A Hospital Birth: Murrieta, CA

Y’ALL WHAT IS IT WITH ME RUNNING TO BIRTHS RECENTLY 😂

I was hired by another very talented photographer in the Murrieta area and it was so funny because I told Sam that I wasn’t going to take any more clients in that area since we had moved about 40 minutes south to Oceanside. Well, when Kayleigh inquired, it was like, just kidding, I really like her.

Some times there’s clients that you instantly connect with. They have similar energy and vibrations to you. Similar beliefs. They’re funny, relatable, and just awesome to be around. And this was Kayleigh. Our first prenatal was over 2 hours long and but felt like it went by in the blink of an eye. She talked about her first birth experience (which was in the UK) and that it was a very efficient birth for a first time parent. This was something I kept in the back of my mind since second baby’s typically like to come earth side a little quicker than the first baby.

March 24

In between 40 and 41 weeks, Kayleigh and I went and got a manicure and pedicure which was pure freaking bliss since I hadn’t had a pedicure in (brace yourself) like 2 years.

We talked about a ton of stuff, mainly her being so fucking miserable and done which I can completely relate to. The end of pregnancy gets to be so rough and feels like it lasts forever. We talked about spinning babies and how she had been having multiple episodes of a start stop labor. I sent her some spinning babies exercises afterwards to do as I suspected baby was acynclytic and that was the reason her labor had been stopping after a few hours.

During our conversations previously about her start stop labor, I had been having a gut feeling that once baby engaged fully with her cervix, her labor would go pretty quickly. ESPECIALLY with all the work it had been doing already.

March 28

Kayleigh had an OB appointment earlier in the day and was frustrated by the OB’s findings. She was 90% effaced and only 2.5 cm dilated but baby was still really high up in her pelvis. My first thought of course was, “almost 100% effaced, dilation is going to go quickly, fuck I hope I don’t miss the birth.” She had been mildly contracting all morning, and her OB even said she was having them during her NST (non-stress test).

After she left the appointment we chatted on the phone a bit, she was having mild contractions while we were talking, but nothing out of the norm for her lately and she could still talk through them. I sent her some more spinning babies exercises at about 4:00 pm since we knew where baby was in her pelvis and could work on getting baby engaged.

At almost 5:30 pm she texted me that she started having back contractions. My first two thoughts were “YESSS there’s been a change, baby engaged.” Followed immediately by “Oh fuck, it’s rush hour traffic and an over 2 hour drive to her place because of it.” I offered to head to her after I finished making dinner, but she wanted to wait until it was “the real thing.” I totally understand that feeling and completely respect it.

By 6:30 pm they were coming every 2 minutes now. She got into a bath to help with the intensity.

At 7:45 pm it felt like I finally convinced her she was in labor 😂 and about 7:50 pm I asked what she wanted me to do, if she wanted me to head to her.

At just after 8:00 pm her husband texted me from her phone saying to head to them, the contractions were coming fast and strong. At least I’m missing rush hour traffic now, however a storm is unloading on Southern California and it’s raining buckets outside.

At 8:14 pm her husband called me on the phone as I was waiting for a slight break in the rain so I could load up all my camera gear in the car. They wanted to know if they should head to the hospital so I asked to listen to one of Kayleigh’s contractions. After listening to one, I immediately said “yeah you should probably to head to the hospital. I will meet you guys there.”

Almost there

I left my house at about 8:20 pm in the middle of an atmospheric river storm. I’m pretty sure it was the most rain Oceanside had gotten in one storm in the past 12 months which isn’t to say much since we’re always in a drought. The roads were rivers, everyone was driving like maniacs, and I passed two car crashes on my way to the hospital.

I finally arrived at the hospital a little before 9:10 pm and Kayleigh’s husband called me at 9:10 pm as I was trying to park and said “she’s 9 cm and we’re going to a room.” Fuck fuck fuck. I knew dilation was going to go quickly.

Also, it’s still raining, I’m driving a new car (to me), I have all my camera gear I need to bring inside, and I want to pull my camera out before heading into the hospital in case I walk in the room and need to start immediately taking photos. I finally find a spot I fit in. Race around to the side of the van, pull my camera out and shove it under my sweatshirt, grab all my shit and book it to the ER entrance.

I ask where L&D is and the security guard points me to the check in desk. I check in, show them my vaccine card as the person is ringing L&D to make sure I’m not lying about the patient I’m seeing, and am told to wait by the double doors and I’ll be escorted up. I literally wait like 5 min at the doors for a security guard to let me through, and it was the most frustrating 5 min ever. I have a pass, just let me in already! 😡 A security guard finally shows up and then proceeds to try and not let me in. BRO I HAVE A VISITOR PASS, LET ME IN. After I corrected him that no I’m not a visitor (even though my pass says that), I’m a doula, he reluctantly opens the door for me and the nurse behind me tells him off that she’ll take me to L&D. She gives me directions to where the elevators are and I take off running through the fucking hospital to the elevators.

Once the elevators doors open on the second floor, I find the L&D/Postpartum unit and have to be rung inside. The first desk I find through the doors ends up being postpartum and they point me down this LONG ASS hallway to the L&D desk where I “need to check in” according to the nurse at the postpartum desk.

Y’all my shoes are so fucking squeaky as I’m running down this hallway. I check my watch and it says 9:21 pm. I finally make it to the L&D desk and they see me coming in hot, they immediately just tell me “room 4, to the right, go.” Thank you, you wonderful angels.

I head right, and start looking for LDR 4, and then I hear a scream. So I said fuck it, and followed the screams. Directly to room 4.

Labor and delivery room 4

I open the door and rush into her room. There’s like 10 nurses in the room and the OB is at the bed all gowned up. Kayleigh is screaming and pushing and I can see baby is crowning. I throw my shit down and immediately see a nurse start freaking out and looking like she wants to know who the fuck I am and kick me out of the room so I yell “Kayleigh I’m here.” I walk to her head where I’m immediately told “no photos until after baby is born.”

Well fuck you too.

Within minutes of my arrival baby’s head is born and then another minute or two goes by.

But baby’s body is stuck. There’s a shoulder dystocia. Thankfully the OB is able to get baby’s sticky shoulders unstuck, and baby is immediately placed on Kayleigh’s chest. The nurses are all over baby and wanting to make sure baby didn’t aspirate meconium and that they were breathing and pinking up. Within a few minutes thankfully, baby was doing well and was allowed to stay on Kayleigh’s chest to bond.

And that’s exactly where she stayed for the next almost hour and a half. Snuggled up close to Kayleigh and feeding like a champ already.

Soairse Rain was born at 9:28 pm, weighing 9 pounds 8 ounces at 22 inches long in a crazy whirlwind beautifully intense birth.