my baby will be one week old in a few hours. i have never had a week fly by so fast and it's kind of freaking me out that this is the speed in which he will grow up...time needs to stand still and let me enjoy this precious little human!
so, for the birth story! first, cory and i lived in about four states during the course of my pregnancy-several months of which were spent in a hotel. thus, i saw four ob/gyn's as opposed to one midwife which i would have preferred. i wanted to have a natural birth but really didn't do anything until maybe three weeks before he was born when i bought a book on hypnobirthing. i still haven't finished it (we did pack it in our hospital bag. i guess i thought cory would read me statements of affirmation like "my body was specially designed to have this baby". HA. to be fair, i did listen to the hypnobirthing relaxation tracks after my water broke on the way to the hospital and in the beginning. however, i dispensed with the ear buds real fast when people kept asking questions and i had a blood pressure cuff and IV hooked up to me. i also used the visualization technique of blowing up a blue balloon through contractions.
i had not had any real contractions up until after my water broke, so i was really surprised to be 3 cm dilated and 80% effaced at my 35 week appointment. my next appointment was scheduled for december 24 at 8 am and i was eagerly anticipating the doctor's report, as i had felt lots of pressure but no "contractions". in hypnobirthing, those are called "surges". tuesday, december 23, i had a normal day-walking the dog, cooking, cleaning, reading etc. i made dinner and cory and i decided to stay in as opposed to going to a christmas party. we watched the office and got ready for bed a little after ten. we were both looking at our phones when all of the sudden, i felt a huge gush come out of me (TMI) and i jumped up and ran to the bathroom, saying excitedly "cory! my water just broke!" he replied, "are you sure that's what it is?" and then "wow! that's a lot. like a waterfall!" we didn't really know what to do since i wanted to labor at home as long as possible, but i hadn't had any contractions. i called the doctor's office and they transferred me to the hospital. the nurse said to come in right away, but we took our time. and by that i mean, i put on makeup and then we put the last few items in our bags. i started experiencing little contractions shortly after my water broke, but i wasn't timing them and they weren't painful enough to incapacitate me. i remember walking down the sidewalk to the car and there were some ladies talking outsides and i was thinking, "wow. i'm on my way to have a baby and they're just living life". the car ride was quiet, as i listened to my relaxation tracks and focused on breathing.
we made it to the hospital and slowly walked into the emergency room because it was after hours. i had pre-registered but it still felt like we were standing at the desk doing paperwork forever. we walked to the elevator and rode up to the room where levi was born!
i changed into my gown and began experiencing REAL contractions. i was kneeling on the bathroom floor, not wanting to move when the nurse came in to do the full check. i think we were all shocked when she said i was 7 cm. when did that happen?! as the contractions happened, my resolve to go natural slowly disappeared...i was laying on my side and then moved to the side of the bed where i just sat with my feet on the floor and my hand squeezing the bed rail. i didn't want to talk or anyone to talk to me. occasionally i would bark, "cory, rub my lower back" or "cory, rub my arm". i kept telling the nurse i needed to go to the bathroom, which is a sign you're close to delivery, but we were waiting for the doctor to show up! i had tested positive for group b strep, which no one told me until that night, and i had to have penicillin. in the beginning of my pregnancy, i threw up A LOT and just that day, i had told cory i would most likely throw up during labor. i fulfilled that promise, and the nurse only gave cory a cup to catch it in and he almost lost it himself. the nurse kicked him a trash can, but he was okay. TRUE LOVE. that also is another sign that the baby will be arriving soon.
i had decided against an epidural because i was progressing quickly and i was so close, that i felt like i would regret not going natural later. it was probably like 2:30 am and i laid on my side and told the nurse i NEEDED to push. i had said that several times earlier, but the doctor wanted me to wait just a little longer. at that time though, the nurse came in and said it was okay. they put my legs in stirrups, and told me to push when the contractions hit, 3 counts of ten while holding my breath. this was contrary to hypnobirthing where you "breathe your baby out". i was so happy to push because it meant i didn't have to endure the pain of contractions. i had been mostly silent throughout the contractions, mostly i was so tired, falling asleep in between contractions. when i started pushing at 2:45, i didn't quite have the hang of it, even though i was really trying. it really wasn't painful, mostly it was annoying that i was trying so hard and it was not successful (in my opinion). i had my eyes closed most of the time. and they wouldn't let me move my legs, so that was probably the most obnoxious part because i pushed for an hour and having my legs bent back like that without being able to stretch was quite uncomfortable! i had a nurse on one side telling me to push, a tech on the other side holding my leg back and cory holding the other leg. everyone was shouting encouragement. cory attempted to feed me ice pebbles because i was SO hot and sweaty :)
finally, the doctor said she needed to give me an episiotomy, so she gave me two numbing shots and soon after that i was able to push levi out! it felt really slimy and the doctor and nurse immediately yelled, "it's a boy!" cory and i were both laughing and tearing up.
i kept waiting and waiting for the "ring of fire" but it never happened-i'm not sure if it was the numbing shots, or the fact that the contractions felt more painful than anything, either way i'm grateful! i did end up with a second degree tear which the doctor stitched up afterwards. i had wanted to delay cord clamping but by the time i said that, it was too late. it was okay though because levi's umbilical cord was really short. cory cut the cord, a nurse cleaned up levi and then i was able to hold him for almost an hour while we called family and fawned over our sweet baby. levi was born at 3:44 am on wednesday, december 24, 2014. his original due date was january 10, 2015.
after an hour or so, cory went with levi to the nursery so he could do all his tests and get some shots. he was 20.5 inches long and 7 lbs 8 oz. he got a 7/8 on his APGAR exam and he didn't pass his hearing test. we will go back next week for a follow-up. cory and i were taken to my postpartum room about 5 am where we slept for maybe an hour or so, while they monitored levi in the nursery. they brought him in after the pediatrician examined him. miraculously, i felt back to normal that day, but they wanted us to stay until at least friday morning so they could make sure levi didn't have any of the group b strep since i wasn't able to get the full dosage of peniciliin before he was born. the nurses were great and cory was such a champ the whole time, sleeping on the couch and changing levi's diapers. we had some friends come and we spent a lots of those 2 days facetiming family and friends. levi picked up on breastfeeding quickly which was a relief to me! he was at the middle level of risk for jaundice but when we went back to the doctor on sunday, he was fine and back up to his birth weight! makes sense considering he wakes up every 2-3 hours consistently to be fed for 30 minutes. SHEESH :)
in retrospect, i feel SO blessed to have had what i feel like was an awesome labor and delivery experience. truly a miracle! i have tremendous respect for people who endure labor for FAR longer than i had to, as well as mothers of multiples or babies in the NICU. women are amazing and the ability to grow and birth a human is a spiritual and life-changing experience. there really is nothing that can be compared to the high you feel after birthing your baby. i can't adequately express my love for little levi and how perfectly he fits into our family. i had no idea what i was missing until he came into my life.
No comments:
Post a Comment