Jade's Story

Ofelia June Rogers was born Saturday, February 8th, 2025 at 11:53 AM, but our story begins that Thursday before. JM and I went back to The Birth Center for a follow-up ultrasound on June's kidney. She had unilateral hydronephrosis, which we were keeping an eye on. Fortunately, the kidney issue was resolved, but we found out the placenta was starting to give out. Jamie informed us it was time to get this baby moving! What a surprise to us. We weren't expecting the baby until the 22nd. 

Jamie offered a membrane sweep, and I accepted. Turns out I was already dilated to a 4! Excited by the thought of the baby coming over the weekend, we updated our parents. JM's mom and dad, overzealous as they were, headed to Midland immediately. I told them to wait, but of course, they didn't. That Thursday evening was uneventful. I kept hoping something would happen, but alas, it did not. Having a natural birth was important to me. We decided that was the way to go after a chilling experience with our ex-OBGYN. As a 3rd-year medical student, I had more knowledge and experience than most people in my situation, but of course, I had never given birth before, so I didn't know what it was supposed to feel like or what to expect. My thoughts were racing with the unknown. 

I went and got a pedicure Friday morning despite objections from JM. I just had to have pink toes for the birth! We went into The Birth Center again that afternoon for another membrane sweep. I decided before that I would do an enema. My mom told me it should really help get things moving, and I think it did! After the membrane sweep on Friday, I started to have irregular contractions. I sat on my pink yoga ball in the living room of our one-bedroom apartment and timed them. They started to get closer together and stronger, but it wasn't that painful yet. We called our doula and my mom and updated them. My mom decided then she would come. 

We continued to be patient, and the contractions started to pick up more. I was walking in circles around the island in our kitchen. I would have a stronger one and sometimes a little one right after. I learned later this was called coupling. At this point, it was like 7–8 PM. I knew I was in labor, but it still wasn't that bad. Once active labor began, I found myself sitting on the toilet. I really don't remember how I got there. It was later in the night, and I, JM, both our moms and our doula, were all in our tiny bathroom watching me labor on the toilet. 

Active labor feels like you're on laughing gas. Aware but pretty much out of it. I could hear people talking, yet I was in my own world, not really interacting. Labor land is real! At about 1 AM, everyone decided it was time to go to The Birth Center. I got off the toilet and saw all the mucus plug bits I had left behind. Gross. We walked outside and down the stairs. I remember being so cold I was shivering. JM drove us to The Birth Center, and we met Katy there. I cried when I saw her. I was so happy she was there to help. She checked me, and to my horror, I was only dilated to a 5. She was the one who recognized my contraction pattern was coupling, which indicated the baby wasn't in a good position to really help dilate the cervix. We did some maneuvers to help move her around, and my labor surprisingly stopped. At this point, it was about 3 AM, so we decided it was best to go home and try and get some rest. 

Unfortunately, I didn't really rest much. My labor continued as I lay in bed with JM. I was having contractions like every 4 minutes, and it really helped to have pressure on my back. Poor JM, he was so sleepy. He asked me, "Baby, I just need to close my eyes for like 15-20 minutes," and I said, "Okay, as long as you can push on my back." LOL. He graciously complied. At about 5:30 AM, I couldn't lay in bed anymore, so I got up and went to the bathroom. I stood there leaning over the counter as my contractions got stronger. I had a death grip on my hairbrush, trying to divert the pain elsewhere. 8 AM came around, and we decided to go back to The Birth Center. The ride was excruciating. Every turn and tiny bump was just so uncomfortable. It seemed to go on forever. We arrived, and Katy rechecked me. I was at a seven. Yay! She offered to break my water to move things along, and I thought that was probably best. 

I had been in labor for almost 20 hours, and I was ready for it to be over. I asked if it was going to hurt, and she said no but that it would most likely make the contractions more intense. She broke my water. It was very warm and thankfully clear! After that, we moved to the bathtub. Apparently, that was supposed to help ease the pain. It did for about 10 minutes. Contractions started to pick up again, and I rolled around in the water, moving back and forth from my back to all 4s. JM sat at the top of the tub and held my head. He was so supportive. After a while I wanted out of the tub. Originally, I thought a water birth would be nice, but I didn't last long enough. I remember saying, "I don't know how much longer I can do this." 

I moved over to the bed, lying on my side. I would have a contraction, and my body started pushing for me. It was a crazy sensation; I couldn't help it. I wasn't completely dilated yet, so it felt like I was hitting a wall. Very uncomfortable. That was probably the worst of all of it. I know I apologized for being so loud. Katy rechecked me and said I was at a 10 and ready to push. I told her I didn't want to push on my back, so, unprompted, I quickly got out of bed and started to push, standing up. I was leaning over the side of the bed, and JM sat on his knees across from me and held my hands as I squatted and pushed through each contraction. I was told pushing feels good and is a relief. That was not my experience. Thankfully, I only pushed for 40 minutes. 

I remember people saying things about seeing her head and all her hair. Near the end, it really started to burn. I knew her head was about to come out. Katy told me to try tiny pushes and let her stretch me, which I was able to do! And it actually kept me from tearing! I felt her head pop out, and with one more push came the rest of her body. Relief fell over me so much that I forgot I had a baby to hold! 

Katy reached through from behind me and handed me my beautiful baby girl. She weighed 6 pounds even. "We did it," I said. JM stood beside me, and we both had tears in our eyes. They got us onto the bed, and JM cut her cord. She had breathed in a little fluid, so they put her on a CPAP for a bit. It didn't take much time, and her O2 saturation was perfect. They handed her back to me, and I got a chance to nurse. She latched on very easily. I was so happy! 

One great thing about an unmediated birth is right afterward. I was able to get up and walk around with no problem. I showered, changed clothes, ate lunch, and felt great! We got to go home a couple of hours later, which was wonderful considering they make first-time moms stay 2 days at a hospital. All in all, I never remember feeling helpless, like I wouldn't make it. Undoubtedly, it was hard, but I had great support, and my experience was beautiful. We love our little baby more than anything.