Pain Free Birth Podcast Episode 26: Laboring A Posterior Baby With A Compound Arm Presentation Completely Unmedicated & Pain Free with Dr. Emily Gardner

Today we are joined by Emily Gardner, a first-time mom, who actually didn’t want children prior to getting married due to the painful and traumatic experiences she’d heard of. Now, she is a happy mama of an 8-week old baby boy named Finnigan. She tells us all about how she found Karen on Instagram, how she adopted her determined pain-free-birth mindset, and what her labor experience was like inside a traditional hospital. No spoilers, but her labor & delivery came with a few surprises that resulted in a longer labor, yet still absolutely pain free. Emily said, “the IV line was probably the most painful part of the whole experience.”

CONNECT WITH EMILY GARDNER:

Emily is a first-time mom (besides her two adorable fur babies) who lives in a small town in New York with her husband, Samuel, who doubles as her business partner. She attended University of Pittsburgh at Bradford and graduated with a degree in Biology/Pre-Medicine. Dr. Emily then made the long trip to Iowa and received her chiropractic degree from Palmer College of Chiropractic. She was able to study under amazing sports doctors and learn a lot of therapies that she implements at her clinic back home in New York! Emily is full of gratitude to be finding her way in her new role as mom.

Follow Emily on Instagram

Emily’s Chiropractic Clinic Website

KAREN: Welcome back to the podcast, ladies. Today I have such a special birth story for you. Emily Gardner is here with us today to share her pain free hospital birth experience Welcome, Emily.

EMILY: Hi

KAREN: You guys have not heard this story and we have not shared it on my Instagram yet. Emily Gardner DM to me a little while ago saying, thank you so much from the bottom of my heart.

Your course gave me to have a completely unmedicated, pain free, Empowering and deeply spiritual first birth, and it was in a hospital. So listen up, Babas, if you are planning a hospital birth, this is the episode to tune into because we are going to go all over how Emily prepared and what happened in her pain free hospital birth.

I am so excited to have you on.

EMILY: I’m so excited to be here.

KAREN: tell us about your preparation and how you found me, how you chose to go for hospital birth and like, what happened?

EMILY: Yeah, so I did not want kids because I was terrified of the pain. I mean, you, that’s all you hear about is how terrifying and how painful birth is got married and we wanted kids.

And I’m on Instagram and I see your. Ad of like pain free birth. And I said, no way, not a chance. So I’m looking and I’m reading all the testimonies and I’m like, Holy guacamole, like you can have a pain free birth. So found out we were pregnant last August. And that was the first thing I went to.

I was like, I’m having a pain free birth. I don’t care what I have to do. I’m doing it. So I literally watched testimonies all on your page. And I was like, I need to take this course. This is hands down. The number one thing I have to do. So we signed up for the course and I made my husband sign up for the partner course.

Cause I’m like, if I’m doing this, you’re helping me. And then. Throughout the course, I stayed super active. I actually did a CrossFit class all the way through my second trimester, which that helped a lot. So that was the two biggest things I did was the course and I stayed active and being a chiropractor, I’m on my feet all day.

So those just all kind of like prepped physically my body and then your cores helped me mentally.

KAREN: Oh, amazing. Yeah. So you’re already I would imagine pretty in tune with your body to a degree as a chiropractor and knowing just like when things are out of alignment or when something needs attention.

Did that help you in your pregnancy as well?

EMILY: Yeah, that was huge, especially just knowing what pregnancy does to your body and all the changes. Changes joints, ligaments, and all that fun stuff that we get to go through. And having my husband being a chiropractor, I was religiously adjusted throughout my pregnancy to make sure that like my body was ready for this and baby was in a good position and my hips were moving and grooving just so I could, you know, grow my little tiny human.

KAREN: Totally. Oh, I love that. And what was it that you learned, in the course work or the preparation that prepared you and helped you be ready to have a pain free birth?

EMILY: I think the biggest thing was knowing exactly what to expect physiologically, knowing that, you know, this is how your body is designed.

God, Designed you this way, you are meant to birth this beautiful little baby and your body’s already prepped for it. You just have to get in tune with it and understand, like, don’t be afraid. And that was my biggest thing. I was like, I can’t be afraid. I’m not going to listen to all of, you know, my patients that come in that give me such terrifying stories or all of the stories you hear from other people I only.

only allowed positive things to enter my mind and to listen to while I was pregnant. And then diving really deep into my spirituality, like really leaning on God and understanding that he is here with us. Like, He has me and I am safe. So those were the biggest things and especially going through the course and reading all of the inserts from the Bible and the verses and understanding that God did this for a reason.

And my body is made for this, like really put me at ease about everything.

KAREN: So it was,

EMILY: it was really cool to learn all that.

KAREN: Oh yeah, I love that. And it’s, I do teach that, the course of the material from a faith based perspective. But I’ve had women of all faiths go through it. But I, think you hit the nail on the head, because like when we realize that this is all part of the design, and it’s not intended to be horrible and painful, and it’s actually designed, everything works together.

And the physiology is there for a reason. Everything happens for a purpose. And when we understand it and partner with our bodies, all the fear goes away because we see the incredible design that is physiological birth. you just described it so beautifully.

What was your mantra in labor that helped you the most?

EMILY: especially going through like after it started getting intense. I know I just repeated like I am loved. I’m supported. I’m safe. Thank you, God, something like that. Oh, my goodness. I can’t even remember.

KAREN: Yeah. Safe. I loved. I’m supported. Thank you, God.

EMILY: Yeah. Yeah. That I just,

KAREN: you got it.

EMILY: Repeating it and repeating it. And I think that allowed me to like fully relax and using the, the O method to, you know, what your mouth does, your cervix does and to allow everything to open. I like, that’s when things started to speed up.

And it was the coolest thing to like, understand, Doing the O and allowing your mind to just get out of the way of my body was so cool. It was such a great experience. It was the coolest.

KAREN: How many times do you hear first time moms say it was such a cool experience, it was the greatest, about their labor?

I just like that alone is so revolutionary.

EMILY: I know I get really weird looks when people ask like, how was like, how was birth? I was like, honestly, it was really great experience. So like, are you, are you sure? I’m like, yeah, it was really cool. I mean, it was like, it’s so empowering. And I, yeah, they think I’m crazy.

KAREN: So tell us about it. Like you were at home and laboring. Were you wondering, like, Is this real labor or you think like, how did you decide when to go to the hospital? What did it feel like? So yeah, so

EMILY: I was supposed to be working up until the 18th in the office. I was there until supposed to be there until Thursday Wednesday night, I was like, I need to paint my fireplace.

stupidly. how

KAREN: we take on the most ridiculous project, like right before labor begins. Why not? I want to hear it like in the comments, like how many women have taken on ridiculous, like home improvement projects right before labor? Many.

EMILY: Yeah.

KAREN: I was saying

EMILY: like fireplace. And I realized like my feet were swollen, which I did not have any complications, swelling or anything throughout my whole pregnancy.

I was like, all right, I’ll take it easy. And my dog would not leave my side. Wow. It was so cool. I remember jokingly sending a picture to my sister. Like, I think I’m going to be in labor soon, which was five days early in hindsight. And the next morning at like 453 my water broke. And I didn’t feel any contractions.

I didn’t have contractions or cramping or anything up until that point. So at first I was like, is this really happening? I was like, unsure, but my water broke. So I was like, all right, I guess it’s game time. And I remember not rushing. I was like, this is going to be a while. We’re going to take our time.

I remember I showered, we packed our bags and we headed to the hospital like an hour and a half later booked in, you know, got there and everything. And it was, pretty straightforward getting to the hospital. There was nothing crazy. But yeah, I didn’t really feel contractions. It was just my water broke.

So

KAREN: I was, so did you go to the hospital? Before contraction started.

EMILY: Yeah, so I went to the hospital like an hour and a half after my water broke.

And I started feeling almost Braxton Hicks contractions, nothing crazy, it was just more cramping on my way to the hospital. And that was about all I felt for a little bit.

KAREN: They just kind of felt like regular, cramps, like nothing intense or painful.

EMILY: Yeah. And the deep breathing, the first breathing that you taught in the course really helped with those.

And it was, but again, they weren’t anything crazy. They were just cramping. They ramped up a little bit, after an hour at the hospital. I expected the day to be very long. Cause you know, first time verse 20 plus hours, 40 hours, I was fully expecting to be there for quite a while. But later, probably.

Noonish, things started to really ramp up. And they didn’t give you

KAREN: any Pitocin or anything like that. This is just all natural.

EMILY: Yeah. All natural. That was another thing your course taught me was to stand my ground. And my husband was great too. I was very lucky. My OB wasn’t there. So I requested a midwife.

And the midwife was amazing. So she really backed me up with a lot of the stuff that I wanted. We did compromise on a few things cause I didn’t want to be attached to an IV. I didn’t want the Pitocin. I didn’t, I literally wanted to completely hands off. Honestly, I just was in the hospital to, Be in the hospital, I guess.

So yeah, all I had was they put an IV line in me and that was it. They didn’t even hook me up to anything. It was just in case of emergency, basically. Yeah, that was an, honestly, the IV was probably the most painful of the whole experience.

KAREN: That’s, that says a lot . Wow. I love that. That’s like a quote for the books.

EMILY: So after that it was kind of funny. My mother-in-law actually came into the room, loved my mother-in-law. But I really just pictured me and my husband being in the labor room.

And really just focusing and getting in tune with each other. And it was funny because I remember like with my mother in law there, things slowed down. the contractions were a little bit more intense. And I like looked at my husband and he kind of figured it out and he. Or go get us lunch or something.

And as soon as she left, my body was like, okay, we’re, we’re back in our safe area. We’re back into, you know, the rhythm. And then I did ask for a cervical check just cause I was really curious to see how far and how well we were doing. And it was soon after I was six centimeters and I was like, Really could feel the contractions ramping up.

And like, it was, it was common. It was awesome.

KAREN: Wow. I, I love so many things about this. I love that you and your husband both recognized, Hmm, something’s off. Contractions are slowing down and you didn’t have to. Say anything your husband already knew because he understood the physiology and how Environment and people and interruptions can change a labor pattern and this is something that so many people don’t understand and the fact that you both recognize that and that he shifted gears and, got her out of the room for you.

EMILY: I, yeah,

KAREN: he was really great. And I

EMILY: felt so bad, but like, I was like, never feel bad about kicking

KAREN: people out of your birth room and never feel bad. Nobody needs to be there other than you and your partner and whoever you want to be there, honestly, we have to make that clear. I think so many women empathize with that.

And I do too, because we want. To please people we want we don’t want to offend people we don’t want to say something that’s gonna rock the boat or cause a conflict in the relationship, but at the end of the day, you know, whether they even understand it or not like this is your birth, and you’re going to remember it and it’s not worth.

disrupting your labor pattern or introducing fear into the environment or your heart just to make someone else feel comfortable because this is your day. Everything is centered around mom’s comfort and it should never, other people’s comfort should never be the focus. So I love that you guys both, you know, that he, he supported you in that and knew right away what to do.

That’s so important. And I love that he, he had the insight to know what to do.

EMILY: Yeah. He was awesome. And the whole time, every contraction he had either hip compression, counter pressure. He was awesome. Really great. Yeah, I just, I have no words cause he was such a huge support system throughout my whole pregnancy and throughout the whole labor.

he was great. I love him. Oh,

KAREN: I love hearing that. What, what did he get out of the course and the birth partner bootcamp?

EMILY: I. Think really just understanding, reading my cues, I guess, and understanding, like, she needs me to be her support system and to be there to stand almost like to stand her ground when she can’t stand it herself.

Yeah. So yeah, he stood up for me and even like through labor we were able to have like conversations about like what we still wanted and stuff just to like, you know, keep track of where we’re at and understanding like what we wanted to go forward with. But yeah, we were on the same page the whole time and it was, so refreshing.

It was so great.

KAREN: Oh, I love hearing that. What happened after they checked you and you were six centimeters? What did you think? Were you surprised?

EMILY: , I believe I said, Oh my gosh, I’m actually doing it. Like I was, I was so proud of myself. Cause I lowered my hopes a little bit.

I was like, all right, we’re probably going to be at three or four centimeters. You know, we’re still super early. And she said six and I was just like ecstatic. I was so proud of myself for like getting there. And I’m like, Oh my gosh, I’m in active labor. This is awesome. Okay. I think I said it so many times.

This is awesome.

KAREN: In the middle of your labor. You’re like, this is awesome.

EMILY: I, yeah. And the nurses were like, you know, they ask you, so what’s your pain at? And I was like, honestly, like a five, like. is that count? They were funny. They were awesome though.

KAREN: What did contractions feel like for you at this stage?

EMILY: So in hindsight, I believe I was having back labor because all of my pressure was in my back. Like it didn’t wrap around to the front. It was just like my back cramped pretty tight. It wasn’t like pain. It was intense. Don’t get me wrong. Like it was intense, but it wasn’t a painful intensity. It was just, my body is like contracting and I could just feel it.

But those breathing, like to breathe in and like push down and, you know, say that, Oh, was the most calming thing. Everything just kind of flowed. If that makes sense.

KAREN: Yeah, absolutely. Yeah, it does. It’s what labor flows when we’re in a relaxed state, not fighting it and being concerned and worried about what’s coming next, or how long is this contraction going to take?

Or how long will I be in labor and all those like doubts that enter our mind. But when we’re just focused in that moment of like, on this contraction, and what my body’s doing right now, and we can partner with it instead of like running away from it. It changes everything. So you got it. Like you, you, you’re doing it.

You realize, Oh my gosh, I’m doing this. This is amazing. What happened next?

EMILY: So I remember I was on my feet. Most of the time sitting down was a no go. I just was not comfortable, not moving. And so I was either on my feet on a bouncy ball or had my knee up kind of like to shift my hips, I guess.

And. They just continue to ramp up and ramp up. And. I remember it was probably six o’clock at night when I felt that urge to push. And I looked at my husband and I said, go get the midwife. Cause she was just in and out all day, which was perfect. It was just me and my husband just, you know, going through labor.

And they don’t stick around

KAREN: and wait for you. to deliver the baby. Like they’re in a hospital setting. They’re not there. , they’re juggling 10 other patients or something.

EMILY: Yeah. And I, yeah, I guess it was a busy day on labor and delivery for so, which can be a blessing

KAREN: if you just want to labor in peace.

But some moms don’t realize that and they think, Oh, they’ll have an attendant there or a midwife or their nurse or the whole time. And that’s just not the case. That’s why I love doulas. But in your case, it sounds like it was good. You, you and your husband got to get in that zone.

EMILY: Yeah. And it was great.

Cause at, I believe at that point, I was trying to save up the intensity to get into the shower to get, you know, that, that water the relief from the water. And it worked, it was awesome. Just standing in the shower and having the warmth roll down my back was great.

And then I was probably in there for like 10, 15 minutes. And then I, you know, got out and I believe that’s actually when I, I felt the urge to start pushing was after the shower.

KAREN: Yep. Totally makes sense. When you have a position change and you’re upright, that baby drops.

EMILY: Yeah. And so the midwife came in and she’s like, yep, this, this sounds like transition.

Cause my, my internal O’s started. I started to say them out loud. And it just felt good to verbally say the, Oh and it felt like things would move easier when I was vocalizing

KAREN: them before that.

EMILY: No, I wasn’t. my mouth would be an, Oh, but I would almost like hum it in my chest. Okay. To allow my body to kind of do it.

Yeah. And then once things got a little, little more intense, I did start to verbalize, which. There was definitely a difference. So that was really cool.

KAREN: Your midwife recognized this sounds like baby’s coming and you were vocalizing at that point. Did she check you?

EMILY: Yep. she did not check me yet.

I, she had me actually move a little bit one knee, I believe was on the floor and me, I was like holding onto the bed. It just was, I was in that position for a little bit and it felt good. And then she had me kneeling

KAREN: on the bed, like one, like a runner’s pose with one knee up.

EMILY: Yeah. But I was like on the floor and one knee, my foot was on the floor and one knee was on the floor. And then my arms were on the bed, if that makes sense.

KAREN: Oh, okay. So you’re kneeling like next to the bed with a knee up.

EMILY: Yes.

KAREN: Yeah. And she

EMILY: was like, let’s maybe do this pose, but on the bed.

She was really great. So she you know, moved the bed up and everything to give her a little bit of, ease if baby was coming that fast. So got on the bed and I was still feeling the urge to push and nothing was really happening. So she was like, can I check you? You’re not advancing.

She wasn’t saying like as fast as she wanted, but she wanted to make sure my cervix was completely out of the way. And so she checked me and I actually some cervix was still in the way. And so she was able to kind of help it move the last little bit and then pushing God, it was funny pushing.

I was like, Oh wow, this actually got much easier. Once it was. All the way out of the way. And then I just got really deep into the zone it was like an out of body experience. I went into like this very deep spiritual, like God has me now. And I. Pushed. I guess I pushed for three hours.

I didn’t know I just, you know, went with it and like I said, it was such an empowering, cool experience to like go through that final

KAREN: part. So were you in that position pushing for three hours?

EMILY: I would guess maybe an hour I was in that position. And then my midwife was awesome.

She was smart enough. And she was like, you want to let’s put you in a different position. You’re not getting like, effective pushes. So she had me actually go sideline. And, and that’s when like baby, you could start to see the baby’s head and the pushes were getting much more effective. I did deep down, I was like, Please give me the fetal ejection reflex, but I don’t think I had that on my first time.

But I would, I I’m hoping maybe baby number two, I can experience that. Cause just all the stories that you post about it’s so cool.

KAREN: Yeah. Yeah. It’s with that. It’s so funny because I think basically what happens is you. You’re experiencing that urge to push like it’s not like you don’t feel it. But what happens is your body is just laboring that baby down on its own.

And I think sometimes it’s like you feel this intensity and this pressure and and holding that and being like present in that can be so hard to sometimes not want to push on top of it. And sometimes it can help to push on top of it. It sounds like you were feeling that intensity and pressure.

So you started kind of pushing with your body. I love the fact that it sounds like she wasn’t coaching you or like telling you what to do like you were just kind of intuitive in the pushing. And you tell me, but like, did contraction space out during these two or three hours that you were pushing for?

EMILY: I honestly, I want to say it wasn’t like I was bombarded with contractions. They, they came and went and I just kind of wrote them. And I’m super lucky. My sister’s a pelvic floor therapist and before I gave birth, she was like, listen, this is what you need to do. When we push she was like, you need to not hold your breath and push. Like, I believe you’ve did multiple instructions on that in your, in your course. Yep. I totally agree with the pelvic floor

KAREN: therapists on this.

EMILY: Yeah, so I just remember like letting out my breath as I pushed as opposed to like taking that breath in and pushing.

And I remember my midwife, she would be like, that’s a really, really great one. Like never once did she say, okay, and push now and push now. She just let my body do, do its thing, which was a blessing. I love that.

KAREN: I love that. And I think it makes such for a completely different experience when we’re following our body’s intuition.

So, like, I think some women might hear like, Oh my gosh, you were pushing for three hours and get intimidated by that. But if it’s calm, and it’s peaceful, and you’re not, adding overly exerting yourself holding your breath and force pushing baby out that changes like the experience because you can intuitively like feel what your body is doing and maybe you’re contracting every 10 minutes or so maybe it’s eight or or even more 20 minutes it’s not like they’re rolling back to back generally In a labor where you’re pushing for a longer extended period of time.

And sometimes your body will just do it, whether you’re even pushing or not, that baby will come down. Sometimes you can add to it and it can be a peaceful experience where you’re working with your body and it doesn’t have to be exhausting and excruciating and stressful the way we see often portrayed.

EMILY: Oh yeah, no, absolutely. And it definitely wasn’t that painful screaming. birth by any means I want to say my husband said that I didn’t make a noise for contractions besides just breathing. And we were in our own little bubble. We were forehead to forehead and just, Like I said, doing our thing.

And I remember the midwife, she, I was like, finally she was like do you want to feel your baby’s head? And I was like, Okay. Yeah, that would be really cool. So I, felt his little, little tuft of hair and I was like, Oh my gosh, this is happening. He is almost here. And I want to say it was like three pushes and he was on my chest.

It was, it was so cool.

KAREN: What did you feel immediately after he was born?

EMILY: Just this, of like, Oh my gosh, like I’m a mom and I just did this. Yeah. He hit my chest. The first thing was I’m a mom. And then I was like, Oh my gosh, I just had a pain free, amazing birth experience. I did what I wanted to do.

And it was just, I’ll say it again. It was awesome. Like it was so empowering and I’m ready to do it again. Really.

KAREN: Eight weeks postpartum ladies. That is awesome. I will repeat it. That is awesome. How did God show up for you or how did you feel his presence in this birth experience?

EMILY: Yeah, I think it was. I felt so safe. I felt so supported and I knew that like it was because of God and just how he made my body and I knew that I could trust him and I mean, he’s God, he knows what he’s doing. He made us for a reason and he made our bodies. be able to do this amazing thing. And like being a chiropractor, I am just in awe of the human body in everything that it does, because I get to see it every day.

And the things that God designed our bodies to do is just, it’s so cool. I am just knowing that and being able to lean into that through birth was so calming. I want to say putting me in such a good space that I like just knew that my body can do this because God is here. I

KAREN: love that. It’s like, and it’s so true.

Cause in your profession, as a chiropractor, you have this innate belief. I feel like from all the chiropractors I’ve worked with who they just believe like the body heals itself. It’s, it’s divinely designed to when we remove the blockage, when we’re in alignment, like the body is brilliant and wise and it heals itself.

And so why not in labor? Why not? Wouldn’t the body also know how to birth our babies? Wouldn’t the body also know how to open and dilate and what hormones to release and for it to be, A positive experience,

EMILY: right? Oh, gosh. Yeah. I, yeah, I, God is just, he’s so important in our lives that, you know, to do birth without him is, pointless, you know so he was a big, big factor in, you know, going through this and everything.

KAREN: mentioned like you went to another place in labor during transition or pushing. Tell us a little bit more about that.

EMILY: It was almost like I was in the very far back of my mind. I was like, I need to get out of my own way. And I think you said it so many times throughout the course, like get out of the way.

And that’s, I feel like that’s what I did. I got out of the way to allow these contractions to work, to allow baby to work his way down and to just, Get out of that fear cycle and to not be afraid. I knew that I just had to let go. Because I’m someone that I have to plan everything to a T. I need to know what’s going on.

And if I were to be that person in my birth, I would have hit that fear cycle. And I would have had a painful birth because I would have been afraid of what’s going to happen next, but I got out of my way and I just. It almost felt like I was like in the corner of the back of my mind of, you know, of the room, just.

letting it happen. And I think that was the biggest thing that allowed me to have that pain free birth was just to get out of my own way.

KAREN: I love that, like your description of being in the corner of your own mind, like in the background, like almost like you’re, Observing it, allowing it to happen, but not controlling it.

And I think that that is probably so encouraging for so many moms to hear, especially moms that are type A, plan ahead, you know, everything, you know, is like perfect and ready to go, you know, they too can have a pain free birth experience, that it, you don’t have to get stuck in that mode. And the planning is great, but the planning happens before Labor, right?

So the in labor, you have that confidence to let go and surrender.

EMILY: Yeah.

KAREN: Oh

EMILY: gosh. Yeah.

KAREN: Yeah. So you’re eight weeks postpartum now, how are you feeling? How has postpartum been? And what have you processed since that to, to what you’re feeling now?

EMILY: Yeah. So postpartum I did tear and I had to have some stitches because. Um, So he

KAREN: had, oh my gosh, a compound presentation with an arm next to his head.

EMILY: Yes. And the midwife also said was he posterior. And he came out, you know, arm right next to his face. I

KAREN: didn’t know that. That’s hard.

EMILY: Yeah. I, I forgot that part. And I think that’s why I pushed for so long.

And that’s why in hindsight, I think I was having the back labor.

KAREN: Yeah. I was just going to say that would explain the back labor to the fact that you still had it. Pain free birth experience that was that amazing with a posterior baby and a compound arm presentation like that That those are curveballs that will definitely impact labor.

And I’m just even more impressed with those two factors. And I

EMILY: think it helped because my midwife did not tell me this until like she came and checked on me postpartum. And I think because I do like to, you know, plan and everything, if I would have known those things, I think it would have been a totally different.

Birth to just knowing like, Oh shoot, he’s not, and the perfect position, but yeah,

KAREN: or he’ll get stuck or I can’t do it now. Yeah, that can be exactly

EMILY: exactly.

KAREN: like these are things you can’t necessarily prepare for right like you can do certain techniques and spinning babies to help baby rotate.

But sometimes, baby just comes the way they come and we have to go with the flow and surrender, which you did.

EMILY: Yep, yep, yeah so he I mean he came earthside and he was happy and everything. He was perfect. So, postpartum was. That was the part that I was the most afraid of was the postpartum healing and having to, you know, care for this little human now while also trying to heal myself.

And again, my husband was like my biggest support and he helped with everything, which was amazing. And It was a little rough but I got through it. You know what I mean? I just I cared for myself. Cause I know if I didn’t care for myself, I couldn’t care for my little one. And it was probably the first two weeks that was the hardest.

Just that whole mind change or the shift of. You know, life and,

KAREN: It’s a big transition that first baby is a massive transition.

EMILY: Yeah. And breastfeeding was a little bit hard in the beginning but we figured it out and we’re doing great now, eight weeks postpartum. I’m super happy. I love being a mom.

It’s great.

KAREN: Oh, that’s beautiful. Yeah. It is hard that the first two months, especially, I will tell you, I feel like are the hardest. So you’re like right on the edge of that cusp of like it getting easier, at least in my experience. I know every mom is different, but I know those first two months of like up all night nursing and figuring out if there’s, you know, latch issues or breastfeeding issues and your hormones are rebalancing and you’re waking up three, four or five times a night to breastfeed.

Like those. Compounding factors and definitely make postpartum difficult and especially as first time moms, where this is the first time we’re walking through this and everything is shifting. So, I mean, good for you for taking care of yourself in that season. And it’s just beautiful. What would you say to any other first time moms preparing , for birth?

EMILY: Probably to get out of your own way. Just, ride the contractions and just, and sounds weird. Enjoy your birth. It’s your first baby and you just need to like, enjoy it and understand what your body is. It’s designed to do and let it do it. And definitely find your support system, whether it’s, you know, your husband, family, a doula find someone to lean on and lean on ’em, don’t, don’t feel bad for leaning on ’em.

KAREN: Hmm. Well that’s so good. for anyone considering pain-free birth course what would you tell them and Would you recommend it?

EMILY: Oh my goodness. Yes. Take the course, know what your body is going to do and what it’s going to go through and understand how to get that oxytocin flowing.

Because once you get it going, like you’re good. And understand that fear cycle to stay away from the fear cycle is. You know, hands down, the best thing that happened during my birth was to understand it and stay away from it and understand how to get the oxytocin and keep it flowing.

KAREN: Yeah, absolutely.

That is the key. Thank you so much, Emily, for sharing your story. On this podcast and with moms how can they reach out to you if they want to connect with you

EMILY: yeah. You can find me on Instagram. Emily underscore the Cairo doc. Feel free to DM me. I love my birth so much.

I would be more than happy to answer questions or anything about it. Especially being in the hospital, cause I know a lot of people are afraid You know, having that hospital birth and I had a great experience in the hospital.

KAREN: We love to hear that over here at pain free birth. I absolutely love it because this is possible when you can control your internal environment and know what’s happening and be in that confident.

safe space. It’s less relevant what’s happening around you. And so I just absolutely love even the positive hospital birth stories and that it doesn’t have to be home birth only that can have these beautiful pain free birth experiences. So thank you for sharing. Thank you for championing, just trusting your body and getting out of the way and trusting on God and, and for sharing your amazing story with us in the community.

EMILY: Oh, well, thanks for Having me and thank you for your course. Thanks for literally all you do for us. Pregnant moms. You’re awesome.

KAREN: Oh, thank you. Well, with that, we’ll see you guys next week.

We inherit fears from society, friends, and family so that by the time we get pregnant we believe our body doesn’t know how to birth without medical assistance (No wonder we have a 30% cesarean rate in the US!). Those doubts can quickly erode your peace and confidence. But there’s a better & pain free way…

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3 Keys to a Pain-Free Birth

Karen gives away her top 3 secrets to a pain free birth, you will not believe it’s free! Come ready to take notes, and don’t forget the tissues. You do not want to miss this!