* If your baby is breech, please discuss possible complications and options with your care provider.*
I had recently moved to the bay area, which meant I had to find a new midwife. With full support from my husband I chose a home birth. We were unsure of when exactly I conceived, so I had two due dates, two weeks apart.
The first due date came and went, so we did a vaginal exam to see if I was dilated at all. I was 1cm, but to our surprise my midwife noticed that the baby was actually breech; a quick sonogram confirmed this. Knowing that she was educated and skilled in breech birth, and that women all around the world have vaginal breech births, I didn’t hesitate. I was informed that roughly 20% of breech babies need some form of resuscitation.
At 4am on Thanksgiving my water broke, my contractions started at 10 minutes apart. I laboured around my apartment for 17 hours, with a total of 3 hours of pushing. My contractions were never less than 4 minutes apart, and they got weak because I was tired, so I took some time to rest in between sessions of pushing.
At 8:53pm my baby was out. She was not breathing, but had a pulse. The midwives and my husband stimulated, suctioned, and ventilated our baby girl for two of the longest minutes of my life before she began to cry. While they were ventilating my baby I also began to hemorrhage, but received a dose of Pitocin immediately.
I finally had my baby in my arms, and was moved to the bed to deliver the placenta. However, mine was stuck, and had to be removed manually (this hurt just as much as giving birth). But a short while later I was cleaned up and in bed with my loving husband and beautiful baby.
Three days later the midwife checked up on us and said we were doing better than average. We are both extremely healthy and happy now.
After the birth we notified everyone we had a breech birth. Some of the family was against the home birth and very against breech deliveries, so to avoid their opinion we kept it a secret.
If we were to have another I would definitely choose another home birth. It was the most empowering experience of my life.
Not only did she have a big head, but her arms were also up around her ears!
Photography by Babymoon Birth Services.
{ 6 comments… read them below or add one }
I’m so jealous of the lack of cellulite in your pictures! Awesome story and a beautiful baby! Way to believe in your abilities! CONGRATULATIONS!
Big head, hands by her head but the cutest-sweetest angel face! Good job, Mom!
Congratulations! You are a rockstar!
Who was your midwife? I had my first baby at the Sacred Birth Place in Oakland, which was great, but want my second birth to be at home.
What an amazing story! You really don’t hear too much about breech home birth (I don’t at least). My sister was breech, and my mother had a natural hospital birth, but it took some special convincing with the doctor.
And I know it changes the labor significantly not to have the weight of the head helping dilation, so power to you. Congratulations!
Beautiful story! Perfect! What an experience! Proud of you and your family. Getting to know you has been such a blessing to me. You are a such a beautiful person and it shows.
New life birth services out of petaluma.