Read this amazing birth story posted on the Mothering discussion boards just yesterday:

QUOTE:

“After doing this I feel like I can do anything I put my heart in to, it is amazing to feel like that again, after my Cesarean Section with Gabriel, I did not feel like myself, a lot was taken away from me that day, not just the chance to push out a baby, but a lot of my ‘self’ was taken, a lot of my fire and spirit along with most of my confidence. I had been banking it all up since August 2006 when I had resolved to take control of my birthing, putting it all in layaway a little at a time, and I finally got it all back the night I had Violet, with interest! Ross says I even look different. I definitely feel different, I feel redeemed and proud of myself for accomplishing so much in such a short time, I also feel like I absolutely must help to spread this feeling to as many women as I can.

I know that unassisted birth is not ideal for everyone, but for me, it is the only way I feel I could safely and securely give birth; for me, any interference at all, ‘good’ or ‘bad’, would have ruined my Violet’s birth.

I respect the need for well trained obstetricians in hospitals or operating rooms, in the cases when medical care is prudent; so it isn’t like I have something against doctors or hospitals, it is just, I personally do not need all that to give birth. I love and respect the work that midwives do, their wisdom and their dedication to a profession that is really unappreciated by our society at large; I have every intention on training as a midwife in the future when my children are a little older, not requiring my undivided attention and are no longer breastfeeding, so it is not as if I have something ‘against’ midwives, I simply would never have been comfortable being myself in front of a midwife, even if she was a friend, I would never have really been able to let go and just birth. I know that for sure.

The simple truth is this: Ross is the only person who really knows what I am all about, he really knows what I need and want and he can do it without disturbing me or even without thinking, and in the moment of birthing, that is the most important thing, I think. We were the best midwives I could ask for. A great number of couples do not have the sort of relationship conductive to unassisted birth, and some do; a great number of women do not have a personality conductive to birthing alone, and again, some do. I had no real desire to be all alone, I wanted Ross to be with me, idle but present, and that is what he was; it was perfect. For us.

I think we in the birthing ‘community’ need to realize everyone has individual needs and desires, some need and desire to be completely alone, some want a midwife, some want their mothers, some want an obstetrician and an epidural and we all need to respect and support those needs and wants.

All women need to have choices, many varied choices that they can choose from freely without worry of people thinking they are ‘crazy’ or ‘weak’ or ‘radical’. I felt the need to keep our plans for an unassisted birth a secret among many of our family members and friends until after the fact because I could not deal with the fearful, rude and even downright snarky comments and ‘looks’ during my pregnancy if I were to be peaceful and happy, which has since made me resolve as long as a woman has educated herself with accurate truthful information about all of her choices I have no place thinking (or saying) anything but supportive things, even if she has decided to have an elective Cesarean Section operation after being fully informed of risks and benefits.

I think we could all resolve to make sure women are well educated about their options for birth.

It is in our hands, we have the ability to change things for the better, if only we would act to do so. We must let the well educated woman choose what is best for her and her family in birth, and then just let her choice be, whether or not we think it is the ‘right’ choice; it will make for happier, easier pregnancies and a much more simple kind of birth.”

ICAN Online
Jasmines Email Address: shegothipslikecinderella@gmail.com
Pictures used with permission. Please feel free to contact Jasmine to talk to her about her empowering birth!
I completely endorse and applaud this mother for her courage, focus, and intentions.
Jenny Hatch

My beautiful friend Kirsten emailed this past week with the news that her new daughter was Freeborn at Home into the hands of her Father!
She sent an email titled “She’s Here” and shared the happy news!
I’ll post pictures and the birth story in a couple days!
UPDATE: Kirsten sent some pictures today. Some were taken from the video of the birth:



Jenny Hatch
Previous entry

She shares links to the Formative Words that helped her down the path to Freebirth.
This is a really great post.
Jenny Hatch
My comment on Rixas Blog in response to her post:
One of the things that surprised me the most about doing my own prenantal care was how very seriously I took the job at hand.
I had thought during my first three pregnancies that I was particularly proactive and worked hard to make a healthy child, but until I took it upon myself during my fourth pregnancy to do the whole pregnancy without seeing anyone for anything, my own definition of personal responsibility took a swerve up into the clouds.
In the past twelve years friends who discover that I gave birth alone are very surpised, but they are completely gobsmacked when I tell them I did my own prenantal care.
The ripple effect into a family is powerful. I continue to observe friends who do so much for older children that they are completely capable of doing for themselves.
My own children seem to feel the spirit of Freebirth in our home. They are so proactive on so many levels of their lives. Not claiming they are perfect mind you, but the sense of “I can do it myself” is very, very strong in our home.
Currently I am enjoying my four year old Ben as he gradually weans from our Family bed, and attachment breastfeeding. He is so confident some days. He wants to sleep in his own bed, nursing is for babies, and he is the MAN in little boys body.
Yet he has moments of complete surrender to his needs as a little person, and happily reverts back to a mommas boy for nursies, naps, and snuggle time in bed with mom and dad. He is my first child that will self wean, I had to use extreme coersion with three previous babes to get them off the breast. My daughter stopped nursing at 4 and a half, not because she was ready but because momma was tandem nursing during a pregnancy and could not do it anymore.
My next two boys were both weaned on third birthdays, although they were also not ready. I tried to wean Ben on his third birthday for consistencies sake, but he moped around for a week and was so sad, I did not have the heart to do it.
I find it no accident that this child who was Freeborn Lotus Style, who has such acute intuition to his own needs as a preschooler that he regularly informs me in direct and very clearn language exactly what his needs are in the moment, I find it no accident that this pattern of internal confidence to know his own needs continues on.
During his pregnancy I would regularly talk to him to ask what he needed from me in terms of exercise, nutrition, etc etc… And he guided me through my dreams, my mothers intuition, and spirit to spirit to know exactly what he wanted. Up to the second he was born, I was being guided, mostly by him (and his assorted guardian angels).
This perfect guiding is SO MUCH more powerful that an outside paid hireling giving his or her “expert” opinion on the various issues of pregnancy.
I challenge all women to take on the task of growing and birthing the baby all by themselves. It will change everything in your life.
Jenny Hatch
WWW.NaturalFamilyBLOG.com