Focusing on the Beauty of Birth

 

Welcome to the June 2012 Carnival of Natural Parenting: Embracing Your Birth Experience

This post was written for inclusion in the monthly Carnival of Natural Parenting hosted by Code Name: Mama and Hobo Mama. This month our participants have written about at least one part of their birth experience that they can hold up and cherish.

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Before my birth, I did a lot of preparation. I read some wonderful books, took lots of childbirth classes and listened to my HypnoBirthing CD’s. Preparation is great, and I highly recommend it, but you can never fully know exactly what your birth will be like. I did have some surprises in my birth that I did not foresee and I was not happy about but, when I look back on the birth of my daughter I’m in awe of the experience.

Becoming a mother, no matter how you get there, is a transformational experience. That moment was so fast, so sudden and, strange as it is to say, so unexpected. It is hard to imagine that all of this movement in your belly is a real human being. My first pregnancy was only 12 or so weeks long so part of me really just couldn’t believe in the reality of my second. So when I saw my daughter, I was in shock. I honestly was. And I said to my husband, “It’s a baby!” when she swam up to us after that last push.

I have often referred to my birth as a spa birth because I gave birth at a freestanding birth center with midwives. It was peaceful. Everyone spoke in hushed whispers. The lights were dim. The music was soothing. And the huge bathtub of wonderfully warm water was amazing at relaxing me. Because of my HypnoBirthing training and my confidence in the normality of birth, I was able to focus within for all of my birth. I was able to relax and work with the contractions, not fight against them. After the birth, I was offered drinks. I half expected a floating umbrella.

My birth partners (my mom and husband) did a fantastic job of caring for me during this time as well. I felt loved and pampered. They rubbed my arms, put cool cloths on my forehead, checked the water temperature of the tub as needed, brought me water, fed me chicken and rice soup, etc. If they begin to see me tense up, a gentle reminder and touch was all I needed to relax again.

When I think back to my birth, I can choose to focus on the beauty of it all, not the things that went wrong. That magical moment when she emerged, holding her vernix-coated tiny body; feeling absolutely cared and loved; the feeling of complete satisfaction in what I had accomplished when so many had told me I could not do it; the wonder of my body working perfectly to bring my daughter into this world; and so many other things that I can’t even put into words – those are the things I will focus on.

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Carnival of Natural Parenting -- Hobo Mama and Code Name: MamaVisit Code Name: Mama and Hobo Mama to find out how you can participate in the next Carnival of Natural Parenting!

Please take time to read the submissions by the other carnival participants:

 

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