My partner and I knew from the beginning of our pregnancy that we wanted to hire midwives and have our baby at home. We didn’t, (and still don’t) feel that birthing a baby is a medical emergency. We simply felt safer laboring and birthing at home. The care and attention I received from Olympia and Tracy made a journey into the unknown a welcomed adventure that I was in charge of rather than a fearful ride I would be going on. The first time my partner and I met Tracy and Olympia we knew that they were a perfect team. They both exude love and caring and with Olympia’s medical savvy and Tracy’s Earth Mama energy I saw them as the Shaman, wise women, guides and coaches I wanted to have at my birth. What I didn’t know was that these two women, along with the assistance of their apprentice Andrea, would be by my side for the most profound journey of my life, (and I’ve taken some trips!). We took Olympia’s birthing class and gained some physical techniques and a better understanding of the physiological process I would be undergoing. What we didn’t expect was that Olympia’s class would invite us to take a deeper look at our preconceived notions about birth and becoming new parents. Her class gave us much to discuss, it gave my partner and I an opportunity to take a deeper look at our fears and hopeful expectations. I was due January 9th, 2016; I went into labor early morning on the 10th.
On the 10th my adventure started by me calling Tracy at 4:45 am to tell her I had lost my mucus plug. She answered the phone with a smile in her voice as if I was calling during standard business hours. My contractions had not become regular and my water had not yet broken so I went back to sleep to get some much needed rest. I am going to attempt to make a long, (27 hours) story short here so bare with me. Tracy and Andrea arrived at some point the next day; their smiling faces were like a light in what had become a fuzzy state. Being in labor had its very aware moments and times where hours went by in a blur of breaths and waves of foreign body sensations. Olympia arrived and her knowledge and confidence made me feel strong. Andrea was like a marathon runner, she just was a constant stream of encouragement and she offered validation and physical support throughout my entire labor. I have to say as I am writing this I am feeling a tremendous surge of love for these three women. They are unsung heroes, guiding women into a journey into themselves.
After hours of trying many different positions, techniques and herbs, I had to be transported to Mad River Hospital. My being transferred wasn’t due to some medical emergency, my body simply got stuck dilated at 9cm for quite a long time and I needed the help of some Pitocin. I was terrified of going to a hospital and it was exactly what my partner and I didn’t want. Olympia rode with my partner and I in our vehicle and was a sentinel of support in what could have been a time of disparity between my partner and I, he really adamantly did not want to go to the hospital and on some level I felt like I had failed. Olympia made me feel secure in a time of huge insecurity. Tracy and Andrea followed in another vehicle, I later found out they were cleaning my home, taking out the garbage and making sure my dogs were safe inside.
These women took care of my whole little family, we didn’t have to ask them or thank them: the three of them just showed up like I could not have ever imagined. I can remember getting out of the car at Mad River Hospital so very vividly, I stopped dead in my tracks and said, “I am scared” my partner and Olympia made me feel heard and felt so that I could walk in those doors feeling like I had back-up, I had four people making sure my voice and my wishes were heard. Fast forward a few more hours of wonky time and learning my body in ways I had never known it and it was almost time for me to start pushing. I had no other interventions besides the Pitocin. No pain meds, no epidural nothing and I had moments of weakness.
Another one of those vivid moments was me looking into Olympia’s eyes and her telling me, “you can do this Carmela” and in her face I saw the strength of a woman who knew because she had been there herself and had guided other women through this same right of passage. I cannot stress enough how these women helped me to cultivate an inner strength I never knew I had. I remember Tracy reminding me of my Hypbirth techniques and cheering my on with such a fierceness: she was mirroring my inner warrior back to me. With a heave and a ho I pushed my baby girl down and out of my body. My partner was still able to catch our baby, something that was hugely important to both of us. Tracy and Olympia were our advocates and regardless of the location I still feel like we had our baby the way we wanted to, with the midwives we chose. It has been a more life changing experience than I could have ever imagined. They were readily available to answer any and all questions day and night. When I was fearful they eagerly helped me work through my concerns and quell my fears with knowledge.
My partner and I, without any reservation, recommend these two women to any woman getting ready to embark on the transformation to being a mother.
After hours of trying many different positions, techniques and herbs, I had to be transported to Mad River Hospital. My being transferred wasn’t due to some medical emergency, my body simply got stuck dilated at 9cm for quite a long time and I needed the help of some Pitocin. I was terrified of going to a hospital and it was exactly what my partner and I didn’t want. Olympia rode with my partner and I in our vehicle and was a sentinel of support in what could have been a time of disparity between my partner and I, he really adamantly did not want to go to the hospital and on some level I felt like I had failed. Olympia made me feel secure in a time of huge insecurity. Tracy and Andrea followed in another vehicle, I later found out they were cleaning my home, taking out the garbage and making sure my dogs were safe inside.
These women took care of my whole little family, we didn’t have to ask them or thank them: the three of them just showed up like I could not have ever imagined. I can remember getting out of the car at Mad River Hospital so very vividly, I stopped dead in my tracks and said, “I am scared” my partner and Olympia made me feel heard and felt so that I could walk in those doors feeling like I had back-up, I had four people making sure my voice and my wishes were heard. Fast forward a few more hours of wonky time and learning my body in ways I had never known it and it was almost time for me to start pushing. I had no other interventions besides the Pitocin. No pain meds, no epidural nothing and I had moments of weakness.
Another one of those vivid moments was me looking into Olympia’s eyes and her telling me, “you can do this Carmela” and in her face I saw the strength of a woman who knew because she had been there herself and had guided other women through this same right of passage. I cannot stress enough how these women helped me to cultivate an inner strength I never knew I had. I remember Tracy reminding me of my Hypbirth techniques and cheering my on with such a fierceness: she was mirroring my inner warrior back to me. With a heave and a ho I pushed my baby girl down and out of my body. My partner was still able to catch our baby, something that was hugely important to both of us. Tracy and Olympia were our advocates and regardless of the location I still feel like we had our baby the way we wanted to, with the midwives we chose. It has been a more life changing experience than I could have ever imagined. They were readily available to answer any and all questions day and night. When I was fearful they eagerly helped me work through my concerns and quell my fears with knowledge.
My partner and I, without any reservation, recommend these two women to any woman getting ready to embark on the transformation to being a mother.
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