Reason #3: Zella

Reason #3 is my rainbow baby Zella. She was the ONLY pregnancy AND delivery that went the way I had hoped. As you can see she was delivered via c-section, which I was fine with because I wanted to get my tubes tied after delivery.

During this pregnancy everything went exactly as it should. I had to overcome a lot of the PTSD I had from reason #2, but it was fantastic. But because of the complications of delivering #2 so early, Zella had to be born via cesarean. This time around my entire prenatal and birth care team was female. This automatically changes the interactions between patient and staff (IMO), AND my OB, while not Black (like me), she is a woman of color. I did not have a doula, again, this time, but I was armed with the experiences of two very different pregnancy and birth experiences, and research, and I was able to navigate the this pregnancy differently.

Before I went into delivery I was able to ask my doctor questions about what to expect during the process. Luckily she was always on the same page as me, and so it made the entire process so much easier. (A doula can tell you about the various ways to deliver, and locations, pros and cons of each. They can also arm you with questions to ask your care provider during your appointments.) I was able to go into this delivery, confident in the care I would receive, and that, barring emergency, everything would go how I expected.

We kept the vernix on until way late into the evening, possibly early morning the next day.

Immediately after delivery, and while they tied my tubes and cleaned me up, etc. I was able to have skin to skin time with my new baby, with my husband (and birth partner) by my side.

My experience with Zella is what I hope for every person’s pregnancy and delivery experience. I felt empowered and educated, but also heard and cared for. That’s my goal for all the births I’m accompany.