Sophie
The Birth of
Ari Thomas Geoffrey Shannon
Born on the 14.06.2022
3.412g (7 pounds 8 ounces)
50cm long
Born at 37 weeks and 6 days
Sophie is a lovely and soft-spoken young woman, who is awaiting the birth of her first baby. Sophie has always been maternal and looked forward to the possibility of being a mother one day. As Sophie moved into her 30’s, and after much thought, she decided to start her family journey as a sole parent.
After only one cycle of IVF, Sophie receives the news she has been waiting for.
There is a whole lot of love and joy awaiting Sophie and her family as they anticipate meeting their newest member at the end of June. Sophie’s fur babies, Lucy, and Tom are in for a surprise.
Sophie is in good hands with her dad, Geoff, who is a retired Pediatrician, and her mum, Annie, who is a retired midwife. Throw in me as her doula, and we are an awesome foursome.
Sophie kept fit with her Pilates throughout her pregnancy, but this didn’t stop baby Ari from laying in a breech position. No matter what Sophie tried, he wasn’t moving. An external cephalic version (where an obstetrician places their hands on the outside of your belly and attempts to turn the baby) wasn’t an option for Sophie as she has what is called a septate uterus. https://wb.md/3xNS7DY.
Sophie was finding it mentally challenging at times, working full-time, and trying to get her head around preparing for a physiological labour and the possibility of a cesarean birth.
As Sophie’s pregnancy moves towards 36 weeks, Sophie makes the call that she would like to birth her baby by cesarean section. Sophie’s intuition was strong, and she knew she needed to prepare to birth her baby in this way. Her obstetrician was very supportive, and Sophie has a date booked for Wednesday 22nd of June. A gentle, family-centred cesarean where Sophie can have all her wishes: lowered drapes as her baby is born, delayed cord clamping, immediate skin-to-skin and vaginal seeding. Sophie still has choices, and it is important to focus on what you can control. Sometimes birth doesn’t go as we had been planning for. This doesn’t mean that you can’t experience a positive and empowering birth with your plan B. We are all excited about Sophie’s birth day.
“I never planned on having a c-section, my only plan was to deliver a healthy baby no matter what it took.” - Lauren Tingley
Did I say that labour and birth are very unpredictable? I caught up with Sophie, her mum, and her dad on the 13th of June. Sophie was in good spirits and had just gone on maternity leave.
She was still working on finishing off loose ends, hoping to wind down and focus on resting before her baby makes his debut. We discuss and chat about the importance of postpartum support and what life with a new baby may look like. Sophie’s mum, Annie, does mention that Sophie had lost some of her mucus plug a few days before. I am surprised because Sophie is having no other signs that labour is imminent. We have a bit of a laugh about it.
All this talk about Sophie losing her mucus plug does have me going home and amending Sophie’s birth plan and sending it back to her that night. I feel we needed to be prepared just in case we needed to share her birth preferences and wishes before the 22nd of June.
At the stroke of midnight on the 14th of June, my phone with the magical crystal labour ringtone chimes. At first, I thought it must’ve been my client that is due on the 24th of June as I also caught up with her and she looked ready to have her baby. But no, it was Sophie. Her waters had broken. My goodness, this little baby is choosing his own birthday. I send Sophie the number for the labour ward so she can call them and let them know we are coming in. I drive and collect Sophie. Sophie’s mum and dad will meet us there.
There are some positives to going into spontaneous labour. This means that both Sophie and her baby have all the labour and birth hormones that are present in physiological labour. An extra surge of labour and birth hormones will support bonding, breast milk production, and hormones that prepare the baby for the stress of birth and life outside the womb. A perfect start for both.
Your baby's birth day is one of the most memorable days of your life. Birth is beautiful, mind-blowing, and intense. It's exciting and life-changing. And it's coming up soon for you, mama!
We settle into labour ward around 12.45 am. Sophie is having mild contractions and the baby looks very happy on the monitor. An ultrasound confirms that Ari is still in a breech position. We must wait now for surgery to be free so that Sophie can meet her baby. We pass time chatting, listening to relaxing music that bizarrely keeps turning itself up and I give Sophie a foot massage to help her relax. It’s not every day that you meet your new baby - the first blind date where you know you are about to meet the love of your life.
Birth is powerful. I will let it empower me.
Sophie had shared with me earlier that she would like her mum, Annie, to accompany her to theatre to be with her as she welcomes her baby into the world. I feel this will be a beautiful moment where a mother is present to witness her cherished child become a mother for the first time - holding space for Sophie to feel loved and safe in her mother’s presence. Birth will never ask you to be fearless…just to be brave. My heart will go with Sophie as I know that she will be that and more.
I recommend that if I am to stay with Sophie for the day after she is back in her room, I should go home and get some sleep. Sophie’s mum and dad will stay with her now and I will come back later in the morning.
As Geoff and I say our goodbyes for now, I trust that Sophie is in good hands with both her mum and her chosen Obstetrician who happens to be not only amazing at her job, but also a genuinely caring woman.
At 7.22 am, Annie messages me announcing that a beautiful young man made his debut at 5.15 am. Mum and baby are both well.
While Sophie’s birth story may have looked different than what she imagined, this moment remained the same, a breathtaking, beautiful, and powerful reunion.
When I spoke about Sophie having a strong intuition that her son wouldn’t turn… she was correct - he would never have had the space to turn. When the cesarean was being performed, her Obstetrician discovered her septum condition was not a mild case as it has been diagnosed. To make it simple, instead of having a uterus shaped like an egg, Sophie’s uterus was more like a love heart, meaning that Ari was only occupying one side of her uterus. This also shines a light on the amazing job her body and her baby have done to keep him in the womb hotel for as long as she did (as miscarriage or a pre-term baby become much more likely). This little boy was meant to be here.
I would be heading up at around 9 am to spend the day with Sophie and her sweet little boy. I arrived at the LGH with my Nepali newborn mother’s rice pudding, lactation balls and date milk for Sophie. I am greeted by a smiling Sophie cradling the most handsome little boy with lots of dark hair, and such a gorgeous little cherry-red full mouth. A complete bundle of love. I can’t stop smiling.
Thank you, Sophie, for inviting me to be a part of your special birth story. You are an inspiring young woman and the most natural mother. I know that you will navigate all the little and big challenges that come your way. When we are tested, we find inner strengths and resilience that we didn’t know we even possessed. That’s what love will do to us xxxx
I look forward to supporting you in the weeks that come. Welcome to Motherhood! It’s one exhilarating ride.