Birth Story Throwback

[oldwheeze]

If you want to re-post and share your birth story do it here!

[oldwheeze]

The Long:
I'm posting this on mobile, from my hospital bed, while my two brave men sleep soundly around me. I'm waiting on breakfast and can't stop staring at their sweet faces!

So, I was pretty cranky about being two days overdue. I was convinced he would come early because that's what we "do" in my family... Or so they say. Anyway, I had resigned to my fate of a late baby and started up with the OWTs. Not saying they for sure worked, not saying they didn't!

On my due date I tested out my breast pump for a while, but felt pretty guilty about it.. Like I was cheating on LO. Sunday I ate eggplant parm, pineapple with spicy stuff, and even convinced DH to "make a deposit."

I was awakened more than usual through the night feeling crampy, but didn't think much of it until about 5:30am. I realized they were rising and falling in intensity at fairly regular intervals. I timed 3-15 minutes apart up until my OB appointment at 9am. I rated them from mild to a few moderately painful. I felt good enough to drive to the doc, but decided to take my hospital bag and make my sister ride along just in case. This was most certainly divinely inspired.

Doc checked me at 3cm, 90% effaced, and I explained my contractions. She said that I was most likely in prodromal labor which can last 24 hours. I was sent home and told to wait and see it they picked up or died off.

I didn't like that plan because I felt like my contractions were regulating and getting more painful. There's an IKEA next to my hospital so sister and I decided to go there and see how I felt after a little walking. By the time we made it to the food court I had to pause between contractions. I bought us the 99 cent breakfast but immediately lost my appetite. I felt a distinct pop and assumed my water broke, but no dramatic display, no light leakage even. I called L&D and left a voicemail that I was coming back. The contractions and pain were intensifying rapidly. I couldn't walk, sit, or speak through them.

Sister drove us back over to the hospital and we slowly and painfully made it to L&D. Three people asked if I wanted a wheelchair, but I really couldn't sit without writhing in pain. Wished in my head they had those conveyor belt floors like at airports.

After about an hour (I think) of screaming/moaning/shaking through my contractions, I was admitted! At first they wanted me to try to walk for another hour, to which I promptly informed them that I was not capable of moving between sitting and laying positions. Maybe I have a low pain tolerance, or bad breathing techniques, or maybe it was just happening really fast. Either way I was possessed by the devil. This whole time my 18 year old sister was trying to be supportive and DH showed up at some point too. He was very comforting to me and it allowed sister to make the necessary calls and no longer have to feel responsible for me.

After laboring in my room and waiting on pain meds for some other type of eternity (I think 30-45 minutes) the OB checked me and I was complete but still high. Luckily the devil inside me knew that I was planning to have the epi all along and had called for it back in the waiting room.

When the anesthesiologist/exorcist came in he gave me some tips to relax and asked me questions. I managed to hold still and to tell him that I was dying. The epi kicked in after just a minute and cue the heavenly hosts. It was great. I felt human again.

The docs left me to labor down a while. My mom arrived and let sister leave to go pick up my dad and get a break. When the nurse returned she monitored my contractions for a while and we started pushing. As the epi began to wear off I definitely felt that my pushes became more effective. After one hour I finally got him past the pelvic bone. Nurse called the OB when I was crowning and I had to "hold it" for SO long! They said it was ok and would help keep me from tearing. I just kept thinking of my hemerroids.

When the OB arrived it only took two pushes to deliver. William Francisco was born after a total of 4 hours of hospital labor. My progression from 3cm to complete was about 3 hours. Stats: 7/21, 7lbs 7oz, 19". I never in my life have experienced something so difficult and so gratifying.

I had one small perineal tear requiring a single stitch. Recovery has been ok. I am sore and we are working through some latching issues (he fusses for food then falls asleep when I put him to the breast).

If you made it this far, I commend you! I wanted to record this while it was fresh in my memory. I have truly benefitted from you fellow bumpies and I'm excited for the new challenges and triumphs ahead!


*side note: I'm really glad I looked back at this. I need to save it on my phone!

[stellabunny]

In retrospect my labor and birth story can be summed up as follows:

BOOM! Baby!

[liziz]

stellabunny, I think you're right, but here is mine for posterity... it made me tear up to even think about how little and new she was!

We went to our 41 week check in, and doctor didn't like the fluid levels (only could find 2 centimeters) so she sent us home to eat dinner and pack up, which was nice - it gave us a chance to walk the dog, and make sure we had everything (short side note on hospital bags, I have literally used my Chapstick, a hairtie, and a face wipe so far - my hospital is well stocked! I for sure over packed, but I'm sure I will use more when I shower today. Might even wear a bra, but I'm lovin' me some mesh panties and a hospital gown!)

We got to the hospital around 8 pm, got settled in our room, got the saline lock/IV started (standard for everyone here). I checked int to the hospital at a tight 2 and 80%. By the time all the admitting was done, we were able to start Cervadil around 9:15. I not-so-patiently waited out the 2 hours before I could pee again reading and watching TV. H went to sleep, and I did too, for about 15 minutes. I woke up with increasingly strong contractions around 11:30 (I had been having some, but not very strong, since the Cervadil started).

After a half hour or so, I made H wake up and sit in the recliner next to me and hold my hand, and he did. A little while later, contractions started for real, and I was just breathing through them, and having H rub my back in between (mine seemed to hurt my back as they decreased). I labored mostly on my left side in bed, with frequent bathroom trips, and a short stint on the medicine ball (awesome, but I couldn't relax/rest between, which I needed). Contractions were coming hard and close together, and it was tough, so I had H call in the nurse to talk pain management. When she checked me, I was already at 7 cm! Since the Cervadil did its job, it was removed, and they gave me a couple bags of saline to slow things down/ keep me hydrated. It relaxed me enough that I could see the light at the end of the tunnel, and didn't discuss further pain options at that point (before the fluids, I was in a "give me the epidural now" mind frame)

All of the sudden, about half way through a contraction, I had an insane urge to push. We called in the nurse, and she let me know I was at 9 cm, so to hold off on pushing. Holding off on pushing was probably the hardest and most painful things I've ever done. Somewhere in those last couple centimeters I for sure peed myself, at least enough to think my water broke. Another check brought us to 9.5cm, and also accidentally broke my water in a huge gush. Then it was go time!

It was such a relief to actually push and do what my body was telling me. My nurse was amazing at coaching me through pushing, and lubeing/stretching me as we went. I got excited when they started setting up the delivery table with all the things for doctor/baby. For me, the pushing itself didn't hurt that much, it just felt like what I was supposed to be doing. Once she was really moved down, there was a lot of pressure around where her head was, but not pain. After a little over an hour, my doctor was called in (she is clearly not a morning person, lol) and after maybe 5 more contractions of 3 big pushes each, Amelia came right out, and H says her body flew out once her head was through. She was crying and they were able to put her right on my chest!

Doctor started on stitches right away (2nd degree tear) and then delivered the placenta uneventfully. They also started a pitocin drip to shrink my uterus down quickly. Doctor fished around and pressed to get a bunch of blood out right away, and then finished the stitches.

H was able to watch the whole thing (he was really into it, and was totally amazed with what the human body can do), cut the cord (which was so weird feeling - I always imagined it as being harder, for some reason), and take a look at the placenta afterwards.

After an hour or so of skin-to-skin, she nursed a little, and since all was well, H and baby went to the nursery for vitals, etc. and I was completely and truly alone in a room for the first time in almost a year! (Mostly weird) I got custom fitted to my mesh panties, and moved from a labor room to a mother/infant room.

I'm so happy and excited, but I have no more pictures of her on my phone. Everyone else keeps taking them for us, I just want to hold her!

[holidayarmadillo]

I am loving this thread. I was too terrified to read birth stories before I gave birth, so I know I have missed some of these.

On Sunday (6/29), I woke up to bloody show when I went to the bathroom. This spurred me to spend the rest of Sunday nesting and getting all the last minute things finished for the baby. Around 3 pm I had an isolated contraction and then I had another as I was getting ready for bed. I slept for a few hours and then woke up 3 am on Monday with more regular contractions. They were about 30 seconds long and 8 minutes apart.

Around 10 am the contractions started picking up, 45 seconds long, 5-6 minutes apart. We got ready to go to go to the hospital, but by 11 the contractions had almost stopped. For the next couple of hours I only had 2-3 contractions per hour, so I thought that it had been false labor. After a walk and some bouncing on my fitness ball, the contractions picked back up. By 3:30 pm they were 3-4 minutes apart and 45-50 seconds long, so we decided to head for the hospital.

When we got there, there was a woman delivering in triage! Anyways, they checked me and I was 3 cm and 80% effaced. After an hour of monitoring, I was still 3 cm, but 100% effaced. They had me walk around the third floor of the hospital for an hour and checked me again. At that point I was "a cheap 4" but it was enough to admit me!

I labored a bit longer in L&D, and things got intense, so I requested the epidural. Which was awesome and the process of getting it wasn't nearly as scary as I thought. It dropped my blood pressure (80/40) so they had to get iv fluids in me quickly. Between the low BP and the cold fluids, I spent the next hour shivering. I had to flip from side to side to keep the epidural working on both sides.

This time line is a bit fuzzy, but when I was progressed to 7 or 8 cm, they broke my water. When they did, the baby dropped so quick they couldn't find his heart beat. The doctor got tense and another doctor was called and I was terrified until they inserted a scalp electrode into the baby's head and we could hear the heartbeat again.

I felt incredible pressure and knew it was time to start pushing. The (awesome) nurses were helping me push while lying on my side. I had to have oxygen between the contractions because the baby's heart rate kept dropping. The burning and pressure and pain of pushing was so intense. Even with the epidural. I just wanted the baby out. After about a half hour of pushing they called the doctors in and made me stop pushing until they got there. A couple more pushes and baby boy E was born on 7/1 at 4:34 am. 7 lbs 9.5 oz, 21.5 inches. The relief of him being born and healthy was so so great.

He was put right on my chest and latched and fed right away for 25 minutes while the doctors stitched up my second degree tearing. I could feel the stitching, so they gave me local anesthetic (talk about a place you don't want needles...).

[hurricanerek]

I finally wrote it out and I'm so glad I did. I'm surprised how well I remembered so many details.

Birth Story
The Short:
Team Green turns Pink! Camille Fiona was born on 8/8 at 5:54am. She was born at 41+3 weeks, weighed 7 pounds 13 ounces, and was 21 inches long.

The Long:
My due date was 7/29 and that day came and went. I was barely 1cm dilated and showing no signs of impending labor. Each day that I waited for her to born, I treated myself to a Sonic slush because 1) there was nothing else to do, and 2) it was summer and I was hot and very pregnant.

We went in to be induced on 8/6. They started me on Cytotec at 10pm, skipped my middle of the night dose since my contractions were weak and all over the place and then gave me another dose at 6am. I did a lot of walking all morning to get labor started without the dreaded Pitocin. It wasn't until about 3pm that my contractions really got painful. At that point, I got Fentanyl which dulled the pain for about 15 minutes but made me feel very strange. DH actually had to remind me to breathe sometimes as my oxygen monitor started to beep.

I was crying for the Epidural by 6 but anesthesia didn't get to me for another hour. It was excruciating! By the time he got to me, I was in so much pain, I didn't even care about the huge needle going into my back. Instant relief! DH and I were finally able to sleep on and off for 4 hours. My midwife came in to check me at 2am and I was 8cm. She stretched me out to 10cm and then broke my water. There was meconium in the fluid so we needed to have a NICU team on hand at delivery.

By 3, I was laboring down and I started pushing at 4. It was such a surreal experience. There were only 3 people in the room with me until NICU came at the very end: my midwife, nurse, and DH. I pushed for 1 hr, 15 minutes. Toward the end, my midwife had to cut an episiotomy because I was tearing out of control and DH says there was a ton of blood. By this time, my epidural had worn off so I could feel everything but I didn't think the episiotomy hurt as bad as getting baby's big head past my pelvic bone. The epidural did the trick and one push later, after 33 hours in the hospital, Camille Fiona was born!

Her cord was cut very quickly and she was passed to NICU who had to deep suction her. Finally she was passed to DH while the placenta was delivered and I was stitched up. It turns out that my umbilical cord was very thin and my placenta was already starting to calcify so it's a good thing we got her out when we did.

Overall, both of us did fine. Since I have a different blood type from Cami, she was a bit jaundiced and they had to keep a close eye on her bili levels, but she adjusted well to life outside the womb on her own, including taking to breastfeeding enthusiastically. We were and still are so in love!