I was hired by this beautiful family to be their birth photographer and doula. I love doing both as I can slip into each mode pretty seamlessly. That being said, her partner was so super attentive that is made my job pretty easy.
During early labor (she needed to be at the hospital from the beginning), things ere pretty calm with lots of banter between them.
As labor progressed she and her partner rode the wave together until an epidural was needed. Sometimes a momma can get so exhausted that she can’t keep going. An epidural allows so much needed sleep.
Eventually it was indicated that a cesarean was needed. While not something this couple hoped for, it is their story. Their sweet baby was delivered healthy.
Cesareans, when needed, are absolutely life saving interventions. I am not a chest pounding yeller of “no more cesareans!!!” Quite the contrary. We are blessed to live in a time that saving the life of a mother and/or baby is easily accessible. I do have issues with the amount of C-sections our country’s maternal care has not due to emergency situations. Those that I take issues with are ones that are colored over as “necessary”. Like the woman who had one before. She shouldn’t automatically be forced to have another with subsequent children. Or ones where a baby is “measuring too big”, “advanced maternal age”, “labor not progressing” (sometimes, extra time is needed) and if its around a holiday, an OB may need to go out of town and some other reason can be used.
Sorry, I went off on a tangent! I can do that from time to time. Anyhow, a C-section in this case was medically necessary.
As I mentioned earlier, a beautiful healthy baby came into the world. For privacy concerns, the baby is not shown here. To say they were and are over the moon is an understatement. I wish them a lifetime of love. They truly rocked the birth♥