BabyMonkeyBear's Birth Story
Jan 22, 2015 6:53:54 GMT -5
Post by Deleted on Jan 22, 2015 6:53:54 GMT -5
Who doesn't love a good birth story, right?
I went in for my 40w appointment on my due date, 1/15/15, and left with an induction scheduled for 6am the following Monday, 1/19/15, at 6am. My OB did a surprise cervix check (I was only supposed to have one at 39w; results were 2cm dilated, 60% effaced, -2 station) and did a quick membrane sweep to help prepare for the induction-- the sweep was realized after the fact. Check showed 2-2.5cm dilated, slightly thinner, same station but a little easier to reach than it was at 39weeks. After a few hospital calls over the weekend as the hospital worked on staffing due to other inductions being scheduled and other deliveries, the time was confirmed that weekend for 6am that Sunday, 1/18/15. I had cramps on and off all weekend but no contractions when I went to bed Sunday night with everything ready to go for Monday morning.
Cue timeline (times are approximate as somethings happened really fast and are a blur)--
Sunday, January 18, 2015:
8:30p- FI and I go to bed, prepared to wake up at 4a to get ready to head in for the induction. I'm having quite a bit of cramps so I use the heating pad on low to help me sleep
11:30p- I wake up to painful contractions with definite start and end time. I use the bathroom thinking it's a false alarm and willing for morning to come quicker so we could finally get things.
Monday, January 19, 2015:
12a 1/19- I wake up FI to warn him I'm having contractions, and we may need to head to the hospital earlier than planned. I tell him to get more sleep since it will be a long day either way. I don't fall back to sleep and occasionally time contractions. They're lasting about 50-60 seconds but are sporadic in timing. They get more painful as time goes on. I give up on timing and sleep and go lie on the couch to try to get comfortable. It doesn't work, and I go back to sitting up in bed.
3a- FI asks how I'm doing, and I tell him they are getting worse. I tell him he should probably take his thyroid pill now, and he gets up and showers. Once he's showered, I get in the tub to see if it helps. I have 2 contractions in the tub and get out. I get dressed and move to the yoga ball.
3:30a- contractions are 2-5 minutes apart, lasting only 30-40 seconds. I wake up my grandmother and tell her I'm in labor (her and my grandfather were staying with us due to my induction being set). At this point, I'm in tears during some of the contractions.
4:30a- we call the on call OB asking what it do about the induction at 6a; were told to head to the ER to be checked out because I'm going to be admitted either way that day. FI and my grandfather pack up the car while my grandmother takes a shower and gets dressed. FI and my grandmother come with me to the hospital.
5:15a- we arrive at the ER. The ER admittance staff thinks I'm there for my induction at first until they're told that I'm having contractions now. (The main doors to the hospital are locked overnight so the only entrance is through the ER). There's an issue with admittance, but I didn't care
5:30a- admitted to L&D and hooked up to the monitors for a NST. I change into the hospital gown as FI gives the nurse my information for regarding baby sex, name, doctor, etc.
6a- on call OB checks, completely effaced, 3cm, -1 station. I'm officially in labor with contractions being picked up on the monitors. I agree to the IV fluids that I didn't originally want and ask for a birthing ball.
7:30a- My OB arrives--he was on-call for the hospital that day, hence my induction being scheduled for that day anyway. I'm 5cm, and 100% effaced. I'm offered pain meds to take the edge off and ask, almost begging, for the epidural. OB orders the epi for me and says he'll be back later to check on me. I don't get off the bed now with the back labor. I cry through almost every contraction at this point. The nurse is coaching me on breathing techniques and finding a focal point in the room. My goal was to make it to 5cm before asking for the epi; I made my goal.
9a- Epi has been placed after some difficulty finding the right spot. It turns out I have some scoliosis in my back that became more prominent during pregnancy-- that explains a lot in terms of the pain I was having. The nurse inserts the catheter, and I'm good to go. She tells my grandmother she can go home for a bit and sleep if she wishes. I text a few people including one of my labor buddies, go on FB, etc. until I fall asleep for a short nap. My FI and grandmother watch TV while I nap.
11:45a- My OB comes in to check, 8cm, 0 station with amniotic fluid bag bulging. The nurse asks if he wants to break the bag and nods for the hook to do so. He breaks the bag and predicts a baby by 1/1:30p. I ask how the baby was handling labor as I was still feeling him move in between contractions on occasion, kicking me after them due to his probable annoyance at them. He's doing great on the monitors.
12:45p- I feel a lot of pressure; I had been having some slight pressure on my right side and pushed the button to increase the epidural about 30 minutes prior. The right side pressure was gone; this was a different kind of pressure. Nurse checks- 100% effaced, 10cm dilated, +1 station. They call for the OB and have me labor down.
12:55p- I told the nurses I wanted to push. Nurse checks and can feel baby's head. I'm told I can do a few trial pushes. I could feel everything with relation to pushes but no contractions (so odd!).
1:00p- Nurse calls for the second nurse to tell to OB to get here ASAP and come up with a plan for if he's not there in time.
1:05p- OB comes in and sets up bed and delivery table; He coaches me on pushing with FI, and my grandmother each holding a leg. He has me push through a contraction then tells me to not push through the next; baby had his cord wrapped around his neck just like I did when I was born. I'm told to push as hard as I can through the next contraction since baby's head was coming out, and the OB is certain the next contraction will have him out. 2-4 pushes total during that last one. I can't remember how many times; I just remember pushing with all I could and my OB's coaching. As he came out, baby reached up like he was trying to get to me.
1:15p 1/19- FI cuts the umbilical cord. Baby is making tiny squeaks but no cries yet. I ask if he's okay as he's placed on my chest. The OB and nurses assure me he's fine and give him a minute. James lets out his first cry about 30-60 seconds after being placed on my chest. Time of birth is called for 1:15p. My grandmother and I cry; FI's on the verge of tears. Our son has entered the world.
As I'm snuggling baby, his APGAR scores are 9 and 9. He's reaching up and looking at me like "oh, you're the one who has been taking care of me." The OB tries to detach the placenta but it isn't ready yet, so he checks everything over and stitches me up--I'm told I have a small 2nd degree vaginal tear. I feel a few of the stitches, but nothing too major; only one was painful for him to insert.
The nurse takes the baby to get birth details, to check his vitals, and to clean him up a bit. FI goes with him as the OB delivers the placenta. I find out later that I lost a lot of blood following this, much more than the OB was expecting. FI holds the baby as the nurse gets the bottle. I do the first feeding, thank everyone in the room, and we're left alone with our newborn son to get acquainted as a family. My grandmother calls my grandfather and tells him he can head to the hospital. FI calls his family that they can do the same. They let the rest of the family know throughout the day as I try to rest.
BabyMonkeyBear was born 1/19/15 at 1:15pm weighing 8lbs, 6oz, and 20 inches long, with his dad and great grandmother in the room. I don't know how I would have gotten through labor and delivery without the both of them with me the whole time. The stubborn boy was determined he was going to enter the world on his own terms, and he sure did!
I went in for my 40w appointment on my due date, 1/15/15, and left with an induction scheduled for 6am the following Monday, 1/19/15, at 6am. My OB did a surprise cervix check (I was only supposed to have one at 39w; results were 2cm dilated, 60% effaced, -2 station) and did a quick membrane sweep to help prepare for the induction-- the sweep was realized after the fact. Check showed 2-2.5cm dilated, slightly thinner, same station but a little easier to reach than it was at 39weeks. After a few hospital calls over the weekend as the hospital worked on staffing due to other inductions being scheduled and other deliveries, the time was confirmed that weekend for 6am that Sunday, 1/18/15. I had cramps on and off all weekend but no contractions when I went to bed Sunday night with everything ready to go for Monday morning.
Cue timeline (times are approximate as somethings happened really fast and are a blur)--
Sunday, January 18, 2015:
8:30p- FI and I go to bed, prepared to wake up at 4a to get ready to head in for the induction. I'm having quite a bit of cramps so I use the heating pad on low to help me sleep
11:30p- I wake up to painful contractions with definite start and end time. I use the bathroom thinking it's a false alarm and willing for morning to come quicker so we could finally get things.
Monday, January 19, 2015:
12a 1/19- I wake up FI to warn him I'm having contractions, and we may need to head to the hospital earlier than planned. I tell him to get more sleep since it will be a long day either way. I don't fall back to sleep and occasionally time contractions. They're lasting about 50-60 seconds but are sporadic in timing. They get more painful as time goes on. I give up on timing and sleep and go lie on the couch to try to get comfortable. It doesn't work, and I go back to sitting up in bed.
3a- FI asks how I'm doing, and I tell him they are getting worse. I tell him he should probably take his thyroid pill now, and he gets up and showers. Once he's showered, I get in the tub to see if it helps. I have 2 contractions in the tub and get out. I get dressed and move to the yoga ball.
3:30a- contractions are 2-5 minutes apart, lasting only 30-40 seconds. I wake up my grandmother and tell her I'm in labor (her and my grandfather were staying with us due to my induction being set). At this point, I'm in tears during some of the contractions.
4:30a- we call the on call OB asking what it do about the induction at 6a; were told to head to the ER to be checked out because I'm going to be admitted either way that day. FI and my grandfather pack up the car while my grandmother takes a shower and gets dressed. FI and my grandmother come with me to the hospital.
5:15a- we arrive at the ER. The ER admittance staff thinks I'm there for my induction at first until they're told that I'm having contractions now. (The main doors to the hospital are locked overnight so the only entrance is through the ER). There's an issue with admittance, but I didn't care
5:30a- admitted to L&D and hooked up to the monitors for a NST. I change into the hospital gown as FI gives the nurse my information for regarding baby sex, name, doctor, etc.
6a- on call OB checks, completely effaced, 3cm, -1 station. I'm officially in labor with contractions being picked up on the monitors. I agree to the IV fluids that I didn't originally want and ask for a birthing ball.
7:30a- My OB arrives--he was on-call for the hospital that day, hence my induction being scheduled for that day anyway. I'm 5cm, and 100% effaced. I'm offered pain meds to take the edge off and ask, almost begging, for the epidural. OB orders the epi for me and says he'll be back later to check on me. I don't get off the bed now with the back labor. I cry through almost every contraction at this point. The nurse is coaching me on breathing techniques and finding a focal point in the room. My goal was to make it to 5cm before asking for the epi; I made my goal.
9a- Epi has been placed after some difficulty finding the right spot. It turns out I have some scoliosis in my back that became more prominent during pregnancy-- that explains a lot in terms of the pain I was having. The nurse inserts the catheter, and I'm good to go. She tells my grandmother she can go home for a bit and sleep if she wishes. I text a few people including one of my labor buddies, go on FB, etc. until I fall asleep for a short nap. My FI and grandmother watch TV while I nap.
11:45a- My OB comes in to check, 8cm, 0 station with amniotic fluid bag bulging. The nurse asks if he wants to break the bag and nods for the hook to do so. He breaks the bag and predicts a baby by 1/1:30p. I ask how the baby was handling labor as I was still feeling him move in between contractions on occasion, kicking me after them due to his probable annoyance at them. He's doing great on the monitors.
12:45p- I feel a lot of pressure; I had been having some slight pressure on my right side and pushed the button to increase the epidural about 30 minutes prior. The right side pressure was gone; this was a different kind of pressure. Nurse checks- 100% effaced, 10cm dilated, +1 station. They call for the OB and have me labor down.
12:55p- I told the nurses I wanted to push. Nurse checks and can feel baby's head. I'm told I can do a few trial pushes. I could feel everything with relation to pushes but no contractions (so odd!).
1:00p- Nurse calls for the second nurse to tell to OB to get here ASAP and come up with a plan for if he's not there in time.
1:05p- OB comes in and sets up bed and delivery table; He coaches me on pushing with FI, and my grandmother each holding a leg. He has me push through a contraction then tells me to not push through the next; baby had his cord wrapped around his neck just like I did when I was born. I'm told to push as hard as I can through the next contraction since baby's head was coming out, and the OB is certain the next contraction will have him out. 2-4 pushes total during that last one. I can't remember how many times; I just remember pushing with all I could and my OB's coaching. As he came out, baby reached up like he was trying to get to me.
1:15p 1/19- FI cuts the umbilical cord. Baby is making tiny squeaks but no cries yet. I ask if he's okay as he's placed on my chest. The OB and nurses assure me he's fine and give him a minute. James lets out his first cry about 30-60 seconds after being placed on my chest. Time of birth is called for 1:15p. My grandmother and I cry; FI's on the verge of tears. Our son has entered the world.
As I'm snuggling baby, his APGAR scores are 9 and 9. He's reaching up and looking at me like "oh, you're the one who has been taking care of me." The OB tries to detach the placenta but it isn't ready yet, so he checks everything over and stitches me up--I'm told I have a small 2nd degree vaginal tear. I feel a few of the stitches, but nothing too major; only one was painful for him to insert.
The nurse takes the baby to get birth details, to check his vitals, and to clean him up a bit. FI goes with him as the OB delivers the placenta. I find out later that I lost a lot of blood following this, much more than the OB was expecting. FI holds the baby as the nurse gets the bottle. I do the first feeding, thank everyone in the room, and we're left alone with our newborn son to get acquainted as a family. My grandmother calls my grandfather and tells him he can head to the hospital. FI calls his family that they can do the same. They let the rest of the family know throughout the day as I try to rest.
BabyMonkeyBear was born 1/19/15 at 1:15pm weighing 8lbs, 6oz, and 20 inches long, with his dad and great grandmother in the room. I don't know how I would have gotten through labor and delivery without the both of them with me the whole time. The stubborn boy was determined he was going to enter the world on his own terms, and he sure did!