All natural unbelievably fast VBAC
Luv4Minnesota
member
I woke up around 2:15 to go to the bathroom. Not at all unusual at this time, but when I got back to bed before I fell asleep again I noticed a contraction. Not very painful, but definitely different than the braxtion hicks I?d been having. However, I had had these for 2 hours the previous Saturday night so I wasn?t convinced they were actually going to go anywhere. I slept on and off, noticing contractions on and off. Around 4:15 I got up to go pee again and noticed bloody show. At that point I woke Rob up and told him I was having contractions but I wasn?t sure if it was really going to go anywhere or not. He asked how far apart and I told him I didn?t know. So then I started paying attention. The first two were 10 minutes apart, then 7, 5 and 4. At 4:45 I decided to get up and go to the computer to start using contraction master. I perused the internet, bounced on my exercise ball and timed my contractions. Rob came downstairs around 5:00 and said he couldn?t sleep. My contractions were still not painful but had picked up to about 2 ?-3 minutes apart and consistently lasting 30 seconds. I pulled up the website on the laptop and headed upstairs to take a shower. At this point I decided this was really it, but was surprised at how not painful these contractions were and that they weren?t getting any longer even though they were close together.
By 6:00 they were still coming quickly and I was starting to sway/bend over through them. I decided to text Trish, our doula and let her know where things were. We exchanged a few texts and then she called me. She said she didn?t mean anything mean by it, but I sounded ?too happy? between contractions to really be in active labor yet and if it was OK with me she?d go back to sleep for a little bit. I agreed that would be fine and I?d let her know when I needed her.
About 10 minutes later I found myself vocalizing through my contractions and bending over which had been feeling good was creating way too much pressure so I just swayed through them. I texted Trish and told her to jump in the shower and head over.
At this point we decided to call our friend to come stay with Alex until he woke up. She got there around 6:40 and helped us get his carseat into her car so she could take him back to her house when he got up.
At 6:30 I called my sister and had to put the phone down between contractions to focus and vocalize through them. She reminded me later that I yelled during one of them ?I?m so hot!?
After getting off the phone I really really felt like I had to pee and tried to sit on the toilet but couldn?t pee. It was during that contraction that I yelled for my puke bucket and Rob decided we were leaving and Trish could meet us at the hospital. (Good decision, Babe!)
It took me a good 10 minutes to get to the car, I couldn?t walk or talk through contractions and had one leaning over the hood of the car in the garage. Rob was getting anxious and said we had to go and could he drag me into the car. I yelled I?d be there in a minute and he opened the sliding door and I knelt over the backseat. By this time I was screaming and I was starting to feel like my body was pushing.
The drive was crazy. I was so hot but the windows were down which felt so nice. Between contractions I was able to breathe and slow down, but during contractions I was yelling and screaming and cursing. Then I felt my water break and I yelled that this baby was coming now.
Rob was on speaker phone with Trish and when she heard me she explained that Rob could pull over, she?d call 911 and we could deliver in the parking lot. I just screamed GO GO GO and wanted to get to the hospital, NOW.
The rest of the 10 minute ride was unbearable and filled with screaming. Rob pulled up to the ER entrance and we left the van there and he and Trish supported me up to the door
About 7:15 we walked in the door and there was a woman waiting with a wheelchair. I knelt facing her and she pushed us to the elevator and right to our room in labor and delivery. I remember them asking me if I could put on a gown and just staring at them. Trish helped me get my pants off and a nurse got down and told me she was going to check me. She declared me complete and the doctor asked me to get on the bed and put the back up so I could get on my knees and lean over it. I had been standing leaning over the bed so she wanted to support the position I was working with which was awesome. I also asked what station the baby was at and they said it was too difficult a position to tell, but that they could feel his head. That was encouraging to me.
I pushed a few times in this position as they tried to find baby?s heartbeat but were having trouble. The doctor told me I could stay in that position and they could do an internal fetal monitor or I could move. I knew I wanted to avoid an internal monitor so I quickly slid down on my side and a nurse helped me get my leg up so I could hold it back for pushing. I pushed through a couple of contractions and they pronounced that he was at a 2+ station and I cried out AMEN! Rob asked what that meant and I told him it meant we were getting our VBAC. I knew then that this baby was coming out without surgery this time and that gave me so much strength and power to keep pushing through.
They announced he was crowning and I just couldn?t believe it. I was pushing with my body, no one was counting, I was breathing as I needed and just going with it. It was incredible. My body stopped contracting with his head partially out. I expected this to burn like crazy but it actually was just a nice break from the contractions to relax before meeting my new baby. I reached down and touched his head and couldn?t believe how soft and squishy it was, I had to ask if that was his head and got several happy yes?s from the room.
Then the doctor told me that he was getting a ?pretty good head squeeze? and his heart rate was not tolerating well so I needed to get him out with the next contraction and really focus on when the doctor told me to push and stop. As the next contraction started I let them know it was coming and she directed me how to push. It was absolutely amazing to feel his head out, then wait for the shoulders to rotate and feel them come out too. As the shoulders came out I reached down and helped the doctor pull him out and onto my chest. He was amazing! Born at 7:31, just 16 minutes after getting to the hospital, and 3hr 16min after I woke up and started timing contractions.
Re: All natural unbelievably fast VBAC
I thought I've read some fast birth stories, but yours takes the cake. You will be such an inspiration to so many.
Congratulations on your little one!!!
BFP #1 3/13/13, MMC 4/17/13, D&C 4/19/13
BFP #2 8/7/13, Beta at 4w6d = 3,796