Belated birth story (my twins are now 3.5 weeks old)

alindt · January 2012

Hi MOMs and MOMs to be! I've been meaning to post my birth story so here goes!

We were team green and now we know ... they are girls! At 35 weeks, I went to the MFM for my weekly appt. After the growth scan the MFM recommended that the babies be delivered by the end of the week because of growth discordance. He estimated that Baby A was 4 lbs, 8 oz, and Baby B was 6 lbs, 6 oz. All along, Baby A was smaller, but it was still a shock to the system hearing that my pregnancy would be over in a matter of days and that our babies would be here 2 days before Christmas. There was an end in sight! Which was awesome because I was so huge and uncomfortable. Next day at my OB appt we scheduled an induction for the morning of Dec 23. My babies were mo/di and both were head down so we were hoping for vaginal delivery.

Friday morning we arrived at the hospital at 6 am and they started getting me ready with the IV and pitocin. However, they couldn't break my water until they had my group b strep test results, which I just took the test that Tuesday, so the results weren't back yet. My OB said they'd have them by noon and they'd break my water then. So I sat there and felt some mild contractions until noon, then I got my epidural because they felt like things would progress quickly after the water breaking. So after the epi, she broke water on Baby A. Then, it was more sitting and waiting until I dilated to 10 cm.

It was a long day. But I couldn't feel any contractions. I was so hungry and thirsty though, and afraid I wouldn't have energy to push. Finally, I was at 10 , so we rolled into the OR. I couldn't believe it. I was ready to meet them. Pushing started and Baby A (Elise) came out in 17 minutes. One of the docs was pressing on Baby B on the outside of my stomach to help make sure she didn't turn. But they both cooperated wonderfully. They broke Baby B's water and I was ready to push in a matter of 5 minutes or so. It's all kind of a blur. Then I had to go through pushing again! I was so exhausted by this point. I didn't know if I could do it. They ended up using foreceps and the vacuum assist. They said that the baby's heart rate was starting to go up, and they suspected that my placenta was starting to rupture. So they gave me some help and Baby B (Kyra) came out 30 minutes after her sister. It was such a relief to have them out!

Elise weighed 4lbs 7oz and Kyra weighed 6lbs 7oz, so exactly 2 lbs apart and pretty spot on from what the MFM estimated. Even though Elise was tiny, she was healthy and had no complications. Both of them were healthy, actually. But since I was 35 weeks and 5 days, the hospital required them to go to the NICU for 4 hours of observation. After that, they were cleared and returned to the regular nursery.

I was so happy that I could deliver them vaginally, my OB had been saying all along that since they were mo/di she was going to do a c section, but they were head down for a lot of the pregnancy so she said I could try vaginally and I am so glad that she said that. Even though I knew the risks of the double whammy, I wanted to try.

They are 3 1/2 weeks old now and we are doing pretty good, just adjusting to having 2 newborns to take care of. DH is a god send, we both wake up to bottle feed at night. I have decided to EP because it is working for us. I sadly have let go of the notion of nursing them. But I think I'm over it because this way we are all keeping our sanity and they are still getting breast milk.

Anyway, just wanted to share my story!

Haven1 · January 2012

Great story! Love the names. Congrats, mama!

jlefief · January 2012

congrats on a great birth and healthy babies! Dont feel bad. I EP too until just past their due date (34 weekers) and then switched to formula. A happy and sane mommy is always better!!

HazelEyes730 · January 2012

Congrats! Glad you are all doing well!

HoneyBeeMel · January 2012

Congrats! I love your birth story and am happy to hear that there is even a slight chance of a vaginal delivery. I just found out I am carrying twins on Friday and my doctor already brought up c-section.

ColleenS629 · January 2012

Congrats! A lot of your story sounds like mine! I was told by the MFM at 36w that I would be having the babies that week due to their growth discordance (4lb 15oz and 6lb 11oz) and I had them 5 days later (although I had a c/s because my MFM and OB cautioned me that I may end up with a double whammy if complications arose like you mentioned with the placenta, etc). I'm glad you found a system that works for you with feeding them. For the first two weeks I was nursing one, pumping, and bottle feeding the other at every feeding because only one would latch. I definitely wouldn't have been able to go on like but luckily I found a great LC to help me get them both on the breast.