Tuesday, September 21, 2010

My birth story...

...We got to the hospital a little after 5:30 AM on Monday morning. They got me hooked up to the IV and signing papers etc. pretty quick. The IV was not as bad as I was dreading it too be, so that was great! Of course I got in a gown and put on monitors right away. They monitor the baby for a half hour before they start the induction.

At 6:25 they inserted the first pill and my cervix was very thin and I was still just dilated to a 3. I had to lay flat for an hour for the pill to work it's magic. I felt a little crampy, but not terrible.

At 7:30 I got up to use the bathroom and walk around a bit and use the birthing ball etc. The contractions stopped soon after that. Sometime during all this my mom got to the hospital and it was great to have her there! The nurses checked me again at 9:30 and there was no change, so they gave me another, but higher dose of the pill and I had to lay flat for 2 hours. I started having some stronger contractions, but nothing I couldn't handle. I got up again to use the bathroom before my doctor came at noon to break my water. After that things definitely started to progress and get a little more intense. I didn't really feel like walking around at that point, but I did sit up and use the birthing ball some more until the contractions got a lot stronger.

From here I don't remember the exact times, but I know at one point they checked me and I was a 4, then the next time a 6, the next time a 7. Once I was at a 7 I started feeling like maybe I couldn't do it without the epidural, but I asked if they had something that I could get in the IV instead. They gave me Nubain. I think it did take the edge off, but it made me feel really weird, so I don't know that I'd ever want it again.

Anyway, at this point my contractions were very intense and close together. I did my best to breath through them and to really focus. I finally told Chris that I didn't want to do this anymore and I thought I needed the epidural (I guess this is the "fight or flight" part, or maybe "transition"?), but with the next contraction I said, "I feel like I need to push!". The nurses walked in right as I said that, so they checked me right away and said, "Call the doctor now! Tell him to run!". I kept having contraction after contraction and I kept saying, "I need to push! Can I push?", but they kept telling me no, and that I needed to take deep breaths until the doctor got there. I just kept thinking that he better get here quick because one way or another this baby is coming out right now!

So as we were waiting for my doctor to get here the nurses were rushing around to get everything prepped and when he finally got here he was putting on his scrubs as fast as he could! I wish I'd been more with it to really witness it all, but I was so focused on breathing and trying not to push that I wasn't really aware of everything around me. I'm sure it was actually quite humorous! At this point it wasn't so much the pain of the contractions, but the intense pressure and feeling the need to push that was really hard to deal with! I also had an oxygen mask on at this point. I really don't know why, but they gave me the mask, so I held it to my face even though I felt like throwing on the floor!

So once everything and everyone was ready I was able to give a few good pushes through two good contractions and Lilyana Mary was born at 4:35 PM. She weighed 5 pounds, 15 ounces and was 18 1/2 inches long! I could not believe how tiny she was, and so gorgeous! I felt so happy and proud of myself that I DID IT! I think one of the first things I noticed about her was that her little nose was kind of scrunched and crooked from being in the birth canal for so long! I think it's cute and gives her character.

So to make things even better I did not need any stitches! And since I did not get the epidural I was able to move my legs and stand up as soon as I was ready! But first I got to nurse my new baby girl and she was a champ! She knew just how to latch right on! Once my milk comes in I'm sure she will start gaining weight pretty quick, but for now I have been giving her a little formula between feedings.

I keep thinking about how quickly things went from a 7 to a 10 and how badly I wanted to push and how while I was pushing I remember really grunting and I keep laughing to myself about how I must have looked and sounded a little bit crazy!

All in all I think I had a really good birth experience and I am loving my little Lily! Almost everytime I am getting ready to feed her she gives me a little smile. It's so cute! She knows where she is and she's happy because she knows what's about to come!

Her brother and sisters love her and can't wait for mommy and baby to come home soon!

I will post pictures later, but her picture is up on the website now.

4 comments:

  1. Yay! I'm glad you got to try it without the epidural. It sounds like things went pretty quickly and smoothly.

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  2. Such a quick actual delivery!
    Congratulations!

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  3. You were and are amazing!!
    Bravo!
    Praise God for Lily!

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  4. Wow, great birth story! It's amazing how every single birth is so unique! The waiting for the Dr. so you could push part TOTALLY reminded me of Hayley's birth, as that's exactly what I was doing too! It is crazy intense! Great job, sounds like you handled everything really well! And no stiches = awesome!

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