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| 40 weeks, June 1, 2011 |
I got up (didn't shower, but wish I had!) on June 2 and went to work. By the time I got to work, I was back to feeling crampy and with a tummy-ache. After talking it out with my amazing co-worker Hattie, as well as with Gary, I decided that I should go ahead and call the doctor. Plus, my OB was going on vacation and this was the last time he'd see me until my post-partum appointment. Gary brought me lunch to the Statehouse, we ate together and chatted with Hattie. Then I called the doctor and was told to come on in to get checked out. We got to the doctor's office around 2:30pm. We went straight from work to the office (which is attached to the hospital). On the way, we had to take a detour from our usual work-to-doctor driving route--while we were bumping along Michigan Road (potholes galore), Gary quipped: "Well this should jumpstart your labor."
I had to wait about 20 minutes to see Dr. Cleary. I explained to him how I was feeling, which at that point was the same: crampy and a tummy-ache. He proceeded to begin my exam and was about to explain how I was progressing, when he stopped, and said "I think, well, yes, that's your water breaking!" As he said this, well . . . my water broke . . . poor Dr. Cleary! I was in shock. I teared up; I blushed; I stammered. Gary says his first thought was he was glad it didn't happen at work or in the car! He wasn't shocked, but we both thought we'd make one more trip home before being admitted into the hospital! Especially because we left our "hospital bag" at home that morning--I was SURE that I'd be going home that day.
The next hour passed very quickly. Gary got the car, picked me up at the door of the doctor office, drove me the 100 yards to the front hospital entrance, dropped me off, then he parked the car. I checked in at the front desk, chatted with the check-in lady, and acquiesced to a wheelchair. We were taken upstairs and settled in with our nurse.
At this point, I was still losing fluid, but I wasn't having contractions. Dr. Myers (on-call for my office) had given the nurse instructions to start me on pitocin within 1 hour--she put that off a bit longer as I really didn't want the pitocin. We tried pressure point massage and aromatherapy to spur contractions, but with no luck! Dr. Myers came in to see me and said quite exuberantly: "You flooded our office!" Cue more blushing and stammering on my end. He also made sure the pitocin was promptly started. Unfortunately for me, he ordered that the dose be increased every 15 minutes--instead of the standard 30 minutes. He wanted the baby to come out as soon as possible.
The timeline is a blur from here on out. My mom arrived and went to our house to get our things and bag. She came back and my Aunt Jill visited. My dad and brother arrived. We watched House Hunters, Bang For Your Buck, and So You Think You Can Dance. I texted and spoke with family and friends. I got a new nurse, Bri. The contractions began getting very strong. So strong, my aunt, dad, and brother left the room. The contractions became so painful that I decided it was time to discuss pain medication options.
I asked Bri to bring in Dr. Myers to check my progress--I wanted to gauge the pain level with how far along I already was. I was only 4 to 4.5 centimeters dilated, not as far as I'd hoped given the pain I was feeling. After some discussion, I decided to take the IV drug nubain while waiting for an epidural--the anesthesiologist was tied up with multiple c-sections. I was told the nubain would "take the edge off," help me "relax," and let me "sleep." HA! The pain subsided for, maybe 10 minutes, but came back with a vengeance, as my contractions got stronger, closer together, and longer.
Gary sat by my head for what I learned later was three full hours of me contracting every 1 to 1.5 minutes, staring into his eyes, and squeezing his hand. I utilized breathing techniques, nothing special, but it got me thru. I was steadily dilating and making progress. However, the baby's heart rate was also decelerating from time to time, causing Dr. Myers to be concerned. Toward the end of this 3 hour period, Dr. Myers checked me again and offered some other pain medication, but I declined. At that point, I knew it could get worse but I really just wanted that epidural. FINALLY, the hospital called in a second anesthesiologist--she had just gotten out of the shower--and I got my epidural. I was then able to get some sleep and Gary was able to eat his dinner. I think this was around 10 or 11 pm, 7 or 8 hours after my water broke.
I continued to progress, and at some point, I had a mini push session so Dr. Myers could turn the baby--she was looking up toward my belly button, when she needed to be facing the other direction. This went great, and I think everyone was optimistic. Around 1 am was at a full 10 centimeters dilated and Dr. Myers said it was time to start pushing! I was in shock, not expecting this moment--even though I'd been in labor 10 hours already. However, I didn't feel that "pressure" down below that I'd been told so much about. I figured it was because of my epidural and Bri turned down the medicine.
I pushed for two hours. Gary and Bri were by my side the whole time supporting me. Dr. Myers was in and out, as he had a c-section to perform. When he came back for good, I could tell that my labor was not going well. I was still feeling very little-to-no pressure down below during contractions. Dr. Myers wasn't happy with the strength and productivity of my contractions, despite my pushing. Eliza was at -1 station, which means she wasn't fully engaged in the pelvis yet. After two hours there was no progress down. During several contractions, Dr. Myers didn't even have me push because it wasn't worth it. My uterus had given up, so to speak, it wasn't doing it's job anymore. Add that to her heart decelerations, and things weren't looking good.
At the end of two hours, Dr. Myers put the bug in my ear--it was time to move on from a vaginal delivery. He left the room and Bri broke me the news--I needed to have a c-section. Dr. Myers came back in and we tried a few more pushes. To lighten the mood, Dr. Myers sang to me, "It's now or never!" (Elvis song). He explained that not even forceps would help (not that I would have wanted that anyway). A c-section was my only option at that point.
Gary and I were left alone for a few minutes and I couldn't help but cry. I cried because I was tired, scared, and sad that the birth and delivery I'd expected was flying out the window. I wouldn't get Eliza placed on my chest right away and the experience was no longer intimate. But, I'd have a baby girl either way, and that's what mattered.
The rest went by extremely quickly. I saw my parents in the hallway as I was rolled to the OR. Gary had to wait outside the room while I was prepped. I was scared and shaking (a "fun" epidural side effect). Gary came in looking awesome in his scrubs, cap, and breathing mask. :) I was so relieved when he got there. He was so calming to me. He sat by my head and we whispered back and forth as the doctors worked on me. I don't remember even feeling them pulling her out, I was so numbed. But I won't forget what it was like when she was out. Gary got to see her over the drape they put in front of my face, but I couldn't see her. Eliza was taken over to the bed/cart to be cleaned off and evaluated. I still couldn't really see her, so after Gary and I snapped out of our awe and celebration between the two of us, I made him go take pictures of her! Finally she was brought over to my head and Gary held her next to me. A nurse snapped a few pictures with our camera. I am so thankful for that. It was hard for me to stay awake, but it was amazing. In recovery, I nursed Eliza for the first time (she had no problems with that), then after my parents and brother came back in to watch Eliza get her first bath. Eventually we were taken to our postpartum suite, where we stayed for 3 days.
Words fail to describe the joy and awe we felt in these moments, so I'll end this long-winded tale here. After 12 hours, we had a beautiful and healthy baby girl!
The rest went by extremely quickly. I saw my parents in the hallway as I was rolled to the OR. Gary had to wait outside the room while I was prepped. I was scared and shaking (a "fun" epidural side effect). Gary came in looking awesome in his scrubs, cap, and breathing mask. :) I was so relieved when he got there. He was so calming to me. He sat by my head and we whispered back and forth as the doctors worked on me. I don't remember even feeling them pulling her out, I was so numbed. But I won't forget what it was like when she was out. Gary got to see her over the drape they put in front of my face, but I couldn't see her. Eliza was taken over to the bed/cart to be cleaned off and evaluated. I still couldn't really see her, so after Gary and I snapped out of our awe and celebration between the two of us, I made him go take pictures of her! Finally she was brought over to my head and Gary held her next to me. A nurse snapped a few pictures with our camera. I am so thankful for that. It was hard for me to stay awake, but it was amazing. In recovery, I nursed Eliza for the first time (she had no problems with that), then after my parents and brother came back in to watch Eliza get her first bath. Eventually we were taken to our postpartum suite, where we stayed for 3 days.
Words fail to describe the joy and awe we felt in these moments, so I'll end this long-winded tale here. After 12 hours, we had a beautiful and healthy baby girl!
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| taken at 3.5 weeks old |
