Note: This post goes into some detail about labor and delivery. If that topic is not your cup of tea, stop reading. I won't be offended. :)
Two weeks before my due date I started having contractions daily for 2 hours then they would stop. That happened 4 days in a row. At my 39 week appointment, my doctor gave me the option of being induced on the 22nd. I declined because I would miss all of our Christmas plans. If she came on her own during that time, that was fine, but I didn't want to choose that. I requested to be induced on my due date, the 29th, if she didn't come on her own before then.
I had contractions all afternoon on Christmas day, but they also eventually stopped. On the 26th we did a bunch of cleaning, organizing, and shopping; which was a good thing because I went into labor in the middle of the night, and we went to the hospital with a clean apartment!
At 4:15 in the morning of the 27th I was woken up by a really painful contraction. Because of my previous false alarms, I didn't take it seriously and tried to go back to sleep. But more kept coming, stronger and closer together. I was struggling to watch the clock, so Gerson downloaded a contraction counting app and clocked them for me.
From 4:30-5:00 they were roughly four minutes apart, and by 5:30 they were two minutes apart. During this time they became so painful that breathing techniques weren't helping and I started to yell and scream. I was worried that I would wake up the kids or my neighbors, or both.
We called my parents to ask one of them to come over until Benjamin and Luna woke up, and then take them to their house. Surprisingly, my mom answered on the first ring and sounded awake! I later learned that she had been in a low (She has type 1 diabetes), and she had just barely got her blood sugar up when we called. She sent my dad so that she could rest from her low.
I had a hospital bag packed already, but nothing for the kids to stay with my parents. I had a packing list prepared and left it on the table for my dad. Gerson was helping me get dressed, when an other contraction happened and I felt my body do a small push. For a moment I feared I would deliver at home. I almost told Gerson to call 911, but before I could say anything, a stronger impression helped me say, "New plan. Take my pants and underwear off, and put me in a dress." Gerson ripped my bottom clothes off and stuffed them in my hospital bag, and I put on a floor length stretchy dress.
My dad hadn't shown up yet, but Gerson decided to put me in the car anyway. We opened our door right as my dad walked up. I tried not to scream while we were outside, but one came out anyway and my neighbor - and good friend who was also pregnant and near her due date - opened her door. My dad told her, "Sorry, she's in labor." My friend called for her husband to carry our bags and she helped walk me out to the car. At this point my vision was blurred, so I can't remember seeing anyone, I just heard all of their voices. I apologized if I woke them up. She told me they were already awake, that they were going to the hospital too. I asked her why she was helping me, she laughed and said, "No, I'm not in labor, I'm getting induced today."
While we were driving I went into a kind of daze. I still felt the contractions on the inside, but my body stopped responding to them on the outside. So I stopped tensing up and screaming, I was strangely relaxed and felt like I was falling asleep. I have read that some women do that right before delivery, and I was scared that I would deliver in the car. Gerson drove 20 over the speed limit the whole way, and the pain and feeling came back when we pulled into the parking lot.
I couldn't move on my own to get out of my seat. Gerson was trying to help me, when we heard a voice say, "Would you like a wheel chair?" A nurse who was about to leave had seen us pull up. Gerson said yes and thanked her. She went back inside and brought out another nurse pushing a wheel chair. They wheeled me into a room where more nurses met us.
They asked if I could get into a gown, I told them no, I didn't have underwear on underneath my dress, and I needed to get up onto the bed. Gerson lifted me onto the bed and the nurses started to prep me. They said I was at an 8 and asked if I wanted an epidural, I said, "Yes, if there is time." Gerson later told me that he knew there wasn't going to be time, and he was so scared that I would pass out from the pain.
Whenever I would scream the nurses would kindly say, "Try to turn your screams into deep breaths." They were so nice, positive, and encouraging the whole time. Before they even called the anesthesiologist, I yelled, "I'm pushing!" They checked me and said I was at a 9. They told me my doctor was on his way, and that I needed to not push. They advised me to take short and fast breaths during a contraction to keep myself from pushing. It worked enough to keep baby girl in until my doctor arrived, but it was close and I yelled, "I'm pushing!" two more times. The nurses would say, "You can't, you need to hold it." And I said, "I'm sorry, I'm trying, but I can't control it!" During that last exchange my doctor was in the room putting on his gown, gloves, and mask.
As soon as he was ready I tried my best to follow his instructions, but it was hard because my body was fighting against the pain. I have no idea how long I pushed before Lily was born, but it was quick. She came 30 minutes after we arrived at the hospital. Gerson cut the cord, and they put her on my belly for a quick moment to let me see her, but they had to check her because she had pooped during labor and they wanted to make sure she hadn't swallowed any. The nice thing about the hospital I deliver in is that they don't take baby out of the room for that kind of stuff. They have everything they need right there, and I was able to watch from my bed while Gerson stood right by Lily.
This was my first un-medicated delivery, and I would only do it again if it was as fast as this one was. There is no way I could do that for 8 or 12 hours. I definitely do not regret getting the epidural for Benjamin and Luna!
Once everything had calmed down, they placed her on my chest and we cuddled. I told the nurses I was sorry for all of the screaming. They told me not to worry, that I did great, and they had heard worse. They brought me breakfast, and Gerson fed me while I nursed Lily. On our way to my recovery room, a nurse came up to me and said she was tending to my friend, who was asking about me, but they couldn't tell her anything. Later, when I was rested, I texted her to let her know how I was doing and ask about her.
Because I was so exhausted from lack of sleep and feeling everything, I didn't feel like I really started to bond with Lily until later in the day. I had a similar experience with Benjamin, so I wasn't worried. We stayed in the hospital for two days. My parents brought Benjamin and Luna to visit three times. My friend came by with her baby, and we visited for at least and hour. Lily didn't grasp nursing as quickly as Luna did, but we didn't struggle as much as Benjamin and I did. A week later, she's nursing well!
We have all completely fallen in love with her. Luna wants to hug, kiss, and touch her all of the time. She watches every diaper change, and goes running to the bassinet every time she cries. Benjamin will talk to her when he wants to, but he won't touch her except a soft pat here and there. He does like to say, "She is so cute." They both love her in their own way.
I'm so grateful that she is healthy, and made it here safely. She definitely belongs in our family!
