Baby Theodore was born this morning 2/8 at 3:11 am.
Woke up at 1230 AM to a cramp. Realized it was a contraction and that more were coming. Deliberated with my husband whether or not to leave for the hospital ( one hour away) for about an hour. Get in the car at 1:45 AM wondering if we're going to get turned away and have to drive all the way back home. About halfway there started wondering if we were even going to make it to the hospital. Arrived at 2:56 AM, water broke with meconium in it while I was attempting to give a urine sample and contracting nonstop. He was born at 3:11 AM.
I was going for med free and I got it and it was a whirlwind but the pain was unbelievable. Very thankful I didn't have the group's car baby!
Elizabeth "Betty" was born at 6:40 am on Feb 8th. 7 lbs 10 oz, 19.5 in.
We went in to be induced at 4pm on the 7th. I was already 3cm, 80% effaced and my cervix was super soft. Sadly, though, after 6 hrs of pitocin, walking and ball bouncing I was STILL only 4cm, 80% effaced and barely feeling contractions.
They had offered to break my water around 9 pm and at midnight I asked them too. That worked! Things got intense then and I was only able to cope with contractions by standing or leaning on H or the wall and it was exhausting me. By 230 I was only 5cm and getting tired. I couldn't sit, lay or kneel comfortably.
Fortunately my doula recommended a reclining chair with my feet on a peanut. That was amazing. I was able to relax into contractions and by 430am I was 9cm. I quickly got the urge to push. Pushed for just over an hour and Betty emerged with her hand next to her head. We are completely in love
Baby Noah arrived on Saturday, February 4th at 5:25 a.m.! He was 9 lbs 5 oz and 21.5 inches long!
My water broke at 7:40 on Friday morning and unfortunately, it was filled with meconium. I went into triage at 10:40 and was admitted to L&D at noon. DH and I were singing and dancing and playing on every bouncy ball and birthing tool they could find for us, because the contractions weren't so bad and I was running on adrenaline.
Around 6-7 p.m., that energy began to wear off as contractions were lasting 2-3 minutes with only about 30-60 seconds in between. At 8:00 p.m. I was only 4 cm dilated, so I received an epidural to help get through the rest of labor, followed by pitocin. I fell asleep at 1:15 a.m. for a nap and was woken up by my doctor at 4 a.m. wanted to check me. She said it was time to labor down, which really just meant I would roll to my other side with a peanut ball between my legs. It was insanely comfortable! At 5 a.m. my nurse said we would do 'practice pushes', but after three of those, she called the doctor and two pushes later I had a beautiful baby boy on my chest! I was sobbing uncontrollably! My heart is so full!
I had a 2nd degree tear and hemorrhaged, so they pumped me with cytotec and fluids. He also had jaundice and needed to go under the lights for a few hours. Luckily he came home with us though. It's been a rough recovery for both of us this week, but things are starting to look up!
So sorry for the late announcement. Austin Reid was born Tuesday February 7, at 2:37 pm. He weighed 7 lbs 3 oz and measured 20 inches long. All weekend I slowly lost my MP. Then, Monday I just felt off. My back was tired and I was having much stronger and very frequent BH. I went to bed around 11 and woke up at 2 am on Tuesday feeling cramping. I was super groggy and thought about going back to sleep, but I figured I might as well go to the bathroom first. When I got back from the bathroom, I got another cramp and ultimately decided to start paying attention to them and timing it. I was having regular mild contractions every 11 - 13 minutes. I called my husband home from work and just stayed in bed. Later we dropped the kids off at school, went home and ate breakfast, and I hopped into the shower. While showering I started my bloody show and contractions picked up very fast paced. After I got out, we decided to head to the hospital to get checked. (I tend to wait till last minute and didn't want to do that) so we got to the hospital at 11:30 and I was only 3 cm dilated and about 70% effaced. The Dr decided to admit me in. By this time my contractions were back to being around 10 minutes apart but very strong. And they also took turns between strictly on my back or up front, rather than wrapping around. 99% of the time they stayed in my back, they have been the most painful contractions/pains I've ever had during any labor. By 12:30 I was 5 cm and they broke my water. After a while I started feeling like I had a lot of pressure but was not involuntarily pushing. The nurse claimed I was only 8 cm, but within seconds I was involuntarily pushing. She tried to check me again, but by this point I was insanely grouchy and blocked her from checking. (It wasn't intentional and I didn't realize it until the Dr came in and she told him I "had her blocked") I was now pushing uncontrollably with every contraction and they didn't try checking me anymore. They didn't have me set in the bed properly for delivery, since they thought i was only at 8 cm dilated. We all had to move quickly while I had no contractions or pushing. I got super nauseous while I was pushing, and couldn't give the extra push they kept wanting, so the baby kept sliding back up. I really didn't push for too long (maybe 15-20 mins) before Austin came out screaming. I had 1st degree tearing and the local anesthesia wasn't kicked in for stitches so I squirmed, cried, and complained while I got stitched up. It was a med free labor and delivery, and my husband, parents (who were not in the room) and nurses (nurses also not in the room) have given me a list of colorful details and choice words I had expressed lol. I was told that at one point I said "would you just shut up", to the delivering Doctor. Before pushing, I tried begging for the epidural and they said I was too far so it was too late, and I started crying hysterically while begging my husband to "get rid of" the nurse who told me I couldn't get it (while she was standing next to me). While being stitched up I said "quit it's burning, that hurts" and the Dr said "well I gave you a local" and I cried and said "it didn't work!!!" Oh and during my commotion was the floor "quiet time" so my mom got a kick out of that lol. Lots more less graceful words and actions were mentioned to my embarrassment. But after all that here is my sweet baby.
Hey everyone! I've been MIA for a few days because I was busy having my baby!
Jackson Patrick was born at 10:22pm on Tuesday, February 7th, weighing 7lb, 15.5oz and measuring 21.5 inches long. We don't do pictures on the internet due to privacy concerns, but I can tell you that he has a full head of hair that works its way into the cutest fauxhawk, the darkest of dark blue eyes (for now), and the most perfect little nose I've ever seen.
Evie Nell was born at 8:56 AM on February 7th, weighing 8lbs 6oz 20 inches long. The Csection went very well for the most part. She's been doing great too. Her big brother and big sister love her and are so excited she's here! Her and I should finally be leaving the hospital tomorrow.
Malachi Edward was born February 8th
at 8:05 PM. He weighed 6 lbs 4 oz and measured 18 ¾ inches! It
started with bleeding and losing bits of the MP on Sunday the 5th,
which turned into mild contractions on the 6th and more consistent
and intense contractions starting around 7pm on the 7th. I had a midwife appointment on the morning of
the 8th, where they did an exam and said I wasn’t dilating much yet.
They told me to take it easy and try to relax to get some sleep in case labor
came soon. So, that’s what I tried – I relaxed, took a bath, tried to take a
nap, but the contractions were getting more and more intense. Unfortunately
they weren’t getting any closer together, just more intense, so I wasn’t sure
what to do.
During one contraction I felt like
I needed to make a bowel movement in order to free up some room…little did I
know it was my instinct to push that was guiding that train of thought. I went
to the bathroom and had a contraction while on the toilet. I could suddenly
feel a weird pressure down there and felt around to see what was up. It felt,
to me, like a head still in its waters, so I yelled for my husband to come and
called the midwife at the same time. She wasn’t sure exactly what was going on,
so we rushed to the birth center right away and got there around 4:20pm. A
senior midwife checked me over and confirmed my suspicions and it turns out I
was already at 6 cm. Luckily he went back in a bit on the car ride to the
center, but the contractions had gotten much closer together. They called in
the midwife in charge of my care, and I mostly paced back and forth through the
contractions and also labored in the tub for a while before getting up to walk
again. We had a successful water birth at 8:05pm with only about 15-20 minutes
of pushing! Most intense but beautiful moment of my life!
Maverick was born at 12:03 am on 2/11 weighing in at 8 lbs 13 oz and 21 inches long. He's almost a pound bigger than his brother and 2 inches longer. I was able to do it all unmedicated but had some issues with a retained placenta. But all turned out well!!!
my beautiful rainbow boy And.rew Fin.n was born 2/7 at 11:42 pm, 7 lbs 5 oz and 20.25 inches long.
this was my second breech boy, so a repeat c/s was planned for 2/8. like with my first, water broke at 38 weeks 6 days and c/s was done early. we are home now and adjusting to like with two. I feel so fortunate.
When you've been married this long, you need a ticker to remind you.
Michael Keith was born at 8:52 PM on 02/4/16 (the day before daddy's birthday). He was 8 lb 2 oz and 21 inches long. He has his daddy's eyebrows with my eyebrow's ability to imitate Dwayne Johnson's. Excellent combination.
Birth Story: tl:dr Started induction Friday night at 8 PM, got to 7 cm, Michael's head never engaged past -3 station. Cesarean birth at 8:52 PM on Saturday, and Magnesium is the worst The longest description in the universe is below photos
(I made this quite detailed, because I found other people's stories so helpful to read, and I had difficulty finding the success of being induced with no dilation, or how well cervadil worked when you weren't dilated at all. Here is one tale, lol) We went in Friday ( I was 36w 6d) at 8 PM to start cervadil, and actually started it at about 11. I had made some progress since the last appointment and I was dilated a fingertip and softened. Labwork that night was interesting. I had developed preeclampsia, my liver enzymes were elevated, and my blood platelets had dropped from 130 to 106 (some anesthesiologist won't place an epidural below 100). Fast forward to 6 am, and I was at 1.5 cm and not effaced. Whomp-whomp. My IV infiltrated, so we started a new one, waited for updated labwork on platelets (100), and started Pitocin at 9:45 am (goal time was 6). By 10 AM, I was dilated 3-4, 60% effaced, but still -3 station. (I think Cervadil worked well for me, the progress station was more related to size) The high-risk Dr suggested against breaking my water due to station, but the OB arrived at 10:15, expecting me to be 4 hours into Pitocin, and was not a happy camper, lol. Probably the only thing I regret is not putting my foot down and telling them to come back in 3 hours. The OB broke my water at 10:30, and it was exceptionally more painful than I expected; but it sounds like that's not usual and more related to the position of my cervix ( -3 with the cervix behind Michael's head). They started the epidural immediately afterwards because of my platelet level. I was hoping to get to 4 or 5 and walk around, but things happen. The epidural placement went very well for me; first attempt worked great. It was less painful than any of my IVs. They started a magnesium drip at 11 am or so, and it has since become my arch enemy, lol. (I was on it for about 24 hours, It made me almost insensible of my surroundings the next morning. I wasn't able to speak coherently between 4 AM and 10 AM the day after. Grrr. ) By noon it dropped my blood pressure to 77/41 with a 40 pulse, so that was uh, fun. The anesthesiologist was able to fix it within 15 minutes, but then the second IV site infiltrated. Third IV for the win! lol. The afternoon was actually pretty nice. We used the heck out of the peanut ball, tried to use gravity as much as possible, and the hubs and I hung out. Throughout everything, the baby looked healthy and reassuring. Plus I successfully had 2 cans of Diet Dr Pepper. They were awesome . My blood pressure was consistently high the entire day, (180s/90s) which was fun every 15 minutes when the cuff ran again and alarms went off At 4:30 I was 4 cm, -3 station. 5 PM I was at 5-6, -3 station. We cut the pitocin dose to half to let the receptors take a break, and that helped. At 7:20 I was at 7 cm, -3 station. At 8:20 I was still at 7 cm, -3 station. The OB suggested a cesarean over the phone. We knew going in that I had a narrow pelvis structure and his head circumference was 95%+, but I wanted to try. The OB was ready to go for the cesarean because of the complete lack of engagement. I cried hard for a bit and came to terms with it by the time he arrived. Michael Keith was born at 8:52. They held him over the curtain for us to admire, and then he was checked and cleaned up in the same room. Daddy waited with me, even though several nurses asked him if he'd like to watch Michael. It seemed odd at the time, but I'm glad we did it that way. It was at most 10 minutes, and being on the table alone while Michael met just one of his parents would have been rough. We met him together, just like we would have with a vaginal birth.
Henry William was born February 10th at 8:54 pm weighing 7 lbs 15 oz and 20 inches long after about 6 hours of labor and two pushes. I went to a routine Obgyn appt and my blood pressure was a little high so they had me head rock the hospital for some more evaluation and blood work. While I was there, my blood pressure kept teetering between high and normal so the on call gave me a choice to either go home and come back in a few days to check again or induction. Since I was past 39 weeks and there was going to be another snow storm over the weekend, we decided to be induced. Started the pitocin at 3 and by 6, I was 5 cm 75% effaced. They then asked me if I wanted them to break my water, but I decided to labor a little more since I had a feeling that once my water broke, things would go really fast. Well by 7:30 the pain was pretty rough so they turned down the pitocin and I asked them to break my water. While we were waiting for the resident to do that, my water broke at 8:30 on its own and things got super intense. I was 8 cm after my water broke and then about 10 minutes later I felt a very strong urge to push and when they checked again, I was 10. So two pushes later, he was born at 8:54. I had a minor cut near my urethra, not sure how that happened, but no other tears. So happy that I was still able to go unmedicated again despite the pitocin.
Elliott Preston was born at 8:34 Monday morning (2/13) after a scheduled induction Sunday morning beginning at 6:00. He is such a doll baby and we just can't get enough of him!!
Baby Theodore was born at 5:34pm yesterday (2/15) weighing 7lbs, 5oz and measuring 19" long. It was a long and exhausting labor, but we are both healthy and happy! I'll post more in a separate thread later.
Wesley Thomas is here! He arrived via scheduled c-section on 2/15. It was my 4th section, so I was a little extra nervous, but all went well! He's also my biggest baby at 8lb 2oz. He's a champion breastfeeder which came as a huge shock to me because I struggled with latch, etc with my others. Here he is!!!
Eli Alexander was born this morning at 10:21. He weighted 6 pounds 15.3 ounces and was 19 3/8 inches long. We are both doing great and he's nursing like a champ.
Leah Mae was born via emergency c-section February 13th at 10:10am. She is 7lbs 8oz and 21 inches. It was a tough labor and hasn't been the easiest recovery, but we are both happy and healthy.
Born thisAM after a 26 hour induction and 1 hour 20 min of pushing. She had some minor breathing problems but was cleared and were in the same room. So happy!!!
I'm having issues posting from my phone, it won't post under my name, hispenguin You can add us to the February babies born in January. Aiden Francis was born January 26th at 11:01pm. I was only 37 weeks and he is a peanut at 5lbs 12ozs and 18 inches long.
I finished work that Tuesday and started getting my bloody show/losing my mucus plug that night. I started getting contractions Wednesday morning. They weren't painful and I went about my day. I continued getting them through the night and continued losing my plug. I woke up Thursday morning and the contractions were still coming somewhat regularly but not lasting long enough.
I had a hair appointment to get my roots done and DH and I went out for lunch. By mid afternoon I started tracking the contractions and they were coming less. Than five min apart but only lasting around 30 seconds. They picked up and by 7 I was having to stop what I was doing and breathe through them. We left for the hospital at 9pm and it took forever to get to triage because I was getting back labor and we had to stop and DH had to put pressure on my back. I was checked by the doctor and I was already 5cm this was at 9:40 pm.
By by the time I got to my delivery room I was in excruciating pain. I started to vomit because of the pain while they were trying to get me in the bed. I couldn't breathe through the contractions and had asked for an epidural twice. I didn't want to get int he bed on my back but they needed to hook up the IV and take my blood. I kept asking to get out of the bed to manage the pain but they wouldn't let me get up. I was in so much pain I started crying out in pain. The pain got so bad the resident came running in when she heard me yelling out. She checked me and I was 10 already. This was around 10:30.
My water still hadn't broken so while I was freaking out that I was going to have to deliver med free my midwife arrived and she calmed me down. After three contractions Aiden was born at 11:01pm, less than an hour and a half since I got to the hospital!
Finally get to share my birth story... Went to labor and delivery for an induction Monday Feb 20th 10pm had three doses of Cytotec with no luck and finally after 15 long hours and some pretty intense contractions was sent home only dilated to a One... Got home (We live 45 mins from hospital) and after laying down for about 10 mins I here a large "pop" stood up and sure enough my water had broke.. So call Labor and delivery and they want us back right away as I tested positive for GBS. We got back and they started antibiotics and Pitocin I was at a 2 1/2 for about 8 hours they check me again at about 3:30 and I was at a 5 (Dr had been in but had left 15 mins prior to this) The nurses help me move to my left side and leave room and about 2 mins later I was screaming that I needed to push.. They call Dr and try best to keep me calm and breathing.. It was tough I wont lie idk how I waited for Dr (My husband was amazing!) but I could hear her running down the hall and as soon as she got into room they tore my bed down and I pushed twice and he was out.. I am overjoyed and so in Love with my rainbow baby!! So Baby Wilson was born February 22nd at 3:46 am. He was 6lbs 15.5oz of pure perfection and was 19 inches long. Thank you all for this journey I didn't post a lot but the PGAL boards helped me through this pregnancy.. Hope you all are enjoying your little miracles as much as we are!! Sorry if pic is huge..
Baby Weston is here! He was born on 2/24 at 5:40pm. I expected him to be bigger, since he was our 3rd kiddo but Weston was our smallest at 7lbs 8oz. I had been getting contractions in the evening of my due date and kept getting stronger. My mom came over to stay the noght, just incase we needed to head into the hospital in the middle of the night. Went to bed at 11pm since the contractions never got into a rhythm. I woke up at 1:30am with very strong, painful contractions. We headed out and I started to get a headache and pains in my upper abdomen. When we checked in my blood pressure was high, but not overly alarming. They did do a blood draw, which showed signs of preclampcya. They decided to admit me and start an induction. Before they even started the pitocin, my waters broke. I guess he was coming that day no matter what lol. They did use pitocin since I was only 1.5 cm dilated and 70% effaced when I checked in. By 5, I felt neasous. They checked my I was at 9.5 and she said Weston was very low and almost ready to go. She said if I could hold off pushing until 5:30, I should be at a 10. I had never felt as sick as I did with this labor. I held off. The doctor came in at 5:30 and we got set. I started pusing at around 5:35. I pushed on 3 contractions and Weston came out at 5:40.
Layla rose made her entrance this morning at 853am. Weighing 6.96Lbs and 19 inches.
The story -long version.
Thursday Feb 23 was suppose to be our induction day but due to lack of beds we would have to wait. They scheduled a nst for 7pm and we walked the hospital and did 9 flights of stairs x3. We were sent home at 9pm and told to call on friday.
Friday morning at 1am I started having some small contractions which ranged between 5-45 minutes. We called at 730am and were again told it was to busy to schedule and to do another nst at 7pm.
we walked the mall, bounced on a ball, danced like fools and then went to the nst. Nothing had really changed my contractions were still 5-25 minutes apart and i swear they thought i was lying. Passed the nst and was sent home.
AT1040pm i decided to take a bath to hopefully slow down the labor and get some sleep. Thaat may have been a poor decision as I woke up at 12am in back labor with 4-5 minutes apart. I had to slide of the bed because it hurt so much.
we went straight to l&d and because i was crying in pain they finally checked me and i was 7cm. I was admitted right away and rushed to have the epidural which was placed somewhere around 3am. My water was broke for me at 430 and layla heart rate dropped with each contraction and scared the bloody hell out of me.
At 730am I was fully dilated but the doctor was busy so i had to wait. At 840 the doctor came in as a emergency csection patirnt was being prepped and turned laylas head as it was to the left then after 6 pushes she came out with the umbellical cord wrapped around her neck twice.
I bleed a ton due to her being so fast and had like 10 stiches and finally after 4 kidd had a baby wothoit being induced.
Baby Sophie arrived on Thursday, February 23rd at 4:49pm in the afternoon. She was 7 lbs 12 oz, 19 3/4 inches long and absolutely perfect!!
I was induced on Weds night because of low fluid level and we got to the hospital at 10pm. They started pitocin at midnight and I began having regular 3-4 minute apart contractions right away. At 5am I was 4cm, and then around 8am was a 6cm - and was throwing up from the pain. Was checked again at 11am and was still at 6cm. My plan had been to go without pain meds but I was so discouraged and miserable that after talking it over with my doula decided to get the epidural. She felt like I wasn't allowing myself to relax through contractions and breathe through them and that is what had stalled my progress. even though it wasn't what I had originally planned on, it was one of the best decisions I made. It was heavenly from there on out. My husband and doula and I all got some sleep and then chatted and relaxed. My dr came in to check me at 4:30 - and said well, the baby is right here ready to go - lets get her out! He had me do a practice push and then said ok great - 2 more pushes and she'll be out. It was like 2 minutes of pushing. My husband and I were in shock as we thought we were in for a very long labor. I couldn't have asked for a better birth experience!!!
Amelia Paige was determined to be born a Febubaby! Born 2/28 at 2:11 pm. She weighs 7 lbs 14 oz and is 20 inches long. I'll update my labor thread with my birth story!
Evelyn Kate was born on 2/20 @ 6:37 pm. She weighed 7lbs 6oz and 20.5 inches long. She is beautiful and healthy.
Short version of my birth story: Went in on Monday morning to be induced. I have high BP so my Dr felt that was the best route to ensure that it did not continue to increase. Got hooked up to Pitocin at 7am and was able to make it to 7cm before asking for an epidural. Got the epi around 3pm and by 4:30 the baby was having major decells. They turned me on my side and cut the pit off. After about 20 min everything was good and they turned the pit back on. By 6:15 I had went from 7cm to 10cm and was ready to push. I had about 5 min of pushing and she was out. I didn't even noticed that I was pushing. The Dr barely got his gown on before he had to "catch" her. Now for the pictures!
Short version: Kieran Charles was born Feb 16 at 8:32pm, weighing 9lb 14.7oz and 21.5in long. He arrived via unplanned, but not emergency, c-section.
The very long story... I waited nearly two weeks to post this, hoping to gain some perspective about my birth story. I had a very traumatic birth with my first baby 7 years ago, and have still not completely come to terms with it. With our second baby, 5 years ago, we had a wonderful home birth that was very healing. This birth was unfortunately not wonderful or healing. Believe me, I'm very grateful that baby and I are healthy and safe, but that doesn't make the experience any less painful.
We planned another home birth with this 3rd baby, but at 39 weeks my midwife decided to risk us out because my blood pressure was consistently in the 130s over 80s, which is borderline but she considered it too risky. My labs were all normal, I didn't have any symptoms of pre-e, and I had just seen her 24 hours earlier and we agreed to keep monitoring things. I was absolutely devastated when called me and said she'd changed her mind and decided I had to be induced, and that we wouldn't be able to have our home birth after all. Right now, as I am writing this, it's been exactly two weeks since that phone call at 4:15 on that Wednesday afternoon. I completely fell apart. After 20 minutes of begging her to change her mind, I hung up and called my husband. He called her back, got the names of a couple doctors she recommended, contacted our insurance to verify coverage, and arranged for us to meet one of the doctors at the hospital (45 minutes away). All of this happened in a span of about 5 hours after I spoke with the midwife. He arranged for my sister to take our kids overnight, and we drove to the hospital.
The hospital experience with my first was so negative that it was a huge struggle for me to walk through that door, and I couldn't stop crying. The doctor was very kind, but I felt backed into a corner and wasn't thinking clearly at all. She checked labs, which were still normal. I was having regular contractions at this point, and dilated to a 3 (from less than 1 the day before at my appointment). She gave us the choice of starting pitocin, which she said would get things moving along, and that they'd turn it off as soon as I got into a good rhythm. Or we could go home, try to "kick start" things on our own, but would have to come back the next day to deliver at the hospital anyway. I should have taken that option, but at the time (it was now nearly 3am) I was such a mess that the thought of leaving now, in the middle of the night, and having to come back seemed impossible. So I agreed to start the pitocin and stay and get this baby out.
Unfortunately, the pitocin didn't get things moving along, and they were never able to turn it off. Instead they kept turning it up, and turning it up, and turning it up. The doctor had told us that if everything went smoothly and baby was healthy, that we could go home 6 hours after the birth. I hated that I was hooked up to the IVs and monitors and kept watching the clock, thinking to myself, "if I can get this baby here by 9am, we can go home by 3pm," then revising, "If I can get this baby here by noon, we can go home at dinnertime." But when she checked me again mid morning, I was only 4cm and baby was at -1. I was so frustrated. Eight hours of pitocin and only 1cm progress. All afternoon, whenever I moved around, changed positions, tried the birthing ball, etc. it just caused the contractions to slow down or nearly go away completely. At dinner time the nurse asked me if I wanted her to call the doctor to see if she would try to break my water.
The doctor arrived, attempted to check me, and couldn't reach my cervix at all. She asked for a portable ultrasound, and discovered that sometime during the afternoon the baby had turned over breech. We still can't figure out how that happened, given the he turned out to be so big. But he did. She called the surgeon, who said he wouldn't allow an attempt to turn the baby back, and suddenly I was being prepped for a c-section.
So in the span of 24 hours I went from planning a zero intervention home birth to having a failed induction leading to a c-section. I AM very grateful to have a healthy baby. But this is definitely our last, and for the past two weeks I've been home, mostly by myself with the baby, and all I can think about is what I could have done differently. I hate that this will forever be the way I remember this last birth experience. That instead of being hopeful and exciting and joyful, it was 24 hours of being miserable and angry and terrified, and feeling abandoned by the midwife I trusted.
I know it will get better with time, and I know the postpartum hormones aren't helping anything, but right now I'm really struggling with the whole thing. My husband doesn't understand why it matters - he just keeps saying how relieved he is that everything went well. And I know things could have been worse, but it still feels like a bad dream.
Harrison Vaughn came into this world one day shy of a Febubaby at 01/03/2017. He is 7lbs 8oz, and measured at 20.1 inches I started losing my mucus plug on Feb 27th and by the next morning I woke up to very mild contractions. Those lasted through out the day until they became timeable at 10minutes apart and on the painful side around 7pm or so. After a huge amount of coaxing I called my midwife to see what's she thought, and she said it would be a good idea to go to the hospital to get some pain meds so i wouldn't exhaust myself when real labour started. However, when she checked to see how far I was dialated I was already at 4cms so she didn't want to send me home. She did a membranes sweep and that got things going fast. I was in active labour from about 9:30pm and spent the majority of it in the tub. By the time I asked for laughing gas at 11:30pm or so i was already almost ready to push. A few more intense contractions later and I was pushing at 12:30am-ish. Harrison made his way into the world at 1:15am. DH and I are on cloud nine, he's everything we hoped for
The details of my labor are on my thread. So short story, my water broke on 2/17 and I got admitted to L&D at 5pm. I ended up on pitocin which after 20 hours of labor, was stopped due to my baby girl being stuck. Her head was wedged with a swollen bump and she was shifting sideways. I got taken over to the OR for a ceserean and within 15 mins she arrived. Here are very overdue pics...btween c-section recovery, hospital stay, and new mommy-hood I haven't had much computer time
Ridley was born on March 2nd at 1:54am after 20 hrs of labor plus 2.5hrs pushing. He weighed 8lbs 12oz and was 20.5 in long. I'll put more details in his labor thread later! His entrance was rough on both of us but we're reunited again and possibly going home tomorrow depending on some lab results of his! I couldn't be more in love him. I have to admit I'm doing terrible at the sleep when he sleeps bc he likes to be held to sleep and I love holding him! Here's a pic of him in a hat my doctor that delivered him made for him! He knits hats for all the babies he delivers.
Elise Jane was born on March 1st and was 7 lbs 9 oz and 21 inches long.
I went in at 41 weeks for induction at 5 PM and was a fingertip dilated. Had cytotec and started having regular contractions at around 9 PM. Around 6 am there was a tornado warning and we had to sit in the hallway for 20 minutes! Right after we got back into the room, the OB came to check and I was just 1 cm. They placed a Foley Bulb at that point and it took until 10 am to get to 4 cm to start Pitocin and get my Epidural. (Favorite drug EVER!!!)
The afternoon was pretty uneventful until about 4 when her heart rate started dropping. We changed positions and it kept dropping. At about 4:30 they said we were doing a C Section if I wasn't 10 cm, but I was. So 1.5 hours of pushing and she was out! I said the whole time she didn't want to come out and now I'm convinced!
This is very late! But I welcomed my beautiful baby girl Olivia on February 8th at 504am! 8lbs 7oz and 20.5 inches long!
After a failed induction starting monday the 6th, I went into natural labor February 7th at 830pm, when my water broke. No epidural and a beautiful delivery!
Welcome to the world Vienna Grace!!!!!! Our little angel was born at 7:17pm on February 9, 2017 weighing in at 5 lbs 8 oz, 17 3/4 inches long. Small but mighty and fierce!! We are so in love with this perfect Peanut!
Mr Filip was born 2/16/17 he weighed 6lbs 4.5oz and was 20in long. He was precious. I was induced at 6am on the 15th and he was born at 4:20am on the 16th. I dilated to 8 but my doctor didn't like that I hadn't progressed in over 3 hours and we went ahead with the c-section. Here he is now
Baby Girl showed up on 2/1, after 40 hours of induced labor due to pre eclampsia. But we made it to full term, 37+1. Almost a year late in posting, but her Name is Sophie-Lily and she is the smartest monster a mama could ever want.
Re: *****February Birth Announcements****
We went in to be induced at 4pm on the 7th. I was already 3cm, 80% effaced and my cervix was super soft. Sadly, though, after 6 hrs of pitocin, walking and ball bouncing I was STILL only 4cm, 80% effaced and barely feeling contractions.
They had offered to break my water around 9 pm and at midnight I asked them too. That worked! Things got intense then and I was only able to cope with contractions by standing or leaning on H or the wall and it was exhausting me. By 230 I was only 5cm and getting tired. I couldn't sit, lay or kneel comfortably.
Fortunately my doula recommended a reclining chair with my feet on a peanut. That was amazing. I was able to relax into contractions and by 430am I was 9cm. I quickly got the urge to push. Pushed for just over an hour and Betty emerged with her hand next to her head. We are completely in love
My water broke at 7:40 on Friday morning and unfortunately, it was filled with meconium. I went into triage at 10:40 and was admitted to L&D at noon. DH and I were singing and dancing and playing on every bouncy ball and birthing tool they could find for us, because the contractions weren't so bad and I was running on adrenaline.
Around 6-7 p.m., that energy began to wear off as contractions were lasting 2-3 minutes with only about 30-60 seconds in between. At 8:00 p.m. I was only 4 cm dilated, so I received an epidural to help get through the rest of labor, followed by pitocin. I fell asleep at 1:15 a.m. for a nap and was woken up by my doctor at 4 a.m. wanted to check me. She said it was time to labor down, which really just meant I would roll to my other side with a peanut ball between my legs. It was insanely comfortable! At 5 a.m. my nurse said we would do 'practice pushes', but after three of those, she called the doctor and two pushes later I had a beautiful baby boy on my chest! I was sobbing uncontrollably! My heart is so full!
I had a 2nd degree tear and hemorrhaged, so they pumped me with cytotec and fluids. He also had jaundice and needed to go under the lights for a few hours. Luckily he came home with us though. It's been a rough recovery for both of us this week, but things are starting to look up!
And of course, the part we all love...
Jackson Patrick was born at 10:22pm on Tuesday, February 7th, weighing 7lb, 15.5oz and measuring 21.5 inches long. We don't do pictures on the internet due to privacy concerns, but I can tell you that he has a full head of hair that works its way into the cutest fauxhawk, the darkest of dark blue eyes (for now), and the most perfect little nose I've ever seen.
I'll update the birth story once I get a few hours of sleep, but Until then here's my sweet squishy faced guy!
Malachi Edward was born February 8th at 8:05 PM. He weighed 6 lbs 4 oz and measured 18 ¾ inches! It started with bleeding and losing bits of the MP on Sunday the 5th, which turned into mild contractions on the 6th and more consistent and intense contractions starting around 7pm on the 7th. I had a midwife appointment on the morning of the 8th, where they did an exam and said I wasn’t dilating much yet. They told me to take it easy and try to relax to get some sleep in case labor came soon. So, that’s what I tried – I relaxed, took a bath, tried to take a nap, but the contractions were getting more and more intense. Unfortunately they weren’t getting any closer together, just more intense, so I wasn’t sure what to do.
During one contraction I felt like I needed to make a bowel movement in order to free up some room…little did I know it was my instinct to push that was guiding that train of thought. I went to the bathroom and had a contraction while on the toilet. I could suddenly feel a weird pressure down there and felt around to see what was up. It felt, to me, like a head still in its waters, so I yelled for my husband to come and called the midwife at the same time. She wasn’t sure exactly what was going on, so we rushed to the birth center right away and got there around 4:20pm. A senior midwife checked me over and confirmed my suspicions and it turns out I was already at 6 cm. Luckily he went back in a bit on the car ride to the center, but the contractions had gotten much closer together. They called in the midwife in charge of my care, and I mostly paced back and forth through the contractions and also labored in the tub for a while before getting up to walk again. We had a successful water birth at 8:05pm with only about 15-20 minutes of pushing! Most intense but beautiful moment of my life!
this was my second breech boy, so a repeat c/s was planned for 2/8. like with my first, water broke at 38 weeks 6 days and c/s was done early. we are home now and adjusting to like with two. I feel so fortunate.
When you've been married this long, you need a ticker to remind you.
Baby Boy M - 08/01/2013
Expecting Baby Bean February 2017
Birth Story:
tl:dr Started induction Friday night at 8 PM, got to 7 cm, Michael's head never engaged past -3 station. Cesarean birth at 8:52 PM on Saturday, and Magnesium is the worst The longest description in the universe is below photos
(I made this quite detailed, because I found other people's stories so helpful to read, and I had difficulty finding the success of being induced with no dilation, or how well cervadil worked when you weren't dilated at all. Here is one tale, lol)
We went in Friday ( I was 36w 6d) at 8 PM to start cervadil, and actually started it at about 11. I had made some progress since the last appointment and I was dilated a fingertip and softened. Labwork that night was interesting. I had developed preeclampsia, my liver enzymes were elevated, and my blood platelets had dropped from 130 to 106 (some anesthesiologist won't place an epidural below 100). Fast forward to 6 am, and I was at 1.5 cm and not effaced. Whomp-whomp. My IV infiltrated, so we started a new one, waited for updated labwork on platelets (100), and started Pitocin at 9:45 am (goal time was 6). By 10 AM, I was dilated 3-4, 60% effaced, but still -3 station. (I think Cervadil worked well for me, the progress station was more related to size) The high-risk Dr suggested against breaking my water due to station, but the OB arrived at 10:15, expecting me to be 4 hours into Pitocin, and was not a happy camper, lol. Probably the only thing I regret is not putting my foot down and telling them to come back in 3 hours. The OB broke my water at 10:30, and it was exceptionally more painful than I expected; but it sounds like that's not usual and more related to the position of my cervix ( -3 with the cervix behind Michael's head). They started the epidural immediately afterwards because of my platelet level. I was hoping to get to 4 or 5 and walk around, but things happen. The epidural placement went very well for me; first attempt worked great. It was less painful than any of my IVs. They started a magnesium drip at 11 am or so, and it has since become my arch enemy, lol. (I was on it for about 24 hours, It made me almost insensible of my surroundings the next morning. I wasn't able to speak coherently between 4 AM and 10 AM the day after. Grrr. ) By noon it dropped my blood pressure to 77/41 with a 40 pulse, so that was uh, fun. The anesthesiologist was able to fix it within 15 minutes, but then the second IV site infiltrated. Third IV for the win! lol. The afternoon was actually pretty nice. We used the heck out of the peanut ball, tried to use gravity as much as possible, and the hubs and I hung out. Throughout everything, the baby looked healthy and reassuring. Plus I successfully had 2 cans of Diet Dr Pepper. They were awesome . My blood pressure was consistently high the entire day, (180s/90s) which was fun every 15 minutes when the cuff ran again and alarms went off At 4:30 I was 4 cm, -3 station. 5 PM I was at 5-6, -3 station. We cut the pitocin dose to half to let the receptors take a break, and that helped. At 7:20 I was at 7 cm, -3 station. At 8:20 I was still at 7 cm, -3 station. The OB suggested a cesarean over the phone. We knew going in that I had a narrow pelvis structure and his head circumference was 95%+, but I wanted to try. The OB was ready to go for the cesarean because of the complete lack of engagement. I cried hard for a bit and came to terms with it by the time he arrived. Michael Keith was born at 8:52. They held him over the curtain for us to admire, and then he was checked and cleaned up in the same room. Daddy waited with me, even though several nurses asked him if he'd like to watch Michael. It seemed odd at the time, but I'm glad we did it that way. It was at most 10 minutes, and being on the table alone while Michael met just one of his parents would have been rough. We met him together, just like we would have with a vaginal birth.
Married: 10/10
EDD: 8/27/16 MMC 1/16
Rainbow Boy: 2/04/17
TTC: 4/18 BFP: 1/2/19
EDD: 9/6/19
Eta: pics didn't upload the first time
BFP #1 8/4/2015, MMC 9/24/2015
DD 2/13/2017
BFP #3 8/24/2017, MC 9/20/2017
BFP #4 11/14/2017, CP
BFP #5 1/5/2018, MC/BO 2/17/2018
BFP #6 7/15/2018, CP
BFP #7 12/15/2018, EDD 8/28/2019
You can add us to the February babies born in January.
Aiden Francis was born January 26th at 11:01pm. I was only 37 weeks and he is a peanut at 5lbs 12ozs and 18 inches long.
I finished work that Tuesday and started getting my bloody show/losing my mucus plug that night. I started getting contractions Wednesday morning. They weren't painful and I went about my day. I continued getting them through the night and continued losing my plug. I woke up Thursday morning and the contractions were still coming somewhat regularly but not lasting long enough.
I had a hair appointment to get my roots done and DH and I went out for lunch. By mid afternoon I started tracking the contractions and they were coming less. Than five min apart but only lasting around 30 seconds. They picked up and by 7 I was having to stop what I was doing and breathe through them. We left for the hospital at 9pm and it took forever to get to triage because I was getting back labor and we had to stop and DH had to put pressure on my back. I was checked by the doctor and I was already 5cm this was at 9:40 pm.
By by the time I got to my delivery room I was in excruciating pain. I started to vomit because of the pain while they were trying to get me in the bed. I couldn't breathe through the contractions and had asked for an epidural twice. I didn't want to get int he bed on my back but they needed to hook up the IV and take my blood. I kept asking to get out of the bed to manage the pain but they wouldn't let me get up. I was in so much pain I started crying out in pain. The pain got so bad the resident came running in when she heard me yelling out. She checked me and I was 10 already. This was around 10:30.
My water still hadn't broken so while I was freaking out that I was going to have to deliver med free my midwife arrived and she calmed me down. After three contractions Aiden was born at 11:01pm, less than an hour and a half since I got to the hospital!
2/17/17
8 lbs 13 oz
So in love with our chunky girl!
Congratulations @CornchipLA!
I came over from PGafter35 to see if your little one had arrived!!!
She is beautiful!!! Xoxo
Not going here isn't an excuse.
The story -long version.
Thursday Feb 23 was suppose to be our induction day but due to lack of beds we would have to wait. They scheduled a nst for 7pm and we walked the hospital and did 9 flights of stairs x3. We were sent home at 9pm and told to call on friday.
Friday morning at 1am I started having some small contractions which ranged between 5-45 minutes. We called at 730am and were again told it was to busy to schedule and to do another nst at 7pm.
we walked the mall, bounced on a ball, danced like fools and then went to the nst. Nothing had really changed my contractions were still 5-25 minutes apart and i swear they thought i was lying. Passed the nst and was sent home.
AT1040pm i decided to take a bath to hopefully slow down the labor and get some sleep. Thaat may have been a poor decision as I woke up at 12am in back labor with 4-5 minutes apart. I had to slide of the bed because it hurt so much.
we went straight to l&d and because i was crying in pain they finally checked me and i was 7cm. I was admitted right away and rushed to have the epidural which was placed somewhere around 3am. My water was broke for me at 430 and layla heart rate dropped with each contraction and scared the bloody hell out of me.
At 730am I was fully dilated but the doctor was busy so i had to wait. At 840 the doctor came in as a emergency csection patirnt was being prepped and turned laylas head as it was to the left then after 6 pushes she came out with the umbellical cord wrapped around her neck twice.
I bleed a ton due to her being so fast and had like 10 stiches and finally after 4 kidd had a baby wothoit being induced.
I was induced on Weds night because of low fluid level and we got to the hospital at 10pm. They started pitocin at midnight and I began having regular 3-4 minute apart contractions right away. At 5am I was 4cm, and then around 8am was a 6cm - and was throwing up from the pain. Was checked again at 11am and was still at 6cm. My plan had been to go without pain meds but I was so discouraged and miserable that after talking it over with my doula decided to get the epidural. She felt like I wasn't allowing myself to relax through contractions and breathe through them and that is what had stalled my progress. even though it wasn't what I had originally planned on, it was one of the best decisions I made. It was heavenly from there on out. My husband and doula and I all got some sleep and then chatted and relaxed. My dr came in to check me at 4:30 - and said well, the baby is right here ready to go - lets get her out! He had me do a practice push and then said ok great - 2 more pushes and she'll be out. It was like 2 minutes of pushing. My husband and I were in shock as we thought we were in for a very long labor. I couldn't have asked for a better birth experience!!!
Evelyn Kate was born on 2/20 @ 6:37 pm. She weighed 7lbs 6oz and 20.5 inches long. She is beautiful and healthy.
Short version of my birth story: Went in on Monday morning to be induced. I have high BP so my Dr felt that was the best route to ensure that it did not continue to increase. Got hooked up to Pitocin at 7am and was able to make it to 7cm before asking for an epidural. Got the epi around 3pm and by 4:30 the baby was having major decells. They turned me on my side and cut the pit off. After about 20 min everything was good and they turned the pit back on. By 6:15 I had went from 7cm to 10cm and was ready to push. I had about 5 min of pushing and she was out. I didn't even noticed that I was pushing. The Dr barely got his gown on before he had to "catch" her. Now for the pictures!
The very long story... I waited nearly two weeks to post this, hoping to gain some perspective about my birth story. I had a very traumatic birth with my first baby 7 years ago, and have still not completely come to terms with it. With our second baby, 5 years ago, we had a wonderful home birth that was very healing. This birth was unfortunately not wonderful or healing. Believe me, I'm very grateful that baby and I are healthy and safe, but that doesn't make the experience any less painful.
We planned another home birth with this 3rd baby, but at 39 weeks my midwife decided to risk us out because my blood pressure was consistently in the 130s over 80s, which is borderline but she considered it too risky. My labs were all normal, I didn't have any symptoms of pre-e, and I had just seen her 24 hours earlier and we agreed to keep monitoring things. I was absolutely devastated when called me and said she'd changed her mind and decided I had to be induced, and that we wouldn't be able to have our home birth after all. Right now, as I am writing this, it's been exactly two weeks since that phone call at 4:15 on that Wednesday afternoon. I completely fell apart. After 20 minutes of begging her to change her mind, I hung up and called my husband. He called her back, got the names of a couple doctors she recommended, contacted our insurance to verify coverage, and arranged for us to meet one of the doctors at the hospital (45 minutes away). All of this happened in a span of about 5 hours after I spoke with the midwife. He arranged for my sister to take our kids overnight, and we drove to the hospital.
The hospital experience with my first was so negative that it was a huge struggle for me to walk through that door, and I couldn't stop crying. The doctor was very kind, but I felt backed into a corner and wasn't thinking clearly at all. She checked labs, which were still normal. I was having regular contractions at this point, and dilated to a 3 (from less than 1 the day before at my appointment). She gave us the choice of starting pitocin, which she said would get things moving along, and that they'd turn it off as soon as I got into a good rhythm. Or we could go home, try to "kick start" things on our own, but would have to come back the next day to deliver at the hospital anyway. I should have taken that option, but at the time (it was now nearly 3am) I was such a mess that the thought of leaving now, in the middle of the night, and having to come back seemed impossible. So I agreed to start the pitocin and stay and get this baby out.
Unfortunately, the pitocin didn't get things moving along, and they were never able to turn it off. Instead they kept turning it up, and turning it up, and turning it up. The doctor had told us that if everything went smoothly and baby was healthy, that we could go home 6 hours after the birth. I hated that I was hooked up to the IVs and monitors and kept watching the clock, thinking to myself, "if I can get this baby here by 9am, we can go home by 3pm," then revising, "If I can get this baby here by noon, we can go home at dinnertime." But when she checked me again mid morning, I was only 4cm and baby was at -1. I was so frustrated. Eight hours of pitocin and only 1cm progress. All afternoon, whenever I moved around, changed positions, tried the birthing ball, etc. it just caused the contractions to slow down or nearly go away completely. At dinner time the nurse asked me if I wanted her to call the doctor to see if she would try to break my water.
The doctor arrived, attempted to check me, and couldn't reach my cervix at all. She asked for a portable ultrasound, and discovered that sometime during the afternoon the baby had turned over breech. We still can't figure out how that happened, given the he turned out to be so big. But he did. She called the surgeon, who said he wouldn't allow an attempt to turn the baby back, and suddenly I was being prepped for a c-section.
So in the span of 24 hours I went from planning a zero intervention home birth to having a failed induction leading to a c-section. I AM very grateful to have a healthy baby. But this is definitely our last, and for the past two weeks I've been home, mostly by myself with the baby, and all I can think about is what I could have done differently. I hate that this will forever be the way I remember this last birth experience. That instead of being hopeful and exciting and joyful, it was 24 hours of being miserable and angry and terrified, and feeling abandoned by the midwife I trusted.
I know it will get better with time, and I know the postpartum hormones aren't helping anything, but right now I'm really struggling with the whole thing. My husband doesn't understand why it matters - he just keeps saying how relieved he is that everything went well. And I know things could have been worse, but it still feels like a bad dream.
I started losing my mucus plug on Feb 27th and by the next morning I woke up to very mild contractions. Those lasted through out the day until they became timeable at 10minutes apart and on the painful side around 7pm or so. After a huge amount of coaxing I called my midwife to see what's she thought, and she said it would be a good idea to go to the hospital to get some pain meds so i wouldn't exhaust myself when real labour started. However, when she checked to see how far I was dialated I was already at 4cms so she didn't want to send me home. She did a membranes sweep and that got things going fast. I was in active labour from about 9:30pm and spent the majority of it in the tub. By the time I asked for laughing gas at 11:30pm or so i was already almost ready to push. A few more intense contractions later and I was pushing at 12:30am-ish. Harrison made his way into the world at 1:15am. DH and I are on cloud nine, he's everything we hoped for
Here's a pic of him in a hat my doctor that delivered him made for him! He knits hats for all the babies he delivers.
Married: October, 19, 2015
EDD 2/22/17 DS1 born on 3/2/17
EDD 3/8/20 DS2 born on 3/10/20
EDD 11/24/23
(Formerly Marriedhamstermom Feb ‘17)
I went in at 41 weeks for induction at 5 PM and was a fingertip dilated. Had cytotec and started having regular contractions at around 9 PM. Around 6 am there was a tornado warning and we had to sit in the hallway for 20 minutes! Right after we got back into the room, the OB came to check and I was just 1 cm. They placed a Foley Bulb at that point and it took until 10 am to get to 4 cm to start Pitocin and get my Epidural. (Favorite drug EVER!!!)
The afternoon was pretty uneventful until about 4 when her heart rate started dropping. We changed positions and it kept dropping. At about 4:30 they said we were doing a C Section if I wasn't 10 cm, but I was. So 1.5 hours of pushing and she was out! I said the whole time she didn't want to come out and now I'm convinced!
After a failed induction starting monday the 6th, I went into natural labor February 7th at 830pm, when my water broke. No epidural and a beautiful delivery!
CONGRATULATIONS to all mommas on here!!