Hi ladies~
My labor and delivery was nothing I was prepared for. I had very light bleeding on Friday (which I posted about) but didn't think much of it. Around 2pm, I started feeling dull back pains. I thought it was from just sitting for so long. But by 5pm, I had a feeling the pain was more than just from sitting. The back pains started getting more intense and started feeling front contractions. At this point, I called the dr and got the okay to go to labor and delivery. It took my husband over an hour to get home due to rush hour. Once I got checked, I was at 4cms (I was 2 cm on Tuesday's appointment). So, they admitted me and that's when everything went downhill. They offered me an epidural and by the time the anesthesiologist got to me, I was definitely more than ready for it. It took 3 attempts. About an hour later, I was still able to fill the contractions. Turned out that the anesthesiologist forgot to turn on the pump. So, I went for another hour before I was to get any relief. I had very painful back pains b/c the baby was faced up. I was good for about 2 hours until my back pains got more intense. I was progressing without any pitocin or any other meds. Once I reached 9cms, I started vomiting controllable. The nurse checked me once I started vomiting b/c it is a symptom of being fully dilated. I was in a LOT of pain, little relief from the epi. I begged for more meds but the nurse said that the epi will not help with back pains b/c it's the baby pushing up against my pelvic bones. At this point, I started pushing. I pushed for 2 hours, completely exhausted and in a lot of pain. Dr said baby is not pushing past the pelvic bone and he is coming down on an angle so she recommended emergency c-section. We proceeded with the c-section. At this point, another anesthesiologist came up to administer drugs to relieve me of the back pain. Once I got into the OR, they put more meds through my epi but since it was not placed correctly, I could feel everything. So, they brought in another anesthesiologist to do the spinal tap. They had a hard time getting the spinal in. Once they placed it, the dr said, you should feel numb from chest down. NOPE, I could feel everything! They put more meds in and waited some more time. They did the touch test. I could still feel pressure but not sharp pains. Well, they started the c-section and as soon as they started cutting, I started feeling MORE than just pressure. I felt like I could feel every touch and move. I panicked and kept saying, I can feel you pulling. I can feel you pushing on this side and I can feel you cutting. They put more meds. I was sooo scared. They kept reassuring me what I was feeling was normal (turns out it wasn't). They finally pulled baby Damian out and saw his little cone shaped head for the first time. I was overjoyed but was quickly distracted by MORE pain. I tried to ignore the pain and enjoy the first sounds of my baby boy but it was really hard. Once my husband had him, I tried to focus on him but just couldn't. Once they were done, they took me back to my room. They told me with the amount of meds they gave me, I wouldn't be able to walk or feel my legs for good 6 hours. Well, GUESS WHAT? I had full control over my legs within 10 mins. They tried to give me perocot which I threw up in seconds (not fun with staples).
I am recovering just fine and just taking Motrin and Tylenol and thought we would be discharged a day early. Turns out my baby boy has jaundice and has been getting photo therapy. I am an emotional mess. Just want my baby to be okay.
I'll be praying for all healthy babies and moms!
Edit: Baby Damian was born on July 8th at 7:53am weighing 8lbs 7ozs and 20.5 inches. He was smaller than estimated. Ultrasound estimated him at 9.5lbs.
Re: Damian's birth story (been a difficult journey)