Birth Story & My List of Must Haves

It was a Wednesday morning and I had my weekly check up with Dr. Pulli (side note: if you need an OB, she is the sweetest, smartest, most open minded doctor with the cutest outfits). The last month of my pregnancy, our baby was low, so she limited my hours at work to try to keep her cooking until at least 37 weeks. Now, that we were only 9 days from my due date, she gave me clearance to up my activity level again 😍 and start trying to get baby out. I was tired, round, sore and SO anxious to hold my girl that I started on my list right away: 1) Sit on an exercise ball as often as possible. Since I am a personal trainer, this actually was quite easy for me & something I did most of my pregnancy (see below). 2) If I was not sitting on the ball, I should be doing only 3 other things… walking, squatting or the same thing that put this little girl in my belly 😉 (sorry mom/Nick’s Mom). Since Dr. Pulli is a genius angel, I followed her advice to a tee and went into labor about 12 hours after my appointment.

Thinking about giving birth sort of terrified me throughout my whole pregnancy. Mostly due to all the unknowns, the pain and the notion that I was not able to eat for an extended period of time before labor (I learned this was not necessary with vaginal & ate a fruit cup right before I gave birth). After researching and talking to trusted mom friends (you know who you are-blog post to come about finding your tribe) I went from a 9/10 terrified to about a 6/10. Shortly after we finished option 3 from #2 on the list above (again sorry mom), I fell asleep for about an hour then woke up with intense back contractions 🥳. Any residual fear was replaced with SO MUCH EXCITEMENT. I WAS GOING TO MEET MY BABY SOON 💜 I wanted her out of my belly and into my arms ASAP. I woke my husband (Nick) up, insisted on taking a shower and then we drove to Strong Hospital to get the show on the road. Nick didn’t believe that I was in labor so instead of using the free valet parking, he insisted we should save it for the “real deal” and park in the parking garage. So, I walked my laboring, contracting self, to the labor and delivery floor (he will never live this down) & checked in. We went to triage for about an hour, they determined I was in labor and moved us to my room. Side note: The nurse who walked us to L&D stopped with me for every contraction, held my hand & led me through deep breathing. I will never forget her 👩‍⚕️ 😇 All of my team at Strong was amazing. For some reason, I wanted to try a natural birth (as if you get an award for having a baby without pain meds…anyone who does this natural, you are my hero), so I labored in the bathtub for another hour or so. The contractions were coming much more quickly and the pain was getting intense, so I asked my husband to track down the anesthesiologist. Although I am a planner, our birthing class (mentioned below in the must have section) recommended not to have a strict birth plan as there is so much out of your control. Nick and I determined our “plan” was only doing what was necessary to keep me and the baby healthy. At this point, in order for me to stay relaxed, I needed some meds & BOY was it the BEST decision. The first epidural only numbed my left side, so they had to give me a second dose & within 15 minutes I felt amazing (very, very numb lol, but the pain was completely gone). From here on out, I LOVED every minute of labor. My mom arrived around 7am and we chatted while Nick rested a bit. The doctor came to do his rounds and surprisingly informed us he could see baby’s head. It was go time 💪🏼 Within twenty minutes, on May 23rd at 8:57am, our sweet Gianna Grace joined us earthside 💓🙏🏼 Then, I ate an entire Fratellis Chicken Parmesan.

Now onto the must haves:

1. Beautiful Birth Choices- a natural focused birthing class in Rochester led by doulas. They were AMAZING. It was a day long class and we learned so much. They did not try to persuade you into any specific choices, just informed you about all the options associated with birth. HIGHLY RECOMMEND!!

2. Dates. I ate about 3-4 dates per day a month or so before I had Gigi and I swear it made everything easier. I will spare you the medical info and let anyone interested read about it here:https://midwifecollective.org/blog/date-fruit-effective-labor-whats-the-connection

4. A large Swiss ball. I sat on this most of my pregnancy and Gigi was head down the whole way through! I know that is not always the case, but it also helps with core strength and pelvis/hip alignment. I bought mine at Target. Link here: https://www.target.com/p/stability-ball-65cm-purple-all-in-motion-8482/-/A-77459853

5. Dr. Pulli’s “List” (see above) Staying active throughout my pregnancy. I was blessed to have doctor clearance almost the whole time to run/walk, spin until I developed SPD in the second trimester, lift, teach fitness classes and practice prenatal yoga. Pregnant clients are one of my favorites so if anyone needs any prenatal exercise recommendations, please email me!

6. A fabulous labor and delivery support system. For me, that was both my mom and husband in the room. My mom held my legs and cheered me on, while Nick stayed calm at my head! The BEST team ♥️