My Birth Story for Cesarean Awareness Month

I realized recently that even though I created Jhula, a whole business around my love for motherhood, I’ve never shared my birth story. April is cesarean awareness month and even though it’s drawing to a close, I wanted to take a moment to tell a bit more about me since both my children were born via C-Section. 

My first was born 3 weeks early which came as a complete surprise. I had a normal pregnancy and felt great with little nausea or discomfort (except brutal heartburn!). Going in for my 36 week appointment I thought it would be a quick in and out and I’d be back to nesting and getting ready for my water breaking, the way they show it in the movies.

(August 2018, after our baby shower, waiting to meet our girl!)

The doctors told me that she was breech (head up and feet down) and based on the limited amount of amniotic fluid, they thought it would be too dangerous to turn her. I was sent straight to the hospital from the doctors office to confirm this diagnosis, and they scheduled a C-Section for 2 days later. 

My husband and I scrambled to get done whatever we could, including installing our car seat for the first time. I went in for my pre-admission testing the next day and they decided to keep me overnight for monitoring. In the morning we went for the surgery, and 30 minutes later, there she was - all 5lbs 8oz of her.

(August 2018, right after C-Section)

Sometimes I feel like I missed out on the ultimate motherhood experience of having a vaginal birth. It was always in my plan to go through the whole process, rush to the hospital with my partner, count the time between my contractions, push out the baby and have that initial skin to skin moment. Instead, I was calmly rolled into the operating room at a scheduled time, experienced no immediate pain from the birth and couldn’t sit up to hold her right away because I was numb from the waist down. I’m grateful that she was healthy and my recovery was quick, but it doesn’t take away that feeling of missing the experience I had been preparing for.

This post on Instagram I found from @MommysBundle really summarizes how I felt having to shift gears from the original plan.

Deciding for baby #2 to schedule the procedure again instead of trying for a VBAC (vaginal birth after cesarean) was difficult, but ultimately it was the best choice for our family and gave me the most peace of mind. At the end of the day, I am proud and celebrate my body for carrying and giving me two wonderful, healthy children who are the light of my life. 

(October 2023, look how big she is now!)

Tomorrow, on April 30th, I’ll be doing an Instagram Live with Dr. Zazu Cioce about pelvic floor physical therapy and how it is important for anyone - whether you’ve had a natural birth or a C-Section. I never was recommended or thought to try pelvic floor PT after either delivery, and I can’t wait to hear what she has to say about what it could do for moms like me who did not end up having a vaginal birth. If you miss the live session, check out Jhula’s Instagram feed for the replay.