XP: Claire's birth story 2.20.09

smcg0011 · February 2009

Because I know that I will forget some details, I thought I would jot this down now.Background: I used to be all about getting an epidural, until I was about 8 month pregnant with Julianna. then I starting reading up on birthing options and decided I was going to do it drug-free. Although it was a little scary due to the unknown, I was determined to do it. For the last 2 weeks of my pregnancy with Julianna I had contractions on and off pretty often and so when I finally did go into labor one Friday afternoon, I doubted that it was the real thing. So I stayed at home until I was basically crippled in pain and then headed to the hospital. When I got there it was 5:45pm and I was at a 7. Julianna was born at 7:04pm, after about 20 or 30 minutes or pushing and being in diistress due to two knots in her cord. It was so fast that Rob and I just had to roll with it. Although painful, it was quick.With Claire, I had been dilated at a 3 for over 2 weeks, so I knew it could be soon, even though I wasn't super close to my due date. I had my membranes stripped at doc appointment on Thursday morning (38 wks, 4 days) and then had contractions for a few hours Thursday night that eventually just disappeared. Friday morning I awoke in bed and thought there was a trickle, but it seemed more like pee than anything else so I put on a pad and headed off to work. At work, about 2 minutes before class started, I felt a small gush...and then another one. I walked out to the hallway and asked my female coworkers if it looked like I had wet my pants and they said my jeans were dark enough to disguise it. I wasn't feeling any contractions, so I called for a sub and went and started my class, as usual. When the sub got there I told my students I was off to have my baby. Everyone thought I was crazy because I was so relaxed and calm. I went home, packed up the final stuff for the hospital, took a shower and then Rob an I loaded up Julianna to take her to her grandparents house. We got to the hospital a little before 10am and they said it was, indeed, my amniotic fluid and they admitted me...I was at a 5.The hospital makes you stay on fetal monitors for 20 mins out of every hour, so when I wasn't being monitored, Rob and I paced the halls and corridors of the hospital, trying to get the labor to start. The silly thing is that I wasn't allowed to have anything but liquids, so I was just walking and starving, but not much was happening by way of contractions. At about 3 or 4pm, I started to get really anxious and worried that the docs were gonna put me on Pitocin to speed it up, since the water had been broken for a while already. Since I wanted to have a natural delivery again, having the labor induced was the LAST thing i wanted. Around 5pm, I sent my parents home and asked them to pray over me that things would get started. They did, and I took a short nap before my friends got there to help pass the time.The nurse finally checked me again around 5:45 or 6 and told me I was somewhere between a 6 and a 7. So around 6pm, the contractions started back up and were getting more and more regular and more painful. I knew that was a good sign, but I also knew the contractions were pretty intense. Rob coached me through them and we'd use pain-relieving positions and massage and everything to get through each contraction. Around 7pm Rob called the nurse because I thought I was getting pretty close as my contractions were super strong, long and coming every 2 minutes or so. The nurse told me she had to wait to check me when she put me back on the monitors at 7:30. When she came back to put me on the monitors, I wanted to cry (or scream) because I knew the contractions would be hell if I were strapped to the bed. I made her wait through a few contractions before she finally strapped them on.With the next contraction, I had to change onto all fours on the bed so that I could tolerate the pain and the nurse was more concerned with the fact that the monitor wasn't picking up fetal heart rate during the contraction. So I laid onto my side and tried to relax between contractions, but with the next one came a lot of pressure and I knew that I could push and get her out. So I told the nurse I had to push and she told me not to because she still wanted to check me. I was getting SUPER irritated at the nurse by that point and I was in a lt of pain, screaming a little even.With the next contraction I begged her to let me push and she said to just wait and pant through it. I tried, but the sensation got more intense until i felt the baby's head coming out of me, so I just gave one big push and ...VOILA! Claire came rushing out, head and body and all. The doctor had rushed in from the hallway after hearing my screams and was there in just enough time to throw on gloves and grab the head while the body landed on the bed. It was the most amazing, crazy thing ever. They set her on my belly ad she just looked up at me and cried. I had never been happier or felt more relieved (finally got that pain over with!). The speed of delivery did tear a tiny bit, so they had to stitch a little after the placenta came.Final thoughts: I am a big supporter and propogator for natural childbirth, BUT I totally understand and don't blame people for getting the meds. It is genuinely painful, but it is very rewarding to know that you and your hubby worked together and conquered the situation. Will I deliver my next all natural again? I am open to either way.