Sage River DuPree Birth Story

I can’t believe it’s time to write my second birth story!

THIS POST IS VERY LONG !

I’m about 56 hours postpartum (not quite three days) and more memories from my son’s birth keep coming back to me — I want to write them out before I forget.

I’ll go ahead and link my birth story with Phoenix from two years ago right here. It was also a home water birth, but I feel like that’s where the similarities end! This birth was so different than that one.

With Sage, I had evenings from 37 weeks onward where I was having contractions on and off, without much of a pattern. I lost pink mucus on and off after 38 weeks and eventually one big chunk (the plug) around 39 weeks. I started taking an herbal tincture called Gentle Birth around 38 weeks to hopefully help me not go all the way to 42 weeks like I did with Phoenix. I requested a cervical check at 39 + 3 and found out I was 3.5 cm and 60% effaced which felt validating — like these contractions were doing something!

On Sage’s due date (12/15), I woke up motivated to take advantage of the day and go on a long walk. I think I maybe even cried a little that morning thinking of how I was most likely gonna go over my due date. (I know due dates are stupid but I was so ready to meet sage). I put on my headphones and took off, walking for almost two hours around the neighborhood, just listening to music. I did some curb-walking but kept my pace pretty chill. I talked to Sage and told him how ready we were to meet him.

I got home and showered, ate lunch and talked to Collin about how I could help kickstart labor — something I swore I would give up and not obsess over. Haha! Just then, I got a notification that my brand new breast pump had been delivered and was on the porch. Cool, I thought. I can just pump a bit to see if these contractions will pick back up.

12/15 4:30PM -Honestly, I wasn’t thinking anything would really happen, but after just 5 min doing the lightest stimulation setting, I started having regular contractions. I waited a few hours and texted my midwife to let her know they weren’t stopping but the weren’t getting stronger. She suggested trying the Miles Circuit, some rebozo sifting, and if I wanted to pump for a few more minutes then I could do that as well. If nothing picked up by the evening, she recommended I just get in bed.

Things began to pick up in intensity, but began spacing apart. At 8PM I decided I would rather go ahead and go to bed in case my labor picked up in the middle of the night. I journaled and put myself to bed, waking up all night to contractions. I went to the toilet several times just to pee and noticed I was having bloody show. I was excited but also not convinced since everything was still pretty far apart. (Every 15-20 minutes)

12/16, 4:30AM - I woke up to strong contractions and couldn’t fall back asleep. I woke collin up to let him know but eventually he fell back asleep. I ended up dozing in and out of sleep until Phoenix woke up at 6:30AM. Collin texted his boss and let her know that today was hopefully the day and he would be staying home.

I (wrongly) assumed since I had been dilated already, my labor would be really quick and intense. It was apparent to me this was already not going to be the case and I was getting discouraged. Contractions were still there, but not much was changing. I texted my midwife and told her I was going to head to target and then lunch with my boys to take my mind off of everything. she said that was an awesome idea and off we went.

At Target, things began to pick up in timing and intensity. I knew we were there for about 45 minutes and I had at least 10 during that time. I could still talk through them but definitely couldn’t move. Lunch was the same way, and I enjoyed a delicious vegan sandwich but definitely got stuck standing up a few times. The drive home was pretty dreadful, but I noticed them space out quite a bit again. I was really starting to get excited but that was really confusing.
We put Phoenix down for a nap and I decided to do the Miles Circuit one more time. I was pretty exhausted from contractions all night long. Phoenix woke up and I was still feeling the same so we went to Kroger as a family. My midwife said to take an epsom salt bath and have a few sips of wine to see if the contractions would die down. She said it usually wiped out any prodromal symptoms. I picked out a bottle at Kroger and headed home excited to take a dang bath and leave all this behind me.
12/16, 4:30PM- I was so bummed and so tired by this point. I just filled up the tub, added some epsom salt and hopped in. I rubbed my belly and just gave in. I decided to ask my midwife to come check the baby’s heart tones just because I had been contracting for 24 hours already and wanted to make sure he was okay. She said okay, and I was so relieved. Right then, I had a very intense contraction. I got out of the bath and had two more like that. I knew these were much different and I was laughing to myself thinking about how the work was just beginning!

12/16, 5:30ish PM - My midwife showed up and I told her that I think my labor was active. I asked her to check me to make sure and she confirmed that I was 6-7 cm, my water bag was bulging and I was almost all the way effaced! I had been waddling around the house with my TENS-unit on my back trying to take the edge off the cramping. She said she would definitely stick around and just to pretend she wasn’t there.
I labored around the house for a while, and things were already very intense. Phoenix was watching tv and Collin would run over and apply counter pressure to my back while I leaned over the dining table and practiced my breathing. (I found it really helpful to inhale for a count of 4, exhale for a count of 6 and do this six times. Usually the contraction would be over by that last one.)

Collin put Phoenix to bed at 7, and my midwife ran out to her office down the road briefly. While they were gone, things started to get crazy for me. I kept getting stuck on the toilet having contractions all alone and I noticed they were really ripping my back apart. I had this with Phoenix’s birth as well and he was never posterior or anything, so I thought maybe it was how my body was handling labor.
Collin emerged from Phoenix’s room and told me Stacy was going to head our way soon. I’m not sure what time it was but I know my midwife and Stacy showed up pretty soon after that. Collin and I had a good rhythm going and though I was experiencing the intensity, I had my breathing and techniques from some hypnobirthing resources (I love @thepositivebirthcompany on IG). I really was able to stay focused and calm.
I knew I was in transition when Stacy arrived, because I felt drunk. Straight up tipsy and was so happy to see her in between contractions. I noticed my midwife had begun to run around and fill up the tub and get everything ready. I think it must’ve been 10PM? I’m not sure. She said the birth team was coming soon and I asked her to check me so I can would know what was going on with my progression. I think she said I was an 8 and fully effaced.
Everyone showed up not too long after that and I was starting to feel a little tooty. Not quite pushy or like I needed to poop but something close to that. I knew he was getting close.
They suggested the birth pool was ready for me and I was so excited — I was about to meet my baby!
I was in the pool for a while. I think about an hour and half when I started to lose steam. My midwife mentioned baby may be posterior and maybe getting out would twist and move baby down faster. I lost it and began to sob because I had been laboring for so long and was so ready to meet my baby. Things felt like they were still so far away and I did NOT want to get out, but I was starting to get cold and my adrenaline was kicking in. I was shaking pretty badly and needed to get on my feet and keep going.
Sage being posterior was such a shock to me because he had always been LOA (the ideal position for vaginal delivery), and I was pretty obsessive about my positioning ALWAYS. I guess babies have plans of their own in labor! Also, Sage was periodically monitored (as was I) and his heart tones were always great.
I did end up getting out sometime before midnight. Everyone was cheering me on and supporting me. They knew I was disappointed but still so motivated. They knew I wasn’t feeling sorry for myself or giving up. It was so hard knowing I was probably at a 10 walking around the house, but also encouraging knowing that if I could successfully turn him then pushing wouldn’t have as many complications.
I remember looking at the clock and it was 12:28AM — the next day! My midwife’s birthday! I told her happy birthday as I ate a popsicle and swayed back and forth. I took a step outside and breathed in the cold air which was so nice.
My birth team demonstrated a move I believe they called the Penny Simpkin Dangle and I was hesitant to try it. I think I made it through one contraction and couldn’t quite bring myself to do it again. They suggested doing side-lying release on my bed through three contractions on each side to turn baby, and we began to do that. Tears rolled down my cheeks as I laid on the bed because I still felt so emotional. I felt defeated in a lot of ways but still so ready to meet sage. I felt some anger/rage honestly! Just a lot of emotions at play from being in labor so long. My team told us they would leave collin and I alone for a bit to just chat and be together.
My breath moved me through this time. It really helped me in so many invaluable ways!
12/17, 2ish AM: my midwife came back in and I requested a check. I decided I didn’t care, I wanted to push this baby out and I needed to get back in the water. I was starting to feel some rectal pressure which meant baby was ready. She said I was complete and baby had flipped!!

I hopped up and got in the tub one more time. Contractions were so far apart it seemed. They were so so so intense. I started to lose my breath and began to whine and yell. I started begging him to come out and begging my body to push. I wanted to wait until the contractions pushed him out for me, but I was feeling very impatient. In between two contractions, I felt him fall into my pelvis. It was painless, just felt like a click. After that, I started trying to bear down slightly. The contractions were starting to feel painful for the first time — I could tell my uterus was getting fatigued.


After about two contractions of trying to bear down, my body began to take over. It was doubling down through my exhales and pushing him lower and lower. I was feeling so many sensations and vocalizing a lot of fear. It was a very intense time for me and very challenging. I could feel him kneading his way out of my body: down a lot, then back up a little. My body felt like it was sucking him back up every time and it was so frustrating!

I reached down at one point and felt his skin fold on his head pushing down and out of my body. I said to the room I was going to push him out on the next contraction. It began to come and I started screaming — roaring him out!

12/17, 3:12AM - Sage’s head was born and I heard them tell me to reach down and grab my baby. I could tell his shoulders were wiggling out but my body was no longer pushing so I bore down one more time (I think? I must have) while they pulled him up and through my legs, onto my chest!

I genuinely was so grateful my labor was over and he was HERE. No matter how long my labor was, it was still beyond shocking to be holding my baby.
He was covered COVERED in the thick, waxy coating called vernix. All the flash photos make him look like a white ghost! He cried right away even though I was in shock and was telling him to cry, rubbing his back over and over.

My placenta came out on its own, so that wasn’t a big deal at all this time. Peeing afterward wasn’t easy at first, but I made it happen eventually!
I was assessed for tears and had NONE! Yay! He was 8.5lbs and 21.5inches. I’ve felt amazing and barely bled so far, which was so different than my first birth.

I feel like this is such a long post and there’s still so much more to share but overall my birth whooped my ass and made me so proud. I’m very grateful for my two birth experiences and everything I went through is uniquely my own — and I feel very empowered through my journeys. There’s not one “right” way to give birth or become a parent, as long as you feel empowered and respected through the process.

xoxo