Kathleen, Tomm, & Raegan's HypnoBirth
"On September 13, 2016 we were scheduled for an induction to welcome our sweet baby in to this world. An induction was not what I had in mind; I wanted everything to go naturally and for baby to come on his/her own terms. I had a really hard time emotionally accepting the fact that we were going to have to be induced. I prayed a lot and talked to my husband, friends and family as well as doing a lot of relaxation affirmations that we learned through our Hypnobirthing class with Danielle. With all of this as well as my faith I finally remembered and accepted that God has his plans and everything happens for a reason, I had to let go of my fear.
We had prepared ourselves as much as we could for the birth of our baby by taking numerous birthing classes, Lamaze classes, reading books, talking to people about their births, trying to figure out what this was going to be like; but no one can prepare you for what you are about to experience. You can only prepare yourself to be in the right positive mind and know how to relax yourself and that everything is going to be alright because that is what will help you in the long run. This remarkable journey is yours and no one can tell you how your birthing process is going to go; every birth is different and you have to do what is right for you and your little bundle of joy. My husband and I worked with Danielle in a private hypnobirthing session a few months before baby was due to arrive; this process was amazing to both my husband and I. We got so much out of this class which followed into practicing relaxation on our own and preparing our minds for the entire birthing process. I was grateful enough to be able to talk to Danielle a few times before our induction as I was a nervous wreck and she was able to put me at ease! Something that we kept with us that Danielle told us and my husband kept repeating to me in the hospital; “your body and baby are strong and they know how to work together, trust your body, you were made to do this”. This was one thing that kept my mind at ease and focused.
We got to the hospital at 7:30 am, met our nurse and got situated in our room. A resident came into check my initial progress around 10 am; the numbers were way off from what my doctor had said the week prior, which made me extremely upset and confused. At 10:30 am they started a low dose of pitocin and the surges began. I had been practicing my hypnobirthing breathing and now it was time to put it to use! Using the calm breathing and the surge breathing really allowed me to relax and focus, it gave me a sense of strength as well as a calm. The surges were not terrible, as the nurse kept asking my pain level, I just kept saying no pain, I’m good. Around 1:30 pm another resident came in to check me and said she spoke with my doctor and if I was progressing well, then they were to ‘break my water’, well I was dilated to 4 cm so we proceeded and the surges definitely got a lot stronger from this point on. Surge breathing really kicked in here and things started moving along very quickly. Between the breathing, my relaxation music, the positive affirmations from my husband and my mom, I was doing well and feeling…..well as good as you can during labor. As far as pain, it was more pressure and feeling a bit uncomfortable, but the breathing really allowed me to relax my body and I got through them. During the surges, I would close my eyes and focus, still aware of everyone and everything around me, but focused on my breathing; once the surge was over I was back to talking. Around 3:30pm my amazing nurse started setting up the table for all the tools and such they needed for birthing, I didn’t question, but she knew I was going to have this baby soon. By 4:00 pm I was dilated to 6cm, 4:17 pm I was dilated to 8 cm and I am not going to lie, this is the point where I wanted the epidural, as my back started hurting (aching/pressure) really badly; they tried to have me move to my side, but the pressure was pretty intense. Keeping myself focused was getting harder but I was able to get into partial zone of relaxation. My nurse told me that by the time I got the epidural, if I really wanted it, that it wouldn’t even kick in, so we were doing this (no pain meds, which is what I originally wanted anyways, but got scared I wasn’t going to be able to do it). My doctor was on her way and I was adamant this baby wasn’t coming until my doctor got there. Between surges joked with the resident, but was actually being partially serious, and told him to put gloves on and get ready because the baby was coming. By 4:30 pm I was dilated to 10 cm and trying hard not to ‘bear down’, 4:45pm my doctor came in to the room, gowned up at the end of the bed and I started birthing (pushing) around 5:00 pm, my doctor said this baby will be here by 5:30 and I said cant it come quicker than that! Well, with my breathing and amazing husband and mom there to keep me focused, baby was born at 5:07 pm. We welcomed our sweet baby girl into this world; she was alert and crying her head off. Thankfully everything with baby and myself were fine and we were able to do skin to skin and bond right away.
Just thinking back on the whole experience makes me all emotional! This was an amazing moment, she was finally here. I can honestly say that I was scared, my husband and I originally decided for me not to get the epidural because of how low my blood pressure runs; not because I wanted to prove anything or be super women; believe me at that 8cm I wanted the epidural. We went into the hospital with an open mind wanting to do what was going to be best for baby and me. I can honestly say that I am grateful that it worked out that I couldn’t get the epidural because it can lower your blood pressure; God works in mysterious ways. Later that evening the first time I was able to get out of bed my blood pressure dropped and I felt myself going, I tried to do some calm breathing but my blood pressure plummeted so much that I passed out/blacked out. I am grateful that my family saw me going down and the quick responses of my nurses, they pumped me with fluids and all was okay. I look back thanking God that I did not take the epidural because who knows what would have happened during the birthing process if I had. The whole process was a true miracle, knowing what my body was able to do in order to bring our baby into this world. The hypnobirthing process worked great for us, and I loved the fact that I actually felt good and relaxed after the fact, I was tired, but I still felt really good! Now we have a beautiful baby girl and I couldn’t have done it without the amazing people that surrounded and supported me.
You have to be open to anything, keep yourself aware and focused, and do what is right for you and your baby; it may not be what is ‘normal’ or how other people think a birth should go, or what they may or may not want you to do, believe in yourself and in your decisions. You don’t have to prove anything to anyone. Trust yourself, trust your baby and trust the people that you surround yourself with; as they are going to be the ones that are keeping you focused. I am grateful to have met Danielle and for her willingness to work with our growing family. She loves her clients and has made such a difference in our lives; we can’t say enough about her or the hypnobirthing class that we did with her. We are still using the calm breathing today!"
-Kathleen, Tomm and Raegan
Kathleen and Tomm contacted me when my group HypnoBirthing class at Nature's Playhouse wouldn't fit into their schedule. I was happy to make a private class possible for them in the comfort of their home. The love that these two generated between them during our classes together was a true testament to how I'm sure we all hope to look at our spouse. And i know that true love they have for each other and Raegan played a huge impact on their story.
This is why I do what I do. And I feel INCREDIBLY blessed to call this my "work."
Connect with me today if you're interested in private or group classes