Imogen's Birth Story & PIP

cookies+milk · June 2012

Imogen (pronounced Imm-uh-jen) Simone M. was born May 26, 2012 at 9 pm after an induction at 40w6d. She weighed 7 lbs 7 oz and was 19" long. Pitocin was administered at 10:40 am and my OB broke my water at 12:45. I got an epidural at 6 pm and by 8:50, I was 10 cm and ready to push. After a first attempt, my OB told me that we would have to work quickly to get her out, since the baby's heart rate was dropping with every push and contraction. Once I started to push, they made me push over and over, even when contractions weren't happening. Once her head came out, we realized the cord was tightly wrapped around her neck and my OB had to snip it quickly before I even fully pushed her out. I pushed for fewer than 10 minutes total, and when she came out, we were so relieved, but then we heard the miserable sound of...absolutely nothing. She was 'stunned' from labor progressing so quickly, which means that she didn't realize she was out, and therefore didn't know she had to breathe. Suddenly, the room was full of people who were calling her name in a high-pitched voice, patting her on the back and poking her, giving her oxygen and trying to get her to wake up and breathe. Finally, 1.5 minutes after she was born, Imogen took her first breaths, and passed her 5 minute Apgar test. She has no lasting effects from her ordeal, luckily, and although it certainly took a few years off my life, everyone is fine now. I got very lucky physically and somehow managed to avoid any tearing, and therefore any stitches, so I was able to recover in 3-4 days. Congrats to all the other May/June moms!