An OMazing Water Birth
At the end of September, I witnessed the most beautiful birth of my doula career. My friend and client, Megan birthed her son in a Japanese bath tub late one Saturday night. Here’s the story:
Megan and I reconnected last April. She reached out after reading an OMazing newsletter. Pregnant with her second child, she expressed interest in a prenatal yoga class. In 2018, I had taught yoga to a group of soon-to-be-mamas, including Megan. Her request turned into weekly prenatal yoga classes that I taught outside all spring, summer and fall. We’re now inside as the weather has changed. I thank Megan for helping build this beautiful community.
In August, Megan and her husband Andy came to my studio for a refresher childbirth education class. I knew they were on the same page with one another regarding birth preferences. They wanted to labor and deliver at the birth center, intentionally foregoing any opportunity for pain medication. She thought her second birth would be quick so she didn’t think she would need a doula.
However, a few weeks before the birth, Megan changed her mind and hired me to be her doula.
At prenatal yoga class in late September, a few days before she was due, she declared that she was done! I was leaving on my desert bike trip the next day and she said, “I hope I have this baby when you are gone!” I smiled and said, “keep me posted!” We had a back-up doula plan.
After being out of cell service for four days, I turned on my phone and looked through a hundred text messages. I didn’t see one from Megan. Happy I didn’t miss her birth, I only hoped that I had time to take a shower before she called.
When I connected with Megan, she said that she experienced a few false alarms while I was gone but labor hadn’t started. Disappointed and frustrated by the stoping and starting, she hoped labor would happen soon. I reminded her that waiting for a baby is the “great surrender.”
The following day, our friend Carly sent a group text. “Tomorrow is Megan’s due date, so let’s send her vibes to allow her mind and body to let go and allow this process to unfold”.
A half hour later, my phone rang. I picked up. Calmly Megan said, “my water broke.” I heard a smile in her voice. “Sweet.” I said. I looked at the clock and asked if she was having any contractions. "Not yet” she said. It was just a matter of time before she would be in the throes of labor.
Over the next couple of hours, we exchanged texts. At 8pm I asked if she needed me. “Ready!” she replied. I drove down Parley’s Canyon to the birth center. Her husband Andy met me in the hallway and showed me in. I found Megan sitting in a yoga swing - a hammock-like rope swing in the shape of a chair. Megan was focused, calm, and relieved that her recent back pain had subsided.
The rhythm of Megan’s contractions were consistent and building with intensity. The midwife’s assistant listened the heartbeat as Megan rocked in the swing. Everything sounded good.
I invited her to change positions. She walked to the toilet and stayed there for a few contractions. I rubbed her shoulders and pressed on her lower back. I swapped places with Andy and he supported her through a few contractions in that same position. I offered her sips of water and reminded her to relax.
The only time Megan broke concentration was when she asked her husband if he had sent a text to his parents who were watching their three year-old daughter. Confirming that situation was handled, Megan was able to go deep once again. There was no more chit-chat.
For the next hour and a half every ounce of energy went to coping. Megan met each contraction breath and focus. Megan asked if I thought it was a good idea to go in the bath. “It’s always a good idea to go in the bath,” I responded.
The midwife assistant filled the beautiful Japanese style tub with hot water. Megan walked over and stepped in. She kneeled and rested her forehead on an inflatable pillow on the side. Contractions were picking up in intensity and length. Each one lasted between a minute to a minute and a half. There was very little rest in between.
Megan wanted and needed relief. Andy and I continued working together to create a constant counter-pressure on her lower back and hips. Eventually, Megan said she felt like she needed to push. The midwife suggested she roll over in the tub. Her head was resting on the side, belly facing the ceiling. The midwife gently checked her cervix and said she was 9 centimeters dilated. Megan was almost complete. With a few more contractions she’d be ready to push.
As her contractions continued, so did our counter-pressure. Megan was overwhelmed. She felt nauseous, shaky and unsure of herself which are all “text book” signs of transition (the last part of the first stage labor.) Megan asked for nitrous oxide. The midwife’s assistant left the room to fetch it. We all knew that before it would be set up she would likely be a mother of two.
Instead of nitrous, we gave her ice cold washcloths.
Megan squatted in the tub while the midwife sat at the edge outside of the tub. Face to face with Megan, she coached her very calmly. I was struck by the simplicity of this water birth. No equipment. No intervention. Megan followed the cues of her body. She simply trusted that her body knew what to do.
Alone in the tub, Megan continued to push. The midwife held a mirror in the water to monitor progress. The assistant continued to check the baby’s heartbeat with a hand-held Doppler. At the midwife’s suggestion, Megan reached down and felt her baby’s head crowning.
With the next contraction, Megan pushed and birthed the baby’s head. The midwife instructed her to wait for the next contraction to birth the shoulders and the rest of the body. I couldn’t believe that in between contractions, the baby’s body was inside of Megan and his head outside in the water. It was wild. My focus was 100% on Megan. Incredibly composed, she waited for another contraction.
With one more push, her baby boy was born.
The midwife instructed Megan reach between her legs and bring the baby up to her chest. I was struck by the natural beauty couldn’t of the unassisted birth and felt so fortunate to witness.
Andy walked over and kissed his wife. Tears filled his eyes as he looked at his son. Megan was smiling. I was teary. It was truly, truly amazing to see.
Very carefully, we helped Megan carry her newborn to the bed. Twenty minutest later, she delivered her placenta. It looked healthy and normal, just like the baby. A few minutes later, she bought her baby to her breast. He latched on for his first feeding. It was not the most simple latch, but before I left, he was nursing.
I said goodbye and walked outside. It was a beautiful drive home. The autumn night was warm and clear. Filled with amazement, I replayed the details of the birth in my mind. A baby born in water! The way he lingered in the water surprised me. Because he spent ten months in the amniotic sac, he didn’t need air right away.
Once again I remember the miracle of every birth that I witness. What a gift to be a doula.