This information was shared with me by Willow Tipton, DIHom, local homeopath, regarding homeopathic pertussis & flu prevention. If you're looking for alternatives to getting immunized with a shot, this is some very helpful advice. I've personally had great success with using homeopathic remedies for illnesses & symptoms with my family. Hope you find it helpful too!
All my best--Carol
Here is information from her newsletter about pertussis:
Homeopathy Highlights
News From Learn Homeopathy Now August 2010
www.LearnHomeopathyNow.com (760) 942-3440
Remedy Highlights - Respiratory Help
Pertussis, also known as whooping cough has been making the news more frequently
as there has been outbreaks in schools. Interestingly, it's been affecting
those who have been vaccinated and not. Homeopathy has been hugely successful
in helping pertussis as well as similar difficult respiratory coughs.
This highly contagious bacterial disease derives its name from the "whoop" sound
made from the inspiration of air after a cough. Pertussis in infants or young
children is characterized initially by mild respiratory infection symptoms such
as mild coughing, sneezing, or runny nose. After one to two weeks, the coughing
develops into uncontrollable fits, each with five to ten forceful coughs,
followed by a high-pitched "whoop" sound as the patient struggles to breathe in
afterwards. Coughing fits are sometimes followed by vomiting. Fits can occur on
their own or can be triggered by yawning, stretching, laughing, eating or
yelling; they usually occur in groups, with multiple episodes every hour around
the clock. The bummer about these coughs, is they seem to linger, but with
homeopathic help, can clear much faster!
The following homeopathy remedies prove useful in cases of pertussis and
difficult coughs. As our advanced students know, you simply match your symptoms
to the remedy. When your symptoms change, change remedies.
Drosera:
Spasmodic, dry irritative cough, like whooping-cough, each cough following each
other very rapidly; can scarcely breathe; chokes. Cough very deep and hoarse;
worse after midnight; yellow expectoration, with bleeding from nose and mouth;
retching. Sensation as if crumbs were in the throat, of feather in larynx.
Harassing and titillating cough in children-not at all through the day, but
commences as soon as the head touches the pillow at night.
Antimonium Tart:
Great rattling of mucus, but very little is expectorated. Velvety feeling in
chest. Burning sensation in chest, which ascends to throat. Rapid, short,
difficult breathing; seems as if he would suffocate; must sit up. Coughing and
gaping consecutively. Bronchial tubes overloaded with mucus. Cough excited by
eating, with pain in chest and larynx. Cough and better lying on right side.
Arsenicum album:
Unable to lie down; fears suffocation. Air-passages constricted. Burning in
chest. Suffocative catarrh. Cough worse after midnight; worse lying on back.
Expectoration scanty, frothy. Wheezing respiration. Cough dry, as from sulphur
fumes; after drinking. Restless & anxious, better warm drinks.
Hepar Sulph:
Cough troublesome when walking. Dry, hoarse cough. Cough excited whenever any
part of the body gets cold or uncovered, or from eating anything cold. Croup
with loose, rattling cough; worse in morning. Choking cough. Rattling, croaking
cough; suffocative attacks; has to rise up and bend head backwards. Anxious,
wheezing, moist breathing, asthma worse in dry cold air; better in damp.
Ipecac:
Constant constriction in chest. Difficult shortness of breathing. Continued
sneezing; coryza; wheezing cough. Cough incessant and violent, with every
breath, to the point of vomiting. Chest seems full of phlegm, but does not yield
to coughing. Bubbling, rattleing sounds from chest. Suffocative cough; child
becomes stiff, and blue in the face. Whooping-cough. Croup.
Phosphorus:
Cough from tickling in throat; worse, cold air, reading, laughing, talking, from
going from warm room into cold air. Sweetish taste while coughing. Hard, dry,
tight, racking cough. Congestion of lungs. Burning pains, heat and oppression of
chest. Tightness across chest; great weight on chest. Whole body trembles, with
cough. Pain in throat on coughing.
Rumex Crispus:
Tickling in throat-pit causes cough. Copious mucous discharge from nose and
trachea. Dry, teasing cough, preventing sleep. Aggravated by pressure, talking,
and especially by inspiring cool air and at night. Thin, watery, frothy
expectoration by the mouthful: later, stringy and tough. Rawness of larynx and
trachea. Lump in throat.
Spongia:
Dryness of all air passages. Hoarseness; larynx dry, burns, constricted. Cough,
dry, barking, croupy; larynx sensitive to touch. Croup; worse, during
inspiration and before midnight. Respiration short, panting, difficult; feeling
of a plug in larynx. Cough abates after eating or drinking, especially warm
drinks. Chest congestion, with wheezing, asthmatic cough, worse cold air, with
profuse expectoration and suffocation; worse, lying with head low and in hot
room. Oppression and heat of chest, with sudden weakness.
Pedia Pro by Apex Energetics:
A potentized combination of remedies specific for Pertussis, Diptheria and
Tetanus. Some of the ingredients are: Pertussinum, Drosera, Phosphorus and
few more helpful ingredients like Colostrum. Comes in a convenient spray
bottle.
*Pedia Pro is a prescription remedy, however you can order it thru a
practitioner, or thru Willow's Patient Number by calling Apex Energetics
800-736-4381 and tell them you're ordering under patient number P2502 (Willow
Tipton) with a credit card. They will ship directly to you.
If you are looking for just the pertussis nosode homeopathic remedy, you can find it from www.homeopthyovernight.com or from Celletech.com - however, for my patients, I'm recommending PediaPro by Apex which has pertussinum as well as other helpful cough and lung support remedies as well as immune support. It comes in a spray and is easy to administer - 2 sprays once a day for prophylaxis - 2 times a day
if exposed and 3 times a day if symptomatic. It is considered a prescription, so
to order call 800-736-4381 and order under patient number P2502 and get
PediaPro. They ship fast, usually getting it within a day. Let me know if you
have any questions. 1 bottle goes a long way & should be enough for a family of 4. I recommend giving to people of all ages with the same dosage recommendations except I do not recommend it for breastfeeding infants.
In health
Willow Tipton, DIHom
AjaMed Lifestyle Spa
1349 Camino Del Mar, Suite F
Del Mar, CA 92104
858.793.1104
www.ajamed.com
willowdihom@gmail.com
www.learnhomeopathynow.com (760) 942-3440
Here is information about homeopathic flu prevention & treatments:
Calm Down & Stay Relaxed!
While the media creates a scared frenzy regarding pandemics, you can feel
fortunate that you know about homeopathy. We personally know of one story of a
man who was given homeopathics for severe flu symptoms. By the time his blood
work confirmed that he did in fact have Swine Influenza, the remedies had worked
and he was symptom free. If you should become sick, using your notebooks from
Homeopathy Level 1 & 2 classes, just match your symptoms in choosing the remedy
- as you've already been taught to do.
You can also make the following Bach Flower Essence combination to increase your
emotional sense of well being: Aspen, Cherry Plum, Crab Apple, Mimulus, Star of
Bethlehem and White Chestnut.
Sending Light,
Shelley & Willow
Remedy Hightlights - Flu Help
Swine Influenza is a respiratory disease of pigs caused by type A influenza
virus that regularly causes outbreaks of influenza in pigs. The 2009 flu
outbreak in humans is due to a new strain of influenza A virus subtypre H1N1
that derives in part from human influenza, avian influenza, and two separate
strains of swine influenza. It passes with apparent ease from human to human,
an ability attributed to an as-yet unidentified mutation. As with other flu
like illnesses, Swine influenza is spread as follows: coughing, sneezing,
kissing, touching infected objects, touching nose, mouth and/or eyes with
infected hands. Swine flu does not spread by eating pork. The strain in most
cases causes only mild symptoms and the infected person makes a full recovery
without requiring medical attention and without the use of antiviral medicines -
and is greatly aided by homeopathic remedies!!
The symptoms of swine flu in people are similar to symptoms of regular human
influenza and include fever, lethargy, lack of appetite and coughing. Some also
report runny nose, sore throat, nausea, vomiting and diarrhea.
The following homeopathy remedies prove useful in cases of influenza regardless
of what strain it is. As our advanced students know, you simply match your
symptoms to the remedy. When your symptoms change, change remedies.
Aconite:
Sudden onset of symptoms. Fever and chills, thirsty. Restless and fearful.
Arsenicum album:
Chilly and anxious, restless, yet exhuasted. Nausea with diarrhea and burning
pains. Coughing, wheezing, runny nose and burning symptoms. Thirsty for warm
drinks.
Belladonna:
Red, hot & dry. Fever, sore throat, headache, dry cough and inflammations.
Bryonia:
Aches and pains. Feels worse from any motion. Emotionally grumpy and
irritable. Bad headache and dry cough that hurts the head and stomach. Very
thirsty.
Gelsemium:
Dull, dizzy, body aches, weak and fatigue. Chills up and down the back.
Ipecac:
Nausea, vomiting with clean tongue. Dry spasmodic cough, often causing gagging.
Phosphorus:
Symptoms that settles in the chest. Hoarseness and coughing, thirsty for cold
drinks. Nervousness that's better with company and consolation.
Veratrum album:
Nausea, possible diarrhea and vomitting. Low vitality, dry constricted cough.
Low thirst.
Oscillococcinum:
As soon as you start feeling run-down or have other flu-like symptoms, take
Oscillococcinum. Oscillo® is regulated as a drug by the FDA and is supported by
published clinical studies as well as more than 65 years of use throughout the
world.
Clinical studies show that Oscillo reduces the severity and duration of flu
symptoms.
Influenzinum:
To reduce and prevent symptoms of the flu. Influenzinum is the updated each
year based on the recommendations of the World Health Organization. It contains
a dilution of the same three viral strains as the conventional Flu Vaccine.
FluMax Pro by Apex Energetics:
A potentized combination of remedies specific for Influenza. Some of the
ingredients are: Colostrum, Aconite, Belladonna, Bryonia, Gelsemium,
Influenzinum, Inluenza A & B, Asian Influenza A, Haemophilus Influenza,
Oscillococcinum and few more helpful ingredients. Comes in a convenient spray
bottle - see photo above.
*FluMax Pro is a prescription remedy, however you can order it thru a
practitioner, or thru Willow's Patient Number by calling Apex Energetics
800-736-4381 and tell them you're ordering under patient number P2502 (Willow
Tipton) with a credit card. They will ship directly to you.
Willow Tipton, DIHom
AjaMed Lifestyle Spa
1349 Camino Del Mar, Suite F
Del Mar, CA 92104
858.793.1104
www.ajamed.com
willowdihom@gmail.com
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Thanks so much for sharing your wisdom, Willow! I really appreciate it! I'm attending your Bach Flower Essence training this Monday, September 27th, & am looking forward to being able to share that knowledge with my HypnoBirthing clients.
All my best--Carol Yeh-Garner
www.AWellLivedLife.Net
www.AWellLivedLife.blogspot.com
Wednesday, September 22, 2010
Friday, September 17, 2010
A HypnoBirthing announcement--Kimberly & Matt
Kimberly & Matt took my HypnoBirthing classes at Babies by the Sea Boutique on Tuesday nights in March/April 2010. They originally planned to have a hospital birth but decided after a few classes that they would prefer to have a homebirth.
Here is their birth story:
Hi Carol... I wanted to share our birth story with you. My husband Matthew and I took your classes at Babies by the Sea Boutique in March/April. We were due to have our baby in mid-July but she surprised us and came about 2 mos. early!!!
While taking your classes we realized we really wanted to have a waterbirth at home and hired Gerri Ryan at your recommendation. We were soooo excited about our new birth plan and we had a wonderful pregnancy with no complications until late at night on May 16th when my water released unexpectantly. In a state of shock, I called Gerri and she told me to get to the hospital immediately. We rushed over to Scripps Encinitas where they informed me I was having contractions and all at once we lost just about all control of our situation. They gave me magnesium to stop the labor and antibiotics to prevent infection. They also gave me shots of steroids to help the baby's lungs develop since we knew she was going to be early. The magnesium kicked my butt... I couldn't even roll over in bed without assistance!!!!
It was at this time though that I realized how truly valuable the HypnoBirthing techniques are.... I was having surges the next day while laying in the hospital bed and Matt would talk me through them with visualizations. It was so amazing to see how much faster the surge would pass with his help rather than just trying to breath through them. His touch and voice truly relaxed me.I stayed at the hospital on strict bedrest for the next 10 days... on day 10 I started having surges again. This time baby was coming!
I listened to my HypnoBirthing cd through the whole birth. It was not the calm waterbirth we planned to have at our house but it was the best it could be with the situation we had to work with. Gerri could not be our midwife any longer in the hospital but she was our doula and was a great help. I used the birthing ball as best as I could with all the machines hooked up to me and Matt again used visualization and touch techniques to help me. It was an incredible experience.
The doctor and nurses continuously tried to convince us to use pitocin to induce even when I was 9 cm dialated but we held them off and were able to have a natural birth with no epidural. I was not in the ideal position and did end up doing "purple pushing" at the end but I know the HypnoBirthing techniques helped me greatly to deal with the situation and not just give in to everything they wanted to do. I was able to relax for most of the labor and never once considered not doing this naturally. I am so happy for that.
Our daughter... Samantha Rianne... was born May 26, 2010. She was over 7 wks early and had to stay in NICU for 3 wks. However she is amazingly healthy and such a calm and peaceful baby. I know HypnoBirthing really helped her to be so happy and calm. I look forward to the next pregnancy!!!
Thank you Carol :)
Kimberly M
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Congratulations Kimberly & Matt! Continue to enjoy your babymoon! I'm so glad that even though your birth didn't go exactly as planned, the HypnoBirthing techniques helped you remain calm & relaxed so you could have the best birth experience possible.
Take care & thanks for sharing your birth story!
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For more information about HypnoBirthing classes in San Diego, please visit Carol's website at www.AWellLivedLife.Net. For more information about HypnoBirthing classes outside of San Diego, please visit www.hypnobirthing.com
For more information about Gerri Ryan, LM, CPM, Kimberly & Matt's midwife, please visit www.centerfornaturalbirth.com
www.AWellLivedLife.Net
www.AWellLivedLife.blogspot.com
Tuesday, September 7, 2010
A HypnoBirthing announcement--Brooke & Matt
Brooke & Matt took my HypnoBirthing classes at Babies by the Sea Boutique on Tuesday nights in May/June 2010. Here is their birth story...
The birth story of Grace M
We had been given several different due dates during my pregnancy because I switched doctors; the earliest of which was Friday July 16th. So when I started having mild surges Saturday afternoon on July 10th I made the assumption it was just false labor and that I had been doing too much and needed to relax. Matt and I had a very mellow Saturday and at 3pm I took a two-hour nap, which I think was a Godsend considering what the next 24 hours held in store for me!
The surges continued all Saturday evening and around 9pm I got into bed to watch a movie and try to relax. At this point, the surges felt like typical menstrual cramps; somewhat uncomfortable but not painful. I downloaded an app on my iPhone and started to time the surges (yes, there is an app for that!!) because I knew from class the difference between false labor and real labor was whether the surges were coming in a consistent time frame for at least an hour. The surges were kind of all over the place – it would go from 10 minutes apart to six minutes back to 10 minutes, etc. This further confirmed my thinking it was just false labor. Matt came up to bed around 11pm and was surprised to find me awake and timing surges. I told him I thought it was still just false labor and we went to bed. I was able to sleep, or at least rest, between the surges until around 3am at which point I was just awake and trying to rest and remain calm since I was starting to think we had a long day ahead of us. I was listening to the rainbow relaxation CD on my iPod this entire time, which helped me stay focused on keeping my body limp and relaxed.
Around 6am on Sunday morning I could no longer stay in bed and moved to sitting on the toilet, which was comfortable and helped keep my pelvis open. This is when we called my sister-in-law Kelly (who is a midwife), and she confirmed that since the surges had been coming since Saturday afternoon, I was definitely in labor. She booked a ticket on the next flight out of San Francisco and was landing in San Diego at 10:20am. She was originally scheduled to fly down later in the week to act as our doula at the birth.
Matt drew a bath for me and I labored in the tub for about an hour while he got the bags and everything ready to go to the hospital. Around 8am we called the doctor’s office and as we expected my doctor was still on vacation so his backup called us back. She said if the pain was too much we could head to the hospital so I could receive an epidural, but if not to wait until the surges were about 4 minutes apart for an hour. The surges were fairly intense at this point, but I kept breathing through them and it really wasn’t too bad. It was actually quite an exciting time because we knew our baby was coming and everything we had been preparing for was happening!
As far as we could tell, when we called the doctor the surges were ranging from 4-7 minutes apart. We had a really hard time timing the surges because they start off mild and then get more intense and then get mild again before stopping. This being said, it was hard for me to tell exactly when they were starting and stopping which made timing them very difficult.
Around 9am, I had showered and Matt had the car loaded and everything ready to go to the hospital. We didn’t want to go to the hospital too early so I laid down on the couch and kept listening to rainbow relaxation on my iPod and trying to relax. Around 9:45am, during one of the surges my water broke while I was on the couch. At this point, the surges were ranging from 2-4 minutes apart, and now that my water had also broken we decided we should head to the hospital.
It happened that we were ready to go to the hospital at the same time my sister-in-law was landing at the airport. Rather than her having to take a cab all the way to Encinitas we decided to pick her up at the airport and then head straight to the hospital. Like I said before, our thinking had been we didn’t want to get to the hospital too early so at the time it just made sense that we’d pick her up. And since I had been laboring on the couch, the front seat of the car didn’t seem too different. ;) We live in the Kearny Mesa area so I ended up laboring in the car for about 40 minutes.
We picked up my sister-in-law at the San Diego airport at 10:20am and headed up 5 North to Scripps Encinitas hospital. During the drive, I had the front seat fully reclined and was lying on my side which felt better than on my back. My feet were up on the dash and I had the window half way down because the fresh air felt so good. I’m sure people driving by thought it was a strange scene! I was listening to rainbow relaxation on my iPod this whole time and was continuing to breath through the surges. My instincts told me I was in pretty intense labor at this point but still the surges were manageable as they don’t last that long. And the breaks between them, albeit short, were still wonderful! When we pulled up to the hospital, Matt actually asked if I had been having surges during the car ride because I had been lying there with my eyes closed and not making any noise! I kind of chuckled and said, “Yes”!
We checked into the hospital and it took some time to fill out the paperwork, etc. I declined the wheel chair they offered me because it felt much better to stand during the surges. As we got to our labor and delivery room around 11:30am I was starting to feel intense pressure like I was nearly ready to start pushing! The nurse checked me upon arrival and I was 8cm! Considering this was my first birth I didn’t really know what to expect so we were all really excited with this news! The nurse gave me a hospital gown but I had brought a robe from home that I preferred to wear which she was fine with. Once I had changed I sat on the birth ball and leaned against the hospital bed while the nurses did all the initial tests/monitoring to me. The fetal heart and contraction monitors were attached around my stomach while I sat on the birth ball. The plan had been to do the initial monitoring for 20 minutes and then have everything removed so I could move around (this never happened since things moved along so quickly). At 37 weeks I had tested positive for Group B Strep. I had been doing some natural at-home remedies, but still had to get a dose of antibiotics when we arrived at the hospital. They gave me the antibiotics while they were doing all the other initial monitoring things.
We requested the nurse check me again a little before noon because I was feeling such intense pressure and felt ready to start pushing. At this point, I was now standing next to the hospital bed doing the modified downward dog position with my hands on the bed because I could no longer stay seated on the birth ball. Once the nurse checked me again and confirmed I was to 10cm I moved onto the bed to start pushing. It was noon when I started pushing.
Right away the doctor confirmed she could see the baby’s head, and I was trying to push the head to pass under my pubic bone. After about 20 minutes of pushing and between surges the doctor checked me and then asked us when our last ultrasound had been. Both Matt and I were so confused and told her it was at 19 weeks when we had the anatomy ultrasound. After this she told that was not the baby’s head we were seeing and it was her bottom! We were all in disbelief as my doctor had confirmed at my 37-week appointment the baby was head down, and then again at my 38-week appointment the nurse practitioner had felt my stomach (because my doctor was on vacation) and also said the baby was head down. The doctor immediately suggested a c-section and we asked for a few minutes to discuss it privately. As my sister-in-law is a midwife and has delivered breech babies, we did consider trying to still do a vaginal birth, but in the end we decided to be conservative and agreed to the c-section.
Grace was in the Frank breech position, which is where her legs were straight up so her feet were at the top of my stomach and were kicking in the same area she would have been had she been head down. And then since her head and bottom are both firm, it did feel like it was her bottom at the top of my stomach. Regardless, it was disappointing her breech position hadn’t been discovered earlier so we could try some things in order for her to move positions, but in the end if she hadn’t moved we probably would have scheduled a c-section. I’m glad this didn’t happen because as crazy as it sounds, I am glad I got to experience labor as it was such an amazing experience; emotionally as well as physically. So after all of this Gracie was born at 1:05pm via c-section! She came out alert, healthy, and crying loudly!
I don’t know how I remembered, but after the c-section they were getting ready to stitch me back up and I recalled a section in Ina May’s Guide to Childbirth book that discussed the importance of having the uterus sutured in two layers rather than the one layer method which is currently popular in the situation of a c-section. I asked the doctor if she was going to sew me up in one or two layers, and after telling me they routinely do one layer, she asked if I would prefer her to do two layers. I told her I would. Per Ina May’s book, this will help the uterus stay stronger and increase the likelihood of having a successful VBAC in the future.
The doctor and nurses were all so wonderful, and we were very happy with Scripps Encinitas hospital all around. They were completely supportive of everything we wanted and were very familiar with HypnoBirthing. Everything with the baby was in-room so Grace was never out of my sight. They even brought her to me while I was still on the operating table after the c-section. I really appreciated this.
I definitely think your HypnoBirthing class helped make Grace’s labor as great as it was! Due to all the training and practice I was able to remain very calm and relaxed throughout the entire time I was laboring which I believe helped ease the pain and helped speed labor along. The doctor told me after Grace was born I would be an ideal candidate for a VBAC; something I will definitely consider when Grace gets a little sibling. And even though the c-section was an unexpected turn of events during Grace’s birth, I think taking the HypnoBirthing class helped us meet this calmly and I still have such positive memories from our birth. Thank you so much for all your support and advice throughout the pregnancy! We appreciate all that you taught us and are so glad we took your class!
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Thank you so much for sharing your story! I think it's so important for people to realize that HypnoBirthing helps in whatever situation comes up during your birth experience & that it's not "just" for natural births. It can be extremely helpful during c-sections as well.
Congratulations on the birth of baby Grace! Continue to enjoy your babymoon!
All my best---Carol Yeh-Garner
www.AWellLivedLife.Net
www.AWellLivedLife.blogspot.com
For more information about HypnoBirthing, please visit Carol's website at www.AWellLivedLife.Net or go to the main HypnoBirthing website at www.hypnobirthing.com.
The birth story of Grace M
We had been given several different due dates during my pregnancy because I switched doctors; the earliest of which was Friday July 16th. So when I started having mild surges Saturday afternoon on July 10th I made the assumption it was just false labor and that I had been doing too much and needed to relax. Matt and I had a very mellow Saturday and at 3pm I took a two-hour nap, which I think was a Godsend considering what the next 24 hours held in store for me!
The surges continued all Saturday evening and around 9pm I got into bed to watch a movie and try to relax. At this point, the surges felt like typical menstrual cramps; somewhat uncomfortable but not painful. I downloaded an app on my iPhone and started to time the surges (yes, there is an app for that!!) because I knew from class the difference between false labor and real labor was whether the surges were coming in a consistent time frame for at least an hour. The surges were kind of all over the place – it would go from 10 minutes apart to six minutes back to 10 minutes, etc. This further confirmed my thinking it was just false labor. Matt came up to bed around 11pm and was surprised to find me awake and timing surges. I told him I thought it was still just false labor and we went to bed. I was able to sleep, or at least rest, between the surges until around 3am at which point I was just awake and trying to rest and remain calm since I was starting to think we had a long day ahead of us. I was listening to the rainbow relaxation CD on my iPod this entire time, which helped me stay focused on keeping my body limp and relaxed.
Around 6am on Sunday morning I could no longer stay in bed and moved to sitting on the toilet, which was comfortable and helped keep my pelvis open. This is when we called my sister-in-law Kelly (who is a midwife), and she confirmed that since the surges had been coming since Saturday afternoon, I was definitely in labor. She booked a ticket on the next flight out of San Francisco and was landing in San Diego at 10:20am. She was originally scheduled to fly down later in the week to act as our doula at the birth.
Matt drew a bath for me and I labored in the tub for about an hour while he got the bags and everything ready to go to the hospital. Around 8am we called the doctor’s office and as we expected my doctor was still on vacation so his backup called us back. She said if the pain was too much we could head to the hospital so I could receive an epidural, but if not to wait until the surges were about 4 minutes apart for an hour. The surges were fairly intense at this point, but I kept breathing through them and it really wasn’t too bad. It was actually quite an exciting time because we knew our baby was coming and everything we had been preparing for was happening!
As far as we could tell, when we called the doctor the surges were ranging from 4-7 minutes apart. We had a really hard time timing the surges because they start off mild and then get more intense and then get mild again before stopping. This being said, it was hard for me to tell exactly when they were starting and stopping which made timing them very difficult.
Around 9am, I had showered and Matt had the car loaded and everything ready to go to the hospital. We didn’t want to go to the hospital too early so I laid down on the couch and kept listening to rainbow relaxation on my iPod and trying to relax. Around 9:45am, during one of the surges my water broke while I was on the couch. At this point, the surges were ranging from 2-4 minutes apart, and now that my water had also broken we decided we should head to the hospital.
It happened that we were ready to go to the hospital at the same time my sister-in-law was landing at the airport. Rather than her having to take a cab all the way to Encinitas we decided to pick her up at the airport and then head straight to the hospital. Like I said before, our thinking had been we didn’t want to get to the hospital too early so at the time it just made sense that we’d pick her up. And since I had been laboring on the couch, the front seat of the car didn’t seem too different. ;) We live in the Kearny Mesa area so I ended up laboring in the car for about 40 minutes.
We picked up my sister-in-law at the San Diego airport at 10:20am and headed up 5 North to Scripps Encinitas hospital. During the drive, I had the front seat fully reclined and was lying on my side which felt better than on my back. My feet were up on the dash and I had the window half way down because the fresh air felt so good. I’m sure people driving by thought it was a strange scene! I was listening to rainbow relaxation on my iPod this whole time and was continuing to breath through the surges. My instincts told me I was in pretty intense labor at this point but still the surges were manageable as they don’t last that long. And the breaks between them, albeit short, were still wonderful! When we pulled up to the hospital, Matt actually asked if I had been having surges during the car ride because I had been lying there with my eyes closed and not making any noise! I kind of chuckled and said, “Yes”!
We checked into the hospital and it took some time to fill out the paperwork, etc. I declined the wheel chair they offered me because it felt much better to stand during the surges. As we got to our labor and delivery room around 11:30am I was starting to feel intense pressure like I was nearly ready to start pushing! The nurse checked me upon arrival and I was 8cm! Considering this was my first birth I didn’t really know what to expect so we were all really excited with this news! The nurse gave me a hospital gown but I had brought a robe from home that I preferred to wear which she was fine with. Once I had changed I sat on the birth ball and leaned against the hospital bed while the nurses did all the initial tests/monitoring to me. The fetal heart and contraction monitors were attached around my stomach while I sat on the birth ball. The plan had been to do the initial monitoring for 20 minutes and then have everything removed so I could move around (this never happened since things moved along so quickly). At 37 weeks I had tested positive for Group B Strep. I had been doing some natural at-home remedies, but still had to get a dose of antibiotics when we arrived at the hospital. They gave me the antibiotics while they were doing all the other initial monitoring things.
We requested the nurse check me again a little before noon because I was feeling such intense pressure and felt ready to start pushing. At this point, I was now standing next to the hospital bed doing the modified downward dog position with my hands on the bed because I could no longer stay seated on the birth ball. Once the nurse checked me again and confirmed I was to 10cm I moved onto the bed to start pushing. It was noon when I started pushing.
Right away the doctor confirmed she could see the baby’s head, and I was trying to push the head to pass under my pubic bone. After about 20 minutes of pushing and between surges the doctor checked me and then asked us when our last ultrasound had been. Both Matt and I were so confused and told her it was at 19 weeks when we had the anatomy ultrasound. After this she told that was not the baby’s head we were seeing and it was her bottom! We were all in disbelief as my doctor had confirmed at my 37-week appointment the baby was head down, and then again at my 38-week appointment the nurse practitioner had felt my stomach (because my doctor was on vacation) and also said the baby was head down. The doctor immediately suggested a c-section and we asked for a few minutes to discuss it privately. As my sister-in-law is a midwife and has delivered breech babies, we did consider trying to still do a vaginal birth, but in the end we decided to be conservative and agreed to the c-section.
Grace was in the Frank breech position, which is where her legs were straight up so her feet were at the top of my stomach and were kicking in the same area she would have been had she been head down. And then since her head and bottom are both firm, it did feel like it was her bottom at the top of my stomach. Regardless, it was disappointing her breech position hadn’t been discovered earlier so we could try some things in order for her to move positions, but in the end if she hadn’t moved we probably would have scheduled a c-section. I’m glad this didn’t happen because as crazy as it sounds, I am glad I got to experience labor as it was such an amazing experience; emotionally as well as physically. So after all of this Gracie was born at 1:05pm via c-section! She came out alert, healthy, and crying loudly!
I don’t know how I remembered, but after the c-section they were getting ready to stitch me back up and I recalled a section in Ina May’s Guide to Childbirth book that discussed the importance of having the uterus sutured in two layers rather than the one layer method which is currently popular in the situation of a c-section. I asked the doctor if she was going to sew me up in one or two layers, and after telling me they routinely do one layer, she asked if I would prefer her to do two layers. I told her I would. Per Ina May’s book, this will help the uterus stay stronger and increase the likelihood of having a successful VBAC in the future.
The doctor and nurses were all so wonderful, and we were very happy with Scripps Encinitas hospital all around. They were completely supportive of everything we wanted and were very familiar with HypnoBirthing. Everything with the baby was in-room so Grace was never out of my sight. They even brought her to me while I was still on the operating table after the c-section. I really appreciated this.
I definitely think your HypnoBirthing class helped make Grace’s labor as great as it was! Due to all the training and practice I was able to remain very calm and relaxed throughout the entire time I was laboring which I believe helped ease the pain and helped speed labor along. The doctor told me after Grace was born I would be an ideal candidate for a VBAC; something I will definitely consider when Grace gets a little sibling. And even though the c-section was an unexpected turn of events during Grace’s birth, I think taking the HypnoBirthing class helped us meet this calmly and I still have such positive memories from our birth. Thank you so much for all your support and advice throughout the pregnancy! We appreciate all that you taught us and are so glad we took your class!
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Thank you so much for sharing your story! I think it's so important for people to realize that HypnoBirthing helps in whatever situation comes up during your birth experience & that it's not "just" for natural births. It can be extremely helpful during c-sections as well.
Congratulations on the birth of baby Grace! Continue to enjoy your babymoon!
All my best---Carol Yeh-Garner
www.AWellLivedLife.Net
www.AWellLivedLife.blogspot.com
For more information about HypnoBirthing, please visit Carol's website at www.AWellLivedLife.Net or go to the main HypnoBirthing website at www.hypnobirthing.com.
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