you are super woman!

When I met Nicole for the first time at our doula talk at Full Circle Family Care, I got feeling that her ideas and visualizations for her birth were strong and real. When we discussed positions for birth, she explained how she couldn’t wrap her head around birthing in the flat-on-your-back position. After all, she is a veterinarian and sees animals giving birth in only positions and environments that feel natural and most comfortable. So I wasn’t surprised when during our pre-natal chat she expressed her desire to have her baby in the most natural way possible.

When Nicole began contracting at 36 weeks, her midwife told her to rest and try to take it easy. Nicole explained to me in an email “I believe my body was just letting me know I needed to slow the pace and take a break, as I feel so much better now.” So wonderful that she was able to listen to her body and relax. Her contractions subsided and baby stayed comfortable inside her mommy.

At 38 weeks, Nicole called me at 1:30am on Sunday night to let me know her water had broken but she was not yet contracting. Her plan was to chill out and try to get some sleep before things picked up. But her baby was on a mission! At 3:30am Nicole called me again and explained that her contractions were 4-5 minutes apart and getting much stronger. It was a quick conversation because she was going to the hospital so we just agreed to meet there. When I arrived at the hospital at 4:15am, I entered the peaceful room where Nicole was laboring quietly and calmly, with her husband and midwife by her side. She was 7cm dilated and moving very quickly. She was doing a beautiful job managing her strong, frequent contractions. About a half hour later, Nicole got into the Jacuzzi tub. Her urge to push came fast and soon enough, she was 10cm and ready to start. The midwife told her that she might want to reach down and feel baby’s head and when she did, tears of joy and love came to her. It was a beautiful, emotional moment to witness. She was moving her baby down in a very nice, calm, natural way. It seemed as though she knew exactly what she was doing. It was very clear that she was in touch with her body and baby, and that they were all working together. With each contraction, she pushed a little bit more, resting and relaxing during contractions with a supportive team by her side.

In just over an hour, she birthed her baby. Watching Nicole reach down and grab her baby and exclaim “mi amore!” so passionately was truly incredible. Anna Victoria was born, weighing 6 pounds, 14 ounces, into the loving arms of her mommy and midwife with daddy by their side. The love that filled the room was moving. She and her husband embraced one another and rejoiced in happiness and awe. I had the chance to snap a few photos of their first few moments as a new family – what precious moments they are.

Baby nursed very nicely and was content as she was just where needed to be - cuddling skin-to-skin with her mommy, falling in love. As the room was cleaned up and cleared out, the air was filled with such energy and peace at the same time. There is something about birth that just changes you...and changes the energy of the world. It is a true gift to experience it time after time.

One of my favorite parts of the birth was at the end when the midwife told mom "you are super woman!" and all mom said was..."I know."