Home Birth with Danica and Jinny from Mama's Birth Center

It's been a year since my second child was born. I had written about my birthing experience on one of my private blogs but since I recently made that blog public, I decided to publish it here as well. My first birth was at Agitanseun Natural Birth Center (김옥진조산원) Kim Ok Jin (Rosa) at her old location in Ansan. Since then I had gotten involved in the natural birthing community and become a childbirth educator, postpartum doula, breastfeeding counselor, Dunstan Baby Language Educator, and La Leche League Leader. I felt confident in my abilities to give birth naturally and had planned on a home birth. Unfortunately, it ended up with an emergency C-section. I had a lot of difficulties coming to terms with it, especially since I 100% believe that the interventions led to the C-section, with pitocin most likely being the cause of it. Below you can find out more about my experience with laboring at home with Jinny and Danica. The information has been copied from my other blog, Stay Inside Baby!

Labouring at Home with Danica and Jinny from Mama's Birth Center
I mentioned before that I was having a home birth. My midwife came to check out my house a few weeks before and I showed her my birthing box that I had prepared. Then she dropped off a bag full of supplies as well as oxygen.

I'd been having contractions for the past two nights. My husband and I had just gone to the pharmacy to get some cough medicine. I was having minor contractions but thought nothing of it. He went back to work and about 20 minutes later my water broke. I called him and told him and he asked if I was kidding since I had just told him to go to work. I then cancelled my doctor's appointment that I was supposed to go to. While on the phone I had sent kakao messages to my Jinny my doula and Danica my midwife. I texted my neighbor and asked her to pick up my daughter from daycare.

The midwife and doula arrived around noon and I was only 2cm dilated but it felt like I was further along. The contractions picked up in intensive pretty quickly and all I wanted to do was stay in the bathtub. It was comfortable and I didn't have to worry about peeing myself. The baby was sunny-side up so labor was much more intense than my first. Being in labor with a sunny side up baby is a lot more intense than being on pitocin with no painkillers. I spent a lot of the labor straddling the toilet in reverse and in the tub.

My husband was not that helpful to be honest. He went in the bedroom and was watching The Simpsons. My doula did pull him out of the bedroom and got him to help while I was on the birthing ball. She took photos so he does have proof that he helped. However, he said he didn't think he was needed since I had a midwife and doula. I don't think he really knew what to do. (He should have paid more attention in the birthing class).

We tried to flip the baby by side lying and hanging my leg off the couch. It just wasn't working. My midwife kept checking the station, dilation, and heart rate and things weren't looking good.

Transferred to Pyeongtaek St. Mary's
Around 7pm her heart rate dropped to 90 (the norm is 120-180) so they transferred me to Pyeongtaek St. Mary's. I was only 4cm dilated but it felt like I was in transition.To make it worse the baby had just gone up a station. I had asked if I could wait an hour, but they said no. My neighbor came over and helped frantically pack a bag to go to the hospital.

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