“I wanted to live the experience of giving birth without an epidural. I was not making it a principle set in stone, but since my baby had arrived very quickly the first time, I told myself that I could try to do without. When I arrived at the maternity ward, I was dilated to 5 cm and was already in a lot of pain. I told the midwife that I did not want the epidural and she replied that indeed she felt I was ready for this experience. I was then offered the bathtub. Everything went well. The water makes it possible to relax, in addition, we were in complete privacy in a small, screened room and no one came to disturb us. I had very strong and very close contractions.
The only bearable position
When the pain got too much and I felt the baby was coming, I got out of the bath and was taken to the delivery room. I did not manage to get on the table. The midwife helped me as best she could and spontaneously I got on all fours. Quite frankly, it was the only bearable position. The midwife put a balloon under my chest and then installed the monitoring. I had to push three times and I felt the pocket of water bursting, Sébastien was born. The water facilitated the expulsion and made him feel like a slide ! The midwife gave me my baby by passing it between my legs. When he opened his eyes, I was on top of him. His gaze fixed me, it was very intense. For the deliverance, I put myself on the back.
The choice of motherhood
This childbirth was truly an incredible experience. Afterwards, my husband told me he felt a bit useless. It is true that I did not call on him at all. I was in a bubble, completely caught up in what was going on. I really feel like I managed my birth from start to finish. The position I took naturally helped me cope with birth. My luck ? That the midwife followed me in my tracks and did not force me to put myself in a gynecological position. Not easy for her, since she was facing an upside down perineum. I was able to give birth this way because I was in a maternity hospital that respects the physiology of childbirth., which is not the case for all. I am not campaigning for childbirth without an epidural, I know how long and painful labor can be, especially for a first, but I tell those who feel ready to go for it and not be afraid to change position. If you are in a maternity hospital open to this type of practice, then it can only go well. ”