipples began to heal, and I was definitely in a lot less pain. Weight at this point: 6 lbs. 10 oz., so still about 1/2 an ounce per day.
The next week, he was 7 lbs. 1 oz. We're up to about an ounce per day of weight gain!!
This week, he weighed 7 lbs. 7 oz. at the doctor...again about an ounce per day!!
Things are definitely not perfect, but they're better, especially in comparison to where we were. We are not at the point of pain-free nursing yet, but like I said, it's better. There are still times that Isaiah gets lazy or is tired, and reverts back to lazy tongue-action (using the front instead of the back) which causes some soreness, but I know that over time his tongue will get stronger and using the back of his tongue won't be work anymore. We also still have the upper lip tie issue, which is causing us to still show a lot of the symptoms of a tongue tie. I've just in the past couple of days realized this, so I'm just learning about it. I read this blog, which was very helpful. It has a lot of good information from a chiropractor who has dealt with all the things we are dealing with in breastfeeding her kids.
I'm actually beginning to somewhat enjoy this whole breastfeeding thing. Definitely not loving it, but I'm not hating it either. The little accomplishments are what keep me going. I've never been excited about acne - ever - but when Isaiah broke out with baby acne, I did a happy dance, because I knew that acne meant a good dose of hormones, which meant he was getting a good amount of milk. Seeing the wrinkles in his thighs disappear a little bit at a time, watching him fill out more and more, and finding proof on the scale with consistent weight gain couldn't make me happier.
Maybe this time around I'll eventually get to experience the bonding associated with breastfeeding that I've only heard about. Perhaps we'll keep going strong and I'll be able to meet my goal of nursing for an entire year. We'll see. Right now, it's one step at a time, but I'm loving every step of the way.
Back to the question about the other two kids being tongue-tied:
Balian has a tied tongue and a tied upper lip.
Bella's upper lip is tied, but her tongue is not.
So welcome to my world of breastfeeding challenges. Praise the Lord that this time around we have had people around us to teach us about this thing called a tongue-tie. It has given me hope and demolishes the feelings of disappointment and inadequacy from not being successful with breastfeeding in the past. Knowledge is a wonderful thing!
For more general information about tied tongues go here.
For more detail, check out the blog I mentioned above.
Wednesday, April 13, 2011
1 month, 18 months, and 4 years
I took all 3 kiddos to the doctor to have well checks on Monday. We have a new pediatrician now. I was so sad to say goodbye to Dr. Simpson, but she closed her practice, so we had to find a new one. We were referred to Dr. Arouse by both the midwife as well as a friend, and so far we LOVE him! He is totally worth the 30 minute drive to Cleburne! He is so good with the kids - gives them dum-dums after every visit, is very positive/encouraging (he just says things like "you're doing a great job!"), and best of all, isn't pushy about vaccines. He's totally fine with delaying them a bit if I want, especially the live ones.
As far as the visit goes, it wasn't too bad, except that we have to go up 5 floors in an elevator to get there. Balian hates elevators. I'm not really sure why. Perhaps it's the funny feeling you get in your belly when it starts and stops. That's the only thing I can really think it could be. Whatever the case, he balks at even going into the elevator. This time it was so bad that he started down the hall before he even saw it - he just knew where we were headed. so sad.
All 3 kids are doing well. Here's the stats:
Bella - 4 years
Ht: 41.25 inches
Wt: 36.5 lbs.
Balian - 18 months (almost 19 months)
Ht: 33 inches
Wt: 24.5 lbs.
Isaiah - 1 month
Length: 21.5 inches
Wt: 7 lbs. 7 oz.
As far as the visit goes, it wasn't too bad, except that we have to go up 5 floors in an elevator to get there. Balian hates elevators. I'm not really sure why. Perhaps it's the funny feeling you get in your belly when it starts and stops. That's the only thing I can really think it could be. Whatever the case, he balks at even going into the elevator. This time it was so bad that he started down the hall before he even saw it - he just knew where we were headed. so sad.
All 3 kids are doing well. Here's the stats:
Bella - 4 years
Ht: 41.25 inches
Wt: 36.5 lbs.
Balian - 18 months (almost 19 months)
Ht: 33 inches
Wt: 24.5 lbs.
Isaiah - 1 month
Length: 21.5 inches
Wt: 7 lbs. 7 oz.
Friday, April 8, 2011
sorry...
Sorry I haven't posted in a while...I'm wanting to get pictures of Isaiah up here. Soon, I promise.
We've had computer issues, so I've been using Neil's work laptop, which hasn't been letting me get onto the blog for some reason. Anyway, now we have the computer back and all is well...
will post soon with pictures...and stories of the past month at our house.
Life has definitely gotten more interesting...
We've had computer issues, so I've been using Neil's work laptop, which hasn't been letting me get onto the blog for some reason. Anyway, now we have the computer back and all is well...
will post soon with pictures...and stories of the past month at our house.
Life has definitely gotten more interesting...
Wednesday, March 16, 2011
Isaiah's Birth Story
Thursday, March 10, 2011
6am - I woke up from a dead sleep to a contraction that hurt so bad I had to breathe through it. After the next one happened (13 min. later) I called Neil into the room and told him what happened. Luckily, he hadn't left for work yet.
The contractions were separated like this: 13 min., 8 min, 7.5 min, 7 min, 6 min, 5 min - one right after the other. And I was stopping to breathe through all of them. At this point, Neil checked me, and said I was dilated to a 5 without stretching at all.
7am - I called Melody and told her "I think I'm going to be having a baby today." Everything just felt different about these contractions, and with them getting significantly closer together with each contraction, I just knew. She said to keep monitoring them and call back in 30 min, unless something changed.
About 10 min. later, the contractions started going about 2.5 min. apart, and more painful. I called Melody back and she and the team were on their way.
In the meantime, I got into the bathtub, but it was helping so well with the pain that I was having trouble timing the contractions. So I got out, and they started right back up where they left off - 2.5 min. apart.
8 am? - My friend Tricia came by to pick up the kids and take them to her house. As she was leaving with the kids, Melody showed up.
As I was having contractions, I was showing Melody where everything was as far as the birth supplies, and just talking to her about random stuff. The rest of the team showed up at about 8:15 or 8:30, and started to get everything set out and ready for the delivery. Melody guided me through rocking my hips during contractions to help the baby descend.
At this point, all of the midwives (Melody - midwife, Rosetta, Rosemary, and Sarah - apprentices) gathered around me and prayed over me, the baby, the labor, and delivery.
Not too long after this, I was starting to hurt pretty bad, so I decided to get back into the tub for some pain relief. I was in there for a while, in different positions, still rocking my hips during contractions. And all during labor, people kept reminding me to drink water, to empty my bladder, and even fed me bites of a cliff bar. With how painful the contractions were, and with them still being 2.5 min. apart, we figured we'd have a baby within an hour or so...but then after a while, I was still at the same place - painful contractions 2.5 min. apart. Melody and the others were so good about speaking encouraging words, and giving gentle touches when needed. They were my encouragers. Neil was my comforter and teammate.
At some point while I was in the tub my Dad and my friend Maryann showed up. Maryann just happened to be on vacation and had gotten into town the day before...They hung out in the living room while I labored.
Melody started to get concerned about not continuing to progress. She told me to get out of the tub and walk around or whatever I wanted to do, but that we needed to use gravity to our advantage. So I got out...and gravity was definitely working (or maybe I should say that the tub was working...) The contractions immediately got stronger.
During contractions, I continued to rock my hips, and Neil pushed my hips together or massaged my lower back - both for pain relief and trying to help the baby descend.
After a while, Melody said that she wanted to check the baby's position.
She said I was dilated to an 8, and about 90% effaced. She was having trouble finding the baby's position. She finally realized that the baby's head was kinked to the side a bit, which is why I wasn't continuing to progress as she expected.
Rosemary (one of the apprentices) used pressure/massage both in my lower back and hip/pelvic area to try to get the baby to move. He definitely moved some, and I started having much harder contractions. I decided that I didn't want to move, so I stayed on the bed...
Not too long after this, I started feeling the urge to push during my contractions. This went on for a while, and my water still hadn't broken. I'm thinking "seriously? why hasn't my water broken yet? Why is this baby not here yet?" It was just so different than the other two. Instead of hitting transition, getting no break between contractions, but having a kid in no time - I hit transition, the contractions were really painful, but they were still far enough apart that I was able to get breaks in between them. The pain was seriously bad though...I felt like at any moment my water would break...I kept pushing and pushing...but nothing. Just pain...feeling the baby descending, and lots of screaming :) During the pushing, the midwives were applying warm compresses to the perineum.
Neil got into position to deliver the baby.
After pushing for close to 20 min., my water finally broke with a gush - All over Neil! ha.
A couple minutes later, Isaiah's head popped out, and was turning as he was coming out. The cord was wrapped behind his neck, over his shoulders, and under his arms. Melody and Neil got him unwrapped, and guided him out the rest of the way. Total pushing time: 22minutes.
Total labor time: just shy of 7 hours.
Neil announced the birth of a baby Boy - a surprise to all of us. Even the midwives were all convinced that it was going to be a girl - because they said that boys typically have a harder time during labor, but Isaiah's heart rate never dropped at all - and he did wonderfully the entire delivery.
For the first time ever - No tearing during delivery. Not one - probably because it took him so long to come out.
They immediately put him skin to skin with me, and (this is a bit different) once the placenta was delivered, Neil cut the cord.
We were all laughing and celebrating for a while, as the midwives were all checking vitals, etc. while Isaiah was still on my tummy. He wasn't quite ready to nurse yet. Once vitals were done, Isaiah and I got into the bathtub for an herbal bath, to promote healing for me and the umbilical cord for him. While we were in there, Isaiah nursed, and Neil sat by us, next to the tub, so we could both get to know our new baby boy. He also fed me a turkey sandwich. love him.
After the bath, I got cleaned up and dressed, and went back to the bed, where the linens had already been removed and put into the wash, to check vitals again. Then, my Dad and Maryann were able to come in and meet Isaiah as well - and share the story from their point of view.
Isaiah Ethan Jones was born at 12:47 pm, weighing 6 lbs. 8 oz. and 20 inches long.
Welcome to the world, Isaiah!!
Would I have a home birth again? Most definitely. If I had been in a hospital, they may have broken my water, but that could have caused more complications. I could have even ended up in a c-section because of his position. The difference is how proactive everyone was. Melody and the team knew what to do to help me through the pain, and the awkward positioning so that Isaiah could come. And I was so much more comfortable than I would have been in a hospital. And really, you can't beat knowing that every single person surrounding you is a believer - praying for you - encouraging you - serving you - loving you - and wanting the absolute best for you. Neil sums it up like this: In a hospital, it's about what the doctors and nurses do (they break the water, they give medicine, they do this or that...), but this labor was all about me and what I was doing. The others were simply there to support, encourage, and direct the course of labor...letting me do what my body needed to do to deliver Isaiah.
What do I think about the birth? It was definitely longer and definitely harder than my other two. The length didn't bother me - It actually helped me out to not have a labor so fast and furious. Because of the length, I not only didn't tear, but my body also didn't go into shock right after delivering like it usually does. No shaking at all this time.
The hardest part was the pain. There was definitely reason for it, and it was definitely less than it could have been if his position hadn't been changed at all during the course of labor. I'm just thankful that God gave me breaks during the course of the pain to be able to take a breather and get through it.
No, I still wouldn't get an epidural or any other drugs, even with the pain. Having anything could have hindered the whole process as well - and by golly, I loved not being strapped down or having an IV. It was fabulous!
Highly recommend a home birth and midwifery care to anyone and everyone (that isn't super high-risk) that is expecting a baby. SO worth everything!
6am - I woke up from a dead sleep to a contraction that hurt so bad I had to breathe through it. After the next one happened (13 min. later) I called Neil into the room and told him what happened. Luckily, he hadn't left for work yet.
The contractions were separated like this: 13 min., 8 min, 7.5 min, 7 min, 6 min, 5 min - one right after the other. And I was stopping to breathe through all of them. At this point, Neil checked me, and said I was dilated to a 5 without stretching at all.
7am - I called Melody and told her "I think I'm going to be having a baby today." Everything just felt different about these contractions, and with them getting significantly closer together with each contraction, I just knew. She said to keep monitoring them and call back in 30 min, unless something changed.
About 10 min. later, the contractions started going about 2.5 min. apart, and more painful. I called Melody back and she and the team were on their way.
In the meantime, I got into the bathtub, but it was helping so well with the pain that I was having trouble timing the contractions. So I got out, and they started right back up where they left off - 2.5 min. apart.
8 am? - My friend Tricia came by to pick up the kids and take them to her house. As she was leaving with the kids, Melody showed up.
As I was having contractions, I was showing Melody where everything was as far as the birth supplies, and just talking to her about random stuff. The rest of the team showed up at about 8:15 or 8:30, and started to get everything set out and ready for the delivery. Melody guided me through rocking my hips during contractions to help the baby descend.
At this point, all of the midwives (Melody - midwife, Rosetta, Rosemary, and Sarah - apprentices) gathered around me and prayed over me, the baby, the labor, and delivery.
Not too long after this, I was starting to hurt pretty bad, so I decided to get back into the tub for some pain relief. I was in there for a while, in different positions, still rocking my hips during contractions. And all during labor, people kept reminding me to drink water, to empty my bladder, and even fed me bites of a cliff bar. With how painful the contractions were, and with them still being 2.5 min. apart, we figured we'd have a baby within an hour or so...but then after a while, I was still at the same place - painful contractions 2.5 min. apart. Melody and the others were so good about speaking encouraging words, and giving gentle touches when needed. They were my encouragers. Neil was my comforter and teammate.
At some point while I was in the tub my Dad and my friend Maryann showed up. Maryann just happened to be on vacation and had gotten into town the day before...They hung out in the living room while I labored.
Melody started to get concerned about not continuing to progress. She told me to get out of the tub and walk around or whatever I wanted to do, but that we needed to use gravity to our advantage. So I got out...and gravity was definitely working (or maybe I should say that the tub was working...) The contractions immediately got stronger.
During contractions, I continued to rock my hips, and Neil pushed my hips together or massaged my lower back - both for pain relief and trying to help the baby descend.
After a while, Melody said that she wanted to check the baby's position.
She said I was dilated to an 8, and about 90% effaced. She was having trouble finding the baby's position. She finally realized that the baby's head was kinked to the side a bit, which is why I wasn't continuing to progress as she expected.
Rosemary (one of the apprentices) used pressure/massage both in my lower back and hip/pelvic area to try to get the baby to move. He definitely moved some, and I started having much harder contractions. I decided that I didn't want to move, so I stayed on the bed...
Not too long after this, I started feeling the urge to push during my contractions. This went on for a while, and my water still hadn't broken. I'm thinking "seriously? why hasn't my water broken yet? Why is this baby not here yet?" It was just so different than the other two. Instead of hitting transition, getting no break between contractions, but having a kid in no time - I hit transition, the contractions were really painful, but they were still far enough apart that I was able to get breaks in between them. The pain was seriously bad though...I felt like at any moment my water would break...I kept pushing and pushing...but nothing. Just pain...feeling the baby descending, and lots of screaming :) During the pushing, the midwives were applying warm compresses to the perineum.
Neil got into position to deliver the baby.
After pushing for close to 20 min., my water finally broke with a gush - All over Neil! ha.
A couple minutes later, Isaiah's head popped out, and was turning as he was coming out. The cord was wrapped behind his neck, over his shoulders, and under his arms. Melody and Neil got him unwrapped, and guided him out the rest of the way. Total pushing time: 22minutes.
Total labor time: just shy of 7 hours.
Neil announced the birth of a baby Boy - a surprise to all of us. Even the midwives were all convinced that it was going to be a girl - because they said that boys typically have a harder time during labor, but Isaiah's heart rate never dropped at all - and he did wonderfully the entire delivery.
For the first time ever - No tearing during delivery. Not one - probably because it took him so long to come out.
They immediately put him skin to skin with me, and (this is a bit different) once the placenta was delivered, Neil cut the cord.
We were all laughing and celebrating for a while, as the midwives were all checking vitals, etc. while Isaiah was still on my tummy. He wasn't quite ready to nurse yet. Once vitals were done, Isaiah and I got into the bathtub for an herbal bath, to promote healing for me and the umbilical cord for him. While we were in there, Isaiah nursed, and Neil sat by us, next to the tub, so we could both get to know our new baby boy. He also fed me a turkey sandwich. love him.
After the bath, I got cleaned up and dressed, and went back to the bed, where the linens had already been removed and put into the wash, to check vitals again. Then, my Dad and Maryann were able to come in and meet Isaiah as well - and share the story from their point of view.
Isaiah Ethan Jones was born at 12:47 pm, weighing 6 lbs. 8 oz. and 20 inches long.
Welcome to the world, Isaiah!!
Would I have a home birth again? Most definitely. If I had been in a hospital, they may have broken my water, but that could have caused more complications. I could have even ended up in a c-section because of his position. The difference is how proactive everyone was. Melody and the team knew what to do to help me through the pain, and the awkward positioning so that Isaiah could come. And I was so much more comfortable than I would have been in a hospital. And really, you can't beat knowing that every single person surrounding you is a believer - praying for you - encouraging you - serving you - loving you - and wanting the absolute best for you. Neil sums it up like this: In a hospital, it's about what the doctors and nurses do (they break the water, they give medicine, they do this or that...), but this labor was all about me and what I was doing. The others were simply there to support, encourage, and direct the course of labor...letting me do what my body needed to do to deliver Isaiah.
What do I think about the birth? It was definitely longer and definitely harder than my other two. The length didn't bother me - It actually helped me out to not have a labor so fast and furious. Because of the length, I not only didn't tear, but my body also didn't go into shock right after delivering like it usually does. No shaking at all this time.
The hardest part was the pain. There was definitely reason for it, and it was definitely less than it could have been if his position hadn't been changed at all during the course of labor. I'm just thankful that God gave me breaks during the course of the pain to be able to take a breather and get through it.
No, I still wouldn't get an epidural or any other drugs, even with the pain. Having anything could have hindered the whole process as well - and by golly, I loved not being strapped down or having an IV. It was fabulous!
Highly recommend a home birth and midwifery care to anyone and everyone (that isn't super high-risk) that is expecting a baby. SO worth everything!
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