I'm sorry I've been out of touch lately. I'm not going to lie I've just been so absorbed by my handsome baby boy to really worry about posting. But now that I have a bit more free time (and sleep) I figure that it wouldn't hurt to first show him off a little bit AND tell everyone about the Labour, Delivery and the days (week and a bit) leading up to it all.
I SHOULD THROW A TMI ALERT IN. Really don't read this if you don't want to hear a lot of the details surrounding my labour and delivery. I'm not shy, but you may be and I just don't want this to be an issue. Also I should let you know I don't think this post is one of my funnier posts. It's just more factual. And pretty much a novel. Enjoy!
So first leading up...
I was dead set against having this baby after June 30th/July 1st for the reasons of having the new residents (Please refer to my Birth Plan post) BUT I know very well that there is really only so much that I can control when it comes to labour and delivery. So at 37 weeks on the nose before knowing my GBS status (GBS is a bacteria that can be found in the woman's vagina. It isn't harmful to her, but can be passed to baby following the rupture of membranes and a woman is given antibiotics during the labour to prevent the bacteria being passed to baby as it can be deadly) a friend of mine - a labour and delivery friend of mine. Came over and did a sweeping of my membranes and a stretch. After this stretch and sweep I was 2cm dilated, 50% effaced and baby was -1. So not great, but not terrible for a primip. Anyway there were a couple more exams in there that I wont bore you with... In terms of having started the sweeps when we did, I did not delivery before June 30th. So at 38 weeks 5 days I went to my doctor's appointment and my nurse (and friend) Franky did a sweep/stretch and I was 3cm, 70% and -1. The unit quite often admits first time moms with cervixes like that; however, they are generally in lots of pain from contracting and looking for an epidural. I still was not contracting (regularly). The next day I went in to the unit to pick up some pay stubs and to see how busy it was (and to see what I would need to do to get admitted that day.) Well it was pretty busy but my nurse Franky was working so I had a little visit with her and by the time I walked out of the unit I was contracting more frequent than what I had been before, irregularly still and mildly and was 4cm, 70% effaced and 0. YAY! This meant business. When was yet to be determined but it definitely meant business. So that afternoon I went home and contracted mildly through the night every 6 minutes pretty much exactly until the next morning (Friday) when Eric was trying to decide if he should go into work or not and I didn't know how dilated I was. SO I called my dear friend (and nurse) Bonnie to come over. There really are perks to having friends that are nurses/being a labour and delivery nurse. She did an exam and I was still 4cm/70%/0. That was pretty disappointing. I had been contracting (mildly) all night and really was expecting more. Hindsight it makes sense I wasn't further because those contractions were mild - although I didn't know that at the time... So Bonnie and I took my dogs for a walk around the neighbourhood because we agreed I was having this baby today. After the walk we laboured at home some more and she reexamined me and such and she determined me almost 6cm, and that was when we called Eric to come home from work so we could go to the hospital...
The Labour:
Although, I was contracting before it wasn't really until Bonnie came over and we did some walking that things got a little bit more intense so I don't really consider it labour any earlier then that. Really it wasn't bad until I started getting pitocin - but we'll get there. So Eric came home took a shower that lasted all of .2 seconds grabbed "the hospital bags" and we were off! Breast pump and all! (Use that to help release oxytocin to keep the contractions going. Actually I was even able to get an okay amount of milk at the time - not that it is anything compared to now but still pretty awesome.) So we got to the hospital at 1030am. I had called before we left the house to let them know we were coming in, so I completely bypassed triage and walked in to the cursed room number 7. The Team Leader Nancy who I adore figured it would be a nice big room for me and it would be perfect - but I dreaded room #7 as most of my cases in that room ended up in the OR. Yes, I can be a little superstitious. Can't we all? Anyway perks to this room: lots of space, shower AND jacuzzi, quieter room. Cons: furthest room from the OR in the case of a crash c-section - EEK. So when I got in a lot of the nurses were busy as it was a pretty busy day (what can I say July 9th is a good day to have a baby!) And Nancy came down to do my admission for me while we waited for Franky to finish up in the Recovery Room. So when I had my admission exam I "SROMed" aka broke my water. Then I waited for 2 hours. The contractions didn't get more intense (which they generally do) and didn't get closer together (which they also sometimes do following the water breaking). Unfortunately my cervix was still 6cm and to say the least baby's heart rate tracing wasn't beautiful - so it meant it was time to start "actively managing my labour" aka pit me. So pit or pitocin is a synthetic form of oxytocin - for simplicity sake we'll say the labour hormone - the one that causes contractions. Well about 15 minutes later my contractions were no longer contractions I could talk through or even smile through. Actually I didn't even want to talk before or after the contractions. And up until that point Eric, Bonnie, Franky and I were cracking jokes and having a good time. After the pit started I was not happy. Eric would rub my back during the contractions and was incredibly supportive. He'd whisper that I was doing a good job and help me change positions when I was in too much pain or too uncomfortable to do it by myself. Finally an hour passed and I asked Franky to reexamine me (generally you wait 2 hours before you do another exam.) I told her before she examined me that if my cervix was still 6cm there was no way I was going to continue without an epidural because there was just WAY to much pressure and pain. Anyway she did the exam and told me I was 7cm. I still don't know to this day if she just told me that I was 7cm because she knew I wanted to do natural labour and figured I could do it OR if I actually was. But that 1 cm kept the natural child birth train going. So I realized labouring in hands and knees wasn't cutting it for me even though we all knew I had a baby not facing the right direction (maybe with the exception of Eric) SO we decided to try the tub and if that didn't work I was getting an epidural (by Dr. Gallant nonetheless). I got into the tub and leaned over the side like I've told what seems like a bajillion NCB moms before me AND man oh man that felt SO MUCH BETTER. During the contraction I would lean over the edge of the tub and then in between I would lay on my side in the tub and try to get some sleep. Yeah I know - crazy. ANYWAY. It felt a lot longer to me (probably because I was in PAIN) but apparently it was only about 3 maybe 5 contractions and then things started to happen... I started pushing involuntarily. Franky told me to stop and that after I was done that contraction I would get out of the tub and she would reexamine me. Things I learnt from that alone: it's almost impossible to stop bearing down when you're in that situation. I have a new found sympathy for women who feel the urge to bare down when they're only 7cm. I was reexamined and THANK GOD I was 9.5 cm and baby's head was at the +2 position. At this point things started going really quickly and I asked/demanded that Franky go get the doctor to give me a pudental block (they free the "lips" to avoid the "ring of fire" during the delivery - now that you know that please remember I said that this post may have TMI!) Anyway while she left the room I contracted again and was bearing down. Bonnie was in the room still and I asked her to go get Nitrous Oxide for the pain so she took off.
The Delivery:
Franky and Dr. Amankwah and Alia came back to the room. Dr. Amankwah didn't even need to exam me as she said she could start seeing the head already and that I was NOT going to get a pudental block. They told me I could start pushing so I did a set of pushing and it was really painful. I would be lying if I said otherwise. There is such thing as the ring of fire. Also I feel like a total jerk for telling my patients: "don't make any noise while pushing" or "push for 10seconds 3 times with each contraction" because my first set of pushing I was definitely making noise and I didn't make it to 10 seconds 3 times. Bonnie came back with the NO and I took 2 puffs on that and I swear to you the room started spinning. Or maybe it was my bed that was spinning - which would make more sense because it has wheels and the room is stationary- well sort of I guess the world spins, but I don't think that it spins that fast. ANYWAY - after 2 sucks/puffs whatever you want to call them I got rid of that stuff because it was NOT helping. So I pushed again with everyone's encouragment and direction with Eric right by my head (he moved there pretty quickly after the doctors came in. He told me he had started to feel a little bit light headed - maybe he had a hit or two of nitrous as well? JK) I pushed a second time and more effectively (I didn't make noise and I held my breath etc, etc, etc..) and then something wasn't quite right. The fetal heart rate was 60bpm. Alia asked Dr. Mukhida if she wanted a vacuum and I (who apparently still had a bit of a sense of humour left) told them to go ahead and just slap it on. Nancy entered the room at some point in time and told me that with the next contraction I had to mean business. I guess with the next contraction I meant business because all I remember is Dr. Amankwah asking who I wanted to deliver the baby and I said "I don't care just get it out" and Franky in her calm, reassuring and happy voice said to me "Okay stop pushing". WHAT? WHAT DO YOU MEAN STOP PUSHING? I HAVE A BABY I NEED TO GET OUT. Okay I didn't say these things. At least not to anyone in the room. BUT we waited there with lots of pressure and burning and pain sensation. And then the next contraction started to build and Franky said "okay only small pushes now, push to 3 seconds" WHAT? we're there already?? We're having a baby... So after about 3 small pushes and one more big push our little baby was born at 1455. Baby cried right away as did my other baby (Eric) and I immediately asked "what is it" and Eric being the observant fellow he is replied "A boy - I think?" And Dr. Amankwah being the quick witted one she is said "You think? That's definitely a boy" as his balls were a little bit swollen and by a little I mean A LOT. Anyway I was shocked. I still kind of am. I was expecting a girl. Not that I'm complaining. I'm so in love with my son. Fynn is just amazing. And it's even more amazing that he's all mine and Eric's.
The afterbirth (aka placenta):
It decided to take it's time. Like 35 minutes or so. And my uterus decided to bleed. So I got 4 little pills inserted in a not so friendly spot and 5 minutes later had the biggest most painful contraction ever (pass the nitrous please!) and I delivered the placenta. Intact. Thankfully.
And really, that's more or less the end of it. Or the beginning depending on how you look at it.
Regardless it was an amazing experience. Easier than coping with Fynn cluster feeding. And really I don't need any hormones that make me forget about it - we're already talking baby number 2. When is still yet to be determined - but Fynn will have at least one sibling - so long as my uterus cooperates!
Thanks for reading everyone!
I'll be sure to post less gory stuff - like how much fun I've been having as a mom! And what we've got planned. Like I said before I just have been taking the free time I do have and spending it on other things. Like Fynn!
Take care,
Beth
But it came and that was more or less than end of it. Or the beginning depending on how you look at it. Regardless, we're talking about baby number 2 already. I'm pretty excited.
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