January 31, 2025 • 25 mins
This episode is a celebration of the unexpected humor found in childbirth, featuring a compilation of funny outtakes from Angie's experiences as a doula. Through laughter and story-sharing, we explore the unpredictable nature of labor and the connections formed during such profound moments.
• The power of instinct and a surprising fast delivery
• Funny moment of laboring in a car
• Challenges of memory and multitasking during labor
• Comedic physical challenges faced while supporting mothers
• A surprise VBAC delivery with minimal support
• Hilarious postpartum blooper about being trapped in a bathroom
• A wild hair appointment delivery story that proves anything can happen in birth
• Emphasizing the value of humor in the doula experience and childbirth
• Connections and community formed through shared birth experiences
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Show Credits
Host: Angie Rosier
Music: Michael Hicks
Photographer: Toni Walker
Episode Artwork: Nick Greenwood
Producer: Gillian Rosier Frampton
Voiceover: Ryan Parker
Mark as Played
Transcript
Episode Transcript
Available transcripts are automatically generated. Complete accuracy is not guaranteed.
Speaker 1 (00:10):
Welcome to the Ordinary Doula Podcast with
Angie Rozier, hosted by BirthLearning, where we help prepare
folks for labor and birth withexpertise coming from 20 years
of experience in a busy doulapractice Helping thousands of
people prepare for labor,providing essential knowledge
(00:35):
and tools for positive andempowering birth experiences.
Speaker 2 (00:48):
Hello and welcome to the Ordinary Doula podcast.
My name is Angie Rozier and Iam your host.
This is an episode that I'vebeen thinking about for a long
time and kind of how to do it,and it's just kind of a
compilation of bloopers, likelittle outtakes, that that I've
experienced over my career and Iguess when you do anything for
(01:10):
a long time, funny stuff isgoing to happen, outrageous
stuff is going to happen,surprising things are going to
happen, and especially inchildbirth, like that's.
A lot of times it is surprisingand interesting and the longer
I do this the more I realizelike anything can happen.
Anything is possible.
So in, for instance, today, Ihad a delivery this morning
early the day.
(01:30):
I went in at like 3.30am, babywas born just before 6.30am and
I saw something I think I'venever seen before.
I'll have to think back on it,but this was pretty wild.
Nobody was ready for this.
But this baby was a first timemom having, you know, her first
baby and we can usually expectone to three hours of pushing
(01:50):
with that right After we getcomplete to 10 centimeters
dilated.
This mom was goal was to gounmedicated.
She was doing it, she wasrocking it, doing amazing.
And she had been checked andwas nine plus right.
So she was nine, like nine anda half centimeters, had a little
anterior lip and the baby wasat a zero station.
We had a little ways to descend.
Um, she was checked a littlewhile later.
(02:11):
She was kind of pushy, nothingcrazy, but, you know, felt a
little bit of pushy here andthere.
She was checked again 20minutes later, still nine plus.
Um, baby at a zero station, andthe midwife or sorry, the nurse
and I stepped off to the side tokind of review our birth plan,
where it was dark.
We were talking in the dark andkind of whispering about that
when all of a sudden the momjust let out this what I call a
(02:34):
birth roar and she's likesomething's coming, the baby's
here, the baby's coming.
And I mean we've heard thatbefore.
You know, like if you've donethis a few times, you hear that
you're like okay, maybe the babycame from a zero to a plus one.
She felt some descent, shethinks the baby's coming.
Um, we gotta still push, youknow, first baby, we're still
gonna be pushing for a while.
Nope, she was absolutely right,this baby was coming and we
(02:58):
went over.
She did have a peanut ball andthat I'm sure helped facilitate
this.
Um, move the peanutball andthere was the baby's head.
This mom didn't really ever evenpush, she roared and that
brought the baby from a zerostation to out, um, so less than
five minutes after she waschecked.
So the nurse, you know, is Imean there's no gloves on the
(03:19):
carts ready, but it's not pulledup, it's not open, the there's
no doctors in the room.
There was meconium, so weneeded NICU present and because
it was dark, the nurse was likepushing buttons and turned out.
She accidentally called codeblue and man, we had 30 people
rushing into that room and thatbaby was born super fast.
So all was well in the end.
(03:40):
It was a very exhilarating fastdelivery and much sooner than
anticipated, because that babydescended from a zero to
completely out in less than fiveminutes.
Pretty wild when usually we'regoing to push Elisa a little bit
, but I think that's theshortest second stage pushing I
think I've ever seen on aprimate.
Pretty remarkable.
(04:00):
So that's just one of hundredsof examples of how things can go
.
But I want to share some kindof interesting or funny or odd
stories with you today.
Um, as I've gone over these inmy mind.
I'm sure there are so many like.
Birth is remarkable, um and, andthere's some fun stuff that
happens along the way, some wildstuff, some surprising things.
(04:21):
So here's some of the outtakeslet's see.
All right, so one client I had,I helped her a few times with a
few of her babies.
She's very a good birther.
She has had home birth,hospital birth this particular
birth maybe it was her thirdbaby, I think and went to their
(04:42):
house.
They were laboring at home andit was evident we need to get
going to the hospital.
So we got in the car and thisparticular time I don't always
do this, but I will in a pinch Ijust felt like I needed to get
in the car with them, which thatleaves me high and dry at the
hospital.
Right, we had about a 10 minutedrive to the hospital, but I
just felt like I needed to be inthe car with them, which I know
some doulas will never do that,but I've done that on occasion.
(05:02):
So I'm in the car with them.
The mom is doing her own littlebirth roars.
We're getting pretty dang closeto having a baby, so it was
tricky, like the dad's drivingas fast as he can.
It was dark, it was nighttime,there wasn't bad traffic, which
was helpful, but every time acontraction came we'd hear that
birth roar and the mom wasobviously pushing and um.
(05:24):
So we'd like the dad and I, aswe were communicating as best we
could while he was driving andit was dark like all right,
let's pull over.
I think we're having a baby, sowe would pull over and I'd be
around.
All right, here's how are wegoing to do this?
What are we going to do?
You know, just jump into actionthat would subside and she's
decision to.
So we would like go, go, go, goto the hospital, get there.
(05:45):
We pulled over three times,anticipating this baby to be
born, three times on the way tothe hospital.
We made it.
We made it to the hospital.
She got into the ER.
We drove right up to it.
We got in and we had a midwifecame down from labor and
delivery, met us in the ER andwe had a baby there pretty
quickly, pretty awesome.
Another one I was with a coupleheaded to the ER and this baby.
(06:07):
It was imminent.
I was in their car as well.
It sounds like I drive in carsa lot with people.
I really don't.
But, um, I was with them and,as you know, we we rushed to the
hospital.
I think I'd called ahead.
People came out of the ER tomeet us and as this mom was
stepping out of the car likewhat an awesome way to move the
pelvis and help that baby to beborn so right there at the ER
(06:30):
this is a busy hospital Peoplewere going in, coming out.
It was like shift change in themorning, so it was pretty busy
and this mom with one foot inthe car, one foot out, the
attendants from the ER, um,caught a baby right there, which
was kind of wild.
And I, I, I these aren't theonly bloopers, right, like
there's so many precipitousbirth bloopers if we're going
that direction.
(06:51):
There's one time we had a clientand you know, sometimes you
just don't get paid enough forwhat you're putting through as a
doula.
Sometimes the fee just can'tcover what's asked of you.
But this particular client waslaboring beautifully,
unmedicated, she knew just whatshe wanted and she asked for it
(07:12):
a little on the demanding side,you could say and she liked to
be on her hands and knees.
She didn't want to move fromthat.
She was on the bed.
The bed was, uh, you know, thetop of the bed was up and she
was kneeling draped over the bed.
Um, she was a pretty vocalperson and she asked us she
didn't want to get up to use thebathroom.
She had to poop legit poop, notthis wasn't like hey, I got to
push a baby's head out, but shehad to poop and she asked us to
(07:34):
just catch it in her hands.
Like she's like you didn't know, I'm not leaving and you can't
leave too.
Like just just catch it.
Like I'm going to go and hereit comes, you catch it.
Um, I did not catch poop, butmy partner and I had had that
(07:56):
fun client, which was kind ofinteresting.
There was a couple times thishas happened.
I hate to admit how many timesthis has happened, but for
several years there's twohospitals that I would go to
very frequently that were veryclose to each other, and so a
lot of the providers would go toboth hospitals, right, so they
had patients at either hospital,and this was pre-smartphone
days and so, like now in myphone, you know, I bring up my
(08:18):
client's information.
It tells me all kinds of stuffabout them, like their hospital,
their partner, their due date,all the stuff I need to know I
can see at a glance.
But this is pre-days Like I was, you know, going off memory and
paper notes.
So more times than I'd like toadmit, in the middle of the
night I would arrive at ahospital, one of these two.
(08:41):
Um, with a provider I workedwith frequently who went to one
of these two hospitals, I'd say,hey, I'm here for so-and-so,
and they're like I'm sorry wedon't have a patient by that
name.
Like, ah, snap, like dang it.
Okay, next hospital there downthe down the street two minutes.
So hop in my car, go there.
And sure enough, that's wherethey were.
Um, couple bloopers that way.
Uh, one time I was.
Sometimes you get in funkyphysical positions as you are,
(09:05):
as you are providing physicalsupport to the laboring person.
Sometimes it's they're verymeticulous on what they want and
they they won't deviate fromwhat they want because that's
that's how they're coping right,like they're just hanging on by
a thread and maybe you are thatthread, or your shoulders or
your whatever right.
And I've had one particularclient years ago Luckily I was
(09:25):
young and strong and I waswearing great shoes at that day
but she hung around my neck fortwo hours like hung while she
was pushing.
Her husband was too tall and soI just planted my feet right
there on the ground and that'swhere she was for pushing for
most all of her pushing phase.
Another client this was a homebirth and she was giving birth
(09:47):
on a like on a floor, a bed onthe floor, and it turned out
like the.
Where we ended up.
That was working best for heris that I was kind of kneeling
and she was leaning back on meand then her partner was right
next to her the midwife is thereas well, working and so she was
pushing her at the very end ofa long labor, like 24 hours of
labor or something and I waskneeling and she was laying back
(10:09):
on me and it's pretty wildefforts when you're pushing, and
especially she was doing it forlike an hour and a half or so,
and so I thought I had lost mylegs, kneeling this way for an
hour and a half with somebody onme, like in my lap, and I
looked at my legs.
I could see I had legs.
I didn't know if they wouldwork.
I don't know if they wouldunbend from that position after
(10:30):
that amount of time, couldn'tfeel them, they were super
tingly and almost disappeared.
But you know what?
I still got two legs, um, andthey function pretty darn good.
So that was kind of wild.
Um, another one I was with aclient.
(10:54):
She was having a VBAC after twoC-sections and this was very
important to her, as it is tomany I mean, everyone's birth is
important to them, right?
But she wanted a VBAC.
She carefully chose a providerwho was going to support it.
She wanted to go unmedicated,which she was doing, and she
labored beautifully, got to 10centimeters, pushed for one hour
, two hours, pushed in all thepositions, and her supportive
care provider, who was, I,enjoyed and trusted, said you
(11:14):
know what?
Your baby has not budged aftertwo hours of pushing.
I don't, I don't think this isgoing to work and I'm sorry
about that, but I think we'regoing to have to plan for a
cesarean delivery again.
Um, and she cried and she wassad.
Um and the team went to get theOR ready and she was on her
hands and knees, unmedicated andhad to just keep pushing right,
(11:35):
like she couldn't just turn itoff.
So she was pushing, pushing.
It was just her husband and Iin the room at this point and
the team was getting the ORready and they were gone for a
while, like a remarkable 25minutes.
They were gone and she had tojust keep pushing and after
about 20 minutes I was like, ohmy gosh, that looks different,
like something's changed.
(11:55):
I can see the descent right,you could absolutely see the
scent.
I'm like, wow, oh, oh, I thinkthis is going to work.
Like I think I think thisbaby's coming.
So I asked the dad.
I didn't want to starthollering.
I mean we were the only threepeople in the room soon to be
four people and the staff hadn'tcome in for going on 25 minutes
(12:15):
now.
So I asked the dad to push thenurse button.
Right, I'm like, push that callbutton, I think this baby's
coming.
And so he was nervous andfumbling around and couldn't
find the button.
I mean it was bright red and hecouldn't find it.
Finally he finds it, he pushesit.
In the meantime this baby's headis coming, like baby heads
coming out.
I'm like, all right, well, I'mhere, I'm the only one here,
let's, let's do this, I guess.
And so she was.
(12:37):
There's a towel there.
I didn't even have gloves on, Ijust kind of picked up the
towel and held the baby's headin the towel.
Babies did a nice rotation.
The shoulders are coming outbeautifully and about the belly
button mark.
A nurse came in the room'm likehey, this baby's coming.
She starts yelling, hollers forthe team to come in.
They all come in and you knowwhat?
This baby's head was squareLike I'd never seen a baby's
(13:03):
head shaped like this.
But it was very square as itmade its way through the pelvis.
Um, and this mom got her V back.
She was very happy with how itwent.
Um, but the blooper was that Iwas in the room another time.
Uh, I was with a client.
They were doing a birth centerbirth and they had already had a
baby before.
I was also with them for thatone.
Um, and they.
They arrived at the birthcenter and this this particular
(13:25):
midwife, who's so amazing.
She did home birth deliveriesand birth center delivery.
So she was coming back from ahome birth delivery on her way
to the birth center but wasn'tquite there yet.
So we were let into the birthcenter with a very non-skilled
person, her husband, who saidall right, there, there you go.
That's all.
That's all I got.
So it was again the three of us, me, soon to be four of us mom,
(13:46):
dad.
It was her second baby.
Things were going fast.
She started pushing, um, I'mlike, oh gosh, here we go again.
Um, so started easing this babyout when and I'm like just at
the right time the head was morethan crowning and we would just
have I had baby chin.
When the midwife walked in, I'mlike, all right, good, you're
here, do your job.
Um, which was kind of nice.
(14:07):
Uh, let's see, some of mybloopers honestly come from
exhaustion in my effort toarticulate words.
At the end of a long birth,these nurses, like I, get
slightly envious of nurses whoget to go home after 12 hours or
they have an end to their shift, right, and I work with
partners and backups, so that's,you know, much easier.
(14:30):
But still you might start ashift with no sleep, right, like
you might go to a birth at 9 pm.
It's not like you were sleepingall day in preparation for this
birth.
So sometimes at the end of youknow, at the end of a birth or
shift, or if my partner comes in, like my words are a little
fuzzy because I'm prettyexhausted.
So I have to really concentratesometimes and, um, use the
(14:51):
right words as I talk to thestaff, who's pretty fresh
Sometimes they're fresher than Iam at that point because they
they have shifts and they comeand come and go.
Um, here's a funny postpartumblooper.
Um, so I've I've done a lot ofpostpartum work for people in
their homes daytime, nighttime,and this particular one, um, the
(15:12):
my clients.
The husband was a.
He worked for an NBA team.
He was a trainer for an NBAteam and it was the playoff
season, for this NBA team was inthe playoffs.
It was June or something.
I was there for their birth andshe wanted some nighttime help
when her husband was off at theplayoffs.
Right, she had a newborn.
So I was doing some nighttimedoula work for her and she went
(15:35):
to bed and I was taking care ofthe baby and the baby and I were
in the living room and I was,you know, I'd sleep and rest
there as I could and stuff, um,and the baby was getting close
to waking up.
I knew the baby's.
I think I was giving a bottlewhen this baby woke up this time
I can't remember, but but, um,the baby's getting close to
waking up.
So I thought, oh, I better, ifI'm gonna go to the bathroom for
myself, I better do it now,before this baby wakes up and
needs to eat.
(15:55):
And so I went to the bathroom,just down the hall and around
the corner close to the mom'sbedroom, and I did not take my
phone with me.
I just went and I was justgonna use the bathroom real
quick, wash my hands and get tofeeding this baby.
And once I got into the bathroom, the doorknob broke like the
doorknob just broke off.
Um, I'm like, oh, like this isa problem.
(16:15):
Um, I didn't have a phone withme, no way to connect with
anyone.
Um, I think it might've beenwinter time.
There is a very small window inthe bathroom.
It did cross my mind if Ishould try to get out the window
.
And in the meantime the babystarts crying.
Right, I knew he was waking upsoon and being ready to eat, and
so I'm like oh snap, what do Ido?
I'm like trapped in thisbathroom with no way to
(16:38):
communicate, unless I startknocking or hollering and waking
up the mom, whose bedroom iskind of close by.
I just didn't know what to do.
Like I am in a predicament here.
The baby started crying andnobody was attending to it right
, that's poor form for apostpartum doula.
So it got the mom's attention.
Thank goodness she wasn'twearing earplugs and having a
sound machine.
(16:58):
Maybe she did, I don't know,but she, it got her attention
and so I was kind of knocking onthe bathroom door by then Like
hey, uh, I'm.
I mean, the doorknob on theother side worked just fine, I
just didn't have access to it.
So I'm like I am so sorry, butI'm like trapped in the bathroom
.
The door broke and anyway, wehad a good little chuckle about
that.
She opened the door and I, shewent back to bed and I went and
took care of that poor baby whowas crying.
(17:21):
Um, another kind of funny uhblooper.
This happened years ago for me.
I was, I had a client, they hada baby, everything was awesome,
super cool people.
Um, delivered, went well, we're, you know we're.
We're now sitting with holdingbaby in arms, baby's getting
ready to latch, and I was kindof helping with the first latch
(17:46):
and, um, just instinctively, themom like on her nipple was a
hair right and so I'm like, oh,let's move that out of the way.
But you know, I went to move itand it was attached.
I'm like, oh, so sorry, sorryabout that.
Um, we had a good littlechuckle about that.
Um, okay, another blooper thatI.
It was kind of crazy.
This was a couple years ago andI had a client first time client
(18:07):
in early labor just likecontractions 12 minutes apart.
We were keeping in contact onthe phone Um, not thinking much
of it, but I'm like, all right,she's an early labor, cool.
I had a hair appointment thatday, I think at 10, we'd been in
contact since.
Like seven contractions are farapart.
They were short, and I had todecide am I going to keep my
(18:28):
hair appointment, am I not?
My hair appointment was about20 minutes from my client.
I'm like, yeah, I think I cankeep it.
It's going to be like a twohour hair appointment.
I'll be done by noon.
That should be fine, um, andI'll have my phone with me, of
course.
So I went to my hair appointment.
I don't get my hair coloredoften, but I decided to.
Just, I had a wild hair.
I'm like I'm going to get myhair colored today.
That was what I had theappointment for.
(18:49):
So my hairdresser is a goodfriend, she's awesome, she knows
what I do for a living andstuff we she likes to chat about
.
I think people think it'sinteresting, um, as you chat
with hairdressers, right?
So I was texting this client, Igot my hair all colored.
I got you know, whatever likethey.
They put all the color in.
I sat under the the littledryer.
(19:11):
I was texting her again, stillnothing crazy about her labor.
Um, and the hairdresser went towash my hair.
She took all the foils out andwas going to wash my hair.
So my head's in the sink rightwhen the dad calls me and I've
been texting him moments beforeand he's like uh, I think she's
pushing, and these people hadthey're traveling to a birth
center which was about an houraway from their house.
(19:31):
Um, and we all knew that.
Right, we're like all right,let's, you know, let's get on
the road.
Part of the plan is to get onthe road at a good time, but it
hadn't gotten to that good timeyet as far as contractions and
the pattern went and stuff.
He's like I think she's pushingand I I didn't believe him.
I'm like well, you know, maybeshe feels the urge to push.
Uh, and remember, like, even ifit's, you know, even if it is,
(19:54):
she is 10 centimeters, which Ireally doubted because
contractions have been prettyspaced out.
Um, we still have, you know, anhour, two or three of pushing
so you could get on the road andget to the birth center.
And he's like, no, no, no, Ithink she's pushing and I could
hear her in the background.
Um, so, while my head is in thesink, um, this mom, legit, is
(20:17):
like delivering her baby.
So I talked the dad through whatto do and I said, all right,
like the mom is standing at thekitchen sink, I had a little
picture of my mind where theywere.
I'd been to their house.
I'm like all right, here's whatyou're going to do.
I want you to be ready to catcha baby this way.
They're going to be slippery,it's going to be warm.
I heard the baby be born and myheart, just like I, took a huge
sigh of relief as that baby gavea really great cry.
I couldn't see what was goingon.
(20:38):
I was just hearing it and myhairdressers washing my hair out
, and so I said, all right,let's sit her down on the floor.
You know, let's like, you know,talking them through some
things about the placenta andthe cord and keeping that baby
skin to skin, covering them up,like seeing the color of the
baby.
You know, just like kind oftalking them through that stuff.
Um, and my hairdresser is verywell aware of what's going on
(21:03):
and she's like you gotta go, Igotta go.
Um, so she took a clip and Ihad wet hair it was colored, not
cut and she just took this clipand just pulled my hair up, put
a towel around my neck and Idashed out the door, right.
So I and I did not do my makeupthat day.
I am a person who does mymakeup every single morning.
(21:23):
I just wake up and I do it likeI brushed my teeth, right, but
that day, for whatever reason, Idid not.
So I went to these people and Igave them the option full
disclosure.
I'm like all right, here's whatyou could do.
You could call 911.
You could go to the nearesthospital, which is much closer
than your birth center.
You could head to the birthcenter.
You can wait for me to getthere.
What do you want to do?
(21:44):
They chose to wait for me to getthere, which I was nervous
about, you know, but I couldhear the baby's crying, you know
, and we were doing our best tokeep time of things on the phone
.
So my hair appointment,remember, was at 10.
It was going to go to about 12.
This baby was born at 1202.
And so I just, you know dashedto my car, went to them, went
(22:04):
with them to the birth center,which was an hour away.
We put together their remarkabletimeline and I went to the
birth center with awesomemidwives who I know this is a
North Carolina and one of my myfavorite places to go into work.
But I looked pretty wild thatday, like no makeup, uh, weird
hair in a clip was dripping, wet, colored Like.
(22:24):
So anyway, next visit with myhairdresser I took back her clip
and her towel and told her thatbaby was doing fine.
But that was kind of kind of awild one.
Um, and those things happen,like it's funny that things
happen in little batches.
But just a couple weeks laterhad another dad with a home.
They're planning a home birthand no one could get there in
(22:45):
time, so he had two phones.
Midwife was on one phone, I wason one phone.
We talked that dad through adelivery at home.
Everything worked outbeautifully and thank goodness
that you know it worked out fineand that's the interesting
thing.
Like when things go fine withbirth and delivery, like those
babies don't need a whole lot ofhelp being born.
You know, sometimes the momsneed more help than the babies
(23:07):
do, but so glad we have skilledattendants and a medical
community who works hard to takegood care medical care,
emotional care, physical care ofpeople having babies.
So anyway, some odd littlestories there bloopers, outtakes
, just fun things that havehappened.
I'm sure there's more.
I could pull up through mymemory banks over the years, but
(23:28):
hopefully you have some goodstories too.
I love that.
Every birth is a story, um,some are heartbreaking stories,
some are hilarious stories, someare most of them are incredibly
empowering and triumphant.
Stories are all a hero's tale,every single one, and no matter
how they go.
And then sometimes we do prettyfunny things.
So anyway, that's it for mybloopers.
(23:50):
Hopefully you have some funbloopers from your life or your
career.
Um, got to laugh in life Like Ilove to have a good laugh about
things.
Keep it real.
So thanks so much for beinghere with me today hearing some
fun little stories.
I hope that you have a good day.
I hope you have something.
You can go out and make adifference in someone else's
life.
Reach out and make a humanconnection with someone you know
(24:10):
or someone you don't, we willsee you next time.
Thanks for being here.
Speaker 1 (24:31):
Thank you for listening to the Ordinary Doula
Podcast with Angie Rozier,hosted by Birth Learning.
Episode credits will be in theshow notes Tune in next time as
we continue to explore the manyaspects of giving birth.
Thank you.
Welcome to the Ordinary Doula Podcast with
Angie Rozier, hosted by BirthLearning, where we help prepare
folks for labor and birth withexpertise coming from 20 years
of experience in a busy doulapractice Helping thousands of
people prepare for labor,providing essential knowledge
(00:35):
and tools for positive andempowering birth experiences.
Speaker 2 (00:48):
Hello and welcome to the Ordinary Doula podcast.
My name is Angie Rozier and Iam your host.
This is an episode that I'vebeen thinking about for a long
time and kind of how to do it,and it's just kind of a
compilation of bloopers, likelittle outtakes, that that I've
experienced over my career and Iguess when you do anything for
(01:10):
a long time, funny stuff isgoing to happen, outrageous
stuff is going to happen,surprising things are going to
happen, and especially inchildbirth, like that's.
A lot of times it is surprisingand interesting and the longer
I do this the more I realizelike anything can happen.
Anything is possible.
So in, for instance, today, Ihad a delivery this morning
early the day.
(01:30):
I went in at like 3.30am, babywas born just before 6.30am and
I saw something I think I'venever seen before.
I'll have to think back on it,but this was pretty wild.
Nobody was ready for this.
But this baby was a first timemom having, you know, her first
baby and we can usually expectone to three hours of pushing
(01:50):
with that right After we getcomplete to 10 centimeters
dilated.
This mom was goal was to gounmedicated.
She was doing it, she wasrocking it, doing amazing.
And she had been checked andwas nine plus right.
So she was nine, like nine anda half centimeters, had a little
anterior lip and the baby wasat a zero station.
We had a little ways to descend.
Um, she was checked a littlewhile later.
(02:11):
She was kind of pushy, nothingcrazy, but, you know, felt a
little bit of pushy here andthere.
She was checked again 20minutes later, still nine plus.
Um, baby at a zero station, andthe midwife or sorry, the nurse
and I stepped off to the side tokind of review our birth plan,
where it was dark.
We were talking in the dark andkind of whispering about that
when all of a sudden the momjust let out this what I call a
(02:34):
birth roar and she's likesomething's coming, the baby's
here, the baby's coming.
And I mean we've heard thatbefore.
You know, like if you've donethis a few times, you hear that
you're like okay, maybe the babycame from a zero to a plus one.
She felt some descent, shethinks the baby's coming.
Um, we gotta still push, youknow, first baby, we're still
gonna be pushing for a while.
Nope, she was absolutely right,this baby was coming and we
(02:58):
went over.
She did have a peanut ball andthat I'm sure helped facilitate
this.
Um, move the peanutball andthere was the baby's head.
This mom didn't really ever evenpush, she roared and that
brought the baby from a zerostation to out, um, so less than
five minutes after she waschecked.
So the nurse, you know, is Imean there's no gloves on the
(03:19):
carts ready, but it's not pulledup, it's not open, the there's
no doctors in the room.
There was meconium, so weneeded NICU present and because
it was dark, the nurse was likepushing buttons and turned out.
She accidentally called codeblue and man, we had 30 people
rushing into that room and thatbaby was born super fast.
So all was well in the end.
(03:40):
It was a very exhilarating fastdelivery and much sooner than
anticipated, because that babydescended from a zero to
completely out in less than fiveminutes.
Pretty wild when usually we'regoing to push Elisa a little bit
, but I think that's theshortest second stage pushing I
think I've ever seen on aprimate.
Pretty remarkable.
(04:00):
So that's just one of hundredsof examples of how things can go
.
But I want to share some kindof interesting or funny or odd
stories with you today.
Um, as I've gone over these inmy mind.
I'm sure there are so many like.
Birth is remarkable, um and, andthere's some fun stuff that
happens along the way, some wildstuff, some surprising things.
(04:21):
So here's some of the outtakeslet's see.
All right, so one client I had,I helped her a few times with a
few of her babies.
She's very a good birther.
She has had home birth,hospital birth this particular
birth maybe it was her thirdbaby, I think and went to their
(04:42):
house.
They were laboring at home andit was evident we need to get
going to the hospital.
So we got in the car and thisparticular time I don't always
do this, but I will in a pinch Ijust felt like I needed to get
in the car with them, which thatleaves me high and dry at the
hospital.
Right, we had about a 10 minutedrive to the hospital, but I
just felt like I needed to be inthe car with them, which I know
some doulas will never do that,but I've done that on occasion.
(05:02):
So I'm in the car with them.
The mom is doing her own littlebirth roars.
We're getting pretty dang closeto having a baby, so it was
tricky, like the dad's drivingas fast as he can.
It was dark, it was nighttime,there wasn't bad traffic, which
was helpful, but every time acontraction came we'd hear that
birth roar and the mom wasobviously pushing and um.
(05:24):
So we'd like the dad and I, aswe were communicating as best we
could while he was driving andit was dark like all right,
let's pull over.
I think we're having a baby, sowe would pull over and I'd be
around.
All right, here's how are wegoing to do this?
What are we going to do?
You know, just jump into actionthat would subside and she's
decision to.
So we would like go, go, go, goto the hospital, get there.
(05:45):
We pulled over three times,anticipating this baby to be
born, three times on the way tothe hospital.
We made it.
We made it to the hospital.
She got into the ER.
We drove right up to it.
We got in and we had a midwifecame down from labor and
delivery, met us in the ER andwe had a baby there pretty
quickly, pretty awesome.
Another one I was with a coupleheaded to the ER and this baby.
(06:07):
It was imminent.
I was in their car as well.
It sounds like I drive in carsa lot with people.
I really don't.
But, um, I was with them and,as you know, we we rushed to the
hospital.
I think I'd called ahead.
People came out of the ER tomeet us and as this mom was
stepping out of the car likewhat an awesome way to move the
pelvis and help that baby to beborn so right there at the ER
(06:30):
this is a busy hospital Peoplewere going in, coming out.
It was like shift change in themorning, so it was pretty busy
and this mom with one foot inthe car, one foot out, the
attendants from the ER, um,caught a baby right there, which
was kind of wild.
And I, I, I these aren't theonly bloopers, right, like
there's so many precipitousbirth bloopers if we're going
that direction.
(06:51):
There's one time we had a clientand you know, sometimes you
just don't get paid enough forwhat you're putting through as a
doula.
Sometimes the fee just can'tcover what's asked of you.
But this particular client waslaboring beautifully,
unmedicated, she knew just whatshe wanted and she asked for it
(07:12):
a little on the demanding side,you could say and she liked to
be on her hands and knees.
She didn't want to move fromthat.
She was on the bed.
The bed was, uh, you know, thetop of the bed was up and she
was kneeling draped over the bed.
Um, she was a pretty vocalperson and she asked us she
didn't want to get up to use thebathroom.
She had to poop legit poop, notthis wasn't like hey, I got to
push a baby's head out, but shehad to poop and she asked us to
(07:34):
just catch it in her hands.
Like she's like you didn't know, I'm not leaving and you can't
leave too.
Like just just catch it.
Like I'm going to go and hereit comes, you catch it.
Um, I did not catch poop, butmy partner and I had had that
(07:56):
fun client, which was kind ofinteresting.
There was a couple times thishas happened.
I hate to admit how many timesthis has happened, but for
several years there's twohospitals that I would go to
very frequently that were veryclose to each other, and so a
lot of the providers would go toboth hospitals, right, so they
had patients at either hospital,and this was pre-smartphone
days and so, like now in myphone, you know, I bring up my
(08:18):
client's information.
It tells me all kinds of stuffabout them, like their hospital,
their partner, their due date,all the stuff I need to know I
can see at a glance.
But this is pre-days Like I was, you know, going off memory and
paper notes.
So more times than I'd like toadmit, in the middle of the
night I would arrive at ahospital, one of these two.
(08:41):
Um, with a provider I workedwith frequently who went to one
of these two hospitals, I'd say,hey, I'm here for so-and-so,
and they're like I'm sorry wedon't have a patient by that
name.
Like, ah, snap, like dang it.
Okay, next hospital there downthe down the street two minutes.
So hop in my car, go there.
And sure enough, that's wherethey were.
Um, couple bloopers that way.
Uh, one time I was.
Sometimes you get in funkyphysical positions as you are,
(09:05):
as you are providing physicalsupport to the laboring person.
Sometimes it's they're verymeticulous on what they want and
they they won't deviate fromwhat they want because that's
that's how they're coping right,like they're just hanging on by
a thread and maybe you are thatthread, or your shoulders or
your whatever right.
And I've had one particularclient years ago Luckily I was
(09:25):
young and strong and I waswearing great shoes at that day
but she hung around my neck fortwo hours like hung while she
was pushing.
Her husband was too tall and soI just planted my feet right
there on the ground and that'swhere she was for pushing for
most all of her pushing phase.
Another client this was a homebirth and she was giving birth
(09:47):
on a like on a floor, a bed onthe floor, and it turned out
like the.
Where we ended up.
That was working best for heris that I was kind of kneeling
and she was leaning back on meand then her partner was right
next to her the midwife is thereas well, working and so she was
pushing her at the very end ofa long labor, like 24 hours of
labor or something and I waskneeling and she was laying back
(10:09):
on me and it's pretty wildefforts when you're pushing, and
especially she was doing it forlike an hour and a half or so,
and so I thought I had lost mylegs, kneeling this way for an
hour and a half with somebody onme, like in my lap, and I
looked at my legs.
I could see I had legs.
I didn't know if they wouldwork.
I don't know if they wouldunbend from that position after
(10:30):
that amount of time, couldn'tfeel them, they were super
tingly and almost disappeared.
But you know what?
I still got two legs, um, andthey function pretty darn good.
So that was kind of wild.
Um, another one I was with aclient.
(10:54):
She was having a VBAC after twoC-sections and this was very
important to her, as it is tomany I mean, everyone's birth is
important to them, right?
But she wanted a VBAC.
She carefully chose a providerwho was going to support it.
She wanted to go unmedicated,which she was doing, and she
labored beautifully, got to 10centimeters, pushed for one hour
, two hours, pushed in all thepositions, and her supportive
care provider, who was, I,enjoyed and trusted, said you
(11:14):
know what?
Your baby has not budged aftertwo hours of pushing.
I don't, I don't think this isgoing to work and I'm sorry
about that, but I think we'regoing to have to plan for a
cesarean delivery again.
Um, and she cried and she wassad.
Um and the team went to get theOR ready and she was on her
hands and knees, unmedicated andhad to just keep pushing right,
(11:35):
like she couldn't just turn itoff.
So she was pushing, pushing.
It was just her husband and Iin the room at this point and
the team was getting the ORready and they were gone for a
while, like a remarkable 25minutes.
They were gone and she had tojust keep pushing and after
about 20 minutes I was like, ohmy gosh, that looks different,
like something's changed.
(11:55):
I can see the descent right,you could absolutely see the
scent.
I'm like, wow, oh, oh, I thinkthis is going to work.
Like I think I think thisbaby's coming.
So I asked the dad.
I didn't want to starthollering.
I mean we were the only threepeople in the room soon to be
four people and the staff hadn'tcome in for going on 25 minutes
(12:15):
now.
So I asked the dad to push thenurse button.
Right, I'm like, push that callbutton, I think this baby's
coming.
And so he was nervous andfumbling around and couldn't
find the button.
I mean it was bright red and hecouldn't find it.
Finally he finds it, he pushesit.
In the meantime this baby's headis coming, like baby heads
coming out.
I'm like, all right, well, I'mhere, I'm the only one here,
let's, let's do this, I guess.
And so she was.
(12:37):
There's a towel there.
I didn't even have gloves on, Ijust kind of picked up the
towel and held the baby's headin the towel.
Babies did a nice rotation.
The shoulders are coming outbeautifully and about the belly
button mark.
A nurse came in the room'm likehey, this baby's coming.
She starts yelling, hollers forthe team to come in.
They all come in and you knowwhat?
This baby's head was squareLike I'd never seen a baby's
(13:03):
head shaped like this.
But it was very square as itmade its way through the pelvis.
Um, and this mom got her V back.
She was very happy with how itwent.
Um, but the blooper was that Iwas in the room another time.
Uh, I was with a client.
They were doing a birth centerbirth and they had already had a
baby before.
I was also with them for thatone.
Um, and they.
They arrived at the birthcenter and this this particular
(13:25):
midwife, who's so amazing.
She did home birth deliveriesand birth center delivery.
So she was coming back from ahome birth delivery on her way
to the birth center but wasn'tquite there yet.
So we were let into the birthcenter with a very non-skilled
person, her husband, who saidall right, there, there you go.
That's all.
That's all I got.
So it was again the three of us, me, soon to be four of us mom,
(13:46):
dad.
It was her second baby.
Things were going fast.
She started pushing, um, I'mlike, oh gosh, here we go again.
Um, so started easing this babyout when and I'm like just at
the right time the head was morethan crowning and we would just
have I had baby chin.
When the midwife walked in, I'mlike, all right, good, you're
here, do your job.
Um, which was kind of nice.
(14:07):
Uh, let's see, some of mybloopers honestly come from
exhaustion in my effort toarticulate words.
At the end of a long birth,these nurses, like I, get
slightly envious of nurses whoget to go home after 12 hours or
they have an end to their shift, right, and I work with
partners and backups, so that's,you know, much easier.
(14:30):
But still you might start ashift with no sleep, right, like
you might go to a birth at 9 pm.
It's not like you were sleepingall day in preparation for this
birth.
So sometimes at the end of youknow, at the end of a birth or
shift, or if my partner comes in, like my words are a little
fuzzy because I'm prettyexhausted.
So I have to really concentratesometimes and, um, use the
(14:51):
right words as I talk to thestaff, who's pretty fresh
Sometimes they're fresher than Iam at that point because they
they have shifts and they comeand come and go.
Um, here's a funny postpartumblooper.
Um, so I've I've done a lot ofpostpartum work for people in
their homes daytime, nighttime,and this particular one, um, the
(15:12):
my clients.
The husband was a.
He worked for an NBA team.
He was a trainer for an NBAteam and it was the playoff
season, for this NBA team was inthe playoffs.
It was June or something.
I was there for their birth andshe wanted some nighttime help
when her husband was off at theplayoffs.
Right, she had a newborn.
So I was doing some nighttimedoula work for her and she went
(15:35):
to bed and I was taking care ofthe baby and the baby and I were
in the living room and I was,you know, I'd sleep and rest
there as I could and stuff, um,and the baby was getting close
to waking up.
I knew the baby's.
I think I was giving a bottlewhen this baby woke up this time
I can't remember, but but, um,the baby's getting close to
waking up.
So I thought, oh, I better, ifI'm gonna go to the bathroom for
myself, I better do it now,before this baby wakes up and
needs to eat.
(15:55):
And so I went to the bathroom,just down the hall and around
the corner close to the mom'sbedroom, and I did not take my
phone with me.
I just went and I was justgonna use the bathroom real
quick, wash my hands and get tofeeding this baby.
And once I got into the bathroom, the doorknob broke like the
doorknob just broke off.
Um, I'm like, oh, like this isa problem.
(16:15):
Um, I didn't have a phone withme, no way to connect with
anyone.
Um, I think it might've beenwinter time.
There is a very small window inthe bathroom.
It did cross my mind if Ishould try to get out the window
.
And in the meantime the babystarts crying.
Right, I knew he was waking upsoon and being ready to eat, and
so I'm like oh snap, what do Ido?
I'm like trapped in thisbathroom with no way to
(16:38):
communicate, unless I startknocking or hollering and waking
up the mom, whose bedroom iskind of close by.
I just didn't know what to do.
Like I am in a predicament here.
The baby started crying andnobody was attending to it right
, that's poor form for apostpartum doula.
So it got the mom's attention.
Thank goodness she wasn'twearing earplugs and having a
sound machine.
(16:58):
Maybe she did, I don't know,but she, it got her attention
and so I was kind of knocking onthe bathroom door by then Like
hey, uh, I'm.
I mean, the doorknob on theother side worked just fine, I
just didn't have access to it.
So I'm like I am so sorry, butI'm like trapped in the bathroom
.
The door broke and anyway, wehad a good little chuckle about
that.
She opened the door and I, shewent back to bed and I went and
took care of that poor baby whowas crying.
(17:21):
Um, another kind of funny uhblooper.
This happened years ago for me.
I was, I had a client, they hada baby, everything was awesome,
super cool people.
Um, delivered, went well, we're, you know we're.
We're now sitting with holdingbaby in arms, baby's getting
ready to latch, and I was kindof helping with the first latch
(17:46):
and, um, just instinctively, themom like on her nipple was a
hair right and so I'm like, oh,let's move that out of the way.
But you know, I went to move itand it was attached.
I'm like, oh, so sorry, sorryabout that.
Um, we had a good littlechuckle about that.
Um, okay, another blooper thatI.
It was kind of crazy.
This was a couple years ago andI had a client first time client
(18:07):
in early labor just likecontractions 12 minutes apart.
We were keeping in contact onthe phone Um, not thinking much
of it, but I'm like, all right,she's an early labor, cool.
I had a hair appointment thatday, I think at 10, we'd been in
contact since.
Like seven contractions are farapart.
They were short, and I had todecide am I going to keep my
(18:28):
hair appointment, am I not?
My hair appointment was about20 minutes from my client.
I'm like, yeah, I think I cankeep it.
It's going to be like a twohour hair appointment.
I'll be done by noon.
That should be fine, um, andI'll have my phone with me, of
course.
So I went to my hair appointment.
I don't get my hair coloredoften, but I decided to.
Just, I had a wild hair.
I'm like I'm going to get myhair colored today.
That was what I had theappointment for.
(18:49):
So my hairdresser is a goodfriend, she's awesome, she knows
what I do for a living andstuff we she likes to chat about
.
I think people think it'sinteresting, um, as you chat
with hairdressers, right?
So I was texting this client, Igot my hair all colored.
I got you know, whatever likethey.
They put all the color in.
I sat under the the littledryer.
(19:11):
I was texting her again, stillnothing crazy about her labor.
Um, and the hairdresser went towash my hair.
She took all the foils out andwas going to wash my hair.
So my head's in the sink rightwhen the dad calls me and I've
been texting him moments beforeand he's like uh, I think she's
pushing, and these people hadthey're traveling to a birth
center which was about an houraway from their house.
(19:31):
Um, and we all knew that.
Right, we're like all right,let's, you know, let's get on
the road.
Part of the plan is to get onthe road at a good time, but it
hadn't gotten to that good timeyet as far as contractions and
the pattern went and stuff.
He's like I think she's pushingand I I didn't believe him.
I'm like well, you know, maybeshe feels the urge to push.
Uh, and remember, like, even ifit's, you know, even if it is,
(19:54):
she is 10 centimeters, which Ireally doubted because
contractions have been prettyspaced out.
Um, we still have, you know, anhour, two or three of pushing
so you could get on the road andget to the birth center.
And he's like, no, no, no, Ithink she's pushing and I could
hear her in the background.
Um, so, while my head is in thesink, um, this mom, legit, is
(20:17):
like delivering her baby.
So I talked the dad through whatto do and I said, all right,
like the mom is standing at thekitchen sink, I had a little
picture of my mind where theywere.
I'd been to their house.
I'm like all right, here's whatyou're going to do.
I want you to be ready to catcha baby this way.
They're going to be slippery,it's going to be warm.
I heard the baby be born and myheart, just like I, took a huge
sigh of relief as that baby gavea really great cry.
I couldn't see what was goingon.
(20:38):
I was just hearing it and myhairdressers washing my hair out
, and so I said, all right,let's sit her down on the floor.
You know, let's like, you know,talking them through some
things about the placenta andthe cord and keeping that baby
skin to skin, covering them up,like seeing the color of the
baby.
You know, just like kind oftalking them through that stuff.
Um, and my hairdresser is verywell aware of what's going on
(21:03):
and she's like you gotta go, Igotta go.
Um, so she took a clip and Ihad wet hair it was colored, not
cut and she just took this clipand just pulled my hair up, put
a towel around my neck and Idashed out the door, right.
So I and I did not do my makeupthat day.
I am a person who does mymakeup every single morning.
(21:23):
I just wake up and I do it likeI brushed my teeth, right, but
that day, for whatever reason, Idid not.
So I went to these people and Igave them the option full
disclosure.
I'm like all right, here's whatyou could do.
You could call 911.
You could go to the nearesthospital, which is much closer
than your birth center.
You could head to the birthcenter.
You can wait for me to getthere.
What do you want to do?
(21:44):
They chose to wait for me to getthere, which I was nervous
about, you know, but I couldhear the baby's crying, you know
, and we were doing our best tokeep time of things on the phone
.
So my hair appointment,remember, was at 10.
It was going to go to about 12.
This baby was born at 1202.
And so I just, you know dashedto my car, went to them, went
(22:04):
with them to the birth center,which was an hour away.
We put together their remarkabletimeline and I went to the
birth center with awesomemidwives who I know this is a
North Carolina and one of my myfavorite places to go into work.
But I looked pretty wild thatday, like no makeup, uh, weird
hair in a clip was dripping, wet, colored Like.
(22:24):
So anyway, next visit with myhairdresser I took back her clip
and her towel and told her thatbaby was doing fine.
But that was kind of kind of awild one.
Um, and those things happen,like it's funny that things
happen in little batches.
But just a couple weeks laterhad another dad with a home.
They're planning a home birthand no one could get there in
(22:45):
time, so he had two phones.
Midwife was on one phone, I wason one phone.
We talked that dad through adelivery at home.
Everything worked outbeautifully and thank goodness
that you know it worked out fineand that's the interesting
thing.
Like when things go fine withbirth and delivery, like those
babies don't need a whole lot ofhelp being born.
You know, sometimes the momsneed more help than the babies
(23:07):
do, but so glad we have skilledattendants and a medical
community who works hard to takegood care medical care,
emotional care, physical care ofpeople having babies.
So anyway, some odd littlestories there bloopers, outtakes
, just fun things that havehappened.
I'm sure there's more.
I could pull up through mymemory banks over the years, but
(23:28):
hopefully you have some goodstories too.
I love that.
Every birth is a story, um,some are heartbreaking stories,
some are hilarious stories, someare most of them are incredibly
empowering and triumphant.
Stories are all a hero's tale,every single one, and no matter
how they go.
And then sometimes we do prettyfunny things.
So anyway, that's it for mybloopers.
(23:50):
Hopefully you have some funbloopers from your life or your
career.
Um, got to laugh in life Like Ilove to have a good laugh about
things.
Keep it real.
So thanks so much for beinghere with me today hearing some
fun little stories.
I hope that you have a good day.
I hope you have something.
You can go out and make adifference in someone else's
life.
Reach out and make a humanconnection with someone you know
(24:10):
or someone you don't, we willsee you next time.
Thanks for being here.
Speaker 1 (24:31):
Thank you for listening to the Ordinary Doula
Podcast with Angie Rozier,hosted by Birth Learning.
Episode credits will be in theshow notes Tune in next time as
we continue to explore the manyaspects of giving birth.
Thank you.
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Therapy Gecko
An unlicensed lizard psychologist travels the universe talking to strangers about absolutely nothing. TO CALL THE GECKO: follow me on https://www.twitch.tv/lyleforever to get a notification for when I am taking calls. I am usually live Mondays, Wednesdays, and Fridays but lately a lot of other times too. I am a gecko.