This was my first experience giving birth. What I really felt at that time was curiosity about what might happen next. I was a little afraid, but I was totally ready for labor. I had known about gentle/natural birth since I was got pregnant and I had already begun to find out about gentle birth. My husband and I chose a midwife and clinic that supported gentle birth, near my house, as my care provider.
December 8th, 7 am
I saw some blood spots on my panties, but I hadn't felt any contractions yet. Shortly afterwards, we went to the clinic and the midwife did a vaginal check. I was one centimeter dilated. She told me that I should walk around as a natural induction. So we went to the university campus. We walked around the campus for hours, and attended a reunion, that incidentally was being held at that time, until almost night. Still there were no contractions.
9pm
The contractions came. I felt them, but they were not intense. They came about every ten to twenty minutes, and the duration was less than one minute.
December 9th, morning.
The contractions were gone. I felt nothing, but still saw some blood spots (At the time, I didn't know what it was but from the AMANI training in my second pregnancy, I now know that it was the mucus plug). We went to the clinic again to do a vaginal exam, hoping that the dilation had increased. But I was still one centimeter dilated. We went to the mall and continued to walk around. At noon, we went back to the clinic but I was still one centimeter dilated. We decided to stay at the clinic until my mother came from another city.
9 pm
I started to feel contractions just like the night before, but more intense.
December, 10th, morning
Again, the contractions disappeared. I tried natural ways of induction such as walking around, exercising using the birthing ball, nipple stimulation, kissing with my husband, and anything that the midwife suggested to do. At this point I was three centimeters dilated, but still, the contractions came and went. At night, the contractions become more intense and almost every minute, with the duration lasting for more than one minute.
2 am
I was five centimeters dilated.
4 am
I was fully dilated and I felt like I wanted to poop.
5:20 am
The baby was born spontaneously, naturally, and alhamdulillah, gently. My breast milk was available right after the baby born, so I began to directly breastfeed my baby. I exclusively breastfed without any supplementary food until the baby was six months old, and continued breastfeeding with supplementary food until the baby was two years old. Alhamdulillah, for everything.
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