Ollie John’s Birth

Whitney dreamed of being a mother since she was a child and could hardly wait to have children. Upon finding out she was pregnant with their first baby, Whitney didn’t hesitate to get in touch with me to see if I were available for her birth. 🙂 I was excited for John and Whitney, and truly enjoyed the time we spent getting to know each other and preparing for their birth.

Outside of morning sickness, Whitney enjoyed everything about being pregnant and couldn’t wait for the time her little one would arrive. During an appointment with her doctor, late in her pregnancy, it was discovered that Ollie was breech. Upon the news, she met with an OB who was open to Whitney taking some time to see if she and John could get the baby to turn. Whitney and John took all the time they needed to work on things and make a plan if Ollie didn’t turn. They tried natural and alternative methods to no avail, and her doctor was amazingly supportive during this time. She was one day from 41 weeks and decided that if he hadn’t turned by now that he probably wasn’t going to. They scheduled a time for his birth later on that day. With their Cesarean birth plan in hand, they headed to the OR where Ollie made his grand entrance! He was born with a head full of thick, black hair! He was beautiful! After a few minutes, Whitney was able to hold and kiss and love on him, all the while he was on her chest! Dr. Wildey was fantastic at following her Cesarean birth plan. Whitney was never separated from her husband, nor her baby during this time. Amazing! Generally, mothers are separated from their husbands and babies postoperatively so was truly a beautiful moment, not only for them, but for me as a doula, as I see our local hospital (Altru) making positive changes towards mothers and babies. Bonding doesn’t always happen immediately after birth, but mothers and babies, along with fathers, have their best chance at bonding if they are allowed to be held skin to skin and not be separated in the immediate postpartum period. This helps to make an overall positive birth experience as well as greater attachment for the family, and I was truly grateful they were able to experience this most lovely and memorable beginning.

I was so impressed with Whitney’s demeanor during this time. She was always happy and smiling! She continued with the same positive, upbeat and gracious attitude from pregnancy all the way through the news of Ollie’s position, birth, postpartum, newborn period and still to this very day! I’ve never met a woman with as much beauty and grace as she possesses. She knew that, for some reason, this was just the way Ollie’s birth was meant to be and smiled her way through it. It was a moving experience to say the least. Thank you, John and Whitney for allowing me to be a part of your birth journey!