Mosdub Birth Story
Apr 25, 2017 21:56:28 GMT -5
Post by mosdub on Apr 25, 2017 21:56:28 GMT -5
Late in coming, but here it is!
At 40+4 I went in to see my OB at 11:30 am. He checked me and I was at 3-4cm and “very effaced”. After he finished checking, he said he did a membrane sweep so we will see if that gets things going. I didn’t even feel it which is funny because the previous week when the MW checked me I was 2cm and not effaced and it HURT when she did the cervical check.
After the doctor appointment I met up with some friends for coffee. While I was there I started to feel crampy and uncomfortable. After coffee they wanted to grab some lunch and I reluctantly tagged along. I was feeling off and generally uncomfortable like I was having bad menstrual/intestinal cramps.
I got home around 3pm and continued to have some discomfort but nothing timed or excruciating. I went to the hardware store and got some stuff to make an earring holder and then did some house cleaning because I thought *maybe* this would be it. (I should have just taken a long nap, in retrospect).
By 11pm the pain became more timed, and from 11pm-midnight I had been having 1 minute long contractions, 5 minutes apart for one hour. They were uncomfortable, but not something I couldn’t walk/talk through. I mulled it over with H and we decided just to go in and get checked out. We live only a few blocks from the hospital, so it only took us 2 minutes to get in the front door of the ER. From there, we were placed in a birth room within minutes because the triage rooms were all full. They hooked me up to the monitors and baby was doing great and they confirmed my contractions. They checked my cervix and I was at 4cm, completely effaced. They told me they wouldn’t send me home because my contractions were so regular.
From there it’s kind of a blur. I feel like my contractions ramped up quickly in pain. I told the nurse and midwife on duty that I wanted to try and go without medications and they mostly just left us alone for several hours. I’m not sure how long I was laying on my side, gripping the hospital bed for dear life and yelling/grunting/moaning through contractions but eventually the nurse came in and suggested I try getting into the tub. The MW came in and asked how I was doing. I replied “I’m questioning my resolve” to which they both laughed. The MW said she’d check my cervix and we would decide from there. By this point I’d been up for around 20 hours and was exhausted. I decided in my head if I was only at 5-7cm I would get an epidural because I needed rest.
The MW said “you’re at 8cm!”
I said, “So, am I going into transition?”
MW: “You’re IN IT girl!”
Me: “I am?! Thank god.”
I decided to keep going without the epidural at that point, and got into the hot tub the nurse had filled for me. IMMEDIATE RELIEF. The contractions before felt like they never really ended - it was just a horrible pulse of severe pain to moderate pain with no real rest. Once I got into the tub I was greeted with 100% pain relief in between contractions. It reminded me of the relief you feel when you’re in between vomiting.
Gross deets in the spoiler:
From there it was about an hour of pushing. They pulled a mirror out for me to watch as he crowned which was really motivating even though I thought I would never want to look down there. Thankfully the MW ended up covering my view of the mirror at the end because I could feel the tear (3rd degree) happen. I always assumed you wouldn’t feel it with everything going on but nope - felt it.
Next thing I knew, the MW said “grab your baby!” and I pulled him onto my chest. That was the most surreal, amazing moment of my life. He was beautiful, and coughing and crying and so warm. They covered us with a blanket and put a hat on his head and let us stay like that until the cord was empty. H cut the cord and L stayed on my chest while they delivered the placenta, massaged my abdomen (Ouch - again you’d think after childbirth nothing would phase you but nope) and stitched me up.
One of the reasons I was attracted to not having an epidural was that I would be able to get up quicker and take a shower, but due to the lack of sleep and blood loss I was too dizzy (I actually passed out when they tried to get me in the bathroom the first time and scared the crap out of H).
Tl;dr: Membrane sweep at 11:30am at 40+4. Contractions all day, went to hospital at midnight, had baby 5.5 hours later without medication.
At 40+4 I went in to see my OB at 11:30 am. He checked me and I was at 3-4cm and “very effaced”. After he finished checking, he said he did a membrane sweep so we will see if that gets things going. I didn’t even feel it which is funny because the previous week when the MW checked me I was 2cm and not effaced and it HURT when she did the cervical check.
After the doctor appointment I met up with some friends for coffee. While I was there I started to feel crampy and uncomfortable. After coffee they wanted to grab some lunch and I reluctantly tagged along. I was feeling off and generally uncomfortable like I was having bad menstrual/intestinal cramps.
I got home around 3pm and continued to have some discomfort but nothing timed or excruciating. I went to the hardware store and got some stuff to make an earring holder and then did some house cleaning because I thought *maybe* this would be it. (I should have just taken a long nap, in retrospect).
By 11pm the pain became more timed, and from 11pm-midnight I had been having 1 minute long contractions, 5 minutes apart for one hour. They were uncomfortable, but not something I couldn’t walk/talk through. I mulled it over with H and we decided just to go in and get checked out. We live only a few blocks from the hospital, so it only took us 2 minutes to get in the front door of the ER. From there, we were placed in a birth room within minutes because the triage rooms were all full. They hooked me up to the monitors and baby was doing great and they confirmed my contractions. They checked my cervix and I was at 4cm, completely effaced. They told me they wouldn’t send me home because my contractions were so regular.
From there it’s kind of a blur. I feel like my contractions ramped up quickly in pain. I told the nurse and midwife on duty that I wanted to try and go without medications and they mostly just left us alone for several hours. I’m not sure how long I was laying on my side, gripping the hospital bed for dear life and yelling/grunting/moaning through contractions but eventually the nurse came in and suggested I try getting into the tub. The MW came in and asked how I was doing. I replied “I’m questioning my resolve” to which they both laughed. The MW said she’d check my cervix and we would decide from there. By this point I’d been up for around 20 hours and was exhausted. I decided in my head if I was only at 5-7cm I would get an epidural because I needed rest.
The MW said “you’re at 8cm!”
I said, “So, am I going into transition?”
MW: “You’re IN IT girl!”
Me: “I am?! Thank god.”
I decided to keep going without the epidural at that point, and got into the hot tub the nurse had filled for me. IMMEDIATE RELIEF. The contractions before felt like they never really ended - it was just a horrible pulse of severe pain to moderate pain with no real rest. Once I got into the tub I was greeted with 100% pain relief in between contractions. It reminded me of the relief you feel when you’re in between vomiting.
Gross deets in the spoiler:
{Click here to see more.}
I peed immediately upon entering the tub. Did not care. Then my water broke (they assume because of bloody show appearing in the water). Did not care. Then pretty sure I pooped a little bit during contractions. Did not care. Poor H must have been so grossed out.
Almost immediately my body started pushing. I told the nurse and she said that since my cervix wasn’t 10 yet to not push or I might swell the cervix and hurt myself. I was yelling during contractions (never thought I’d be a yeller, but the body does what it does. I wasn't trying to be dramatic, it was just what hppened) and she told me to focus on not yelling since that usually means you’re bearing down. Once I focused on breathing and not vocalizing I was able to control the desire to push. I was in the tub maybe 45 minutes before I was unable to control it anymore. I told the nurse, they got me out of the tub and checked me. I was at 10 cm! I peed immediately upon entering the tub. Did not care. Then my water broke (they assume because of bloody show appearing in the water). Did not care. Then pretty sure I pooped a little bit during contractions. Did not care. Poor H must have been so grossed out.
From there it was about an hour of pushing. They pulled a mirror out for me to watch as he crowned which was really motivating even though I thought I would never want to look down there. Thankfully the MW ended up covering my view of the mirror at the end because I could feel the tear (3rd degree) happen. I always assumed you wouldn’t feel it with everything going on but nope - felt it.
Next thing I knew, the MW said “grab your baby!” and I pulled him onto my chest. That was the most surreal, amazing moment of my life. He was beautiful, and coughing and crying and so warm. They covered us with a blanket and put a hat on his head and let us stay like that until the cord was empty. H cut the cord and L stayed on my chest while they delivered the placenta, massaged my abdomen (Ouch - again you’d think after childbirth nothing would phase you but nope) and stitched me up.
One of the reasons I was attracted to not having an epidural was that I would be able to get up quicker and take a shower, but due to the lack of sleep and blood loss I was too dizzy (I actually passed out when they tried to get me in the bathroom the first time and scared the crap out of H).
Tl;dr: Membrane sweep at 11:30am at 40+4. Contractions all day, went to hospital at midnight, had baby 5.5 hours later without medication.
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