Labor Story

It has been a week since Emma decided to join us. I'm going to try to write our birth story while she takes a nap. So much seems to have happened in the week, and I'm tired, but it is such a good exhaustion.

I think my contractions started on Easter night. I had several uncomfortable contractions that night that were about 10 minutes apart, but I've had so many braxton hicks that I didn't think anything of it. My doctor had said the week before that I likely had another 2 or 3 weeks to wait so I was convinced it wasn't time, but I started to have a feeling about it by the time I went to sleep.

When I got up for work on Monday, I started leaking as soon as I sat up, but it wasn't much. Then I leaked more...and again.. and I wondered if it could possibly be my water. When Andrew got up, I was still in the bathroom waiting to see if it would stop. Then I leaked again, and he said...that looks like water...and he asked if that meant labor was imminent. Then he told me to call my mom to ask if it could be something else. She suggested that the baby may have just sat on my bladder. (I guess I didn't specify how much fluid it was). I had a lot on my calendar at work, so I continued getting ready, telling Andrew I'd call if I had to leave, and besides, I had an appointment that afternoon. But as it kept going, I finally figured out I wasn't going anywhere but to the hospital. He gave me a blank look when I said I didn't think either of us would be able to work today, and he asked if I had called the doctor, but the doctor had told me I didn't even have to bother to call if my water broke. Andrew had planned to go activate his new phone so that we'd have a dependable cell phone so we would be prepared for her birth-- and he debated going then, but we decided we shouldn't wait that long. So, since I hadn't planned on her coming yet, I still had to pack, I did a little cleaning, and made a lot of phone calls before we left.

I was admitted around 8:30am, and after they got us settled, I was only 2cm. We did a lot of walking, and I finally made it to 3cm. The doctor rarely checked me because my water was already broke. They decided to start some pitocin around 5pm to help things move along, and then they gave me antibiotics because it had been so long since my water broke. The contractions had already made it difficult to keep walking & talking, but the pitocin really made it kick in after a couple hours. At 6pm, I was 4cm and 100% effaced.

I wanted to put off the epidural for as long as possible so I could still move around, but I was finally ready for it as the contractions had become very painful and sometimes only a minute or two apart. At that point, I had to wait for the antibiotics to finish so they could switch me back to fluids to finish a bag of saline before getting the epidural. As I was waiting, I asked Andrew to help me to the bathroom because I thought I had to go....at which point he looked pretty worried about helping me and kept asking if I was sure. So I was wrong. Oops, but at least nothing happened.

But I finally had my epidural right after that at 8pm, and by 9pm the doctor said I was 10cm, at a +1, but the baby was facing the wrong way, "sunny side up" instead of facing down like she should to be able to fit. They had me push to try to get her to move down to see if she could change position, but then they had me stop. For the next 2 1/2 hours I had to wait as they tried to move me to different positions to try to get her turned and moved further down naturally, but they couldn't turn me too much without causing her heart rate to drop. The contractions were all in my back at that point, so I felt all the pressure in my back. I'm so thankful for the epidural during those long hours. :)

We started to think she would have an April 6th birthday. My mom, who took a nap after her night shift that morning and hit the road for the 6 hour drive up, arrived just after 11pm. I think Emma was waiting for her grandma's arrival. At 11:30pm, after she had only moved a little. That's when the doctor did an episiotomy and he used a vacuum to get her to turn and come out. I think I only had to push through a few contractions, and she finally arrived at 11:46pm. I was pretty out of it by then, and in a bit of shock at how quickly everything had happened in the last few minutes. All I could do was feel her and make sure she had all her fingers and toes. The first hour with her was a blur, but it was an amazing experience.

It seemed surreal at the time, but I can't believe how much I loved her as soon as we met her. Sleep has been at a premium, but it feels so worth it. I like to see my pregnancy ticker as it continues to count down to my original due date. Emma decided to come on her own schedule, and I'm thankful that she came early and it all worked out so I didn't end up with a c-section. I look forward to sharing more about her.