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The Birth of Sloan Michael

I have had the pleasure of documenting this family from their first maternity session with their oldest right on through the birth of sweet little Sloan. Year after year, they returned to me and trusted me to document their maternity, newborn, birth, and family sessions.

It is an understatement to say I get a little emotional working on their images. In fact, their daughter’s birth was the first birth I documented as I made the brave and bold move in rebranding from posed newborn into specializing in birth photography here in Las Vegas.

There have been so many surprises during this season of their life. They thought they were done having children, and this little one came along unexpectedly. When they surprised me with the news during their family session last fall, I just about died! Of course, documenting this birth was just as important, or maybe even more so, knowing it was their last. So, we began planning right away. Then surprise… COVID.

There was so much anticipation leading up to their birth, and this strong mama worked right up to the days preceding their delivery. They wanted to revel, soak up, and enjoy every moment. This was the first time they waited to find out the gender until birth. It made it so much more fun!

Nicole went into labor with the plan of listening to her body and deciding on an epidural, depending on how things went and how well she tolerated her contractions. She was so incredibly strong and maintained her composure throughout. I was completely in awe of her strength and determination.

Nicole and Shawn are such amazing parents, and being away from the older two while they were in the hospital was hard. Thank goodness for FaceTime and family! It was important to them to capture as much as they could of siblings’ meetings for the first time, and since a Fresh 48 session was not an option because of restrictions, we did the next best thing and documented it as they came home!

The meeting went even better than expected. Big sister was convinced she had a baby sister, so we expected some disappointment, and there was zero! They were both completely smitten by their new baby brother and wanted to check out every little detail.

And lastly, we were able to document their newborn session two weeks later in the comfort of their own home, where everyone felt at home and comfortable. Big brother and sister were still as smitten with their new baby brother, and it was so fun to see how they had all just fallen deeply and madly in love with this little guy.

And finally, their beautiful birth story is told even more beautifully in film. Oh, what I would give to have my births captured forever in a complete birth story. I love that I can give this to the families that trust me with such an intimate and important time in their lives. Enjoy!

A Las Vegas Birth Story

There are so many fears and doubts that can hold people back from documenting their birth. I understand so many of those fears and doubts.

Birth is one of life’s most intimate and life-changing moments we experience. You are vulnerable and at your rawest. I would argue that this is why you should document your birth story.

Birth is made up of moments that change us at our very core, moments that cannot be relived or redone. It is also one of the most emotional times in our lives. It can become hazy and fade quickly amidst the loss of sleep, physical changes, and fleeting memories.

Emily found me after seeing a birth story shared on social media and was immediately interested! She says that she hadn’t really considered documenting her birth until she saw this post, and then saw my name mentioned in the thread as a local birth photographer and videographer. She reached out to me, and I am so glad that she did!

One of Emily’s main drives in wanting to document her birth was the fact that her family lives out of the country. Emily and Daniel met while he was serving in the Air Force in Europe. Her family is all still overseas, and wanting to have a way to share their birth with her family was important to her. (Be sure to see their beautiful birth film at the end of the post!)

There was much anticipation and excitement in the months and weeks approaching their birth, and they were so happy to have a way to share that with family and friends who could not be by their sides.

As Daniel is still on active duty, their birth would take place at Mike O’Callaghan Hospital at Nellis Air Force Base here in Las Vegas. Because it is a military hospital, it was necessary for them to arrange clearance for me onto the base. This was the perfect opportunity for us to meet in person and have a nice coffee date (I meet all my birth clients before their birth either in person or via FaceTime). We talked about what was most important to her and Daniel, the types of images and footage they were most interested in, what her biggest fears and concerns were, and I got to see exactly where I needed to go when the big day came.

As Emily passed her due date, an induction of labor was set up.

One of Emily’s wishes was to tell the whole story of their birth experience to share with her family and friends. So, we decided that I would come as she was being admitted to the unit and capture some of the early details of checking in and getting settled, and then would head home and wait for active labor before returning. That way, they could get the rest they needed, all the while adding additional details to their birth story.

This was my first experience at our military hospital, and I was so impressed by their staff and the beautiful experience they gave Emily and Daniel. As a retired labor nurse of 19 years at another local hospital, I am always curious about how different care might be in other facilities. I do have to say each hospital has its own vibe and subtle differences. I think Nellis often gets a bad rap because it is a military hospital, but I have to say I walked away from this experience in awe of the care they provided this family.

After they were all settled in and the plan of care discussed and initiated, I stepped out and went home to get some rest and await their call for my return. In the early morning hours, Emily let me know that she had progressed and had an epidural placed for pain relief. It was the perfect time for me to head back, be close by, and be ready to document more of their story.

It had been almost 12 hours since their induction began, and Emily hadn’t really gotten much sleep but had received pain relief with her epidural placement, so she was able to finally squeeze in a small nap and some games with Daniel. It was a fun way to pass the time.

I love when clients bring personal items to keep at their bedside. It adds such a personal element and something beautiful to focus on. Emily kept a picture of her mother, who is no longer with her, at her bedside.

As the morning wore on, Emily became more and more uncomfortable and the staff did their best to keep her comfortable between position changes and adjustments to her epidural.

Even with the return of discomfort and the hours passed with no cervical change, Emily and Daniel remained positive and patient, trusting the process. I was really in awe of how strong Emily was. She kept such a beautiful attitude through it all.

As Emily labored through another shift change with still not much cervical change, her night shift nurse came in and advocated for Emily, trying everything she could to help her baby rotate. Her advocacy and interventions were just what Emily needed at this stage, and she quickly progressed to complete dilation and was soon ready to push.

Emily was a rock star who worked hard to deliver baby Daniel. Thank goodness this last stage was relatively quick after all those hours of laboring. There was some distress upon delivery, so baby Daniel was quickly taken to the radiant warmer for assessment and stabilization.

Daniel and Emily’s birth team were so coordinated and capable and worked seamlessly to assess and stabilize Daniel so that he could quickly return to his mama’s chest for skin-to-skin.

Finally, Emily had in her arms the baby she had worked so hard for, waited so patiently for, and anticipated for so long.

There was so much story, emotion, and intimate details throughout Emily and Daniel’s birth story, it is one of my favorites to date. So grateful to have been trusted in capturing it.

Nothing captures the emotions and beauty in birth better than video, and I love how beautiful their birth story is in film.

How to Stay Supported

Giving birth during the COVID-19 pandemic has left many families struggling to stay supported during life’s most important and intimate moment.

I cannot think of an industry or group of people not affected in some way by the COVID-19 pandemic ravaging the world, and there is no doubt that the ripple effects will continue into the weeks and months ahead.

As a birth photographer, it has affected my business, and while I am fearful for my future, my biggest fears are for the families I serve. My current clients won’t have their births documented during the pandemic due to hospital restrictions and stay-at-home orders.

I completely understand the necessity of restricting visitors, and even immediate family members to ensure the safety of patients and staff within the hospitals, and to slow the spread of the virus.

Yet, my heart hurts that women will be without the support teams they had planned for. At such a vulnerable time in life, being isolated from family, children, and your support team can have strong effects on women and how they process their birth, including the emotions, physical changes, and challenges they face not only during birth but in the weeks and months that follow.

Most families hire me early on in their pregnancies, seeing the emotional impact that documenting their birth holds. I believe that value to my core; I have seen how important it is for so many women and families in processing their birth stories.

Rather than focus on the loss of not being able to be there physically for my clients, I hope that this post will bring real tips and advice on how to navigate this period despite the obstacles, and hopefully help you to feel supported even though it may look different.

With some changes to your birth plan and hopefully with some tips here, you can be prepared!

Talk To Your Support Team

Talk to your spouse, partner, or whoever will be your support person. Have conversations about what your anticipated needs are. Of course, birth is completely unpredictable; even having given birth before, each can look so different. Talking about ways language and touch normally bring you comfort can really help. Don’t assume that your support person will know exactly what you need. Offering each other grace throughout will go a long way. I have had families come up with code words for when they need introspective time with no touch or verbal cues, and vice versa; code words for when they are needing that extra verbal, moral, and physical support.

Talk to your extended support team as well. Even though they can’t physically be present for you, their words of encouragement and support can go a long way. Coming up with a plan of when and how you will communicate with each other will help; that way, there are no hurt feelings—perhaps deciding on whether they should reach out to you at set intervals or whether to wait for you to reach out when you are ready. Decide if you prefer phone calls, FaceTime, or texts. Sometimes, seeing your children’s faces via FaceTime can breathe life back into you.

This can be so vital for your support person as well, who often needs those words of encouragement. Remind your extended birth team to check on him or her as well.

Birth can be long and drawn out and just hearing that you are doing a good job and are loved and supported can go a long way for both of you!

Consider Hiring a Doula

You may not have even considered hiring a doula with the restrictions in place because of COVID-19. Maybe you’re asking yourself, “Why would I hire a doula that can’t even be there in person?” I would argue the opposite, doulas are such a great resource and support for women and their families, and their roles can be even more vital during this time! Many doulas are currently offering virtual services that will benefit you not only during your labor, delivery, and postpartum period but through those first weeks at home navigating breastfeeding and all that goes into caring for a newborn without the physical support of family and friends.

The role of the doula is to provide continuous emotional and physical support and information before birth with information on research and choices.

They can help with comfort measures like massage, suggesting different positions, and helping with relaxation breathing. They encourage communication with doctors and nursing staff  (a doula does not give medical advice or interfere with the doctor/mother relationship).

Supporting the father or birth partner is the best way to support the mother. A doula never replaces the very important role of the birth partner, and a good doula will help the birth partner by offering suggestions and tips on ways to be supportive. Providing real-time feedback and suggestions to assist you physically and emotionally during all phases of labor and delivery can be vital.

Doula support is helpful not only during labor but also during the postpartum period.

During the postpartum period, when women are even more isolated during stay-at-home orders and social distancing recommendations, this support is even more vital. Needing help with breastfeeding and general questions about newborn care can be even more challenging with mothers more isolated than ever. With the increased risk of postpartum depression, having that support to encourage you and provide real feedback on how you are doing is vital. Although they can’t be there physically, being able to let you know you are not alone in your feelings and fears can, on its own, provide so much comfort.

I will link to some of these resources at the end of this post.

Communicate with your nurse and obstetrician/midwife.

As a retired labor and delivery nurse of 19 years here in the Las Vegas valley (2000-2019), I can tell you that keeping an open line of communication with your nurse and obstetrician or midwife can be so important in ensuring there is no miscommunication. Communication helps in keeping your wishes honored and information about procedures clear.

Their hearts hurt for you during this period. They understand how scary it can be to be in the hospital away from your family, friends, and children during this pandemic.

Your labor nurse is by far the person you will spend the most time within the hospital setting. With 12-hour shifts, she will spend long periods with you and is there to care for you and your baby. She is also a great resource for your support person to ensure they are supported, encouraged, and held. Lean on her and the support she can provide.

Talk to your obstetrician or midwife ahead of time about the current hospital restrictions and what you can expect. Talk about your fears and wishes. I believe miscommunication is the most common cause of hurt and pain in the birth setting.

DO YOUR BEST TO DOCUMENT YOUR OWN BIRTH

And lastly, I highly suggest doing your best to still document your birth. Documenting your birth can be so important in healing and processing birth’s emotions. Your birth may be long and drawn out, with so much of it becoming a blur, or it may be so fast and intense that just laboring on its takes every ounce of your concentration. Your baby may go to the warmer, and while you are being cleaned up and monitored after delivery, not seeing those moments up close can be hard.

My clients hold, look at, and watch many moments over and over in the periods following their births. I have clients who watch their birth films over and over that first year and again each birthday.

Don’t be afraid to ask your nurse and staff to help capture images of you together, your support partner, etc., when they can. Often, you need to ask; they are almost always happy to oblige!

I created a guide for my upcoming birth clients with suggestions on how to document your own birth in hopes that it will help them with real tips and guidance. I am happy to share it, contact me here and I will send it to you when you sign up for my newsletter.

Although one of many reasons I am passionate about documenting birth is that it allows your support and birth team to be present IN the images and footage. Things may not be as you envisioned them during this time, but they can still be wonderful!

I have a whole list of reasons why I am passionate about documenting newborns and their families in their homes here in Las Vegas.

As much work as it is, I truly love blogging, especially if it can help someone else! Hopefully, this post will be helpful to anyone trying to decide whether an in-home newborn session is for them.

One of my favorite things about in-home newborn sessions is that they have so much more of a relaxed feel for me. I photographed newborns in my studio for six years and loved it. There is absolutely nothing wrong with posed newborn photography. The reason I moved away from my studio work into the homes of families and from posed to lifestyle is that I really developed a love for filmmaking and for really digging into the stories of each family. Birth stories have become my true passion. To be able to work cohesively with the families I serve, I really felt drawn away from the studio, and into the homes of families, where their memories are made and where they feel the most comfortable.

Not having to take your baby out of the house during those first weeks is a good reason to consider an in-home session! I know that there are still appointments and places you have to go in those weeks, but the safest place is almost always home. You can control who interacts with your baby and know exactly how clean the items are that you use.

This family is a good example of why I feel in-home newborn sessions are so wonderful. Although they had posed newborn images of their older two, they were really interested in capturing beautiful images without the worry and work of getting everyone out of the house and managing them in a strange environment.

In the weeks before their due date, we communicated often, and I checked in to see how things were going. Mom had delivered at different gestations with her previous two, so it was hard to know which way she would go. As luck would have it, she went over her due date! When their baby finally arrived, things got even crazier. Poor dad got sick. Thank goodness the time crunch is not as vital for in-home newborn sessions. For posed newborn sessions I really tried to get my clients in within the first 10-14 days while the baby was still sleepy and easily settled in those adorable posed images you see.In contrast, lifestyle newborn images

We were past the three-week mark when dad finally felt well enough for us to move forward with their session. Because time restrictions aren’t so stiff with in-home newborn sessions, we were able to be sure that dad could be present and feel well enough to participate.

Another thing I love about in-home newborn sessions is that siblings feel so much more at home, and are able to move in and out of the spaces we work in comfortably. Big brother and sister were able to go upstairs and play with their toys with their babysitter while I focused on mom and dad, helping everything to stay relaxed and everyone at ease, which shows in images!

Another thing I love about in-home newborn sessions is that we use the spaces that hold the most meaning to you. Your baby will grow in the spaces where all those memories unfold. I love that you and your children will look back on images we have captured together and have the sentimental feelings associated with them.

While mom was feeding baby brother, we could just play and relax and capture some images of dad with big brother and sister.

We then moved to little E’s room to capture some of the details there. This is another space I love to use during newborn sessions.

No matter where you document your newborn, whether by hiring a posed studio newborn photographer, or a lifestyle photographer in your own home, I encourage you to do so! The newborn stage of life is one of life’s most fleeting periods between sleepless nights, diaper changes, and feedings. It passes quickly, and they change even quicker!