Brad Sander and his wife, Aisha, live in Pakistan. They met while Brad was leading adventure expeditions in the mountains. Brad’s mother, Joyce Sander, and his stepfather, Ken Ludwig, live halfway around the world in Patagonia. Thus this serendipitous story begins.
When Aisha Chapra Sander discovered she was pregnant last spring, she knew she wanted to give birth naturally, safely, in a supportive environment. In Pakistan, such a birth is not an option, because, as she explains, “pregnancy is treated as an illness and birth requires medical intervention.”
They also wanted to be near family, and thus they came to Patagonia. Their search for a natural, supportive birth led her to a birthing center in nearby Tucson, and they discovered that the facility–El Rio Birth Center–was founded by Kathryn Schrag, a mid-wife and teacher of midwives, who is a neighbor of Joyce and Ken’s.
When Aisha searched for a doula, a woman who is trained to assist in childbirth and provide support to the family, she was thrilled to learn that there was a registered doula, Bethany Brandt, in Patagonia. Joyce found the couple a house to rent, they connected with Bethany and the birthing center. They settled in, but didn’t have long to wait.
In describing the birth experience, Brad writes, “Aisha went into labor at 4:50 a.m. and pretty soon the contractions were regular at five minutes apart. We drove to the El Rio Birth Center in Tucson, a 1 hour and 15 minute drive, and we watched the sunrise on the drive…well, I did. By the time we arrived at 8 a.m., Aisha was very focused. We had a room with a large tub and she immediately wanted that to ease the discomfort. Our doula labored with us and the nursing staff and midwife provided a lot of support, but let Aisha direct, suggesting different positions but following her cues as to what was working. This provided enough relief that no medication was needed.
“At 10:47 a.m. on December 8, less than three hours after arriving. I was holding my son. We worked as a team; Maya, our midwife, Bethany, our doula, Stephanie, the nurse (whose birthday it was!), Aisha and I, constantly communicating with each other and reassuring Aisha. My hands were the first to guide my son into the world with the supervision of our experienced midwife. Before I could even bring him to mom’s chest he was crying but once skin to skin his cries calmed and were never frantic. Someone asked his sex and I was the first to observe and tell Aisha that Ali was here. I am overjoyed.. overwhelmed.. overtaken. My life is totally changed and now I’ll follow my son as he guides our family into the future.”