Christian Natural birth Story – Free Labor Printable

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In 2019, I had an early miscarriage, which you can read about in this Coping with a Miscarriage post (where I share my raw emotions). That precious baby was a huge surprise for my husband and I, as we were not trying for more children, nor had we discussed having more children. However, after that, I had this lingering feeling that we were supposed to have another baby. My husband was not on the same page. So, for almost two years, I prayed for an answer. And one day, my husband changed his mind and said he was on board with trying for another baby!! (I attribute that all to prayer because my husband is incredibly stubborn, lol). And this was just the beginning of my Christian natural birth story…

So, as I said, for one day, my husband changed his mind – and I meant it. He literally was on board for A DAY. The following day, he had a change of heart and was unsure another child would be something we could handle. I told him, “It’s too late.” I knew I was already pregnant. <3

The process of trying for this baby after praying for 2 years was so easy. However, right away, I had horrendous morning sickness (which lasted the entire pregnancy and 3 months postpartum – I didn’t even know that was a thing).

As I mentally prepared for another baby, I started to worry about nursing another baby in the newborn months. I have Raynauds Phenomenon in my breasts (click to read about it and tips for nursing) and had a very difficult season with both of my other babies in those beginning months. So, I started to research new ways of nursing…

Resources for Christian natural birth Story

I stumbled upon The Thompson Method of Breastfeeding and watched all of Dr. Robyn’s free YouTube videos to gain some insight into why, after 3 years of nursing babies, breastfeeding was still so hard those first few months. Eventually I bit the bullet and purchased her breastfeeding course! She shared how much medications during labor can affect nursing… This led me to consider a natural childbirth.

After hearing that inductions and pain medications can affect nursing, I realized that I hated the way an epidural made me feel. It wasn’t at all restful like it is for the moms who sleep after receiving the epidural. So, I began to look into information about med free births.

I found Facebook support groups and watched pain free birth vlogs and was quite horrified at first to be honest. It looked so painful and it made me scared, but nursing was painful too and I had done that, so…

While laying low in these Facebook groups, I noticed that a lot of moms suggested reading Ina May Gaskin’s Guide to Childbirth and Jackie Mize’s Supernatural Childbirth, so I got a copy of both of them and read them both twice. I enjoyed Supernatural Childbirth because it gave me encouragement for finding God in your birth and reminded of God’s promises for those who are His children. And the second half of the book shared great birth stories!

{One caveat: Supernatural Childbirth has mixed reviews with Christians. And I still have a mixed review of this book after reading it twice. It has an emphasis on praying for what you want and God will give it to you. As you will read below, this is not 100% the case. God tells us to pray for our heart’s desires, but the outcome isn’t always exactly what we asked for. So please don’t think that I am advocating that God is a genie for Christians! His plan is always higher than ours. We don’t have the power to speak things into existence. He is God and we are not.}

Ina May’s book focused more on birth stories and explaining the physical changes a woman’s body goes through during labor, from a midwife’s perspective. It was very informative, so I would know what my body was going to do to birth my baby.

As I continued to research and try to ease my fears, I kept stumbling upon the same advice… “Get a doula for added support and a medical advocate.” I thought, “Sounds expensive…”

My husband and I are self-employed and paying for the birth alone was going to be over $11,000. So adding the bill of a doula seemed totally out of the question.

But, God… Christian Labor Story

Well, then God… One week, I was meeting with one of the midwives and she suggested a doula and I explained that the birth would be self pay, so we couldn’t swing a doula too. Bless her heart… She said she would ask around if any doulas just starting out would be willing to do it for a reduced price!

After my 36 week appointment, my midwife’s nurse called saying that one of the midwives had found a doula who wanted more clients and gave me her name and phone number. I somehow knew before she said her name that her name would be Abbie… Even stranger, when I told my husband about this doula, he said, “Let me guess, her name is Abbie?” It was like God brought this whole thing together in every. way.

So fast forward a week and I met my new doula, Abbie. We discussed how I would be her first official client, but that she had labored 3 times herself and had been her sister’s doula. We definitely clicked and had similar mindsets on many topics. Bonus was, she said she was also a certified massage therapist so she would be able to keep me comfortable with counterpressure (which she definitely did!)

Christian Natural birth Story

I just have to share that as I studied labor and delivery, what a woman’s body does, birth stories, and Bible verses about labor and strength, I was overwhelmed often by this powerful love God was opening my eyes to… I was seriously SO SCARED of the pain of labor, because I had never had a labor where I didn’t get the epidural right away (at 4cm or earlier). But by listening to the Christian Hypnobirthing app, Bible verses and the vlogs with Christian women sharing about God helping them through, I would be moved to tears, because I could see His promises for women.

If you are seriously considering a Christian natural birth, I would strongly encourage downloading the Christian Hynobirthing app… It is has free options but I really recommend paying the small fee for her whole playlist (which I believe is good for a year). She shares Bible verses, encouragement and calming music for those contractions and to confront those doubts and fears.

Biblical declarations & affirmations

As I read and studied, I discovered that moms who had supernatural childbirths (or felt God’s presence during their deliveries) were declaring Bible verses over their bodies and their babies.

…being confident of this very thing, that he who began a good work in you will complete it until the day of Jesus Christ. Philippians 1:6 WEB

I started writing this post before I delivered, because I KNEW He had a purpose for this “idea” He gave me… A plan to reach more moms-to-be with this delivery story and story of His GOODNESS!

Before going in to labor, I started to design Bible Verse Affirmation Cards to put up in the hospital room to keep me focused on God’s promises and to lower my fears. Because even though I had delivered two other babies, I was “sick to my stomach” scared to have a baby with no meds. You can grab your FREE copy below!

Christian Natural birth Story: Labor and Delivery Time

Even though most people think you’re going to have your baby early when it is baby number 3, my third baby was the latest baby! With my firstborn, she was born on her due date. My second was born 2 days early via induction. This third baby came 5 days after her due date.

I had false labor several times and even lost my mucous plug 6 days (a Saturday) before she made her debut. When I lost it again on the following Thursday, I didn’t really think much of it since it hadn’t resulted in labor the time before.

My husband and I spent the day busy shopping and showing homes to his clients. When we got home and I made supper, I realized I was having inconsistent contractions.

relying on god: My Natural Birth story

By the time I put my older kids to bed and relaxed in bed, the contractions started to be more powerful. At 10:10, I could no longer sit in bed for them. So, I got out of bed and started timing them. They were between 4 and 10 minutes apart.

My aunt, Dee, has had 6 kids and she told me to squat during contractions, so I squatted next to my bed for every contraction. I kept repeating to myself, “Dee says squat, Jesus is here” while I squatted. At 11, I told my husband that my contractions were consistent… So what does he do? Goes to sleep.

By 2am, they were 1-3 minutes apart, so I called the hospital and asked them if I should come in. I think I was kind of in denial that it was finally the real deal… They told me to go in. I called Abbie, my doula, on the way in.

The hospital is 20 minutes away and I had to hold myself up in the car. I couldn’t sit in the seat. I walked up to the labor and delivery floor and then got into a gown at 2:15am. The midwife checked me and said I was 8cm and I said, “Oh praise Jesus!” (At my appointments leading up to delivery, I was eating all the dates and drinking red raspberry leaf tea and 3 cm.) The nurses were shocked I had walked and signed myself in and was just chatting. Abbie showed up about 30 minutes later.

Within an hour, I was 9 cm and getting very uncomfortable. I couldn’t squat anymore, my legs were so tired. I tried getting on all fours in bed but my body was just exhausted from squatting. The midwife suggested I lay on my side on the bed and that was AWFUL!!!! All of my contractions were in my hips, so when I laid on my side the pressure on my hips was unbearable.

The midwife asked me if I wanted her to break my water and the passive aggressive me said, “do whatever you want to do”. She said, “well, it might make things go faster”. So she opened my legs (rolling me onto my back and I was so relieved to be off my hips!) and she broke my water. After two contractions, I was ready to push but didn’t feel the urge to push.

Push, Push, Push!

However, my contractions were on top of each other and I was holding on to my husband’s hand for dear life and so I just started pushing to get it over with (which I don’t recommend). I never planned on pushing while laying on my back, but I had no ability to move with the contractions being so frequent at the end and my hips/legs so tired.

I remember doubting my ability to be able to live through this and my doula kept reminding me to lower my voice. The nurses were telling me I was doing great and I would say, “I don’t know, guys!” I pushed for 17 minutes and she was born at 4:17am. Seventeen minutes doesn’t sound like a very long time, and yet to me it felt like FOREVER!

Afterwards, my body finally went through transition type symptoms. I was super nauseous and my legs started shaking like crazy while they sewed me up.

my regrets: when I forgot to rely on god…

When I got to the hospital, I went from getting dressed into my gown, to needing to constantly try to use the bathroom, to being 9cm so quickly that I never even got my Bible Verse Affirmations out of my bag! I was doing so well at home remembering that Jesus was with me, but when I got to the hospital my mindset shifted and I was just in survival mode basically.

For a really long time, I felt like God had left me at 9cm… which I obviously know isn’t the case! At 9cm, things got intense and I needed someone to remind me that He was with me. That didn’t happen and my mind could only comprehend getting passed each moment.

Did God leave me?

In hindsight, I know God never leaves us… But I continued to struggle with this feeling of being left for about 17 weeks into my postpartum recovery. I really struggled with Postpartum Anxiety. I honestly think the sudden shift in hormones, pregnant to being a mommy, changes so quickly that it can bring on feelings of fear and sadness.

little miss blessing

When our third baby was born, she had come down through the birth canal so quickly that she had swallowed too much amniotic fluid. So we weren’t able to do delayed cord clamping. Little miss needed the 5ml of amniotic fluid sucked out of her airway several times during our 24 hour hospital stay. Looking back, we probably should have stayed longer!

She is a lively, gorgeous little beauty now though! And we praise the Lord for her and the joy she brings to our lives!!

when god’s supernatural labor looks different

Now that she is over a year and a half old, I can see that God never left my side but His presence wasn’t always in the form that I wanted…

In reading all of these Supernatural Childbirth stories, I wanted a peaceful (and painless) childbirth…

When I was at 9cm, I wasn’t peaceful or pain free.

When I was recovering, I wasn’t peaceful or pain free.

My postpartum anxiety was far worse than I had ever expected.

For a very long time, I felt denied of God’s goodness and I was frustrated by that, because as I mentioned, I had started writing this post before she was born and knew that God had a plan for this story…

But God doesn’t fit into the mold we have for Him. He is far more wise than we are.

When I was at 9cm, He provided my husband’s hand for my comfort. He provided a doula to massage and calm me. And a midwife who was very experienced and confident.

When I was recovering, He provided protection over my baby as she struggled to cough up fluid, even at home with no medical support.

When I had postpartum anxiety, He provided help from my mom and dad. My mom stayed for almost 17 weeks straight with me in that postpartum time. My parents got my two older kids ready for school almost every day for me. I had anxiety so bad, I didn’t sleep at night… But He provided a way for things in my home to keep on keeping on. ♡

12 FREE Labor Affirmations, Verses & Encouragements

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in the valleys, he is faithful

If you’re in a valley right now, He is there. It is a promise.

The Lord will lead you into the land. He will always be with you and help you, so don’t ever be afraid of your enemies. Deuteronomy 31:8 CEV

So if you are experiencing something new and you don’t feel His presence or this time in life doesn’t feel like His best, remember that He IS there and He IS providing during this time.

It might take you years to see what God was up to. But He is always working towards the good of His children. And don’t forget, His help doesn’t always look like what we expected from Him. Even still, you will be provided for and protected from the enemy.

With love,