Cheyenne’s three birth experiences reflect a journey shaped by preparation, intuition, and evolving confidence in her body and decision-making.
Her first birth was planned as an out-of-hospital birth center birth with midwives. At 41 weeks and one day, she went for a routine non-stress test at the hospital, expecting to go home afterwards. Instead, the test revealed mild but regular contractions alongside a slowing of the fetus’s heart rate. After leaving the hospital and consulting with her midwives over the phone, Cheyenne and her partner made the decision to return to the hospital for admission. At the time, Cheyenne had already been in labor for six years and was deeply familiar with the hospital and its staff. Although her midwives did not accompany clients to the hospital, she was able to receive care from a reputable obstetrics and gynecology clinic that she knew personally. Labor proceeded with cervical ripening using a Cook catheter, time in the tub, and dilation to eight centimeters. When her water was artificially broken, her baby’s heart rate immediately dropped and an emergency C-section ensued.
For her second birth, Cheyenne again chose midwifery care—this time with the only black midwife operating an out-of-hospital birth center in Richmond at the time. Labor started spontaneously just before 40 weeks. She worked at home initially, including a brisk car ride, while agreeing to leave her older child with a friend. Once at the birth center, she quickly entered the water and labored for a long time in a quiet, calm environment. The experience was deeply internal and meditative. she spoke little except to spontaneously repeat mantras that arose at the time and helped her through each contraction. After a while, her midwife encouraged more movement. Cheyenne rested briefly in bed with her husband by her side, then stood to use the bathroom. As she reentered the hallway, she felt her baby descend quickly and knew the birth was imminent. She gave birth in the hallway on a birth stool. She was subsequently found to have a second to third degree tear. Another midwife was called in for assessment and her lead midwife accompanied her to hospital for repair.
Her third birth was planned as a home birth. With her previous midwife no longer practicing locally, Cheyenne chose a home birth midwife with whom she felt deeply aligned and hoped to avoid the hospital altogether. Work began quickly on Thanksgiving night after returning home from dinner. What initially felt uncertain became unmistakably active labor within an hour. Contractions intensified quickly and her midwife arrived in a short window, along with childcare support. Upon examination, Cheyenne was already six to seven centimeters dilated with a very distended bag of waters. The midwife suspected a possible leg or elbow and since the baby had alternated between head down and breech positions at the end of the pregnancy, they made a quick decision to take her to the hospital. By the time Cheyenne was introduced, it was fully expanded and the appearance of the arm was confirmed.
Although her care team prepared to support a vaginal delivery, Cheyenne had a clear gut feeling that a C-section was the right choice for this birth. She agreed calmly, trusting her intuition. In the operating room, her friend and the doula faced resistance from the staff despite the hospital’s policy of allowing a doula to be present during C-section births. The doula persisted, waiting outside the OR in appropriate attire until the anesthesiologist intervened and allowed her to enter. Cheyenne was deeply grateful for her presence, especially as she experienced intense, uncontrollable shaking—a recurring and painful part of her previous C-section recoveries. Having her doula there, holding her hand, grounding her and talking to her made the experience feel safer and less isolating.
As with her three births, Cheyenne did not know the gender of her baby until the moment of birth. When her baby lifted above the surgical curtain, her husband announced that they were having a son – after two daughters – marking a strong and joyful journey near her birth.
Cheyenne Varner Bio
Cheyenne is a nationally recognized certified birth worker, health justice advocate and illustrator. She is the founder of The Educated Birth and Daily Birth Journalplatforms dedicated to promoting reproductive health equity through inclusive educational tools and empowering underrepresented stories. Her mission is to advance health equity by transforming how pregnancy, labor and birth are taught, understood, supported and experienced. Connect with her at @cheyvarner on Instagram
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