Birth Stories

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Sorted by birth setting.

Birth Center births ~ Hospital births ~ Birth Rapes

Home Births

signifies birth without paid attendants

Jes' Birth of Veda-Lou ~

Jes' next birth was unassisted as well but includes the addition of a birthing pool, Jes' sister and (of course) Veda's big sister Dorothy.

Jes' Birth of Dorothy ~

After a conventional hospital birth left Jes feeling cold, she planned an unassisted couple's birth for her next child. Her husband's version of their daughter's birth follows hers.

Emma's Birth of Chloë ~

Emma has posted her own page that she has graciously allowed us to link to. A detailed photo essay of a gentle home birth. The images are graphic but amazing. Emma details the preparation of her placenta and the beginning of her journey in elimination communication (the "other" EC, we call it here) as well.

Caroline's Birth of Son ~

After her midwife helped her correct her preeclampsia/toxemia and a posterior lie, Caroline and her partner prepared for an unassisted birth that Caroline describes as "amazing". However, following her birth Caroline experienced heavy bleeding and went to an ER. That experience was almost as amazing in an entirely different and frightening way. That story is posted here.

Krista's Birth of Kaitlynn ~

Krista's first two births left her feeling something was missing but the unassisted couples birth of her daughter restored her faith in birth and her body. 26 hours of back labor followed by a healing, gentle birth.

Wendy's Birth of Saegan ~

Wendy's second birth didn't go quite the way she'd planned. It didn't follow the same pattern her first labor did and she was led to drive herself to the ER afterwards to deal with a retained placenta. A unique tale of an unassisted birth that confused and educated, not only Wendy, but some hospital staff people as well.

Kimberley's Birth of Aquene ~

Kimberley's 8th child and 7th daughter was born 15 days after her "due date" in a home waterbirth that was so gentle that Aquene fell asleep right afterwards.

Amanda's Birth of Daphne ~

A quick unassisted birth followed by a hospital transfer for help in birthing the placenta.

Anna's Birth of Alya ~

Anna's dearest wish was granted when her precious daughter was born at home while her husband was at work. A hospital transfer "just in case" resulted in a manual exam that hurt even more than the birth itself and praise and astonishment on the behalf of the impressed hospital staff.

Talia's Birth of Grace ~

After a beautiful Blessingway ceremony, Talia gives birth to her 36.5 week old daughter in an empowered waterbirth with her husband catching. Due to little Grace's slightly premature lungs and some jaundice issues, she is transferred to the hospital not just once but twice before being welcomed back to the home she was lovingly born into.

Melissa's Birth of Sarah ~

(This story is on Melissa's own website and is linked to with her kind permission.)

A UBAC waterbirth with pictures.

Rosalind's Birth of Alex ~

Rosalind's story was published in Compleat Mother Magazine as "Attachment Parenting in the NICU". A freebirthed baby born without meconium staining is detained by the NICU after being declared "cold, dusky and having some difficulty breathing" at a routine (non-emergency) OB visit at nine hours old.

There is no proof that this baby was ill at all, and yet, he and his parents spent one week in NICU anyway.

Photos with this story.

Jennifer's Birth of Sariah ~

Jennifer's 5th child was welcomed in a family waterbirth. She experienced a prolonged early labor due to a tipped uterus and her placenta tore, unnoticed, during the birth, leaving a portion retained until the next evening. No problem. ; )

Diane's Birth of Charlie ~

Diane's 3rd son arrived on her 2nd son's birthday. Her husband was a tower of strength during her early morning labor, in and out of water, and the family birth.

Micklyn's Birth of daughter ~

Micklyn's second unassisted VBAC (UBAC) was everything she'd prayed it would be; early, gentle and uncomplicated. A family waterbirth after such a short labor that it took the mama by suprise.

Stacey's Birth of Eliot ~

Stacey's fourth child and first freebirth, Eliot arrived in the tub in the middle of the night. Stacey got a little woozy after birth but all went well.

Eugenie's Birth of Tygo ~

One of my new favorite birth stories! An unassisted birth after a Cesarean birth (UBAC) brings several challenges to Eugenie and her birth team. Several days of labor and a few scares later, Tygo is born to a triumphant mama. "Lack of progress", concerns about the baby's life force and a slow placenta are all overcome during this "epic" birth story. Don't miss this one!

Nate's Birth of Douglas ~

A Father's eye view of the empowering simple birth of his first child. A straight-forward first birth at home has made a home birth advocate out of this Dad.

Jamie's Birth of Jeremy ~

Jamie has a secret to tell us. The delightful birth shared only by her closest family is finally a tale she feels ready to tell.

Tiffany's Birth of Emily ~

A focused attempt to induce labor naturally results in a home water birth the next day. "A wonderful birth experience."

Tanya's Birth of Faerin ~

The waiting for Faerin to be ready to born was the challenge Tanya faced. In the end, Faerin knew the perfect time to be born, she just had to teach Tanya to trust first.

Tanya's Birth of Ariana ~

Before Tanya gave birth to Faerin, she had Ariana with midwives. A typically glowing account of her homebirth is revisited later with new eyes that see what was missed before. A perfect example of how midwives can affect birth and how blind we can be to it.

Chris' Birth of Julia ~

Chris' 7th pregnancy began much like the others but, upon discovering the email list cbirth, her birth plans began to shift. This family's unabirth was registered in France without a problem.

Keara's Birth of Isabel ~

Keara makes birth sound so easy. An easy birth followed by a long wait for a placenta that Keara herself describes as "the most perfect birth experience".

Susan's Birth of Tala ~

For 3 weeks, Susan's water leaked and she monitored her health as she waited for Tala to arrive. One very quick birth later this family understands that ruptured membranes are no reason to give up on the birth your baby wants.

Bea's Birth of Eudora ~

A beautiful, painless birth caught on video, Eudora was nearly born before Beatrice realized she was in labor. Birth with older siblings present.

Bea's Birth of Albion ~

After her daughter's birth Bea thought she knew what to expect but baby Albion proved that every birth is different and, even though mother knows best, she might not always realize it at the time. Family birth.

Ginger's Birth of Zachary ~

After 3 weeks on bedrest due to concerns over preterm labor, Ginger enjoyed an empowering home birth with her family around her. Baby Zachary's slight breathing problems caused enough concern to transfer him to the NICU for just over a day before returning to the home and family he was born into.

Marge's Birth of Moira ~

Marge planned to birth under the stars in a birth pool but her body had other plans. Her husband, Bill, is a nurse by trade and had his own issues leading up to this birth. The delight over the choice they made to birth together continues to empower them long after the physical event ends.

Judith's Birth of Lia ~

Born after 17 years of trying to conceive, Judith drew on her rich history of watching the American home birth "movement" evolve when she brought her daughter, Lia, Earthside. Judith is a firm believer in honoring fertility cycles and moderates an email list of women interested in overcoming fertility issues "naturally".

Jenn's Birth of Gabi ~

"I am so happy and so in love and this is how it's meant to be...." Family birth with a family photo.
: )

Kaire's Birth of Olyvia ~

Kaire's first child was born in a hospital but her second was born at home. After her empowering water birth Kaire reflects on the differences between the two and recommends home birth to anyone inclined towards it.

Kaire's Birth of Tiana ~

Kaire's third birth wasn't happening nearly fast enough for her at first so she tried a few labor enhancing tricks. Something must have worked because her labor was so enjoyable that she stated the next day, "if it was always like that, I would want to be having babies all the time!!"

Su's Birth of Heaven ~

Su's first birth was a home birth transfer that ended in a Cesarean after over a week of broken membranes. Her second child was born at home in a triumphant 6 hour UBAC.

Liana's Birth of Zane ~

A planned water birth that changed direction when Liana realized that water wasn't what she wanted. A simple and profound family birth.

Christina's Birth of Vladimir ~

A very quick and simple couple's water birth brings Christina her second son.

Joanna's Birth of Cassidy ~

Joanna planned to labor alone this time and she got her wish with her husband racing in just in time to catch his daughter.

Joanna's Birth of Jaysun ~

A family water birth with a friend/doula for emotional support. Now Jaysun has a unabirthed little sister as well.

Bren's Birth of Crescent ~

"This is about birth as an emergence, not an emergency." Beautiful couples birth.

Byn's Birth of Abyni ~

After a week of anticipation, Abyni was born in a birthing pool with her entire family around her. Despite the lengthy labor, the birth itself went fairly quickly.

Linda's Birth of Willow ~

Written as if she was journaling straight through her expansions. An amazing story of a normal birth.

Ril's Birth of Anjohli ~

Anjohli surprised her parents by showing up 5 weeks early. Unprepared for labour, they still had an empowering water birth at home for their first child. A "quick trip to the hospital" for a newborn check turns into a 5 day ordeal.

Tammy's Birth of Mariah ~

As the neighbors party into the night Tammy heads home to have a baby. Some folks really know how to have fun. :)

Birth Center Births

Kya's Birth of Faerin ~

Written nearly 11 years after the events in question this story isn't as much about birth as it is about my path and the reasons I ended up obsessed with childbirth.

My first baby was born under a cloud of confusion and fear. An adoption that didn't turn out quite the way I expected.

Kya's Birth of Benjamin ~

My second birth, finally. A long and moderately detailed account of my birth rape. If you've ever wondered why I'm not a big fan of midwives, this story will explain some of my prejudice.

Kya's Birth of John ~

My third birth was a candlelit water birth at a Free-Standing Birth Center. It convinced me that birthing can be glorious even under less than ideal conditions. I still want my home birth though...

Hospital Births

Nichole's birth of son ~

Nichole's first birth wasn't empowering, so she was determined to make her second birth different. She enjoyed this birth so much, she's making a doula career out of helping other women find what she found, that hospital births can be empowering too!

Sophie's birth of Scarlett ~

A second VBAC, when her first one had resulted in so much damage to the cervix that no doctor could assure Sophie she could even dilate this time, goes extremely well. Now that Sophie has proven that her body still works, she's planning a homebirth to welcome Scarlett's little sibling (coming soon).

Jenni's birth of Jack ~

A planned, empowered hospital birth. Jenni offers us a glimpse of her first three births before heading to the hospital to birth her fourth baby. Despite some interference from a "chatty nurse", Jenni births her posterior, cord wrapped son on her own terms. She even opens the "chatty nurse's" eyes to the power of natural childbirth in the process.

Christina's Birth of Ana ~

Christina planned a freebirth for her second child and transported to the hospital after 2 days of a difficult labor. Her daughter's birth is one example of how unexpected situations can change birth plans and how empowered birthing is a matter of the mind, not just the body.

Siria's Birth of Shalani ~

Skyia's little sister was born in an empowering planned cesarean birth. An empowered birth isn't about birthing at home, it's about birthing on your own terms, not someone else's. I am delighted to be able to share this story with our readers. Thank you so much Siria!

Birth Rapes

Jennifer's Birth of daughter ~

Jennifer's mother thought her birth was "amazing", but it left Jennifer feeling it was anything but. An almost textbook description of the cascade of interventions experienced in a "normal" hospital birth.

More birth stories to come!