Our first night (Wednesday) was at the hospital which allowed some good rest after a hard labor, but was full of nurses trying to encourage us to do this and that which was fine, but when we got home we realized that everything could be swept under the rug. I don't need nipple shields or have flat nipples like they were telling me I did. I also am slightly worried about what was done to my child while I was not present, but I don't think anything too bad as we only had him in the nursery for about 2-3 hours.
Our second night (Thursday) consisted of going home (we briefly stopped by Beth and Steve's in Monona for a peak) and bringing the guest bed downstairs. Leslie Schiller came over in the role as our personal breast feeding consultant and helped me get started nursing naturally. She gave me excellent advice and excellent emotional uplift. It is to her I owe all my gratitude for continued success and a positive outlook. My mom came over and stayed on the couch. Bryce and I tried to sleep together with the baby between us and we did, but I hardly slept as Link would often gag in the night or I would just be worried about his breathing.
On Friday Leslie came over again in the morning and evening to make sure I was doing well with feeding. She also brought an abundance of food. Trish and Richard came to stay with my while Bryce was at work. Trish overlapped with meeting Leslie (both I wanted to have meet for a long time) and with Moira and Karin who came for a first home visit. Karin Martin was my doula during the labor and she was great comfort throughout the whole birth. Moira checked me out and the baby and suggested comfrey for my swelling (which she brought in tea and compress format) and cranial sacral work for Lincoln. It was really great to see them again. During their visit the sky went totally green, the tornado sirens went off, the wind started blowing, so we got on the computer and there was a tornado sighting and a path laid out for where it was going to hit. Elkader had about 10 minutes. I slowly made my way to the wet basement with a pillow to sit on and Karin brought Link down, but it was only a few minutes before everything cleared up again and everything was fine. Trish and Richard bought a bunch of food for us and served me coco pebbles and strawberry and spinach salad and helped me talk about the birth experience while Bryce was at work. They said such encouraging things that made my heart ache with joy. One of my favorites was that Trish (who had a home birth) had always told people it is safe and not necessary to be next door to a hospital to have the child, but people often discredit her. She said my birth was an excellent example of how home birth transfers are rarely emergencies and are done with such great guidance of midwives. During this time Trish and Richard also did the dishes and litter box and such. People keep taking care of us in such great ways I don't know who is doing what or when. My mom and dad came over that night and stayed. Dad up in our bed, my mom on the couch, Bryce in the chair, Link and I got the whole bed.
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