My very long birth story, 4.5 months late
srbmvp
member
It occurred to me that I?ve never actually taken the time to sit down and write my son?s birth story. And while the events still play out in my head like it was yesterday, I know someday the memories will fade, and I would like to be able to look back on that day. So I?m going to write it down now, in as much detail as possible. I warn you, this will be long, and maybe a little graphic, but not too much I hope!
My son was born June 18, 2010 but the story really begins on June 17. That day I had an ultrasound scheduled. I had to have ultrasounds every week to check my amniotic fluid levels, after I had been diagnosed with oligohydramnios, or too little amniotic fluid to keep my baby safely cushioned. I had been hospitalized a month before and had IV fluids pumped into me, but each week my fluid levels dropped slightly, and I knew time was almost out. I remember having lunch with my friend and her baby boy before my appointment (they came to my house, I was stuck on bed rest), and I told her I had a feeling my time had come. I was 38 weeks pregnant that day.
I was right. My fluid level had dropped to a 3.8; anything below 5 is considered dangerous. Since I was (thankfully) full term, it was definitely time to get this baby out. The scariest thing though, is that my son must have been napping during the ultrasound because he wasn?t moving or doing his practice breathing. He failed all the tests, and my doctor said he might have to get the baby out quickly, which meant the chance of an emergency c-section. By that time, I was fully freaked out, and praying that however my baby came out of me, he would do so safely.
My husband and I headed over to the hospital, and he got me admitted while I went straight to Labor and Delivery and got hooked up on machines. Thank goodness my son had woken from his nap by then, and passed the next round of tests! No more threat of a c-section, at least not yet. We could try doing things the old fashioned way. Since I was not dilated at all, the nurses had to start giving me medication to induce my labor. The first round was a pill to make me dilate. Then, if that didn?t trigger labor on its own, we would start Pitocin, a synthetic form of the hormone that causes the body to go into labor. Either way, I was in for a long labor. It was only about 4pm at this time.
The rest of the night was pretty boring. My husband and I tried to update people on my progress through phone calls and Facebook. I started having contractions, but they were so weak I could not feel them. Some time in the middle of the night, they started the Pitocin. In the mean time, I was hooked up to a million fetal monitors, and was not allowed to move, or else the monitors would lose my baby?s heartbeat. So I had a very uncomfortable night of trying to sleep sitting up in a delivery bed.
Throughout the night the contractions got stronger, and I started to feel them. At first it wasn?t so bad, just some pressure and cramps that felt like having my period. At 6am, my water broke. I actually thought I had had an accident in bed! I was so mortified, I was almost in tears as I asked my husband to get the nurse for me. When she came in she said my water had probably broken, but I insisted that I had had an accident. All I had done was shift in bed, and suddenly felt a leak. Well, it was my water breaking after all! Mortification over?.
After my water broke, things got intense, and fast. Suddenly my contractions were horrendous, and they were non-stop. I would have five back to back, get about 30 seconds to rest, and then the next five would come. I was in hell. I remember holding my husband?s hand, trying to catch my breath, and saying, ?I can?t do this.? His witty response of course was, ?you don?t have a choice.?
At 7am the nurse shifts changed, and the nurse who would later help deliver my baby came on, Tracy. I felt so bad, she came in and introduced herself, and I was in the throes of contractions and a mess. Tracy was amazing, she really helped to make the whole experience incredible for us.
Because my contractions were back to back, they were not doing what you would call productive contractions, so they decided to ease back the Pitocin, but by that point I wasn?t getting any relief. At one point Tracy offered me a painkiller called Fentanyl, and I gladly accepted. Unfortunately, it did little to dull the pain, and made me so dizzy I felt like I was severely drunk. I couldn?t open my eyes because the room would spin and at one point it even made me vomit. I was so glad when it started to wear off, even though the pain was still so great.
Warning: here comes a graphic part, but I?m including it, so skip this paragraph if you don?t want to know. Because I wasn?t dilating quickly enough, my doctor decided to do something a little unconventional to help me along. He actually inserted a balloon, tied to a weight, and then inflated it. Well, as the weight pulled the balloon out, I dilated. It was so painful! I wanted so badly to scream, but the balloon did what it was supposed to, and I was finally dilated enough to be able to get an epidural.
It was now about 10am, I had been through 4 hours of intense hell since my water broke, and I was desperate for the epidural. I think if it weren?t for the non-stop contractions, I maybe could have held out longer. But I could never even catch my breath, I was in four hours of constant pain. So I gladly accepted the epidural.
They don?t allow anyone to be in the room when they put the epidural in; they are afraid someone will see the big needle and faint. So they sent my husband out, and the technician got to work. This was hard because I was still having very regular contractions, but now my husband wasn?t there to hold my hand anymore. But I kept focusing on the fact that relief was coming soon, and that got me through. Once the epidural was in, it started working right away, thank goodness! I could finally relax. It even had a little button I could press to deliver more drugs if it started to wear off.
With the epidural working and my mind and body finally relaxing, I fell asleep. I took a very nice, and much needed, nap for a couple of hours. When I woke up, some time between noon and 1pm, Tracy came to check me and I was 10 cm. It was time! When she checked me, she could already feel my son?s head, who was very low in the birth canal. She asked my husband if he wanted to see. I should mention that beforehand, my husband was adamant about not watching the birth, he wanted nothing to do with it. But when Tracy asked, not only did he say yes, but he grabbed the flashlight off his belt loop to get a better look! He could see my son?s head, covered in dark hair. It was crazy to realize how close he was at that point to the outside world.
So now it was time to get the doctor and get ready. Suddenly all this equipment was brought into the room, and all these people. We had quite a crowd of doctor, nurses, baby nurses, technicians, etc. Once everything was set up, it was time to push. I don?t actually know how long I pushed for, but it wasn?t very long, maybe 30 or 40 minutes. My doctor was absolutely amazing through the entire process. He was so supportive and kept the mood light (I was still on the epidural and feeling no pain, I was smiling the whole time!). I had my husband on one side of me, telling me when to push, and Tracy on the other side, with my doctor ready to catch.
At one point, the doctor asked me if I wanted to feel my son?s head. I said yes, and he guided my hand to the right spot. It was so crazy to feel him! This hard skull with tons of hair and a little blood and other stuff mixed in. Wow, that was amazing!
Because of the epidural, I didn?t feel my son?s head come out, or even really his shoulders. And it?s a good thing too, because I tore pretty horrendously. By the end of my delivery, though, the epidural had been turned down, and I could feel as the rest of my son?s body passed out of me. Oh my gosh, I can?t even describe what that felt like, to feel his torso and legs come out of me. My doctor wiped him down and placed him on my chest, and I still remember the first time I saw his beautiful face. It was so surreal. My son was here! Connor James was born at 1:23 pm, at 6 pounds and 12 ounces, 18.5 inches long.
Connor came out screaming, not crying, screaming. I remember thinking two things. One, good he?s crying that means he?s breathing. But two, he seems to be crying an awful lot, something isn?t right. I was correct. My poor baby had swallowed a ton of amniotic fluid on the way out, and the nurses had to pump his tiny tummy. Afterwards they had to take him to the nursery for observation, so I only got to hold him for a few brief moments before he was carted away for several hours. Luckily, my husband was able to stay right by his side through the entire thing, so I knew he was safe and in good hands.
Meanwhile, I was stuck dealing with damage control. I think it took my doctor a good half hour to stitch me back up. I had a 4th degree tear, which is the most severe tear you can get. Fortunately, my doctor and Tracy spent the entire time entertaining me with silly stories, so the time passed a little faster. But it was hard to relax without my husband or baby by my side. After all that, I wanted them close to me. And it would be a couple of hours before I could hold my son again.
So fast forward to my husband wheeling my son?s bassinet back into the room. I remember feeling relief and satisfaction that it was all over, and joy to finally get to look at my son?s face and hold him in my arms. And exhaustion. We didn?t do much else that night, just hung out in the hospital enjoying our beautiful new boy. And we?ve done that ever since, enjoyed the miracle we get to hold every single day.
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