Shereen and Saxton are parents! They welcomed their son, Loren James, on October 1. They attended my childbirth class and had strong intentions of a birth without pain medications and minimal interventions. But as her due date came and went the thought of an induction did occur to her. The hope was to avoid it but she also knew there would be a deadline of 41w5d with her providers. Thankfully, her baby was on board with spontaneous labor because her body started having regular contractions towards the end of her 40th week.

Shereen’s labor began at 7:00 am on Friday, September 29. The contractions weren’t too strong or long, but they were definitely on her radar. They weren’t in touch with me just yet either. Then Saxton sent an update just before 2:00 am on September 30 that Shereen’s contractions were coming every 8-10 minutes. She continued to labor through the night and by just before 9:00 am the contractions were ranging from 4-8 minutes apart but rather inconsistent. She was not yet in active labor and so the prescription was to rest, hydrate, and eat as she was able to.

By 2:00 that afternoon the contractions were getting stronger but spaced farther apart. I gave some positional suggestions for Shereen to try in case her baby needed to tweak his position and after doing them they saw a marked change in the labor. After having regular long and closer contractions for a decent amount of time, it felt like the right point to head to the hospital. That text came at 6:00 pm. They were headed in! The contractions were regular at 5 minutes apart and Shereen had just projectile vomited – a good sign! She had been feeling contractions for nearly 36 hours at that point.

Good work had been accomplished though because Shereen was dilated 5 cm, 80% effaced, and her baby was at 0 station. She and Saxton credit the positions I suggested to them as what changed the tide of the labor. They got to the hospital at a really good time. Shereen clenched her comb through contractions and the Office played in the background on the TV in the room. Contractions were lasting 1 to 1 ½ minutes at that point and coming steadily at 3-4 minutes apart. With every contraction, Saxton pressed a Theragun against Shereen’s lower back. She couldn’t imagine laboring without that tool as things became more intense.

Shereen was feeling tired, so we used some peppermint to give her some more energy. She leaned over the CUB around 8:30 that night and we placed a cold cloth on her forehead to ward off nausea. The peppermint oil helped with that too. Her contractions soon moved to 2-3 minutes apart.

To change her position and bring her more upright, Shereen tried sitting on the birth ball at the end of the bed. She burped which was a sign of good labor. She also shared with us around 10:00 pm that she felt like the baby was in her vagina. She was feeling so much pressure, we figured her water was probably trying to break or she may have felt a bulging bag.

At 10:13 pm Shereen asked us if we were just waiting for the water to break. I told her sometimes it doesn’t break until the end, so she was waiting for her body to tell her it’s time to push. She looked up at me and said she thought it was getting close to that. And her nurse agreed as she placed the doppler way lower on her belly to get the baby’s heartrate. It wouldn’t be long.

At 10:45 pm Shereen thought her water might have broken. There was a mucus blob but a quick check confirmed it wasn’t yet her water. Her midwife stopped in about 5 minutes later to check on Shereen and to be present. And at 11:13 pm Shereen told us, “I want to push now.” She asked for an exam with the hope of good news, and she was dilated 9.5 cm with a bulging bag, as we suspected! It was 11:22 pm at the time of the exam and by 11:30 Shereen was giving little pushes as her body led her.

She returned to her hands and knees over the CUB, and we watched as she birthed the sac! Or at least the bulging bag before baby’s head. Saxton continued to apply the Theragun to Shereen’s lower back, her most valuable comfort measure for sure. She chose to stay out of the shower since she knew she wouldn’t have access to the Theragun in there!

She returned to her hands and knees over the CUB, and we watched as she birthed the sac! Or at least the bulging bag before baby’s head. Saxton continued to apply the Theragun to Shereen’s lower back, her most valuable comfort measure for sure. She chose to stay out of the shower since she knew she wouldn’t have access to the Theragun in there!

After pushing on hands and knees, Shereen rotated to push on her side. She rested between contractions and then gave it her all with strong pushes during them. And at 12:17 am she reached down to feel her baby’s head with her hand. It’s always such an exciting sight to watch a mother’s face light up at the first touch!

Soon her baby’s head was visible and that forebag continued to sit right outside her vagina. Shereen pushed consistently with each contraction and her baby’s head crowned gradually. It is difficult sensation to feel the ring of fire grow and last through many contractions, but Shereen was strong. It almost looked like she might need some help, but her body stretched, and her baby was born at 12:49 pm! The cord was around the neck but did not cause any concern in her labor.

Loren James cried right away and had so much dark hair! He even had dark eyebrows and lashes. He didn’t take too long to latch but he was equally interested in his fingers. After all, that’s what he had to suck on in utero. He weighed 8 lb. 7 oz. and was 22 in. long. Saxton enveloped his family with love, looking into the eyes of her newborn son with wonder. Loren was wide-eyed taking in the faces of his mother and father, transfixed on his parents.

Shereen rested in those first moments, holding Loren against her chest, taking in what she had just accomplished. It was long and arduous, but she minimized her early labor and arrived at the hospital at the perfect time. All told, she was only there 6 hours before her baby was born.

Labor is always a mystery, but that mystery looms greater with the first baby. Shereen and Saxton filled in the gaps of the unknowns with a strong partnership, and balance between rest and work. The (Theragun didn’t hurt either.) I’m so proud of them and will be forever grateful to have been part of their team.