When I arrived at Sacred Heart, my nurse Shannon met me in the Admitting area.  It was scary as a first-time mom, not knowing how labor would go. My husband and my sister were there to support me, but they had also never experienced a birth. As a nurse myself, I know it is hard to make plans in the healthcare world. I researched options but hesitated to put birth plan in writing because I feared the disappointment of not being able to stick to the plan. When Shannon asked me about my birth plan, I told her, "I've been really wanting to have a a natural birth, but I also understand that I have no idea what I'm in for." And that was correct. I had no idea what I was in for. As the contractions increased with intensity, my husband tucked himself in the corner like a scared little boy who did not know how to help. Shannon suggested different ways he could apply pressure to my back during contractions until we found something that worked. As things progressed even more, Shannon offered hot and cold packs, repositioning, warm blankets, and different birthing balls. But the best thing Shannon offered me was confidence. At a certain point, I doubted if I could achieve the natural birth I had wanted.  Shannon reassured me I had made it so far already. She exclaimed, "You can do it!" and I responded, "I can do it!"  For the rest of the labor, my husband, my sister, and I chanted this mantra.  When it was time for the end of Shannon's shift, she said her goodbyes and expressed how she was looking forward to finding out if our baby was a boy or a girl. forty-five minutes later, our son was born. In the chaos of it all, Shannon popped back in the room to celebrate with us. She had been there late charting, and it meant so much to us that she cared enough to come back and share those few minutes with us when her long day of work was already running late. She popped in again for a visit the next day to hold our won. She told us how impressed she was by the great team my husband and I made, but we both agreed we could not have been such a great team without our amazing coach, Shannon, being so invested in our success. All the nurses were so amazing throughout our stay, but we cannot thank Shannon enough for her part in welcoming our sweet boy into the world.