Happy Induction Story

DachsieMama123 · February 2013

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Hello, ladies! Sorry this is kind of late. We had family in town until today and I haven?t been able to sit down at the computer for long enough to type it out.

I got to the hospital for my induction around 7:30 Monday night and they began the Cervadil around 9pm. I was very hopeful that the Cervadil would get things going on its own. Around 11pm they gave me an Ambien and I fell asleep probably around 1am.

I woke up at 6am on Tuesday morning and took a shower. I had been told I could also eat by the night nurses on Monday night, but the nurse on Tuesday morning seemed more skeptical. She told me I could have something small so I had a granola bar and a small pack of peanut butter crackers.

Around 8:30am my doctor came in to check me. I was pretty devastated to learn that I was STILL dilated less than 2 cm, and about 50% effaced -- the exact same as I had been when I came into the hospital. My OB told me that she could either start the Pitocin, which she knew I had hoped to avoid, or she could break my water and we could see what happened at that point. If the water breaking started anything up, we could probably do a much lower dose of Pitocin later on. So I chose that option. She warned me, though, that if I chose to have my water broken, there was no going back. In other words, I would need to have the baby within 24 hours.

She broke my water around 9am. About 9:30 I began having contractions, and they came on fast. They were about four minutes apart and painful pretty immediately. At 10am, I vomited up my little breakfast. Around 10:45 my OB came back in the room to check me, but told me that she didn?t really expect much progress so soon. Turns about I had gone from less than 2cm to 4cm, which was great news.

By the time the doc left the room around 11, I asked for the epidural. I was told it would be a while, as the anesthesiologist required me to have another bag and a half of IV fluid before he would place it. The contractions were coming fast and strong at that point, so this was not good news to me. They started me on a very low dose of Pitocin (level 2 out of a possible 22). The doctor said I still probably had a long way to go.

By noon I finally got the epidural. The contractions were almost unbearable at that point, and the epi was immediate relief. The second it was finished, I told my mom and husband that my body had started to push. The nurse checked me and seemed a little surprised, saying she was going to get the doctor to double check. She didn?t say anything about dilation, so my husband figured that I must still be at a 4. Wrong. The doctor came in at 12:15, about 15 minutes after the anesthesiologist left, and told me she heard I was an overachiever. She checked me, and I was dilated to a 9 with a lip, and completely effaced. So I had gone from a 4 to a 9 in about an hour and a half, all before getting my epidural. I was soooo happy! At this point she told me to just ?labor down? for a while until I got to a 10, and we would start pushing!

They turned the Pitocin up to a 4, which is the highest it ever got. I spent the next couple of hours relaxing and chatting with my mom and husband while she moved down into the birth canal. It was lovely. My epidural was perfect. I could completely feel my legs and even move them, and was feeling no pain anywhere else. At 2:15 I started pushing. My husband and mom held my legs while the nurse monitored my contractions and told me when to push. At about 3:00 the doctor came in, and I pushed her out at 3:29pm. Lauren Elizabeth was born on February 12^th, 3:29pm, at 7 pounds 2 ounces, 19 and ? inches long, and completely perfect, with a full head of hair. Her hand was up by her face so I had a small tear, no big deal.

We are of course completely enamored by her. She loves to have her hair washed and screams bloody murder during diaper changes. She also loves chewing her hands and gets frantic when she can?t find them. She?s nursing like a champ. She is the best thing I?ve ever done, and worth every second of pain and discomfort.

Good luck to all of you still waiting to meet your little ones!

TheNewMrsY · February 2013

Congrats!! She's beautiful. Loved hearing a good induction story, too as I may be facing one Friday. I know you're in my neck of the woods, but can't remember where you delivered??

SidraJedi · February 2013

Cute! Congrats!

theimpossibleastronaut · February 2013

Congrats! She's so cute! It's nice to hear a good induction story since I may be headed for one myself.

DachsieMama123 · February 2013

TheNewMrsY:
Congrats!! She's beautiful. Loved hearing a good induction story, too as I may be facing one Friday. I know you're in my neck of the woods, but can't remember where you delivered??

We were at Sibley. Aside from one nurse (out of like six total that we had), it was a great experience!

TheNewMrsY · February 2013

bethparr1979:
TheNewMrsY:
Congrats!! She's beautiful. Loved hearing a good induction story, too as I may be facing one Friday. I know you're in my neck of the woods, but can't remember where you delivered??
We were at Sibley. Aside from one nurse (out of like six total that we had), it was a great experience!

bummer--that's not where I'll be. But, a good induction story is always a good thing!! So happy for you!!