Two Beautiful Births

My name is Melissa and I am the chapter leader for ICAN of Jackson, MS. I was honored recently to be a small part of the birth stories of two of the mamas in our group. Both mamas were VBA2C candidates. Both mamas gave their ALL and both gave birth to beautiful baby girls! The reason I wanted to share this story is because I think these ladies both are such strong women, both were very prepared and both amazed me and gave me hope for my future deliveries. Mama S labored for 41 hours, most of that all natural even on the max dose of pitocin! Her water broke early on and she stayed home laboring for several hours, using the birthing ball, dancing, hip rotations, walking…you name it, she tried it. Her doula couldn’t make it, so another one of our mama doulas in the group came to her aid and they seriously tried everything to get baby to come on down. I got to be there and help for a few hours before the doula came, and I was completely amazed at how calm she was breathing through each contraction after being awake for nearly two days! A few times we were all even laughing about the whole situation. Ultimately a cesarean was necessary. Mama A was in labor for nearly a week! At some point she decided to get checked, thinking she’d not be far enough along and would just go back home…she was 7cm! Shortly after getting to her room, she was 9cm! She had asked me to help support her along with her doula and take pictures. When I got there she was so peaceful and breathing beautifully through each contraction. There was no sign of transition until she was just about ready to push. I was once again amazed at how serene she was during back to back major contractions. Mama A delivered her baby vaginally on her own time without coached pushing. She did have a second degree tear that took a couple hours to repair. All this to say some things are just out of our hands. There comes a point in labor and delivery at which we meet the place where our desires end and birth takes over. Birth is beautiful even if it doesn’t end the way we planned. I think as long as we are prepared and knowledgeable and surround ourselves with love and support, we can achieve a positive outcome. Two days apart, two miracles were born, by two very strong mamas…one cesarean and one vaginal…both beautiful births that they both should be proud of…I know I am!