Laboring at Home

We're still at home right now, and Lisa's labor is progressing well. We went to the hospital for a quick exam last night so they could see how Lisa was doing. The baby is doing great, and Lisa was almost 3cm dilated. That's good progress considering how erratic Lisa's contractions have been. The midwife also gave Lisa an Ambien to help her sleep, so she could conserve her strength for today.

About 3:15 this morning the contracts started up again, about 5 minutes apart. We checked in with the hospital, and decided to stay at home a while longer. Our doula Jan got here a little after 5am, and Lisa's been laboring extremely well. Lisa has been able to get some sleep between contractions, and the contractions are getting stronger. Jan has been a great help getting Lisa to relax and deal with the contractions. Jan has got Lisa in a good mental place, so Lisa has been able to relax between the contractions. At times it has seemed like Lisa has almost been in a trance. This is what hypnobirthing is supposed to be like.

I'm so proud of how Lisa is doing right now. I always knew that she had this strength within her, but I think Lisa is a little surprised in herself. We've talked about natural childbirth a lot, but I think that deep down, Lisa has doubted her ability to do it. I think that her confidence has increased so much as the night has turned to day. She's the best!