Who doesn't love a good birth story? I know I've become a birth story junkie since I birthed my children. I thought I would share my pregnancy and birth experience with both of my boys. It is true that not all pregnancies are created equal.
Landon:
My pregnancy with Landon was easy. I only had morning sickness for the first 12 weeks and I didn't have a single complication the entire 39 weeks he was growing inside me. I chose to be induced when it was safe to at 39 weeks. I know there is a lot of controversy over elective inductions, but it worked for my family. I was taking 12 credit hours in school and working full time and I had a great feeling of relief knowing when it was going to happen.
We were scheduled to go to labor and delivery at 5:30 in the morning of the 23rd of October. However, we got a call from our labor and delivery nurse at 4:45 telling us not to come in yet because they had an overload of patients. So, me, my husband, my parents, and my mother-in-law sat very impatiently until we finally got another call at 7:00 informing us that it was okay for us to come in.
It didn't take long to get me hooked up to my IV's, one of which was pitocin. The doctor came in and checked me. I hadn't changed since my exam 4 days before. 1cm dilated, 90% effaced, and Landon was at a +1 station. I figured that they would start me on the pitocin first and then break my water once I progressed if it didn't break on its own. Instead, the doctor decided to break my water right then and there. It finally set in that we were coming home with a baby once he told me that he was breaking my water. My nerves were going crazy at this point.
I started feeling contractions a couple of minutes after my water was broken, which was a very...interesting...feeling I might add. Okay, so it was gross. I didn't realize that once your water is broken, it keeps coming. They leave that part out in the movies. I apologized to the nurse for "leaking" all over the floor when I stood up to sit in the rocking chair for a while.
I was in excruciating pain 2 hours later. My contractions were coming every 2 to 3 minutes and were lasting over a minute. They decided to completely take me off the pitocin since I was contracting just fine on my own. The doctor came in at noon to check me but didn't think I would have progressed very far since I had only been in labor for 4 hours. He was surprised when he discovered that I was dilated to a 4 and was completely effaced. He gave me the "go ahead" to get an epidural if I wanted it and boy did I want it! Stick that needle in my spine!
It was smooth sailing after I got my epidural. Dusty (my husband) and I laughed and joked. I felt like myself again. I started feeling contractions on my left side at 4:00pm. The nurse checked me and said that I was at an 8. She gave me some more medicine in my epidural and told me to try to take a nap. She would check me again in 30 minutes. I dozed off for a little bit and when she checked me again I was at a 9. 20 minutes later I was ready to push!
The nurse asked me if I wanted a mirror so I could watch him being born. Um, NO. Dusty tried to convince me to do it because "it was amazing," but I couldn't bring myself accept the nurse's offer. It only took 20 minutes of pushing before we saw Landon's face for the first time. I remember looking up at my husband and seeing tears rolling down his eyes. As soon as they laid Landon on my chest all I could do was laugh. I know it's not your typical reaction, but I was just so excited that he was finally here. He didn't really cry, all he did was lay on me and whimper. He swallowed a lot of fluid on his way out so he was monitored in the nursery for 4 hours before he could come to our room.
He was born at 5:04pm, weighing in at 8 pounds, 4 ounces and 21 1/4" long.
Noah:
As I said before, no two pregnancies are created equal. I didn't experience any prolonged morning sickness during my pregnancy with Noah, instead I had random episodes of nausea that caught me off guard a couple of times. I started experiencing pre-term contractions at 28 weeks and required 2 shots of Terbutaline to stop my labor. I began dilating quickly and by the time I was 34 weeks I was dilated to 3 centimeters, 4 centimeters when I was 36 weeks, and finally 5 centimeters when I went into labor with Noah one day shy of 38 weeks gestation.
I woke up at 6:00am on Friday, October 21st to some pretty painful contractions. They were progressively getting worse and were 3-4 minutes apart. I called my OB when their office opened and was told to come in. I called my husband at work so he could go with me. I dropped Landon off at the sitter and we were on our way. I was between 4 and 5 centimeters when I was checked and the doctor sent us over to labor and delivery so I could be monitored.
The nurse hooked me up to the monitors and saw that I was indeed contracting every 3-4 minutes. I was checked again 2 hours later and didn't have any change. I figured they would send us home since they won't do anything to "encourage" labor before 39 weeks. Instead, they tried something call therapeutic rest. It's where they give you a sleep aid and a pain killer in hopes that your body will rest enough so your cervix can dilate. I was still very uncomfortable, but I was just too tired to give a crap. They gave me 2 hydrocodone after that and I was finally able to get some rest. They checked me again (I was seriously starting to lose my modesty at this point) when I woke up 2 hours later, only to be told that there
still wasn't a change in my cervix. We live 30 minutes away from the hospital and the doctor was really hesitant to send me home so he decided that I should stay overnight. I hadn't had anything to eat all day so the doctor let me have a sandwich. My contractions literally vanished not 10 minutes after I got done eating. It was crazy! I had seriously just spent the last 13 hours of my life contracting and then freakin
POOF! they were gone.
I rested really well that night, well...as good as one can in a hospital. I was checked
again at 5:00am.
STILL NO CHANGE. My husband and I were fully prepared to be sent home when the doctor made his rounds at 8:00am. I hadn't had any painful contractions all night, even though some were showing up on the monitor, they weren't strong enough to bother me let alone wake me up from sleep. We were shocked when he said that I had progressed between a 6 and 7 and that we would
not be going home. Instead, we would be having a baby! Dusty left to go get our hospital bag and to give my parents Landon's car seat so they could come up and wait for Noah to be born.
I played around with the idea of not having an epidural. I mean, I only had 2.5 centimeters to go and my contractions really weren't that painful. Then I realized that my contractions would probably only get stronger after they broke my water, and then there was a possibility of tearing, something I would rather not feel. I got my epidural and remembered how weird it was to be able to move my legs, but not be able to feel them. I could still feel my contractions on my left side. This happened when I got my epidural with Landon so I assumed that it would go away after I tilted my body to the left for a little while. I was between a 7 and 8 at this point.
My mom, dad, Landon, mother-in-law Patrice, sister-in-law Misty, father-in-law Ronnie and step-mother-in-law were all in the waiting room. Dusty brought Landon back so I could see him. It felt like it had been an eternity since I had seen his precious little face. It would be the last time it was just the three of us. I was thankful that I spent an hour cuddling with him in the rocking chair the morning I started having contractions. I couldn't imagine loving someone as much I loved Landon, but here we were, preparing to have our second child. I was getting more nervous by the minute.
My mom, Misty, and Patrice joined us after Dusty took Landon back to the waiting room. The doctor broke my water shortly afterward and my uncomfortable contractions became absolutely unbearable. I reached the transition stage of labor and felt like I was going to throw up with each agonizing contraction. WHY WASN'T MY EPIDURAL WORKING?! It felt like my insides were being torn apart every time the nurse checked me.
The anesthesiologist gave me some other kind of cocktail in my epidural and pulled the catheter back a little and my pain was gone within 5 minutes. I was fully dilated 20 minutes later and I was ready to push. We only did one "practice" push with the nurse because she could already see his head. As we waited for the doctor to arrive all I could say was "I'm nervous. We're going to be parents of two. Can we do this? I'm so nervous..." The doctor came in and I pushed again. I saw him grab the suction bulb and I realized that his head was already out! A half a push later and Noah Andrew made his debut!
He was born at 1:08pm and was 7 pounds, 7 ounces, 19.5" long and perfectly healthy. I actually cried this time, Dusty did too. I couldn't believe it, but I felt just as much love for Noah as I did for Landon.
Our boys are 364 days apart. Noah and I were released from the hospital the next day at 1:30 and made it to Landon's first birthday party at the park just in time. I got to see Landon smash his cake and open his presents. Noah and I left the party early because I was so exhausted that I began feeling dizzy, but I wouldn't trade being there for the world.
So, there are my birth stories. I don't know how many people will actually read them to their entirety, but they are special to me. October 22nd and October 23rd will always be my favorite days of the year.
