I was around four months pregnant when I started to go to Matsugaoka. I had been looking for a place to give birth since I found out that I was pregnant as the clinic I used to attend up until then was a small place and it was not possible to deliver there.
From the beginning without putting too much thought into it, I was looking for a place where I could deliver in a natural position rather than on a delivery table. Also where they would support my birth naturally without the use of episiotomy or medication as much as possible. Hence when I found Matsugaoka Josanin online, I felt it was perfect for me.
It was located in between my home and my parent’s home so I attended the Open Day right away and instantly I loved the wooden building which is just like a home as well as the warm and friendly atmosphere that the staff and the place had. I was also very interested in aromatherapy, reflexology and Seitai that are all available in order to support natural birth.
Mrs So, the director of the center, gave me all the health and life style guidelines necessary to deliver naturally at Matsugaoka Josanin such as getting up and going to bed early, ample walking, not to use eyes and “brain” too much, to eat mainly Japanese style diet without sweets, to keep the body warm etc. I was very impressed and thought I would put it into practice straight away but in reality I was finding it very hard to stick to it as I had full time office job with lots of over time.
In every consultation, the midwife pointed out that my swollen almost oedematous legs were due to having dinner too late as well as going to bed late. To this, I could only agree, and told them I would be careful but I was late from work again and my life style continued just as before so it often made me feel really bad. Further more, we were living on 5th floor of a flat without any lift, so we decided to move when I was seven months pregnant for more convenience in my post-birth-life. Moving is hard work in any situation but it must have been a real stress for my pregnant-self as soon after, I found out that my baby was in a breech position.
When I realised that if it didn’t correct itself soon, I would have to have a caesarean section and certainly be impossible to give birth at Josanin, I suddenly “woke up”!
From Mrs So I properly got told off, “In such state of health, there is no way you can give birth naturally! The life style of modern people is leading the opposite direction from the life leading to a natural birth so it is not possible unless you make a phenomenal effort! Don’t approach the birthing process so lightly.”
This made me truly realise, yes birth is about the life of my baby. So since then I made a real effort. I minimised using my eyes at home, I started to eat earlier and go to bed as early as possible. I put on a haramaki and layers of socks as it was winter. I warmed my body through having a bath as well as doing moxibustion on the points that the acupuncturist had taught me. I also received acupuncture and made sure I walked a lot.
Thankfully, as I lead my new lifestyle, my baby corrected its position. Also at around 9 months of pregnancy, I switched to working from home, reduced my work-load dramatically as well as I was able to arrange my time freely. So I started to go to all the things I was interested in from the beginning such as Yuru exercise classes and maternity yoga classes. I also booked myself in for some aromatherapy massages and reflexology. Thinking about it now, I feel this was the time when I really started to enjoy pregnancy and allowed myself to relax into it too. By the 10th month of pregnancy, I left work totally and finally placed my entire focus on the preparation of labor.
My due date was 7th of March 2011 but on the due date, there was still no sign of contractions, and four days later the great earthquake came.
On that day, I was at Matsugaoka for my regular check up and I was lying down when it happened. As with everyone else, I was unable to get in touch with my husband. I did not know when he would be able to come home from work as well because the transport was totally disrupted. So I stayed at the center that night along with another pregnant lady who was there for a consultation and another mother with a small baby. I was most grateful for such a kind consideration, especially as I was heavily pregnant expecting to give birth at any moment. Also, had I given birth on the due date, I would have been at home with a small baby, alone. So I was actually glad that it was not born yet. I even interpreted the situation as oh I have such a cleaver baby who has known that it was much safer to have stayed in the belly for longer!
Of course, I knew that if I went over due too much, I wouldn’t be able to deliver in Matsugaoka. So once I had gone over the due date, I followed all the recommendation of naturally inducing contraction by the use of aromatherapy, reflexology, 100 acu-point moxibustion and also received acupuncture. I am very grateful for the acupuncturist as I received acupuncture almost everyday. Also, Mrs So told me that now, I was allowed to eat anything I liked including sweets as it would help the body to loosen so I took this opportunity to eat lots of cakes and sweet pastries.
My labor started with my water breaking. It was on the night of the day I received the double stimulation of reflexology and acupuncture. My water broke at 10 o’clock at night so I called the Josanin and went there by taxi with my husband. I felt that contractions were beginning to happen but I was still able to laugh and talk with the driver. We arrived at the Josanin and we waited but my contractions were not progressing. I was told that labor begun from water breaking and must come to an end within 24 hours otherwise I would have to be transferred to the hospital for baby’s safety. To this I felt a certain sense of determination arising within, as I really did not want to give birth elsewhere when I have come so far! So when they told me that drinking caster oil could be effective in inducing contraction, as it is a strong laxative I decided to drink it. I drank it with milk, which was not as bad as I thought. My contractions were slow to progress and when they finally kicked in, I think it was already 4 am.
For a delivery in a tatami room, I was allowed to take whatever position I liked so I tried several positions from then on.
My back was so painful: as if it was splitting in half, so I demanded rather forcefully to my husband to massage my back many times. Maybe they felt sorry as I was expressing such agony that they called Seitai therapist for me and due to the work being done on me, though I still had strong pain, it became bearable.
Also, as it was my first baby, my cervix was not dilating at all. There were moments when I was almost losing my will and strength, as I just could not bear the contractions. To this Mrs So had given me a firm but very warm support.“ What will we do if you are like this! The baby is making a real effort so you also have to make an effort too!” To this, I felt strength arising in myself; yes, it is true I have to make an effort then who else.
Even after pushing with some force several times, I think they could see the baby’s head but its large head was finding it difficult to come out. Finally, at 10 am in the following morning, I delivered by myself under the guidance of Mrs So’s very experienced hands. It was, after all, quite quick for a first birth.
Maybe the extra eleven days allowed an already big baby to get even bigger, it was a large and healthy girl weighing 3908g!
My feelings after the birth were that it was really strange to feel the presence of my own child on my belly straight after it was born and I felt so spaced out because I was totally filled with a sense of relief that it was safely born. Of course the contractions were extremely painful and hard work but I felt grateful that my husband was able to be present and share the experience. (He told me that it was utterly unbearable to watch me suffer so much.) Unfortunately, the caster oil made its effect only after birth so I had to drag myself out of bed so many times even I was extremely exhausted.
My feelings after the birth were that it was really strange to feel the presence of my own child on my belly straight after it was born and I felt so spaced out because I was totally filled with a sense of relief that it was safely born. Of course the contractions were extremely painful and hard work but I felt grateful that my husband was able to be present and share the experience. (He told me that it was utterly unbearable to watch me suffer so much.) Unfortunately, the caster oil made its effect only after birth so I had to drag myself out of bed so many times even I was extremely exhausted.
My feelings after the birth were that it was really strange to feel the presence of my own child on my belly straight after it was born and I felt so spaced out because I was totally filled with a sense of relief that it was safely born. Of course the contractions were extremely painful and hard work but I felt grateful that my husband was able to be present and share the experience. (He told me that it was utterly unbearable to watch me suffer so much.) Unfortunately, the caster oil made its effect only after birth so I had to drag myself out of bed so many times even I was extremely exhausted.
For those of you who are planning to give birth in a future, I really hope you will also have similar experience of “It is great to get pregnant, give birth and enjoy the postnatal life!” also.
I would love to have a second baby in the near future. But as we are planning to move to Sydney in the middle of this year, I must admit that I cannot help thinking about my next experience as I had such a wonderful experience in Matsugaoka. . . would I be able to have a similar experience in Sydney also?
