How Homebirth leads to a Marathon

My midwife with my little man

Before Andrea was born, I ran a marathon in 3 hours 47 minutes and missed qualifying for Boston. Then I had a baby. Thinking that if I could run a marathon, I could have a baby naturally, I was ill-prepared for the mac-truck that hit me. C-section. I did not run well for 18 months. The recovery was horrible. I still have pain.

Then, I had Nathan born naturally at the hospital. I was so excited; I ate a cheeseburger and walked around. I felt like I could run after having Nathan. Heck, I could even take myself to the restroom. Completely amazing this whole natural childbirth thing! I ran that year with my double jogger, doing 5K's frequently. I see why people have more than one child.

God has a sense of humor. We thought we would deliver at the same hospital for baby #3 and that everything would be the safe, smooth ride as baby #2.  Two doctors and a threatening consultation later (where I was told that to even consider a VBAC would be to consider killing my child, with no regard to Nathan's previous uncomplicated delivery), we decided to consult a homebirth midwife. From the first moment, we knew she was different. She consulted Kurt and I together as a team. She respected Kurt's position and input as the head of our household. She educated me and had complete confidence that I knew my body and could do this homebirth VBAC, called HBAC. My midwife also taught me about herbs and nurtition like never before. We learned more in the sessions with her than all previous OB appointments combined. She had me take garlic and probiotics (kefir) to help boost my immune system. After a 2 hour labor and delivery, I was sore but elated. This was true luxury. I climbed into my own bathtub filled with fresh flowers as my midwife and my best friend attended to my every whim. Kurt dressed Ethan and held him until he fell asleep.

My recovery was still challenging because I had not yet given up sugar completely. That summer, I was terribly sick (see sugar-free posts).  However, my midwife still consulted with me and talked me through natural remedies. I gave up sugar for good and have never looked back. My running is much improved because my health has improved. Nutrition and natural childbirth are key components to the last 18 months of running. I have run faster and stronger than ever before.

Not to mention the spiritual side of the physical life I live. My faith has been restored where the c-section left me devastated. My fears have been relieved where I feared for the lives of each of my children in childbirth. And, my strength has been given back to me, more than I ever dreamed possible. I serve a great Savior. Now, I am running a marathon and everything I have learned and trained for will be tested. Still, I know through all of this, I serve a great and powerful God. I will run in faith instead of fear because I know that Christ has brought me here to this place.

Please feel free to share you birth or running story...I always love to here them all!!!