The Unassisted Birth of My Daughter, Aryquin

I went into labor Thursday March 13^th, five days "early" at about 3am. I woke up and couldn't go back to sleep but was not sure why. After a while, I realized I was having contractions. I thought it was interesting because I had never felt them before. They were beginning to feel like period cramps. After each one, the baby would kick like crazy, so I was able to tell when they were beginning and ending.

At about 5 am, I had gotten up to go to the bathroom a few times and started to think I might be in early labor. David got up then to use the bathroom and I told him I might have the baby that day. He asked if he should stay home from work and I said no. I would call him if I needed anything.

By the time he got up at around 6am to go to work, I still couldn't sleep, so I got up and had some cereal. I was having real contractions now and they were about 10 minutes apart and one minute long. They didn't hurt, but it felt like a belt was tightening around my lower back and I enjoyed leaning over the couch for each one. David left for work and I tried going back to sleep. I wanted to have enough energy for the birth.

I lay down and took a short nap, but woke up with stronger contractions at about 8am. They were giving me back pain and the only thing that stopped it was to walk through each contraction. I had really wanted to just rest, but my back was killing me, so I decided to do some light housework to keep my back from getting stiff. I scrubbed the shower so it would be sterile and did the laundry and tidied up the house, setting out all of my birth supplies. I was having a hard time believing I was actually in labor.

Around 2:00, I was sure it was the real thing and called my mother to let her know I was going to have the baby. Contractions were pretty strong by then and I was wondering when I should call David to have him come home. I wanted to wait as long as possible. I called and told him to pick up some things for me on the way. One hour later, the contractions were getting to be heavy and close. I was starting to get a little scared and called David and told him to come home IMMEDIATELY, that I didn't need that stuff from the store so bad after all.

My daughter was born unassised at home. Home birth and unassisted birth are widely gaining in popularity due to a movement of mothers who are discovering that with the right preparation and education, many home birth and unassisted birth situations can be safer and easier than giving birth in a hospital.

Credit: Amber Seber

Copyright: Amber Seber