natural turned not.
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(DS1 was born at 40w 1 min; after spontaneous ROM, 14 hours of pitocin, no pain meds. That birth story is in my bio.)
This time, I had another great, completely uneventful pregnancy. I hit 40w and was still closed up tight, 30% effaced. UGH. 41w I went in for a non stress test, and according to the machines the baby and I were both totally not stressed about being 41w. Baby's size was estimated at 9-4 and I was so done being pregnant, so went in for an induction the next morning.
I asked for a foley cath instead of cervadil, and pitocin was started around 11a.m. The nurse came in every 45min and upped my dose, she thought it was funny I told her to bring it - let's get this done! After the 4th increase she came back in and turned the pit DOWN. HUH?? I was contracting too frequently (every 1-2 min) and that is too hard on the uterus. So they backed it off to 4 or 5 (out of a max of 21) and I stayed there until the last couple hours of labor.
The foley came out around 3, at which point I was 3-4cm, 60%. Contrax were very bearable, I was still talking during them, so I wasn't at all surprised at the not so stellar progress. Just hung out. Read, listened to music, chatted.
I asked them to break my water around 5, and at that point I was 5cm. Things started to pick up after that, contrax got more intense. Called the doula and asked her to get there for 7p.m. They checked me just before she arrived, and I was 6cm.
For the next 3 contrax got harder. I mostly labored on the birthing ball but also walked some, swayed some. There was this husge issue surroundign getting telemetry and getting into the tub. Policy was I could get in the tub after 5cm, so when I hit 5cm I was like, get me my lines and set up the tub! The nurse set up the delivery tray, since this was my second birth she was positive things would go really quickly from this point.
Took them 2 hours to find telemetry monitors. Then they go to set up the tub and it was broken. Ugh. Then I say, fine, I'll just shower. Then there is some issue with the telemetry not picking up in my room, so I had to use the shower in the empty room across the hall. It was all very annoying. Checked me before I got in shower.... just in case....still 6cm.
Spent about an hour in the shower, on the ball or squatting through contrax; but I got really dizzy and had to get out. Labored hard until 11p.m. Asked to be checked again. Still 6cm. Oddly enough, and although I had been in hard labor for hours, this did not surprise me. I could feel that my cervix was not changing - it felt the same, I was just in harder labor. I asked for the epidural.
Took an hour for the anesthesiologist to get there and took her two tries to get it placed. So it was in and worked (on the left side of my body) by 12:30. Laying on the side that still had feeling helped, so I spent the remainder on my right side. They turned the pit up a bit, then checked me an hour later...just in case...still 6cm.
Then they left me alone to rest. Which I did. At 2:30 the nurse came in and asked me if I felt any pressure. I said no, which wasn't totally true. She said she'd give me another 30min and she was going to check me. Fine. She came back with the resident to check me around 3a.m. and sure enough I was complete. "Give me one practice push" the nurse says. Then, "okay! stop! I'm going to get your OB!"
OB shows up a few minutes later. One nurse starts to break the bed down (put up stirrups) and I said I don't want stirrups, I want to protect my pelvis. She was all pissy, but my OB let me lay on my side to push. After 10 minutes of pushing Dashiell was born. Nine pounds four ounces, 22 in long. One small tear, no separated pelvis like first time! When the placenta was delivered my OB commented that it was in fantastic shape - didn't look old at all and might have gone a couple more weeks! Yikes!!
I'm a little bummed about getting the epi, mostly because I really wanted my body to just do this without the interventions! Having the epi was a really odd feeling. I just felt lazy, kind of like can't we just let the kid fall out? Do I really have to do the work? lol. I definitely preferred the birth without the epi, but I don't regret getting it - I think it was the best choice for me this delivery.
Re: natural turned not.