Harper's Birth Story

Harper Elizabeth Signor

June 25, 2012

6:16 pm ~ 7 lbs. ~ 19.5 inches

Frank was in Afghanistan and was not expected to make it home in time for Harper’s birth. Unknown to me, his boss had arranged to have him home a few days before my due date, so he was able to share this wonderful event with me. This was amazing and helped relieve a lot of my stress and ease my worries for the birth.

My due date, June 16, 2012, came and went and still no baby. I was beginning to get miserable and was just ready for my baby to be born. I talked to Sue, my doula, about some natural induction techniques and we tried all of them one by one. Massage, sex, teas, walking, bouncing on an exercise ball, etc…. At 1 week past due, I tried two herbs, red raspberry leaf and blue cohash, to help kick start labor. At 1 week and 2 days past due my labor finally started at home at 4 am. I had contractions lasting roughly 30-45 seconds every 5 minutes for 2 hours before I woke Frank, which took me smacking him with a pillow. We decided to text Sue around 6:15 am. I worked through my contractions by walking and bouncing on my exercise ball while waiting on Sue to arrive. She arrived about half an hour later and she focused on talking to me and making sure I was doing ok & helping Frank getting stuff ready for the hospital. I was bouncing on my exercise ball waiting on Chloe & Madison to get up. At this point contractions were every 5 minutes, but I was able to talk through them and even ate some breakfast.



Around 9 am my mom came over and stayed for a while. She and Frank made pancakes and got the girls dressed. Frank’s dad came over and got Chloe. Around 10:30 or 11 am my mom took Madison to her house. I was worried that having Chloe & Madison around during my labor would distract me and might very well scare them, so we felt it was best for them to spend the day with grandparents to keep them occupied. With the house quiet, I was able to focus on my contractions and labor. Over the next few hours they got increasingly painful & closer together. I worked through them by walking, swaying my hips, bouncing on my exercise ball, hip compressions and a good bit of loud groaning and grunting. At one point Sue even used a large cloth to help relieve some of the pressure while I was standing. This period of my labor was nothing like I had imagined it to be. With my previous birth my contractions were back to back and extremely intense. This time I was able to manage them and get through them. I would have never imagined I could have done that.

By 4 pm I needed a break and got into the tub. The hot water helped relieve the contractions to a manageable point. I spent about an hour and a half in the tub relaxing. Frank kept trying to get me to eat and drink but I was stubborn which caused issues after the birth. Around 5:30 pm I got out of the tub and my contractions picked up and got a lot stronger. They were coming almost back to back, so Sue knew it was almost time to go to the hospital. I was beginning to doubt if I could finish my labor without any pain medication, but Frank & Sue were awesome at reminding me how well I was doing and that I could do it.

After getting out of the tub, the contractions were so intense that I was crying & even screamed a few times. Sue & Frank decided it was time to head to the hospital, so I got some clothes on and we headed out. It took a while just to get to the car because I had to keep stopping to work through contractions.

We arrived at the hospital at 6 pm and my mom, dad, and Madison arrived just a few minutes later (Dad & Madison waited in the waiting room). When we got to the hospital they were just finishing cleaning a room and the rest were full. The nurses and doctors were rushing around trying to get what they needed to deliver the baby. They were able to get me into the room and check me. I was fully dilated and effaced. Time to push! I pushed several times and the doctor told me to touch her head as she started to crown. That was amazing! She had a head full of hair. The doctor had me relax a bit and give a few smaller pushes as she was trying to help me avoid tearing. I pushed a few times and the head came out followed immediately by the body. I didn’t even have to give her a second push! She was in a hurry to get out.

After just 16 minutes in the hospital, Harper Elizabeth was born. The few minutes after her birth was a big blur from the rush of adrenaline and emotions. I remember Frank being able to cut her cord and her being taken to a warmer. I was later told that there was meconium (poop) in the fluid and there was apparently a good bit on her face and she was trying to breathe, so they wanted to make sure she hadn’t inhaled it, but was fine. The doctor had to do some pressing on my stomach because the placenta was not coming out completely & I was bleeding a good bit. After it came out (thankfully, it was all intact) was checking me and I did in fact tear because Harper came out so quickly. While she stitched me up, I finally got to hold and breast feed my baby, and Madison got to meet her new sister for the first time. She was not at all sure about what was going on and she kept saying “don’t like her” when we would try to get her to hold her sister or kiss her. She finally did come around, but only after we got home.

Harper was weighed and measured a bit later and was 7 lbs. & 19.5 inches long. Frank’s parents made it to the hospital just after Harper was born, so both the girls and our parents got to take turns holding her and loving her while I ate. Our family left and Frank and I were able to spend some time alone with our newest little princess. I got dehydrated pretty badly during labor & delivery and passed out when the nurse had me get up to go to the restroom later that night, so I ended up needing an IV of fluids and an extra day in the hospital.

Although what happened immediately after her birth was not as we had planned, her birth was an amazing experience. I was able to let my body do what it was meant to do naturally, without drugs or surgical intervention. My VBAC was a success!! This is an experience I will not forget and would even do again.