The Birth of Sage
The Birth of Sage
By Roots Community Birth Center client, Gaal Levine
I chose to work with Roots really early in my pregnancy, not just because of what they
could offer me, but because of what they do for their community. I was excited to be a
part of that once I found them. I was looking for an experience that was both supportive
but could be on my own terms with a birth center birth.
This was my second pregnancy, but my first birth was during the very beginning of the
pandemic before any vaccines or variants had arisen. Having a small toddler at home
and being pregnant again, I was looking for a birth center that was still taking COVID
seriously, practiced in evidence-based science, and also felt warm and welcoming. I
was a bit worried I wouldn’t be able to find that, but after one phone call to the Roots
front desk, I was sure I had. I loved that each visit at Roots felt really homey and warm,
and I was given a lot of time and attention from the midwives.
We worked with an amazing doula named Landon for the first birth, and I wanted her
support again no matter what, so we also had hired her as soon as I found out I was
pregnant. Between Roots and Landon, I felt like I had found the perfect team, and I was
confident and happy with my care.
With my first birth of my daughter, things went really fast, and I only made it to the birth
center with about an hour to spare before she was born. For this birth, I was really
hoping to understand the sensations of labor and have a calmer experience without
being so far along in labor during my drive to the birth center. Other than things going
fast, I did trust my body. I had a totally unmedicated birth with my first and wanted a
similar, though maybe less frantic, experience.
Experiencing a Quick Labor and Wild Birth
When I felt some light cramping starting at 39 weeks, I figured this was most likely labor
starting, but at the same time, I could not believe it was time to give birth and my
pregnancy was coming to an end. I let Roots and Landon know what I was feeling, but it
was so light I continued about my day, as they both recommended I do. Neither was
really sure it was labor, given how sporadic what I was feeling was. I continued with my
work day, had some virtual meetings from home, ate normal meals, and tried to stay
comfortable. Early that afternoon, I had one much more intense contraction and texted
everyone again, still unsure if it was really labor or not. At that point, I finally stopped
going about a normal day and laid on a yoga mat to relax before things got intense.
That’s when I felt a little pop in my stomach and some water gush.
It was so little that I wasn't even sure it was my water breaking, but after texting with
Landon, we figured it most likely was. From there, things moved so fast I could hardly
talk through what I was feeling next. I somehow let my husband know we needed to
leave, and he went to go pack the car and get childcare set up. I tried to text but couldn't
anymore; I had gotten really shaky and remembered that this meant I was transitioning.
I called Roots to say we were heading over, and I got myself downstairs and walked
towards the car. I found my husband on his computer putting up an out-of-office
message. I can’t remember what I said, but I somehow let him know I was not happy we
were still at home, and he got up and grabbed the rest of our things and got into the car.
Just a few feet from the garage I felt a huge shift. The baby was dropping, and I knew if
I stopped moving, I would be having this baby wherever I sat down next. I got into the
car and we drove off. Somehow our birth team knew how to assemble though I am not
sure how well we communicated what was happening since within 30 minutes I went
from contractions that were 15 to 20 minutes apart to feeling like I needed to push. We
only live 15 minutes from Roots, but about halfway there, I told my husband the baby
was crowning. I was kind of tapping my leg to stay calm and talking to my husband in a
really measured way. I knew I just wanted to make it to Roots and see Landon, and
once we got there, it would all be OK.
My poor husband was driving as fast as he could, and I remember telling him not to
speed, that it would all be OK. As we screeched into the Roots parking lot, Rachel and
Landon were standing outside waiting for us. My husband rolled down the window and
shouted that the baby was coming right now. Rachel and her assistant ran over to my
passenger side door, grabbed my legs, pulled down my pants, and Sage was born right
there in the passenger seat of our Prius. It was 3:50 p.m. on August 9, 2022.
My husband had run around the car, but he ran back to be with me in the car and was
right behind me when Sage was placed on my chest. There we were, all together
outside in the car with a new baby! With him still in my arms I was helped up and
walked right into the Roots, my doula holding a towel around us.
Finally Going Inside the Birth Center
Once we got inside, I was given a nice big bed to relax in, and they helped me finish
birthing the placenta. Adrenalin was running high, and I had a pretty high blood
pressure reading that made everyone nervous. I did not want to be transferred to a
hospital, and Rachel was really wonderful explaining why this could be serious, but that
we had time until they needed to make that call. So Landon got me some water, and we
all talked and listened to music to try and bring the energy down in the room. Luckily, my
next few readings came down steadily, and I was OK.
I was so relieved, and after baby Sage got all his newborn tests. During the newborn
exam, we learned that Sage weighed 7 pounds, 11 ounces, and measured 19 inches
long. Then, we took a nice bath together to get cleaned up. It felt so good knowing all of
that excitement was behind us. Sage was perfect, and we could get ready to go home!
Reflecting on my Roots Experience
It was all still a bit of a dream, a rush of a day, and it still feels that way now. But I am so
happy I got to work with such a caring, intuitive team that was there right when I needed
them most.
I was lucky enough to get to see Rachel for all my postpartum home visits. I loved
having her there to see Sage after catching him herself. It was also so nice not having
to get out of bed and having her come in, check on Sage and me, and reminisce about
how wild my birth story was, even just a day later. It felt good having someone coming
down off the high of the event with us and get to follow Sage and his growth so closely.
Roots provided all of Sage’s care for the first six weeks along with my follow-up care,
and I could not have asked for more personalized and compassionate care. Every
member of the Roots team I got to work with was just so warm.
Sage joined us in a very exciting and also shocking way. If I think about it too much,
there are a lot of ways this birth could have been really scary or traumatic. I got lucky
enough that we made it to Roots just in time, and it was actually really empowering. I
credit that to the calm hands that held me and caught him in the Roots parking lot. I am
really thankful for Roots, my doula, and my husband’s driving. Sage is the happiest,
goofiest little baby boy, and his wild birth really kicked off this wild, two-child stage of life
for us.
