My journey to Homebirth after 2 cesareans. : Lucas' birth story

The process behind Lucas' birth began a long time ago at Logan's birth in 2009 (my account shortly after the birth). In short, my doctor induced me at 38.5 weeks when I was at 0 and 0. Then insisted I have an epidural at 3cm "just in case." After 12 hours of this I was only a 4 and he said it was time for a c-section. What we didn't know then was that I had kidney stones which is what was causing all the pain. He also told me that I would never have a vaginal birth bigger than 7 lbs because I was way too small for Logan to come out (he was 7 lbs 1 oz). Recovery was horrible. I vividly remember calling my friend Tricia one day to come over to help with baby and I fell on the bathroom floor crying from the pain of my scar, from the pain of the kidney stones (which we still hadn't discovered), and the exhaustion of not sleeping even a little the entire first week of Logan's life. Over the months I developed Post-partum depression. I struggled with breastfeeding (no one at the hospital had helped and I didn't know who to ask at home), I gained a lot of weight, I didn't connect well with my baby, and I felt broken. At about 9 months old I started researching about VBACs (vaginal birth after cesarean). I had always thought if I had one I had to have all my babies that way. I slowly starting becoming empowered by the evidence I found in support of VBACs. When I got pregnant with Eliza in June 2010 I knew the first thing I was going to do was NEVER go back to that hospital or OB. I hired a doula (a pregnancy and labor coach) and picked a midwifery office that delivered at a small hospital in Orem, Utah. I read natural birth method books and continued to obsess over getting my VBAC. In February 2011 I had Eliza after a pitocin induced INTENSE labor (see HERE). It was liberating but also difficult recovery after having so much pitocin and pushing before I felt the urge. It was leaps and bounds better than my c-section and we both learned a lot. We loved the birth and recovery so much that when The Lord prompted us it was time to have another baby it wasn't as scary (AS scary, considering Eliza was only 5 months old so we were still scared!).
Jennalyn's pregnancy started out very scary (read HERE). We hadn't done a lot of prep for the VBAC this time because we assumed we had already fought that fight. At 28 weeks we moved from Utah to Arizona. That began a HUGE search for VBAC friendly doctors and hospitals and doulas. I spent weeks looking and we had one interview with a doula I already felt was the right one. After we met her we fell in love and our choices for hospital and midwives were so easy. Things went fantastic until my 40 week appointment when Jenna flipped double footling breech. You can read the rest of her story HERE. After her c-section I decided to listen to my midwives and rest. I didn't get out of bed for the first week, then kept it very easy until 6 week. My recovery went a thousand times better. As time went on I knew that the reason she had a prolapsed cord was because they broke my water when she was still high. During the ECV they had ultrasound on the entire time to make sure something like the cord wrapping around her head wouldn't happen. And it hadn't wrapped. They even had the binder on me to hold her in place. So sadly I didn't get another VBAC and I felt that I had slacked on preparations.
In September 2013 I got pregnant with Lucas. I knew my sections were not due to my health but I made sure before Lucas that I was in the best possible condition. I lost 55 pounds, gave up soda, and took care of myself like I hadn't done as well after my other babies. We planned to go right back to my midwives with Jennalyn because they had promised I'd be able to VBA2C (vaginal birth after 2 cesearans). What many do not know is that some hospitals, and even states, have banned VBACs. But my midwives were no longer accepting my insurance. That was so stressful. So I found another provider 45 minutes away and started seeing them. I LOVED the midwife Tiffany. She was honest, to the point, and I knew she would be my advocate and not someone who would fight against me. In January I saw on her Facebook that she had left this office and moved to one who also didn't accept my insurance. She let me know that she had given notice for after my due date but the OB opted to have her leave right away. Again I was left confused and saddened. I wouldn't be able to enroll in a new insurance plan until 36 weeks. As I started making plans to keep going to her old office and wait to switch, my heart was telling me this wasn't the right choice. At the time Trent didn't have a job (and hadn't for 4 months). I had made contact with a home birth midwife at the beginning of my pregnancy but stopped that idea when Trent lost his job (home birth would cost us more money than insurance). Shortly after Tiffany's unexpected change Trent was offered a position and we decided to meet with the home birth midwife.
There are three different types of midwives. CNMs (Certified Nurse Midwives) who have hospital privileges and mostly attend births in hospitals under the watch of OBs. LMs (Licensed Midwives) and CPMs (Certified Professional Midwives) who attend births at home. Then there are NMDs (Nathropathic Medical Doctor). In Arizona, LMs and CPMs were not legally allowed to attend VBACs at home (also known as HBACs-homebirth after cesarean). (Starting July 1st 2014 this law changed and they are now allowed to deliver after 1 cesarean. yay!). In order to have a home birth I had to find an NMD. There were two in the valley that would allow me to HBA2C. My heart kept leaning me toward one in Mesa so we arranged to meet with her. Halfway through the interview Trent wrote on my interview questions paper that he was 99% sure he wanted her to deliver our baby at home. This came from a man who swore we would never have a home birth. I called my doula after the interview and we chatted about the choice and she supported whichever way we went. Trent and I prayed about it for a few days and decided that home birth was the safest choice for Lucas to arrive. My doula told me that even after the first interview she could tell I felt at peace with my decision like she hadn't heard before.
Anne Marie had a student midwife who was working on becoming a CPM, she was already at the stage of being the primary midwife under Anne Marie's care. Her name was Noelia and we love her! I started she a webster's technique trained chiropractor who also happened to have a prior csection and she soon became pregnant and was going to her HBAC with Anne Marie and Noelia as well. We had the perfect team- Doula Dianne, Anne Marie (NMD/CPM), Noelia (Student Midwife), Trent, Me, and Lucas. We started making preparations at home and we kept our decision fairly private. We knew The Lord had given us peace with our decision and it was right for us. Our old Midwife Tiffany agreed to be our backup and she checked in with me throughout the end of the pregnancy and cheered us on. How amazing is that?! What a great relationship our team had with her.
As I prepared for this birth I knew I had to let go of feelings that I felt about my other births. I had had a VBAC previously but I had obsessed over it and put all my eggs in one basket. When a C-section was necessary with Jennalyn it was extremely emotional. I was so afraid of having a 3rd csection. I knew finding a provider who would "let" me vba3c would be next to impossible in Arizona and that each subsequent c-section would be dangerous for the baby and me but I wanted more children and didn't want c-sections to limit that. It became a fear that consumed me. I began to let go of fears. I knew that those fears would not be healthy for our situation. I put my trust in The Lord knowing He had given us peace and led us down the path of home birth for this baby. I had plans if we needed to make a change and I began to put faith in His plan. I learned to trust my body. 40 weeks came and went but I felt fantastic! All the chiropractic adjustments kept me aligned and comfortable. Labor was confusing to pinpoint. I would start having contractions that would come to 5 minutes apart for hours. and this happened for 2 weeks. I had an ultrasound done to check on baby and me at 41 weeks and everything passed with flying colors. We were doing amazing! It was challenging receiving so many comments about going over my due date. Most of them were just curious why my doctor wouldn't induce. I didn't want to explain my choice to home birth to people. And I knew what induction was like. Baby would come when he was ready and we were doing everything to make sure he was healthy and safe. Some of the comments were in fear for our safety, which I could understand, but also were hard to emotionally deal with when you are post-40 weeks and feel your choices as a mother are being judged. I would talk them out with my birth team and move right on.
After a membrane sweep on Monday at 41 weeks 3 days my labor kicked into gear. I had still been contacting for a few days inconsistently in early labor phase. around 4 pm the contractions became harder and closer (5 minutes apart). My doula came over that night and we put the kids to bed hoping they'd wake up to a brand new baby! I continued with contractions every 8-10 minutes through the night but handled them on my own. The next morning we decided to have Kathy Kent take our kids so we could focus on labor. It was so nice to know our kids were just around the corner. At 1pm Noelia (student midwife) came over and checked to see where I was at (4cm!). Alright, things were happening but clearly it would be a slow process. Anne Marie came over a few hours later and we tried some herbs to get things moving at a quicker pace. I felt great but they were concerned my body would become exhausted quickly since it had been laboring so long. By 8:30pm Tuesday night I was 6cm. Contractions were strong but I could feel they weren't strong enough. We walked and walked and walked. At 10:30pm we decided to have a castor oil milkshake. I had said that castor oil would be a last resort but I trusted my birth team and decided to try just a little bit in a shake. It wasn't nearly as bad as I thought! I was also taking Mother's Cordial to help make the contractions stronger. It was so gross tasting so after I drank it I would stick a sour watermelon in my mouth to hide the taste. We called it my chaser ;-). After another night of contractions, still handling by myself, I was checked at 5:30am and 7-8cm, 75% effaced, but baby was still at -1. I told them that with each contraction I could feel him move down then bounce back up when it was over. We continued the Mother's Cordial and another milkshake and by 2:15pm Wednesday Lucas was low enough to break my water. Because of the prolapsed cord with Jenna we really wanted to avoid AROM (artificial rupture of the membranes) but my gut was telling me I had so much fluid that his head was bouncing off the bulging bag. With each kid when they broke the water there was so much there the whole room was surprised. I knew this and warned Anne Marie about it. After a ~~painful~~ thorough check for the cord and baby's position she poked a tiny hole, held her finger on it, and slowly let the fluid out. That was one of two most painful and difficult parts of labor and delivery. The next contraction was much harder and I gave a big thumbs up! The contractions we had been waiting for! YAY! We had filled up the birth tub in our room and I got right in. Oh heaven! I could feel the baby moving down now. At about 5pm without anyone coaching me I began to bear down; my body knew exactly what to do and it was so natural. Soon the whole birth team was in the room. Trent held a cloth with peppermint to my face because I was feeling very nauseous. But the nausea was welcomed and I was excited knowing transition was upon us. Before I was even actively pushing they said they could see his head! I wasn't in any pain and no one had checked me or told me it was time to push. My body was doing it all on its own. At about 5:45pm my toe got a cramp. The WORST cramp ever. Let me tell you, that threw me completely off my grove and I started to panic because it hurt so bad. We all were chuckling a bit that a toe cramp was more painful that the transition and bearing down stage I was in at the same time!! After it finally went away Trent was back behind me and we held each other as I began to push. His head came out with no tearing at all. Then his shoulder got stuck. At the point Noelia was there to catch baby and Anne Marie was videotaping. She calmly told Noelia that whenever she was needed let her know and a few seconds later Noelia told her to come over. Then Anne Marie started pushing on my abdomen and told me now was the time to push. And out he came! They put him right to my chest. He had hair! and was so gorgeous and a little heavy. They all started commenting on his rolls and how big he looked. But I was just enjoying my little newborn and soaking up the skin to skin. Part of my was a little overwhelmed with that few seconds his shoulders got stuck. They let me hold him while they checked him out and we waited for the cord to stop pulsing before Trent cut it. Then it was time to get out of the birth tub. There was a lot of blood and because of the water they couldn't tell quite how much. As I got to the bed they stuck me with pitocin in case of hemorrhage and started accessing. He was so big! But everything looked great and I only had a 1st degree tear from the shoulders.
Then Trent's phone started ringing. Then mine. Well that's weird, why would Kathy be calling? So Trent answered. Jenna had fallen on a step ladder and gashed her chin! They needed to take her to the ER. Trent ran down the street, without a shirt on, to give Kathy our insurance info so they could take her to the hospital. It was a little challenging trying to focus on my newborn time when my 22 month old was taking the first trip of any of our kids to the ER. But she was in good hands and got glued up and was such a trooper--no tears!
We were all so curious about Lucas' weight so we decided to measure him earlier than usual. Guesses were being through out around 10 lbs. He even had a pretty large bowel movement right after arrival so Anne Marie said he lost at least 2 oz. Trent held up the weight and announced 11 lbs 3 oz! Are you sure?! There is a picture to prove it. His head was a whopping 15cm! What's more is his shoulders were bigger than his head at 15.5cm. No wonder they got a little stuck. Length 21.5in. The high in that room was huge. A HBA2C of an 11 lb 3 oz baby after 4 pushes. Wow! Anne Marie and Doula Dianne had only had 3 HBA2C's each up to that point. This baby passed all their records for weights and was over 4 lbs bigger than the baby my first doctor said I was too small for.
Soon social media had seen them post about his birth. The ICAN of Phoenix (International Cesarean Awareness Network) website flooded with congratulations and applause. This baby quickly became famous in the birthing community.
The days that followed were awesome. Recovery was great and I got lots of snuggling time with my baby; without ever having to leave a hospital. This process taught me so much about myself and about my relationship with Trent and my Heavenly Father. I don't know if we will choose a home birth for all our future babies but we knew this was the right choice for Lucas. It was an amazing journey to a healing birth. I am so grateful to my birth team for helping me make informed decisions and trust my body. I'm thankful to my rock Trent, who was the most important person I needed to get through the pregnancy, birth, and recovery.