10:01 pm tonight marks the 2 year anniversary of the moment my second son emerged from my body. He came out the way that I had envisioned for nearly 22 months – not through an incision in my abdominal wall the way my first boy entered the world – but through my vagina.
People said it couldn’t be done. My doctor said it wouldn’t be done.
But it was done. All 9 pounds, 10 ounces of this little boy came through my pelvis, through my cervix, and out the same way he was put in there.
I had a second degree tear. I fought through 38 hours of labor while hospital staff put me down and accused me of being reckless. I cried many, many times. And a few times, I even thought about giving up.
But I didn’t. I simply couldn’t give up. It meant too much to me.
Having my boy by a vaginal birth meant he could come straight to my chest upon exit and begin nursing immediately. This helped him latch right away, which got breastfeeding off to a wonderful start. It also helped me bond with him because we were never separated at all. Having him this way meant there was no surgery to recover from – nothing to stop me from picking him up and cuddling with him. This meant we could practice side-laying nursing without me fearing that he would kick my fresh cesarean scar the way I feared with my first baby. Having him this way meant we could go home sooner, back to our own bed and our own food instead of the stale, sterile hospital environment I dreaded so much.
Having him this way meant I could do it, no matter who told me my pelvis or uterus couldn’t handle the task. Having my baby this way meant I had been lied to the first time.
Having my VBAC helped me avoid re-wounding the post-traumatic stress disorder I felt after my cesarean. Having him this way helped heal a part of me – not all of me – but at least a part.
Both of my children’s birthdays will always be special to me. But Julesy’s birthday means something just a little different. It was a day that I laid claim to something that so many people tried to take away from me. It was a day I triumphed over all obstacles. It was a day I climbed the mountain and came down the other side as a woman with one less uterine scar than they wanted me to have.
Happy Birthday, Julesy. And thank you for my VBAC.
_______________________________________
Had a VBAC? Hoping for a VBAC? Tell us about it… links to stories are welcome.
Have some time to read back through some older posts today and really loved this one!
I am about to have my three year VBAC anniversary. I birthed a 10 pound 3 oz baby boy and I still want to punch the air and shout 'yay me' every time I think about it!!!
- spam
- offensive
- disagree
- off topic
Like