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The birth of my first son was also my rebirth. I left my old life behind and entered a new one called motherhood.

Labor began just before midnight March 6th. I began having light contractions. They felt no different than the braxton hicks contractions I had be having off and on for a few days prior, but somehow I knew these were different. I was alone, as my boyfriend worked nights. I remember sitting at my table, timing the contractions in the moonlight while across the street a party was raging on into the night. It felt as if I was witnessing the end of that part of my life, the one where I had no one to worry about but myself. The watch in my hand counted down until I was born anew.

Sometime after midnight I was finally able to go on to bed. Labor still did not feel real to me and I doubted whether it was. I slept in fits, constantly moving and tossing around the bed. At some point in the night I awoken by the bright light in the bedroom coming on and my boyfriend shaking me, asking me if I was alright. In a fog I woke enough to realize that I was curled in a fetal position, the blankets balled up in my arms, and my face showing the contractions I was having. Before I could speak I drifted back to sleep.

I woke around 7AM when the contractions became too much to sleep through. I felt as if I had been run over by a truck. My sleep had not left me rested at all, and I grumbled as I walked past my sleeping boyfriend how unfair it was that he could sleep. My muscles ached, most likely from my fitful sleep during the night. Hoping to relax I ran a warm bath and crawled in. As I soaked my tired body I closed my eyes and managed to drift back off to sleep.

I awoke to the water being ice cold against my skin. It was a strong sharp sensation that made me jump out of the water. Yet as soon as I was no longer soaking the water the contractions came back. They were much stronger and stopped me in my tracks. The clock on the wall said it was 9 AM as I began the downhill slope of labor.

For the rest of the day I paced the house, moving or squatting or swaying as the contractions washed over me. I tried to lay on the couch and relax between each one, giving myself the strength to make it through another. I stayed relaxed and just let my body do what it needed to do.

Around 3PM I knew that my boyfriend would be waking soon to get ready for work. I decided to use the bathroom then to go wake him. As soon as I sat down I felt the most excruciating pain shoot through me. I do not

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