October 10th 2013, was my "ultrasound due date" and it also just so happened to be one of my weekly apt days with Heidi. By this time I was extremely uncomfortable as I'd been having some random cramping and cervical pain for the last few weeks, combine that with no sleep and an extra 30 ish lbs on my body and I was shall we say "done". I mentioned to Heidi that I'd like to have a cervical check done and perhaps a membrane sweep depending on how I was doing. Little did I know how painful one of those checks would be and promptly declined the membrane sweep. Heidi did say that my cervix was soft and thinning and she didn't anticipate it being much longer, however I didn't believe her (the start of me not believing my little man would be arriving soon)
There was a small amount of blood present so she said who knows what could happen in the next while...orders to go home and rest maybe try some natural remedies with the hubby and do a little more waiting. Well at about 1:30 am on October 11th, I mentioned to my mom who was on night shift to tell her boss she may not be going to work the next day, I didn't know what was going on but something felt off. I went back to bed and at 3:30 was woken up with some cramping that would not go away, nothing too consistent but I could no longer fall back asleep so I told my husband Brian that he also would not be going into work. I put Lord of the Rings on the tv to try and distract myself...texted friends, had a few baths. At about 8:00am I had texted Heidi to say that things were starting and we would call when I could not talk or anything through a contraction. My mother came around 10 with some breakfast and slurpees and when I hadn't heard from Heidi we decided to call her, good thing too because she hadn't received my message on account of a phone switchover. She said she'd come when I wanted her to.
At this point my contractions were getting stronger and somewhat closer together but not unbearable; the only thing that made me feel any better was to pace and walk so I did lots of pacing. I believe it was about an hour later we decided Heidi best come and assess the situation, she arrived and said we could go to the hospital anytime....I was excited at the thought of getting into the pool and hopefully relieving some pressure off my sort legs. The car ride to the Royal Alex was at best unbearable....we of course hit some construction traffic and what was probably at most a half hour car ride felt like an eternity. All I wanted was to stand up and walk. We arrived at the labor and delivery ward and all the nursing staff said oh you're with Heidi...right this way. One nurse in particular looked at me straight in the eyes and said don't be scared you're doing great which made me feel very at ease. The time between arriving and getting in the pool are a blur but I do remember feeling very happy to be in the warm water. I believe we arrived at the hospital around 12:30/1:00pm and now it was just a matter of baby making his way down.
I remember Heidi telling me that I'll likely ask for some drugs (which I did) and also doubt that I can get through this (which I did) however with my husband holding my hands and all the encouraging words from Heidi, my mom and sister I just continued on through each painful cramp. I couldn't quite say the specific time but I was exhausted and asked Heidi if there was anything we could do/anything I could have to relieve some of this insane pressure I was feeling...she suggested breaking my water so we did that. The two contractions after that were by far the most painful, but after that I believe I hit transition because I was told that the screaming stopped and I just was in a trance moaning through.
Eventually it was time for me to push and it also was extremely painful. Heidi did another check and discovered that a little flap of my cervix was in the way of his head so that was causing the pain; the next three contractions I had to push against Heidi's finger's while she pushed the piece of cervix behind my baby's head. Once that was done the pushing was a little more tolerable, but they don't call it labor for nothing. For some reason I again didn't believe that he was almost here so Heidi showed me with a mirror and I could see the top of his head crowning. That brought me to the point where I could push through(both mentally and physically) and really bring him to the world.
At 8:01pm Mr Alexander Brian Charles Detwiler arrived and I was in shock that not only was he here finally but I managed to make it through labor without pain meds. It was the most painful and terrifying yet beautiful and liberating moments of my life and I wish I could do it all again exactly as it happened. Our midwife Heidi was/is incredible...not only did she see me through my labor and delivery but she was called out to another shortly after my little man arrived; thankfully Tara was able to stay with us and see me through a slightly scary postpartum experience. There are no words that can express mine and my families gratitude towards both women and I hope to share in the experience with one or both of them again.