Graham has landed!

ShadyKull · March 2013

I was due on March 25th, and was for some reason convinced I would be at least a little late. Nope! Sunday night I started having painful contractions right after I got into bed. They continued through the night every 8 minutes or so. I got zero sleep. By 9am they were averaging around 5 minutes apart, so we headed over to the hospital. I was 3 cm dilated, 90% effaced, and his head was waaaaaaaaay low. I labored for the next few hours by walking and trying all positions. Jeez, contractions are NO JOKE, eh? I couldn't move or talk or do anything other than try to breathe every time one hit. Around 12, the midwife checked me and I was apparently still 3cm, despite my increasingly intense contractions. She told me that I could probably go back home and labor for a few more hours there if I wanted to. I cried at that point, and told them no way. They tried giving me some morphine, which made me feel slightly loopy but did nothing for the pain that I could tell. So, I asked about an epidural and they put in the order. By this point it was about 3pm and the midwife checked me again. . . I was 8cm! By the time the anesthesiologist was on his way, I was feeling the urge to push and was about 9.5cm dilated. I talked it over with my midwife and we decided to get the epi anyways to give myself a break from the pain, since I had been up all night with it. So, I had a nice few hour break from feeling my legs at all, then they let the epi wear off and I managed to push my little man out with the help of an episiotomy. Graham was born at 10:07 on 3/18 weighing 7lb 1.5oz. He is absolutely beautiful and perfect.

He is a natural at breastfeeding and seems to actually like it a bit too much, as he often nurses every 30 minutes or so, although that is probably more for comforting him then hunger. We are adjusting to being parents of a newborn, the sleep deprivation is tough, but I know we will get through it. I do love being his mother!

Good luck to everyone still waiting for their little one. Labor was quite the adventure.