Reggie Reed Lamb's birth story
I’m laying here in my bed with cabbage leaves in my bra praying I don’t get mastitis! If you read Lola’s birth story you might remember I ended up in the hospital for 5 days because I got mastitis soo badly so i’ve been trying to really take it easy post partum and spend a lot of the day giving my boobs some TLC. My approach to breast feeding - or I guess dealing with engorgement has changed a lot since I had Ruby. I’ve learned more about it, and what I did with Ruby seemed to make things worse (I also got mastitis with her but not as bad.) I’ll share what I have found works for any mammas looking for help here, along with supplements I took this pregnancy, what my diet looked like and how to have that first post partum poop..but let’s get to the birth story first <3
I had both of my girls 3 days early, and both on a Sunday. I assumed because of that I would go early, but 3 days early wasn’t a Sunday…so I wasn’t sure what would happen. I actually was nervous I was going to go into labour right before Christmas (Christmas eve was a Sunday!) because I was having consistent Braxton Hicks all day. It seemed really early for me to have the baby, but they say #3 is a wild card, so I was like maybe it will happen?! I didn’t want to go into labour that early because I wanted to be able to do all the fun Christmas things and be with the girls Christmas morning because they were so excited! Luckliy they didn’t turn into anything and the holidays were so relaxing, we were able to get so organized and enjoy so much time with family :)
As my due date got closer I still wasn’t in a super rush…but the anticipation was slightly killing me. I don’t like surprises and it’s hard for me to just be like okay this baby can literally come ANYTIME! To be honest I wasn’t as much in a rush to have the baby because I don’t think I felt prepared for 3 kids haha. On top of that, I got SO sick the week before my due date and I did not want to go into labour in that state! I had a double ear infection - I’ve never had pain like that before! I lost my taste, my head was pounding, I felt nauseous, exhausted, just overall very unwell and on top of that was barely getting any sleep. I would start to feel fine, and then by the afternoon I would feel sick again. So maybe Reggie was just being a sweet little boy and staying inside til I felt better <3 Pregnancy wise, I felt totally fine, my back was hurting less that it had for most of my pregnancy, and I just felt good being pregnant still!
My sister and brother in law came over the night after my due date to play their favourite game, Wingspan, and I had consistent contractions throughout the whole game so I was thinking, okay maybe this is it! I wanted my sister there ( she was at both of my other births) so I thought I would be calling her that night! Scott and I made sure we had everything ready to go for the hospital bag then went to bed. Neither of us slept well because we thought it was going to happen…but nothing did (besides the fact that I had contractions all night too!)
So we just kept going day by day… and nothing happened. I was feeling better by the end of the week and felt ready to have the baby. There are so many “tricks” out there to help you go into labour, but apparently sex is one of the only things actually works, but even that wasn’t working for me haha. Baby boy must have been very comfy in there!! Having sex just seemed to make me have contractions that made me feel like I was going into labour but didn’t. One of the days it made me contract all day long…but by the evening it stopped completely. At that point I was like, there is literally nothing I can do, he’s going to come when he’s ready. But what is he waiting for? haha.
I had gotten sweeps with my last two kids, but this time I wasn’t sure about getting one - I just wanted to leave it to naturally happen and because I had been sick I didn’t want to go into labour at that point. But by the time I was 41 weeks I was like okay, I don’t want to get to 42 weeks so let’s just try. I met my midwife at the clinic on a Saturday for a sweep and she’s like “This might actually not do anything because your cervix is like extremely soft and you are already 6 cm.” So I went home and was slightly crampy that day but nothing really. My friend had told me I needed to have sex after the sweep and maybe that finally did the trick ;) We went to bed that night and basically as soon as I went to bed I started having contractions again, but wasn’t convinced they were real. They were consistent all night and I did have to breath through quite a few of them so I didn’t sleep at all. I would rest my eyes, then another would come. I really didn’t want to have the baby in the middle of the night ( I was so tired and it was -49 with windchill outside!) haha so I kept telling myself they aren’t real - plus they weren’t getting more intense. By 5 am they actually started to intensify. I got up to pee and started contracting on the toilet. It felt comfortable there, but I was still a bit in denial so I started timing my contractions. They started about 5 minutes apart and they were getting pretty spicy so at that point I was like okay this is real. In about 20 minutes they were 3 minutes apart so I called for Scott and said we better get ready to go. I called my midwife Tiffany right away to tell her and she hoped in her car to meet me at the hospital. side note I had had 2 hospital births before and had really good experiences with both of them, but had decided I wanted to have a home birth this time. I felt really good about it and really confident with my decision, but because of a condition I have, my midwives had had to do a consult with and OB and unfortunately it wasn’t going to work out. I was devastated at first, but reminded myself I could still have a good experience in the hospital like my last two and was happy I was able to stay with my midwives! I was at higher risk for retained placenta (which I had with Ruby) and haemorrhaging.
My mom came over to stay with the girls and my sister met us at our house to drive with us! We hopped in the car and I did my make up on the way to keep me distracted, but the contractions weren’t too bad. I actually felt very calm and was just chatting like nothing was out of the ordinary. I just had to stop talking every once in a while to breathe. The electricity in our car was like coming and going and i’m not sure if it was from the cold or because our car battery needs to be changed BADLY… but we made it thank goodness! Scott went to go park the car and I went up to labour and delivery with my sister. We went to check in because Tiffany wasn’t there yet and the nurse was like “are you actually in labour?” She was looking at my like she didn’t believe me and told me to wait in the waiting room and if it got worse they could put me in triage. I still felt fine so we sat in the waiting room and I had a few contractions before Tiffany got there. We went straight to the room and I was basically contracting as I was walking. As soon as we got in to the room I started playing my hypnobirthing soundtracks. It was interesting that this time, I didn’t feel like I relied on this as much as the last times (even though they were still calming) but I felt like they had become almost like muscle memory to me and I felt so in tune with my body. My contractions started to feel a bit more intense so I had my sister or Scott put counter pressure below my tummy - that always takes the edge off for me! I was sooo happy because we got the only room with the tub! One of the main reasons I wanted a home birth was to be able to do a water birth because you can’t bring birthing pools to the hospital I was at. The tub was filling SLOWLY and I was hoping they could get it filled in time! I felt so relaxed the whole time and was just trying to listen to my body and breathe in a relaxed way with my contractions. They just felt like they came in waves. While we were waiting Tiffany checked the heart rate with the doppler and noticed it dropped to about 90, so they wanted to monitor me quick just to make sure everything was okay. Basically as soon as I got on the bed I felt a lot of pressure in my hips and started letting out these low moans (apparently I always do this in labour when I’m about to push - I think this was transition.) I didn’t realize I was about to push I just thought it was the contractions getting more intense. But it happened again and I was like “Can I get in the tub?!” I wanted to be in the water so badly. Something about the water is so relaxing to me and feels so much better than just pushing the baby out dry! The heartbeat was fine, so as soon as my contraction stopped they basically lifted me off the bed and I walked quickly to the water. It wasn’t a big tub but the perfect size and there was a bench I could lean on which was actually amazing! Pretty much as soon as I got in the water I started pushing baby out. I reached down to feel and could feel myself stretching and a head popped out so quickly! I remember thinking to myself “your baby will come out easily.” Then all the sudden my contractions felt like they stopped and his head was just hanging out. Scott had wanted to deliver the baby, but Tiffany had to bump Scott out of the way so we could get the baby out so he wasn’t under water too long. I pushed slowly and Tiffany pulled a little bit and he was out!! I reached between my legs and pulled him up to me. He was here!! My baby boy!! I just felt so much joy and was soo happy that it was again, the perfect birth for me and my baby. This was also the first time I wasn’t GBS positive so I didn’t have to have any antibiotics or IV’s which felt like a dream! Reggie was covered in vernix which I guess it more unusual for a baby that is overdue. I had a 1st degree tear (with the last two they were both 2, so that was nice to hear :))
My third baby born on a Sunday :)
Reggie Reed Lamb
January 14th, 2024 at 6:27am
8lbs 1 oz
They brought me over to the bed, and a few minutes later I delivered my placenta. When the cord stopped pulsing, Scott cut the cord and then Tiffany stitched me up. Typically I bleed a ton (like i haemorrhaged both of my other births but never knew haha), but this time it was pretty minimal! My uterus contracted really well. It felt like a softball which I don’t every remember feeling before! They had given me oxytocin after I gave birth in hopes to avoid the retained placenta or haemorrhage so maybe thats why my bleeding was so minimal? Reggie nursed for the first time and I was so impressed by how naturally it came to him. He opened this mouth and latched pretty good! It was such a struggle for my other kids, so i’m hopeful breastfeeding will come easier this time! He got some good colostrum and then they weighed him and warmed him up under the heater because he was pretty cold. Reggie was my biggest baby :) The midwives were so efficient and everything was so quick we were leaving the hospital just after 9am! It was so strange to me because I’ve always had to stay after because of exsessive bleeding so I kept thinking to myself, should I stay?! But as soon as we got home I was SO happy to be there. It was comfy, I got to sleep in my own bed, not be woken up all night or have to share a room and eat my own food! Honestly, it couldn’t have gone any better!
I think a woman’s body is SO incredible and that giving birth is the most special and beautiful experience. I love it and it feels so empowering to me. I definitely think preparing before hand makes a HUGE difference! I also think Hypnobirthing was one of the best things I could have done! It helped me develop a positive mindset around birth and helped me trust my body that it knows what it’s doing. Even the words they use to describe what you are feeling in labour is a huge part of what allowed me to have unmedicated birthing experiences, because our perception can so easily become our reality. I have never found giving birth painful, rather intense and a lot of pressure, and I think I can attribute that to hypnobirthing. Women are stronger than they are led to believe and that a lot of fear is instilled in women around birth. I strongly believe that when there are interventions that don’t need to be done, it can make giving birth a more challenging experience because it’s interfering with the natural process.
Supplements:
Here’s how I chose to supplement with this pregnancy, and what I focused on including in my diet for a healthy pregnancy and delivery, alternating between the two each day:
day 1
‘Seeking Health’ optimal prenatal (meant to fill in the nutritional gaps, your diet is SO important and cannot be made up with a supplement)
magnesium bi-glycinate
beef liver capsules
camu camu powder (whole food vitamin C)
Cod liver oil
‘Microbiome Labs’ probiotics (10% OFF - no code needed)
‘Re-lyte’ electrolyte mix (use code erinlamb for 10% OFF)
day 2
Vitamin E
Nourish her naturally (tincture from ‘Earthley’)
Camu camu powder (whole food vitamin C)
magnesium (mag SRT )
Cod Liver oil
beef liver capsules
‘Microbiome Labs’ probiotics (10% OFF - no code needed)
‘Re-lyte’ electrolyte mix (use code erinlamb for 10% OFF)
I also used magnesium lotion to help with cramps or charlie horses in the night.
I drank nettle tea throughout my pregnancy and near the end drank red raspberry leaf tea daily along with 6 dates a day (I would blend them up in a smoothie - I don’t love them enough to eat 6 a day plain haha.) These can strengthen and tone the uterus as well as soften the cervix.
Diet:
“A large body of evidence supports the concept that human pregnancy outcome is significantly influenced by the nutritional status of the mother. The consumption of “poor diets” has been associated with an increased risk for pregnancy complications, including gross structural birth defects, prematurity, low birth weight, and an increased risk for neurobehavioral and immunological abnormalities after birth.”
- Dr. Janet Uriu Adams, University of California, Davis
I love the book Real Food for Pregnancy written by Lily Nichols. I WISH I would have read this book before my first pregnancy. My diet was so different my first pregnancy - it was definitely lacking in as many nutrient dense foods compared to this one! (She also talks about supplements in the book as well.)
I included yummy nutrient dense foods like eggs, steak, butter, cheese, ice cream, fruit, sourdough bread, rice, desserts, orange juice - without gaining a ton of weight, sleeping well, being able to keep up with my kids, no water retention and a healthy pregnancy!
Ideally you want to start optimizing your diet 3 months before you try to conceive as well as resolve your gut issues before you get pregnant as baby receives 100% of their initial microbiome from their mother. This is a shameless plug to suggest my online course The Good Gut Method - which will help you optimize your diet in a sustainable and delicious way along with bring your gut back into balance so you can set yourself and your baby up for success, a healthy pregnancy and so you can feel your best!
Breast feeding:
Looking back, my approach and techniques I use for breast feeding with Ruby my first, were very harsh. I’ve taken a much more gentle approach this time and it’s felt a lot better! (If you have any oversupply like me, you will find these tips helpful!)
ice after nursing to help with fullness
cabbage leaves in your bra after nursing
red light to help with inflammation
potato poultice - you can grate potato and wrap paper towel around or or just put potato slices on your breasts to help pull out the heat if they start to feel hot (this can be from a clogged duct or if it starts turning into mastitis)
breast gymnastics (sounds silly and seems so simple, but it worked SO well!)
stay hydrated (make sure you are adding minerals to your water for optimal hydration. I like using Re-lyte but you also just adding sea salt and lemon to your water or coconut water are a few options)
use some heat before feeding if you need, but heat can actually make things worse if you are using it too often or for too long
extremely gentle massage on the breast towards your armpit (like light as the touch of a feather.) This will help with lymph flow to help keep things moving (engorgement is more than just milk - you want to make sure your lymph is flowing for proper circulation)
sunflower lecithin daily
wear a bra that isn’t too tight, or if you have a clogged duct you may just want to keep your bra off so there isn’t more restriction in the area
*the key is to practice some of these things multiple times a day, it doesn’t have to be long but it’s more effective than a long session of one massage once a day.
POStPartum poop:
Have you heard that quote that says, “If you can survive your first postpartum poop, you can survive anything!”
Here are some tips to help:
hydrate (electrolytes!!!! you want the water to go INTO your cells so you can get things moving. My favourite electrolytes Relyte - you can use my code erinlamb for 10% OFF)
if you had a vaginal delivery, fold up a piece of toiled paper and hold it against your perineum and breathe out while you poop. This works kind of like a splint. Focus on breathing your poop out just like you would breath your baby out. If you had a C-section hold a pillow on your tummy instead.
magnesium (I would recommend a magnesium citrate as it brings water into the colon) I typically use ‘CALM’ brand
use a squatty potty
make sure you are getting enough fat in your diet
if things are moving how they should, you can take ‘Traditional Medicinals’ “smooth moves” tea as a laxative (this should not be used longterm as you can become dependant on them.)
Most importantly its important to prepare before giving birth by eating a nutrient dense diet, supporting your hormones and achieving optimal digestion so things will be moving smoothly so that first poop doesn’t have to be scary!! When you know what to eat and what to do so your poops are easy, feel complete and don’t require straining after you poop you won’t have to stress about that first postpartum poop! You will feel confidence in yourself and your body. I’m here to help you do just that through The Good Gut Method - check it out here!