I’ll never forget the time I almost gave birth on the floor. And I wanted to. Because the intense pain of the contractions that had taken control of every micro-cell of my body, made the alternative seem impossible.
That tiny ball I’d curled into was safe. Oh, if I just could have stayed there, in my own little house of pain, and let my body just push out my baby. I would have been so happy.
So when I saw this photograph of a mom in the same position, I was understandably like, oh yeah, I’ve been there.
This powerful image of another mama working so hard for her baby was captured by London-based family, maternity and newborn photographer, Erika, of Erika Mate Photography.
Of course, as every mom knows, those impossible moments, when you are pretty sure you won’t survive it hurts. So. Much. Those moments of otherworldly struggle make this one, all the more worth it.
Unfortunately, it’s not as if you go from on the floor, to holding your newborn, just like that. Here are more images of this beautiful mom, working for her baby, as captured by Erika. And in these images, like me, I bet you will see your own labor, you own pain, your own joy.
As Erika told me in an email, “During the contractions mummy was on her knees and elbows, swinging the hips to the sides which helped the baby turn into the anterior position.”
After about another hour, Erika says, “The midwives were filling the birthing pool up, but the mummy was already pushing the baby out. She got into the pool and 10 seconds later the baby’s head was out. One more push and he was born.”
This beautiful video of baby Simas’s arrival also takes us through the pain and pleasure of birthing a baby.
Kinda makes you want to have another baby, no? Just me?
Learn more about Erika Mate Photography on Erika’s Facebook page.
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