The day Livia was born I was 14 days past due. It was the end of June and we had just gone through another heat wave. My anxiety levels were high and I was worried about the health of the baby, although there was no indication that the baby or myself was under any stress. I had just talked to Christy and we decided to have another nonstress test before going into the weekend (it was Friday) If I did not have the baby by the end of the weekend we were going to talk about other options. Right before I was about to leave for the 2 pm appointment, I had my first contraction. Up until this point, I had MANY Braxton-Hicks contractions, some very long and intense, but this was the real deal. It stopped me in my tracks and I could not move until it was over. I was so happy- it was about to begin!!! My fiancé, Giancarlo, Christy and I decided that it would be best to still have the nonstress test since the beginning stage of labor can last hours. So off we went…
The contractions began to build in intensity while I was waiting for the test to begin. I met each contraction with breath and tried to relax each muscle in my body while the contraction took over. After completing the test and learning that the baby was doing great, we went home to wait it out. Around 5:30pm, we called Christy to let her know that the contractions did not have a pattern but were quite intense and closer together. She was on her way…
At this point, time became irrelevant. The contractions were all consuming and the spaces in between felt like heaven. I looked forward to the spaces in between and used them to laugh, sip juice, and sit back. When Christy arrived, we were upstairs in the bedroom and I was getting nervous because the contractions were exhausting me. I was not sure I would have the energy to get through labor if they kept coming at the rate they were coming. I drew a bath and immersed my body in warm water, which helped a whole lot to relax me. I recall at one point something in my body told me to push. I told Christy this and she popped her head into the bathroom and said “Really?! Why don’t you get out of the bath so I can check you.” After she checked me she said that my water would break any minute and she was right- about 2 minutes later my water came splashing to the floor. It felt like my body just let out a huge sigh of relief. Apparently, I was already approximately 8 cm dilated and ready to go!
I stayed in the bedroom for the remainder of labor. The contractions were overpowering my ability to stay connected to those around me and I remember opening my eyes and seeing Giancarlo next to me, or Christy or Beth, but for the most part I felt like I was floating between 2 worlds. After each contraction ended it felt like I entered the space that occurs right before you fall asleep. My thoughts were random and spacey and I was so tired. Pushing the baby was all I had the ability to concentrate on. At one point I opened my eyes and I saw Christy arranging the supplies to cut the cord and clean the baby so I knew the end was in sight!! I felt if I continued to push while on my side it would take much longer, so I looked at Giancarlo and told him I wanted to stand up and “get this done!” I was holding on to the edge of the bed with my knees bent and after two contractions, she was born! It was 11:13pm. Beth handed her to me through my legs and I was in awe. She was beautiful and perfect, and I could not believe that she came from inside me! This moment was so much bigger than me. I just delivered Life into the World. We were shocked because we both were convinced that “she” was going to be a “he”, however, once we laid eyes on her we fell in love. We named her Livia Maria and she was 9lbs 9oz and 21.5 inches long. I felt amazing. The “hormone cocktail” that my body created left me chatty and exhilarated. Delivering the placenta was a breeze in comparison to the baby and Beth helped me into the shower to clean me up. About an hour or so later, the 4 of us shared a bottle of champagne to celebrate. Not only was a beautiful baby born, but the journey leading up to that moment was more fulfilling than we could have imagined!!
