Love- it was present and palpable. God is Love. His presence had surely filled the house and was apparent as soon as I entered the space.
Earlier in her pregnancy, my friend, Sam, had requested that I come check her during her birth. As much as I would like to do this more regularly, my own personal vocation as a mom of four often doesn’t allow for this. However, in her case, I felt a nudge from God to be able to make this happen. So I journeyed out to the Hill Country late Monday night after getting her text that she was in labor.
When I arrived, her midwife, Heather, told me the baby was in a ROP position- meaning the baby was slightly “sunny side up.” This position is what can cause back labor and is more stressful for the baby’s spine. I set up my table and went about assessing Sam. Using the Webster analysis and protocol I determined her sacrum had rotated on the left side posteriorly. I adjusted her pelvis and released the associated taut round ligament, the sacrotuberous ligament via Logan and adjusted her cervical spine as well.
I waited.
An hour later, Heather checked Sam again. Baby Felicity had wiggled into a more optimal position of ROA- she was no longer in the posterior position! Fantastic! I did another check on Sam- assuring myself and her that her pelvis had stabilized. This time I also did an upper and lower respiratory diaphragm release to allow for greater chest expansion and easier breathing but without stimulating her sympathetic- flight or fight- nervous system. (Thanks Dr Jon Edwards for that valuable teaching!) She agreed to let me pray with her before I departed. I drove home in the wee hours on Tuesday, appreciative and grateful.
It is a very honorable experience to be invited into a birthing space. As a society, I think we have forgotten the sacredness that consumes a space where a soul makes their entrance earth-side. That night at their house, I was able to encounter a bit of heaven on earth. Surely God’s presence was there as the Divine was escorting Felicity to her new earthly family. The loving energy was immensely palpable. I was grateful to play my part in helping this child make a safe journey. Supporting mothers equals supported families. Supporting and loving families is how we change the world.
Thank you, Sam and Jon, for allowing me to be a part of Felicity’s birth story.
-Dr. Angie Artho