Natalie Baker
November 2025
Natalie
Baker
,
BSN, RN, C-EFM
Labor & Delivery
Bronson Methodist Hospital
Kalamazoo
,
MI
United States
Natalie held our family together like the glue we didn’t know we needed.
From the patient:
Our birth story started just like every other first-time parents, excited and envisioning a beautiful delivery where they get to meet their little bundle of joy together. It, however, quickly turned into worse than our worst nightmare when I developed an infection in my uterus, and my baby wasn’t tolerating being inside much longer. The next steps were terrifying.
I was told I had 30 minutes to push out my baby if I wanted a vaginal delivery, all while having a fever of 102 and having spent the prior 2 hours with violent rigors in bed. My husband and I were terrified, scared, and so upset that our beautiful vision of what our birth was supposed to look like was crumbling, and our sweet baby was in distress.
Our nurse, Natalie, who is both my friend and colleague, was on her fourth shift in a row. Throughout the night leading up to this, Natalie was the most caring, kind, and attentive nurse that anyone could ever want during labor. But her actions at 6:30 am, the end of her shift, exhausted, show what an incredible nurse Natalie is.
At 6:30 am, I was completely dilated and given the instructions to push as hard as I possibly could with every contraction to try to vaginally deliver my baby. My husband was right by my side, and on the other was Natalie. After pushing for some time, I had made no progress moving my baby down.
The decision was made to proceed with a cesarean section. It was at shift change. Natalie was due to go home. My husband and I were in a panic, having to go back for a cesarean so emergently. Natalie decided that she, after being our go-to, our rock, our fabulous support for the last 12 hours, was not going to leave our side. At that point, Natalie turned into our angel. My c-section was complicated by blood loss and a tear to my uterus, which made the procedure extra-long. My husband was very distressed about the surgery, about me, and then our baby when he was finally earthside.
Natalie held our family together like the glue we didn’t know we needed. She supported my husband by answering all of his questions, standing up for him when he was advocating for his needs, and taking photos of our family. She supported me on the table by advocating for things she knew I wanted or didn’t want. She rubbed my arms when the pain from my uterus being outside my body was too much to handle, and when my husband needed to leave the OR to focus on our baby, she DID NOT leave my side. My husband very much did not want to leave my side, but he knew that because Natalie decided to stay with me, I was taken care of, and he could focus on our son.
This day was one of the worst and best of our lives. Both my husband and I agree that we would have never survived it without our angel, Natalie. We owe everything to her support of our family, and we will never forget how much she has given us. Thoughts from my spouse: As a husband, soon-to-be first-time father, and a Michigan State Trooper occupationally, I pride myself on being our family's rock and protector. This was truly put to the test during the birthing process of our son, and I can confidently say my family needed Natalie, I needed Natalie, and she was there for us in every way.
From the patient's husband:
As someone who has experienced numerous critical incidents and high-stress situations in my occupation, I can confidently say our nurse Natalie was nothing short of incredible. Natalie was professional, hardworking, strong, charismatic, efficient, and supportive throughout the entirety of this chaotic, mind-blowing process. I feel so blessed she was there for our family and me, and I feel forever indebted to her.
Furthermore, I would be doing a disservice if I did not make mention of everyone involved. Natalie, our other nurses, the midwives, the OR team, the OB doctors, along with everyone else involved in our scary, anything but normal experience. This group I mentioned was one of the most professional, efficient, and charismatic teams I’ve ever seen.
As a husband and now first-time father, I feel so blessed for Natalie and the team we got to experience at work. I am also so proud to know that my wife works with an amazing staff that puts the care of others so seriously and does so in an extremely professional manner. In closing, I want to say thank you to everyone involved, and a special thank you to Natalie, our angel. Natalie, you were there for us, there for me, and you were unbelievable.
Our birth story started just like every other first-time parents, excited and envisioning a beautiful delivery where they get to meet their little bundle of joy together. It, however, quickly turned into worse than our worst nightmare when I developed an infection in my uterus, and my baby wasn’t tolerating being inside much longer. The next steps were terrifying.
I was told I had 30 minutes to push out my baby if I wanted a vaginal delivery, all while having a fever of 102 and having spent the prior 2 hours with violent rigors in bed. My husband and I were terrified, scared, and so upset that our beautiful vision of what our birth was supposed to look like was crumbling, and our sweet baby was in distress.
Our nurse, Natalie, who is both my friend and colleague, was on her fourth shift in a row. Throughout the night leading up to this, Natalie was the most caring, kind, and attentive nurse that anyone could ever want during labor. But her actions at 6:30 am, the end of her shift, exhausted, show what an incredible nurse Natalie is.
At 6:30 am, I was completely dilated and given the instructions to push as hard as I possibly could with every contraction to try to vaginally deliver my baby. My husband was right by my side, and on the other was Natalie. After pushing for some time, I had made no progress moving my baby down.
The decision was made to proceed with a cesarean section. It was at shift change. Natalie was due to go home. My husband and I were in a panic, having to go back for a cesarean so emergently. Natalie decided that she, after being our go-to, our rock, our fabulous support for the last 12 hours, was not going to leave our side. At that point, Natalie turned into our angel. My c-section was complicated by blood loss and a tear to my uterus, which made the procedure extra-long. My husband was very distressed about the surgery, about me, and then our baby when he was finally earthside.
Natalie held our family together like the glue we didn’t know we needed. She supported my husband by answering all of his questions, standing up for him when he was advocating for his needs, and taking photos of our family. She supported me on the table by advocating for things she knew I wanted or didn’t want. She rubbed my arms when the pain from my uterus being outside my body was too much to handle, and when my husband needed to leave the OR to focus on our baby, she DID NOT leave my side. My husband very much did not want to leave my side, but he knew that because Natalie decided to stay with me, I was taken care of, and he could focus on our son.
This day was one of the worst and best of our lives. Both my husband and I agree that we would have never survived it without our angel, Natalie. We owe everything to her support of our family, and we will never forget how much she has given us. Thoughts from my spouse: As a husband, soon-to-be first-time father, and a Michigan State Trooper occupationally, I pride myself on being our family's rock and protector. This was truly put to the test during the birthing process of our son, and I can confidently say my family needed Natalie, I needed Natalie, and she was there for us in every way.
From the patient's husband:
As someone who has experienced numerous critical incidents and high-stress situations in my occupation, I can confidently say our nurse Natalie was nothing short of incredible. Natalie was professional, hardworking, strong, charismatic, efficient, and supportive throughout the entirety of this chaotic, mind-blowing process. I feel so blessed she was there for our family and me, and I feel forever indebted to her.
Furthermore, I would be doing a disservice if I did not make mention of everyone involved. Natalie, our other nurses, the midwives, the OR team, the OB doctors, along with everyone else involved in our scary, anything but normal experience. This group I mentioned was one of the most professional, efficient, and charismatic teams I’ve ever seen.
As a husband and now first-time father, I feel so blessed for Natalie and the team we got to experience at work. I am also so proud to know that my wife works with an amazing staff that puts the care of others so seriously and does so in an extremely professional manner. In closing, I want to say thank you to everyone involved, and a special thank you to Natalie, our angel. Natalie, you were there for us, there for me, and you were unbelievable.