As a first-time mother-to-be at 38 I was nervous about pregnancy and the childbirth experience. I knew that I wanted a natural birth without any unnecessary medical interventions, and I felt that the best way to achieve that was with a home birth. The first time I met Kathy I knew that I made the right choice. She was wonderfully supportive and encouraging throughout the pregnancy. Since this felt like such a deeply personal experience, I wanted to have a relationship with my birthing team and see the same people through all of the office visits and the birth itself. I not only received exceptional care, but I met with Kathy and Alison at each visit. The office visits were never shorter than 45 minutes, I never felt rushed, and I appreciated being heard and having all my questions and concerns addressed without judgment. One of the most refreshing aspects of the visits was how much they trusted me to know what was best for my baby and me and how they gently guided me to be healthy and ready–physically and emotionally–for birth.
By the time I was in labor, 11 days past my due date, I felt confident that my husband and I would have the birth experience I envisioned for myself. The birth of our daughter was incredible. To have these wonderful women—Kathy and Alison, along with Kara and my doula—encouraging and supporting me the entire time was fantastic. They were all constantly meeting my every need, even ones I wasn’t aware of, with quiet reassurance, gentle praise, firm massage (thanks, Magic Hands Kara), sips of water, and time to labor on my own. I was still able to hold my daughter as soon as she was born, we were able to delay clamping the cord, and I was trying to breastfeed within minutes.
While not always easy, laboring and birthing at home was everything I hoped for. The comfort of being in my own space and having the freedom to move around, minimal monitoring, and few people at the birth made the experience wonderfully peaceful. I felt like the baby and I were everyone’s focus and we were allowed to labor on our time and in a way that was best for us.
Having the support of these incredible women for the pregnancy has helped me become more confident in the type of mother I am and in trusting my intuition to know what is best for our daughter.
