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| Roman Tyler and Hazel Reid |
So the twin birth did happen. Oh, it happened!…this morning at 10:26 am and 10:27 am. They came only 17 hours after my post yesterday.
I really don’t have words to even describe the JOY that filled the air as this birth was taking place. The birth was PHENOMENAL! That’s really the only word I can even think of. PHENOMENAL!
My dear friend contacted me late afternoon yesterday to let me know she was contracting but they were only slightly uncomfortable. No pain. She was contracting about every 10 minutes. I contacted all the other WONDERFUL midwives who were supporting and helping. I let them know I believed the birth would be happening very soon.
On Monday, I felt inspired that my friend would deliver in the next couple days. So when she texted me telling me she was contracting, I wasn’t surprised in the least. After receiving the texts from her, I recommended that she try and sleep just in case labor started up full force in the next few hours or even the middle of the night. The last text I received from her yesterday was about 10 pm.
I ended up not sleeping very well last night expecting that she would call me at anytime. We had our weekly prenatal set for today at 11am. I awoke this morning and frantically cleaned my house before prenatals.
At 10 am, my phone rang. It was my dear friend. She was calling to let me know that her water had just broke and her contractions were finally getting a bit more intense. I was EXCITED! I asked if she wanted me to come now and she said yes…that she thought it was time.
I spent the next 15 minutes quickly getting everything together and loaded in my car. I called the 4 other people who were going to attend the birth with me. At 10:15 am, I hopped in my car and headed on my 45 minutes drive to her home.
Within 10 minutes, to my GREAT dismay, I hit traffic caused by all the LAME construction in our area. I was still in the process of making phone calls for all the attendants when I soon realized I had a voice mail. I rushed to get off the phone and listen to my voice mail. The time the voice mail stated it was sent was 10:26 am. I then proceeded to hear my friend’s husband’s voice on the other end with LOUD baby cries in the back ground. Her husband was stating that Hazel, the first baby had been born. I was aghast!
I called her husband back immediately only to find that both babies had been born. Tyler was as calm as could be, letting me know (through the exceeding loud cries of both babies) that Hazel and Roman were doing GREAT! Both were strong, crying, and pink!
As I calculated the time frames from water breaking and intense contractions to birth….it had only been 26 minutes! You read that right….26 minutes from beginning of labor to birth and to top it off…. with a set of TWINS!
It still took me another half an hour to get to their home. During that time, I talked with her husband to help him know what to look for with any signs of postpartum bleeding (which there were NONE) and how to help her release the placenta. By the time I arrived, both babies were being held close, skin to skin, in the arms of their mother with the placenta sitting in a bowl between her legs.
This was one of the most MAGNIFICENT scenes I’d seen in a very long time. Truly GLORIOUS to behold. It was written all over my friends face, the AWE of the experience and the LOVE she felt at the moment. Once we entered her space, the endorphins, the oxytocin….the CONNECTION that was palpable we could ALL feel! We sat for a moment and basked in it. I’m still relishing in it!
Both babies were doing perfectly! Pink as could be…lying peacefully in their mother’s arms. Ready and willing to latch on and nurse at any moment, which we helped to make happen within the few minutes after we arrived.
I will now reiterate what I stated yesterday….THIS….THIS description of the WONDERFUL birth above is how birth should be. I understand that this is not always the case and accept that but to believe anything else about birth, about the GLORY surrounding it….is truly a lie!
My dear friend worked VERY hard to prepare herself for this experience. She used her pregnancy as a time to open herself to all potentialities, growth, shifts, and changes. She opened her heart to her babies. She opened her heart to herself. She opened her heart to the WHOLE experience. She pushed away the lies and myths about birth and fully removed them from her psyche. She trusted the Divine. She trusted BIRTH!
Please check back soon because she will be writing up her pregnancy/birth experience and I will be posting it here. We will also be video taping her for future film footage in which we are in the process of putting together.
My dear friend’s situation is not unique. Women all over the world are trusting birth and birthing in peace and bliss. YOU CAN TOO! If there is anything you take from this post, I hope its a recognition that YOU have all you need inside you to birth your babies in UTTER LOVE, PEACE and CALM!
In peace,
Rachel
This is amazing Rachel. I am so happy for T and W. What a wonderful experience to get to deliver your own babies in the quiet and serenity of your own home. That is one powerful woman.
My husband and I (Tyler’s Mom and Dad) are still shocked and amazed at how this birth took place! I, particularly, am in awe of how Whitney delivered these adorable twins and of Tyler to have delivered them! They are my heroes! We visited the family shortly after the births and expected to see a bit of chaos, given the fact that they also have two other young children. To our surprise and wonder, everything was calm and peaceful. Whitney was walking around as if she had not just given birth, the older children were playing quietly and marveling over their new brother and sister, the twins were bundled up together sleeping quietly and Tyler was relaxing with a gigantic grin on his face I think, marveling about his growing family and what they had just accomplished.
Bill and I are very proud of them and what they have accomplished. May they continue to be blessed. We love them so much!
Sue, You have an AMAZING daughter and I felt honored to be able to work with them. To feel their LOVE and SUPPORT of each other and this pregnancy. To watch them take FULL responsibility and educate themselves on the risks and benefits of home birth and then move forward making a conscious decision. Their birth was nothing short of a miracle. A miracle they created because of the faith in themselves, their faith in each other, their faith in birth and their faith in their babies! I am still in AWE over the whole experience. Thank you for sharing you comment. It was BEAUTIFUL!