We checked in to the birthing center at 3:05 p.m. and our lovely daughter was born at 3:08 p.m. My son later dubbed her the “3 Minute Baby“.

I had focused my intention on a smooth and speedy delivery. But I had no idea how directly my wish would be granted. So I’m sure you’re probably wondering how to have a 3 minute baby! Well, we’ll have to start with some background information.

A Blessing in Disguise
When I was 6 months pregnant, I was involved in a minor car accident. (That is if you consider $3400 worth of damage to my car as MINOR.) Of course I was relieved to feel the baby kick as if to reassure me that she was fine. And we (my teenage son was in the car with me) were a bit shaken up. But we didn’t have any cuts orbruises, so we went about our routine as usual. After a few days, we were both still quite sore. (I couldn’t sit in one positionfor

Prenatal Massage and Chiropractic Adjustments
My son had minor whiplash and started treatment. Being pregnant, they wouldn’t do x-rays on me. But I started undergoing chiropractic adjustments in addition to massage. Dr. Fruithandler highly advocates massage for pregnant women. I have to say I’m now a believer as well! The massages were fantastic and the adjustments were a lifesaver! I went twice a week for the duration of the pregnancy. I truly believe this treatment was a huge contributor to an easy birth.

Drink Lots of Water
Being summer in South Florida, I consumed a great amount of water. The midwife always remarked about the perfection of my urine and blood samples. My diet is not the best, so I believe it was my heavy water consumption that helped keep my pregnant body in better balance.

Flexible Schedule
Synchronistically, my schedule has been flexible for over a year, since I started working from home in our business. Even though I worked near full time hours at the computer, my back and my ADD required me to get out of my chair and move around frequently. I believe this flexibility allowed me to keep stress and it’s nasty cohorts at bay.

A Supportive Partner
My husband has been absolutely wonderful! He accompanied me to most of my prenatal exams. We attended the requisite childbirth classes that are necessary for a birth center delivery. And he showered me with love and regularly talked lovingly to my ever-growing belly. (On the day our baby was born, she “told” him she was coming on that day.)

Mental and Emotional Preparation
My first child was born in a hospital, with narcotics, epidural and all. So the thought of drug-free natural childbirth was admittedly a lot to get my head around. When I started considering natural childbirth, I “hit the books” (the internet, actually) to find out some idea about what I may be signing up for. I watched quite a few home videos on YouTube. I was surprised by the lack of screaming and foaming at the mouth I had expected to witness during a drug-free birth experience.

The people I spoke to who had given birth naturally all said it was much quicker than most medicated labors. And these ladies had obviously all LIVED to TELL THE TALE!

I also listened to a freebie, intro CD called “HypnoBabies”. It advocated training oneself through hypnosis, to RELAX through the contractions, and to relate to them not as PAIN, but as waves of intensity. I kept this in the back of my mind, even though I hadn’t “trained” enough to dissociate from the pain.

Procrastination Can Be a Pest
I kept putting off maternity portraits. My husband is a professional photographer (among other things). So I took his availability for granted. (Or maybe I secretly didn’t want to have proof of just how large my belly had become!) But when the contractions were coming about 10 minutes apart, we realized it was “now or never”.

Fortunately, that’s the only thing we really procrastinated. We had dutifully installed the carseat, and had it checked by a Transportation Department official. The nursery was all decorated. The baby clothes had all been washed and ready. So with everything done, I told the baby she could come “any time now”… the sooner the better!

Don’t Wait Until BETWEEN Contractions to Call Your Midwife!
The only thing I wish I would have done differently was to call the midwife MID-contraction. When I spoke to her, it was BETWEEN contractions. So she falsely read my composure as a slower progression of labor. By the time we got in the car and headed to the birth center, the contractions were becoming quite intense!

So how did I have a 3-Minute Baby?
I spent the 15-20 minute ride down I-95, to the birth center, engulfed by these “waves of intensity”! In the childbirth class, we had learned that during the Transition phase, the contractions often double up. That was happening throughout the last 10 minutes of the car ride. By the time we got out of the car, I was drenched in sweat. I was having to force my body to NOT PUSH!

While we were waiting for the elevator, a lady and her 3 kids were staring at me with funny looks on their faces. The lady finally asked me if I was okay. I said, “I’m in LABOR!”

She was confused. Apparently she did not know there was a birth center in the building. (It looks like a normal office building from the outside.) The elevator took FOREVER! We finally got to the birth center, signed in, and tried to explain that I needed to have a “labor check” but it seemed like it was coming pretty soon. My midwife had been up all night the day before with a long birth. So she had not yet made it in. They had to prepare a room and would send the other midwife in to check on me.

I frantically made a pit stop in the bathroom, hoping to have one last elimination before going into labor. (I’ve heard plenty of horror stories about women embarrassing themselves when they defecated while pushing.) But the contractions were becoming unbearably intense. And I was overcome with the urge to push!

I guess they were worried about me, because the office manager came into the bathroom to see if I was okay. When she saw me, she nervously told the receptionist to call in the midwife because the baby was crowning. She tried to tell me to “blow out the candle” and breath through the urge to push. I was still standing over the toilet trying to do my business.

Then, right as the midwife came in, our lovely daughter literally popped right out into my hands!!! I was in shock! She immediately cried that lusty cry of welcome. They declared the time of birth and brought hubby in and instructed him to cut the cord. (We still laugh about the shocked and perplexed look on my face, while standing over the toilet with our screaming angel in hand.)

Our lovely daughter went down in history as the “bathroom baby”. And we have a wild story to tell her one day!