Birth Story: Ethan Antero

Ethan is baby number 4 and the previous 2 were born on or just before their due date. When my due date came and went I wasn’t mentally prepared and the days seemed so long! At 41w1d, I had an afternoon nap and woke up to some intense contractions around 2:40pm. It was January 18 2020 and of course there had to be the largest snowstorm of the year brewing outside.  After tracking the contractions for about 30 minutes I could tell that this was the real deal. I called my sisters over to babysit the other kids and we headed out to meet my midwife at the hospital.

In triage, I was assessed and pronounced to be 7cm during a contraction. We were admitted around 4:30 and I continued to labour in different positions. Baby was posterior until right before he was born and moving throughout labour helped move him down the birth canal. It started to get very intense and I felt like the midwife should break my water (they use a little crochet type hook and you don’t really feel anything). She suggested waiting until the back-up midwife arrived but she was still 5-10 minutes out. I felt so much pressure that I asked if we could just get my water broken right away. My midwife called a nurse in as backup and broke my water.

With the release of that added pressure I had the urge to push and within a couple minutes Ethan Antero was born with one arm tucked up by his head! The midwife used a warm compress to help avoid tearing and advised me to not push too hard. He had the cord wrapped around his arm and around his neck but thankfully that didn’t cause any complications. Ethan was 9lbs 12oz with no tearing and no medical intervention!

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A little intro to Dear Heart:

 We are two Canadian Mamas with children of our own. Our goal is to offer high quality Baby & Mama products that are made in Canada, using natural materials, like bamboo and linen. All of our bamboo and linen products are made with Oeko-Tex certified fabric that is hypoallergenic, eco-friendly and a healthier alternative for your baby. We are proud that all of our products are designed and made in Canada. Follow our journey on Instagram @dear.heart.co