I had my baby!! (and birth story)

BridetobeEm · September 2010

Lily Charlotte was born September 7th. She was 21 inches long, weighed 7.5 lbs and has a headful of black hair. My husband and I are completely in love Her big brother Henry is adjusting much better than we thought and loves his baby sister.

Some of you may have read my post about VBAC vs repeat C-section. I ended up opting for the repeat Cesarean and feel that I definitely made the right decision for me. Below is my birth story for those interested.

I had a doctor appt last Tuesday at 11a.m. and told her I was still unsure whether I wanted to attempt a VBAC or have a Cesarean but I was leaning towards the latter. We discussed scheduling it for later that week or the beginning of the following week. The Dr. did an internal exam and discovered I was 4cm dilated. She told me that I needed to go to the hospital b/c I was in labor. I told her I better schedule the surgery for that week then and she said "No, you're not getting it. You are in labor. You are having this baby TODAY." My husband and I were in complete shock. I'd been having contractions for weeks, but nothing that was consistent. I certainly didn't think I was in labor at that point! My bag wasn't 100% packed and we didn't have a thing w/us.

We walked over to the hospital around noon and I got hooked up to the monitors and IV. My husband then raced home to get my bag, the camera etc. My surgery was scheduled for 5pm that day. It all just seemed so surreal. The doctor came to see me around 1:30 and did another internal. I was now 6cm dilated so they had to move my surgery up. I can't believe how quickly I dilated and the fact that I still wasn't having regular, timeable contractions.

At 3:15 the nurse walked into my room and said they were ready for me. I started getting the shakes uncontrollably at that point. I walked back to the OR and got prepped for surgery and then my husband was allowed in. My experience this time was 100x better than the 1st. I only felt pressure, not pain during the surgery and remained really calm the entire time. At 4:01 pm I heard the wailing and the doctor say "It's a girl!" It took another 25 min or so for them to finish sewing me up and then I went to the PACU for about an hour for recovery. My daughter was brought to me immediately and I was able to nurse her w/in an hour of being born. She latched right away too and has been doing well ever since.

While in the PACU I overheard a nurse talking to another nurse. She said that a certain patiend was being whisked off for an emergency C-section b/c she just had a uterine rupture while attempting a VBAC. I couldn't believe it. I know the chance of a UR are very small, but it was my biggest fear and it happened to someone else while I was there. I am really happy with my decision. The recovery has also been a LOT easier than it was the first time. I really can't even compare the 2 surgeries.

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