Birth Story

I never really thought I would be one to share the personal moments and details of the birth of my child. However, throughout pregnancy I really enjoyed reading other people’s stories. So here I am typing this up, writing things about dilation, pressure, pushing, tearing, etc. It’s not all pretty but in the end I’d say everything fell perfectly into place. Pardon how long the story is.

Short story

Water broke at home around 10:30 pm. Contractions came fast and furious, lots of throwing up and calm quiet breathing. Arrived at ED around 11:15 pm at 4.5 cm. Got into L&D around 12:00 am at 6.5 cm. Got into whirlpool tub and was at 9 cm around 1:30 am. Got back to room and pushed for about an hour and sweet little Hannah Olivia was welcomed into the world at 2:54 a.m on Friday January 25^th
weighing 8 lbs 15 oz and 20 inches long. I had a 2^nd degree tear, lots of bleeding, but oh so in love with our girl with lots of skin to skin time. 

Long Birth Story

Tuesday, at 40 weeks and 4 days I went for my midwife appointment. I decided to go ahead and have my membranes swept. I also took a little castor oil hoping to get things moving. That night contractions started up and eventually made it to 3-5 minutes apart lasting over a minute. Things starting getting pretty intense and we decided we would head into the hospital soon. However, something in me kept telling me to wait just a bit, just a bit, just a bit. Turns out after 9 hours of “laboring at home” my contractions died out. I was totally bummed.

Thursday my parents arrived to “watch me gestate.” That day I was consuming everything in sight and ate more meat then I have in months. We came home from lunch and I had a little castor oil again hoping to help things along. Maybe around 5 pm or so I started to have weak little contractions close together. I thought that no way would this ever become the real deal. Around 10:30 pm I suddenly started to have lots of back pain. My mom graciously started rubbing my back. I went a good 7 minutes without a contraction when all of sudden the worst one yet hit and with that while rubbing my back we heard and felt the biggest strangest pop ever. I got up in terrible pain and realized my water had broke. I ended up on the bathroom floor with terrible back to back contractions. Before I knew it I was throwing up and knew this was happening way too fast.

With that we were scrambling around to get out of the house. Mom rode with Brian and me and Dad drove separately. I got into a great breathing rhythm on the way, while throwing up in between contractions. I realized nobody could talk or touch me during contractions. The trip to the hospital felt so fast. We got into the ED around 11:15 pm, which by the way was not so welcoming with screaming crazy patients. The wheelchair felt amazing on my aching back and I was able to calmly breathe through contractions. I hated the ED nurses trying to touch me and ask questions during contractions. Brian was my biggest advocate telling them to stop talking loudly and touching me. He was so calm and sweet. The midwife on duty in ED came in and checked me. I was at 4.5 cm.

They got me up to the labor and delivery where I was happy to have a nurse with a soft gentle voice and a dimly lit room. I was annoyed to have to get out of the wheelchair and get a reading on little baby. The monitors were so irritating and laying on my side was not conducive to calm breathing. I had to be hooked up to an IV of antibiotics for being Strep B+ (which I ended up shooting out with pushing). I was so glad my midwife that I have been seeing happened to be on call that night for a few more hours before her own daughter’s birthday. My mom and midwife came in around 12:15 am. I was so glad to have them both there and my midwife got me off those stinking monitors. I told her that they were just coming too fast and I didn’t know if I could go med free (I only had about 30 second breaks). She checked me and sure enough I was at 6.5 cm already. She suggested we try out the whirlpool tub. I agreed if I could get back in the glorious wheelchair. 

We went down the hall and got into the whirlpool room. I was stern about turning off the music in there. I initially hated the tub because there wasn’t enough back support. She suggested that if I turn on my hands and knees to get baby to turn since I was having so much back labor. I didn’t think I liked it because it was hard to let go of my limbs and do my calm breathing but she promised if I made it through a few contractions it would get better. Both my mom and midwife massaged my back while Brian gently held my hand in between calm and quiet and touch free contractions.  I began to feel a lot of pressure in my…well….butt and decided I just hated the tub and couldn’t do it anymore and asked how long it would take to get an epidural. Once I calmed down I said that I wanted to be able to do this but the pressure in my bum was just too much. I didn’t think that such pressure could be the need to push baby. My midwife checked me and I was 9 cm. It was time to get out and head back to the room. I said I wanted the wheelchair again. My midwife agreed but encouraged me to walk.

I had a few contractions on the walk back to the room and leaned on my midwife. I remember her shoulder smelling so good and I was able to breathe calmly. We got to the room and she got me on my hands and knees in bed to get baby to continue to turn. She told me I could push but I kept asking her to check me just to make sure this really was it. I didn’t trust my body and that stinking bum pressure. Pushing on my hands and knees was tough but was so worth it when baby turned. We got on my side sitting up and pushed for about an hour. I chugged water in between contractions and kept asking if I was almost done. Everyone was so encouraging and wonderful. They got the mirror out so I could see her sweet head with all that dark brown hair. I didn’t think I liked seeing it at first but it turned out to be pretty neat.

At 2:54 am on Friday January 25^th our sweet girl came out screaming. My midwife tried so hard to bring her out with slow pushes and finagling but regardless I still had a 2^nd degree tear. They put this new little being on my stomach, meanwhile I started to bleed much more than the norm. I definitely felt super weak and out of it but still so amazed and in love. Brian eventually cut the cord. Somewhere in there I got shot in the leg with Pitocin to slow down the bad bleeding, painfully delivered placenta, and got sewed up. All of that is so blurry. After about an hour or so of skin to skin and holding from Brian they weighed her. Our big girl weighed in at 8 lbs and 15.2 ounces. At some point we decided to name her Hannah Olivia.

The timing of her birth was so perfect from being able to have the extra support of my mom and having my amazing midwife there to deliver. Having a good midwife and quiet nurse is something I had been praying about for the last few weeks. We are so in love with little Hannah Olivia and she has added a whole new dimension of joy into our lives. Life at home has been GREAT. Even when I was feeling so weak and beat up in my body, I felt oh so wonderful and high off of love. We are settling in perfectly and our girl could not be more cute and sweet.