Managed births are common in today’s modern world. Births are often managed by the medical professionals who also often tell you that a painfree birth can only be had if you take an epidural. But it need not be so if you don’t wish it to be so 🙂
But first of all, stay away from horror birth stories. No point scaring yourself silly with all the what-ifs. Look for the inspiring, beautiful stories. There is no doubt that birthing can be scary because it is an unknown experience. You can talk to all the people in the world but until you actually experience it yourself, it is all head knowledge. Kinda like a touch from God, eh?
Having a few friends who have either birthed recently or going to birth in a couple of months made me reflect on my own birth stories. And I like dwelling on them because I see so clearly the hand of God on the pregnancies, labour and births. I would say I am one of the rare women who have had enjoyable and pleasant births. Nothing to do with me, I must add! It is all by the grace of God and His finished work on the cross.
I hope that by sharing with you, I may encourage those who are about to birth or those contemplating motherhood to know that birth need not be a scary thing. But please note that every birth is different, there is no magic formula. We just can’t pigeon hole God, chant some mumbo jumbo and expect God to do exactly what we want.
Birth Story #1
This birth was what I called my baptism of fire!
What started us off on this journey of having a supernatural childbirth was the book, Supernatural Childbirth by Jackie Mize. From it, we understood and agreed with her that the work on the cross by Jesus has redeemed us from the curse of “sorrow” or “pain” of childbirth.
But we didn’t know anyone who believed in it and how it would actually work out. So when the contractions hit, we thought “this is it”! I called the doctor and he told me to check myself into the hospital. By then I was already at Week 39, 5 days before my EDD. But… God didn’t tell us to do so. Oh we prayed, but we didn’t wait for His answer! And what happened after that was awful. Not as awful as some stories I have heard and read but still….
“Accelerated” Labour
At the hospital, the standard operating procedure is to check for dilation and monitor the baby’s heartbeat. Both were very uncomfortable. The contractions I had had petered out by the time morning came. So when the doctor came in, he put me on a drip to “accelerate the labour”. He did not consult me or asked for my opinion. He just did it. He claimed that my labour had stalled.
Burst waterbag
Next, he proceeded to break my waterbag! Combined, they brought on the most awful contractions that were so fast and hard that they left me gasping for air! In the beginning though it was still painless but after a while, there was PAIN!!! I finally caved in and took the pethedine shot and used the gas mask.
Managed birth not natural birth
The body, which was designed perfectly by God to bear and birth babies, was being sabotaged by the so-called standard operating procedures. In a normal process, the body is able to handle each contraction as it comes. It will release enough endorphins (the happy hormones) to counter each contraction.The drip and premature bursting of the waterbag had artificially induced labour. The body’s mechanism had been short circuited.
The body most certainly had the urge to push but because I wasn’t fully dilated to 10cm, I was not allowed to. Therefore, I spent most of the hours from 8am (when the drip was inserted & the waterbag broken) to 4pm trying NOT to push. When it was finally time to push, I had no more energy!
Baby was finally taken out via a vacuum cap. And I had the “requisite” episiotomy Besides being physically tired out, recovery was surprisingly fast. But I was sore at the bottom for about 3 – 5 days. And that made breastfeeding less pleasant!
What did I learn?
No matter what happened, God’s hand was still on me and the baby. On that day in the hospital, our birth was the only natural one out of the five births that happened! Oh! The power of prayer and the grace of God!
But I knew that this was far from the Supernatural Childbirth I was meant to have. So I read up and joined discussions on email groups that spoke about a natural birth. One big mistake I made was to go into the hospital too early!
Don’t go in too early!
Going in too early had several negative consequences.
One of which is that labour can stall or stop altogether. This is due to stress. Labouring at home is more peaceful and calm than labouring in a hospital. Nurses walking in and out checking on you is not peaceful nor calm. Neither is hearing other women labouring loudly near you.
So if you are near your EDD and your labour stalls, then there is most likely going to be an induction. Yucks! If the baby is due and ready to be birthed, the induction may be just a very painful way to labour. BUT if the baby is not ready to come out and there is an induction, your body will not cooperate. Contractions will not be strong enough and there’ll be no dilation. But if the waterbag has been broken, the baby has to come out so a c-section will be performed!
So the main lesson I learnt was : not to go in too early!
Read my other birth stories…
5 Comments on Birth Story #1
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I haven’t read Supernatural Childbirth and so I’m wondering, If Jesus’ dying on the cross redeemed us from the pain-curse of childbirth, why do men still have the curse of having to “work the ground”? Did that redeeming free the serpent from crawling on his belly and remove the enmity between him and man?
Women still have to LABOUR, men still have to WORK the ground but both are doing it no longer in SORROW and PAIN. Work came before the fall. Work is what we have to do.
If a man is labouring over his work in sorrow and pain, then something is not right. He has to seek the Lord is that is his call. Jesus redeemed US, not the serpent. Jesus died to remove the chasm between us and God due to sin, not between the serpent and man.
Hth!
Interesting. I didn’t know that!
I agree with you Serene! I went to hospital too early on the advice of my gynae as I had been spotting for 2 days and feeling uncomfortable – I didn’t know that was early labour. Eventually I had an emergency C-section. Expecting my bb 2 in August, I hope to have a VBAC. My gynae said not possible cos I have narrow pelvic bone (I am 1.71m tall and very well built for a woman) yet she gave me the option to decide. I am confused. So I will be getting a 2nd opinion. Please pray along with me….I do feel what you feel that God has designed women, at least most of us, to give birth naturally. I have no health problems at all.
Personally I would change drs! She is obviously not pro-natural birth at all and will probably be very aggressive in her management of your birth. So if you are really keen on a VBAC then I would strongly suggest you find a dr that will support you. This narrow pelvic thing is something that they like to scare women with. Same as the big baby scare mongering 🙁 It is very unprofessional IMO.