I feel very fortunate about my experience and the care I received during my third and final baby's delivery. I woke up on Saturday morning, 39 weeks and 3 days pregnant, with contractions that finally had a bite to them. I told my husband we needed to start getting ready and head to the hospital. Our intended hospital was Ball Memorial in Muncie, but by the time we dropped off our older children in Winchester to their grandparents, contractions were less than a minute apart.

We arrived at Ascension St. Vincent Randolph Hospital at 7:26 am. Stephanie Nunez, a labor and delivery nurse, came to pick us up at the ER front desk and escorted us to the birthing center. She gathered all the necessary medical history, as I was not being seen by Ascension OBGYN. Stephanie and the other nurse worked swiftly and efficiently to prep for a fast-and-furious delivery since I was 10 cm once checked. The doctor was on call and was at the hospital just in time for my water to break and deliver my baby.

I was not prepared for an all-natural, no-medication delivery, but I didn't have a choice. There was no time for an epidural or medication, which really scared me. Stephanie stepped in as a support person and repeatedly instructed me that I could do this, and once it was all over, all the pain would go away, and my baby would be earthside. At 7:54 a.m., our beautiful daughter was born, just under 30 minutes from our arrival time at the hospital.

Stephanie deeply cared about my health and stability after delivery and the well-being of my daughter. While she is my third baby, Stephanie's medical knowledge and experience went light-years beyond our expectations. I felt a sense of relief when it was time for shift change. She noted that she would be back in the morning. In a short time, she was able to build trust with our little family and a sense of commonality, and we enjoyed getting to know her. While the delivery of our daughter didn't go as expected, I couldn't be more fortunate that it went the way it did.

I can't really put into words how thankful I am for the labor and delivery team, specifically Stephanie, and her presence during the delivery of my daughter and postpartum care. She is a very compassionate person with an experienced skill set. She was more than accommodating in every aspect of her job. Ascension St Vincent Randolph Hospital should be extremely grateful to have Stephanie as part of their birthing center team.