I had been in labor for over nine hours when Gretchen came in for her night shift. I had told Gretchen how scared I was to get a c-section. She was so optimistic that I was going to be able to have the delivery I intended.

After this, it seemed like everything that could go my way, didn’t. When I was ready for pain management intervention, the route that I was anticipating was not available. Gretchen remained calm and gave me a bunch of suggestions including breathing techniques and stretches/positions. She also kindly reminded me that going astray from my birth plan was okay and that there was no shame. She reminded me that I needed to reserve my energy for when I had to push. With Gretchen’s guidance and handholding, I got the epidural, which was something I was so scared of. Gretchen held my hand, wiped my tears, and kept me calm and collected. She talked me through the entire epidural procedure and reminded me why I was doing this. Because of Gretchen, the procedure was over before I even knew it.

At seventeen hours of labor, it was time to push. I was so exhausted, but Gretchen kept the energy up. At one point I heard my midwife say, “We have to get the baby out, she’s not getting past the pelvis”. At this time my mom and fiancé were talking as well and I was a mess. All of a sudden, Gretchen said, “OK I need everyone to stop talking”. Gretchen came up to me, wiped my tears away, and said, “Remember what you’re here for. You can do this. On the count of three I need you to push with everything you’ve got”. She then pulled the handrails up, counted to three, and the next thing I knew I had a baby.

Without Gretchen taking charge and consistently reminding me of my goals I wholeheartedly believe my Labor and Delivery experience would have been much different. We are so thankful for Gretchen and her encouraging words and her assistance in delivering our beautiful baby girl.