Margaret's birth story - part 2
Once we got back to the townhouse, I scrounged around for something to eat. All I had eaten was 3/4 of a granola bar, and I was starving. Thomas and Mom both had little errands they had to run, and I told them to both go ahead and do them.
By this point, I was sick and tired of these stupid contractions. The nurse had been very apologetic when sending me home - she had said again that my cervix was very soft, and seemed ready for birth, but I wasn't dilated any more than the 3 1/2cm, and the contractions never got any closer together. She advised me to head home and take a warm bath or shower to relax, and that maybe they'd see me again that day, or maybe the next. When we got home I decided enough was enough. I wasn't going to tolerate this any longer than I had to. I figured of I got both Mom and Thomas (the only two available drivers) out of the house, SOMETHING was bound to happen, and maybe I'd have this baby soon.
As soon as they left, I scarfed down my carrots, celery and peanut butter, and headed into the shower. I'd have rather taken a bath, but the water at the house we're renting only stays hot for 12 minutes, so that was out of the question.
I was still pretty scared at this point. Nothing was going according to my plan - I don't like it when I have to relinquish control. So as I stepped into the shower, I made the one decision that put the control back in my hands (or so I thought at the time): no matter what, I was going to have the baby tonight. If I had to start hiking up and down the hills of the cemetery next to our house, or order really spicy food ( which I hate) this baby was going to get here by golly!
Turned out that I didn't really have to do much of anything. God is nice and merciful sometimes. About 10 minutes into the shower, I heard a "pop" and felt an extra gush of water on my legs. At first I didn't really know what to do. In movies, when the water breaks, you never hear a popping sound, not even for comedic effect. After standing in shock for about 30 seconds, I decided the intelligent thing to do was to turn the shower off, and deduce what exactly was happening. It didn't take long to figure out that yes, my water had indeed broken.
I yelled for Rachel to call Mom and Thomas, to tell them to get home RIGHT NOW. She was a doll, getting things for me, and making sure I had everything I needed. After I dressed, I hobbled my way downstairs, and started ordering her around, and searching for my hairbrush. I'm not sure why I felt the need to have it, but right then I NEEDED that hairbrush in my hospital bag. Thomas and Mom showed up in record time, and Rachel helped me into the (running) car, and Thomas zoomed off.
I will say that the ride to the hospital was not one I enjoyed. I felt every bump and curve, and felt like I was going to throw up. Peanut butter is not something I'd recommend if you feel as though you're about to go in labor, FYI. We managed to get to the hospital without any trouble, or Thomas getting pulled over, and Rachel helped me in while Thomas found a place to park.
Thankfully, my lovely nurses from before were sill in the middle of their shift, and as I went up to the counter (I'm pretty sure that I was the one who said something about my water breaking, but honestly, I don't remember) one of them was there. They got me into a room ASAP, and hooked me up to an IV and blood pressure cuff.
Thomas found his way to the room, and Mom arrived sometime after that. This part gets a little hazy for me. I remember the contractions were horribly awful, some of the worst pain I've ever felt. The sweet sweet student nurse informed me that I had a very high pain tolerance, but after feeling those, I don't think I do. Every time one came on, I squeezed the life out of Thomas' hands, or the student nurse, if he wasn't there. (He gave a report to family about every half hour, giving both of us a needed break).
I had asked earlier that the option for an epidural be available for me, after I figured out how I handled the pain. My first 45min were absolute torture. They gave me something for the pain through the IV after that, and I was absolutely amazed to see the difference in my pain level. The nurse examined me, and said that while my water had indeed broken, and the cervix was almost gone, I still hadn't dilated more than 4cm. That was it. I asked for the epidural. The other meds were starting to wear off by that point, and I could feel how clenched up my body was. I knew unless I found some way to relax, things would only get worse.
The doctor who gave me my epidural was Chinese, very nice, and extremely hard to understand. I didn't understand a word he said through my fog of pain, but the nurses were very nice and repeated his instructions to me. I was told afterwards by both my husband and the nurses that I did very well - apparently the doctor only had to stick me once, which isn't a common occurrence. I didn't feel a thing from him, because I was trying to concentrate very hard on NOT moving during a particularly painful contraction. It was good when people gave me instructions on what to do. I'm all for doing what the body feels necessary, but it was much better for me when I was given instructions on how to move, what to think about, and what was going on around me. I'm pretty sure I even asked Thomas if he had heard anything about when we'd be getting our house :)
Daddy and Rebecca had been called again, and were on their way down. I don't remember a whole lot after the epidural set in. I know Mom and Rachel came in to visit, as did Beka and Dad when they arrived. I said hi, then had Rachel escort them out. I was very happy to have them there, but didn't feel the need for company at the moment.
At 7pm 'my' nurses came in and informed me they were heading out, and shifts were changing. I was so sad to see them go - they were both wonderful, and I am SO grateful to both of them for making my experience such a good one! I was introduced to the night nurse, who was very matter-of-fact about everything. Then I was left alone for the next hour. By 8pm I was feeling lots of intense pressure, and kept asking when the heck the doctor was going to mosey on over. It was just Thomas, Mom and me in the room, and I was so glad Mom was there, since she was the only cool-headed one at that point. The nurses and doctor came in a few minutes later, and started setting everything up.
The hospital is fantastic by the way. The birthing rooms are huge, and EVERYTHING happens in one room - once you get admitted, you don't have to leave until they discharge you! My comfy hospital bed got reformed into a birthing whatchahoozie faster than my little brain could comprehend. One minute I was lying in a cosy dark room, the next thing I knew my legs were up, and these lights were shining very brightly into my midsection.
I was lucky enough to get my favorite of the 3 doctors I had been seeing, Doctor Schaffer. When he felt for the baby's head, he told us in surprise "I feel lots of hair!" As they set up for the birth, he was joking around, and assessing how well Thomas was doing, I think my poor husband was a bit light-headed by that point - so much so that one of the nurses put a chair behind him. As she did so, Dr. Schafer told us how he had one delivery where the husband actually fainted, cracked his head opened, and had to be delivered to the ER as his wife finished delivering their baby. Thomas turned a bit green with that one, but just gripped my hand and assured us he wouldn't need the chair.
Pushing that baby out was the most physically difficult thing I have ever done in my life. Thankfully I had the nurse telling me what to do - how to breath, when to breath, when to push. Both Mom and Thomas kept encouraging me "good job, keep breathing, keep your head down, keep going sweetie!" I can't even begin to imagine how that would have felt without the epidural, because with it IT HURT!
It only took 4 pushes before the head was out, and I believe it was a combined effort of me pushing and the doctor pulling her out that got her out the rest of the way. My very first thought when I saw her was "geez that umbilical cord is short." Doctor Schaffer handed Thomas the scissors to cut the cord - he did a good job, and got it almost all the way on the first try. But that was one of the fattest umbilical cords I've seen (even the nurse commented on it) and he had to snip at it twice.
The next thing I knew, there was a baby girl lying on my chest, looking up at me. She had given a few cries when she was born, but now she was just looking around, taking everything in. I couldn't believe it. As the nurses started busily cleaning up, and the doctor started stitching me up, all I could do was think about the little one in front of me. I could vaguely hear the doctor joking about what a 'cheesy' baby she was (she was COVERED in white, apparently something else that isn't terribly common?) and Mom and Thomas were saying something about the baby, but I only had eyes and ears for her.
I did snap out of my reverie when Mom demanded to know the name. The poor thing, she had been waiting FOREVER, and here we are just staring at the baby. I tried to tell her, but found once I opened my mouth, I couldn't speak. So I nodded at Thomas, and he introduced Mom to her grandbaby, Margaret Elizabeth Vance.
Well, it's a pretty special family name (named after both her great-grandma and great-GREAT-grandma, and Mom started tearing up as Thomas bounced off to tell the rest of the family the wonderful news. We called more family after that, and at some point the nurses took Meggy to be measured and cleaned off a bit.
It was just my family there that night. Everyone got to hold the baby,cane get some cuddles with her. Unlike the baby down the hall who was two hours older, our Margaret was a quiet little one. When she wasn't sleeping, she was just looking around at everyone. It seems as though everyone was taking pictures, but I wasn't really paying attention, except to look where people were clicking cameras, and at my baby.
Daddy and Beka left a little while later; they both had classes to get to the next day. Mom and Rachel also left for the townhouse, with a list of things to bring back the next morning. Thomas and I spent time admiring our new baby, then sent her to the nursery to get her first bath. That night was spent trying to sleep, but I kept being woken up by nurses and people who kept insisting on talking to me. I believe I finally fell asleep about 5am - just in time for the pediatrician to come in and talk to me.
By this point, I was sick and tired of these stupid contractions. The nurse had been very apologetic when sending me home - she had said again that my cervix was very soft, and seemed ready for birth, but I wasn't dilated any more than the 3 1/2cm, and the contractions never got any closer together. She advised me to head home and take a warm bath or shower to relax, and that maybe they'd see me again that day, or maybe the next. When we got home I decided enough was enough. I wasn't going to tolerate this any longer than I had to. I figured of I got both Mom and Thomas (the only two available drivers) out of the house, SOMETHING was bound to happen, and maybe I'd have this baby soon.
As soon as they left, I scarfed down my carrots, celery and peanut butter, and headed into the shower. I'd have rather taken a bath, but the water at the house we're renting only stays hot for 12 minutes, so that was out of the question.
I was still pretty scared at this point. Nothing was going according to my plan - I don't like it when I have to relinquish control. So as I stepped into the shower, I made the one decision that put the control back in my hands (or so I thought at the time): no matter what, I was going to have the baby tonight. If I had to start hiking up and down the hills of the cemetery next to our house, or order really spicy food ( which I hate) this baby was going to get here by golly!
Turned out that I didn't really have to do much of anything. God is nice and merciful sometimes. About 10 minutes into the shower, I heard a "pop" and felt an extra gush of water on my legs. At first I didn't really know what to do. In movies, when the water breaks, you never hear a popping sound, not even for comedic effect. After standing in shock for about 30 seconds, I decided the intelligent thing to do was to turn the shower off, and deduce what exactly was happening. It didn't take long to figure out that yes, my water had indeed broken.
I yelled for Rachel to call Mom and Thomas, to tell them to get home RIGHT NOW. She was a doll, getting things for me, and making sure I had everything I needed. After I dressed, I hobbled my way downstairs, and started ordering her around, and searching for my hairbrush. I'm not sure why I felt the need to have it, but right then I NEEDED that hairbrush in my hospital bag. Thomas and Mom showed up in record time, and Rachel helped me into the (running) car, and Thomas zoomed off.
I will say that the ride to the hospital was not one I enjoyed. I felt every bump and curve, and felt like I was going to throw up. Peanut butter is not something I'd recommend if you feel as though you're about to go in labor, FYI. We managed to get to the hospital without any trouble, or Thomas getting pulled over, and Rachel helped me in while Thomas found a place to park.
Thankfully, my lovely nurses from before were sill in the middle of their shift, and as I went up to the counter (I'm pretty sure that I was the one who said something about my water breaking, but honestly, I don't remember) one of them was there. They got me into a room ASAP, and hooked me up to an IV and blood pressure cuff.
Thomas found his way to the room, and Mom arrived sometime after that. This part gets a little hazy for me. I remember the contractions were horribly awful, some of the worst pain I've ever felt. The sweet sweet student nurse informed me that I had a very high pain tolerance, but after feeling those, I don't think I do. Every time one came on, I squeezed the life out of Thomas' hands, or the student nurse, if he wasn't there. (He gave a report to family about every half hour, giving both of us a needed break).
I had asked earlier that the option for an epidural be available for me, after I figured out how I handled the pain. My first 45min were absolute torture. They gave me something for the pain through the IV after that, and I was absolutely amazed to see the difference in my pain level. The nurse examined me, and said that while my water had indeed broken, and the cervix was almost gone, I still hadn't dilated more than 4cm. That was it. I asked for the epidural. The other meds were starting to wear off by that point, and I could feel how clenched up my body was. I knew unless I found some way to relax, things would only get worse.
The doctor who gave me my epidural was Chinese, very nice, and extremely hard to understand. I didn't understand a word he said through my fog of pain, but the nurses were very nice and repeated his instructions to me. I was told afterwards by both my husband and the nurses that I did very well - apparently the doctor only had to stick me once, which isn't a common occurrence. I didn't feel a thing from him, because I was trying to concentrate very hard on NOT moving during a particularly painful contraction. It was good when people gave me instructions on what to do. I'm all for doing what the body feels necessary, but it was much better for me when I was given instructions on how to move, what to think about, and what was going on around me. I'm pretty sure I even asked Thomas if he had heard anything about when we'd be getting our house :)
Daddy and Rebecca had been called again, and were on their way down. I don't remember a whole lot after the epidural set in. I know Mom and Rachel came in to visit, as did Beka and Dad when they arrived. I said hi, then had Rachel escort them out. I was very happy to have them there, but didn't feel the need for company at the moment.
At 7pm 'my' nurses came in and informed me they were heading out, and shifts were changing. I was so sad to see them go - they were both wonderful, and I am SO grateful to both of them for making my experience such a good one! I was introduced to the night nurse, who was very matter-of-fact about everything. Then I was left alone for the next hour. By 8pm I was feeling lots of intense pressure, and kept asking when the heck the doctor was going to mosey on over. It was just Thomas, Mom and me in the room, and I was so glad Mom was there, since she was the only cool-headed one at that point. The nurses and doctor came in a few minutes later, and started setting everything up.
The hospital is fantastic by the way. The birthing rooms are huge, and EVERYTHING happens in one room - once you get admitted, you don't have to leave until they discharge you! My comfy hospital bed got reformed into a birthing whatchahoozie faster than my little brain could comprehend. One minute I was lying in a cosy dark room, the next thing I knew my legs were up, and these lights were shining very brightly into my midsection.
I was lucky enough to get my favorite of the 3 doctors I had been seeing, Doctor Schaffer. When he felt for the baby's head, he told us in surprise "I feel lots of hair!" As they set up for the birth, he was joking around, and assessing how well Thomas was doing, I think my poor husband was a bit light-headed by that point - so much so that one of the nurses put a chair behind him. As she did so, Dr. Schafer told us how he had one delivery where the husband actually fainted, cracked his head opened, and had to be delivered to the ER as his wife finished delivering their baby. Thomas turned a bit green with that one, but just gripped my hand and assured us he wouldn't need the chair.
Pushing that baby out was the most physically difficult thing I have ever done in my life. Thankfully I had the nurse telling me what to do - how to breath, when to breath, when to push. Both Mom and Thomas kept encouraging me "good job, keep breathing, keep your head down, keep going sweetie!" I can't even begin to imagine how that would have felt without the epidural, because with it IT HURT!
It only took 4 pushes before the head was out, and I believe it was a combined effort of me pushing and the doctor pulling her out that got her out the rest of the way. My very first thought when I saw her was "geez that umbilical cord is short." Doctor Schaffer handed Thomas the scissors to cut the cord - he did a good job, and got it almost all the way on the first try. But that was one of the fattest umbilical cords I've seen (even the nurse commented on it) and he had to snip at it twice.
The next thing I knew, there was a baby girl lying on my chest, looking up at me. She had given a few cries when she was born, but now she was just looking around, taking everything in. I couldn't believe it. As the nurses started busily cleaning up, and the doctor started stitching me up, all I could do was think about the little one in front of me. I could vaguely hear the doctor joking about what a 'cheesy' baby she was (she was COVERED in white, apparently something else that isn't terribly common?) and Mom and Thomas were saying something about the baby, but I only had eyes and ears for her.
I did snap out of my reverie when Mom demanded to know the name. The poor thing, she had been waiting FOREVER, and here we are just staring at the baby. I tried to tell her, but found once I opened my mouth, I couldn't speak. So I nodded at Thomas, and he introduced Mom to her grandbaby, Margaret Elizabeth Vance.
Well, it's a pretty special family name (named after both her great-grandma and great-GREAT-grandma, and Mom started tearing up as Thomas bounced off to tell the rest of the family the wonderful news. We called more family after that, and at some point the nurses took Meggy to be measured and cleaned off a bit.
It was just my family there that night. Everyone got to hold the baby,cane get some cuddles with her. Unlike the baby down the hall who was two hours older, our Margaret was a quiet little one. When she wasn't sleeping, she was just looking around at everyone. It seems as though everyone was taking pictures, but I wasn't really paying attention, except to look where people were clicking cameras, and at my baby.
Daddy and Beka left a little while later; they both had classes to get to the next day. Mom and Rachel also left for the townhouse, with a list of things to bring back the next morning. Thomas and I spent time admiring our new baby, then sent her to the nursery to get her first bath. That night was spent trying to sleep, but I kept being woken up by nurses and people who kept insisting on talking to me. I believe I finally fell asleep about 5am - just in time for the pediatrician to come in and talk to me.
Aww, we loved reading Meggy's birth story. Alexis is in tears. Congratulations again on your beautiful new baby girl.
ReplyDeleteThe doctor was not pulling Meggie at all - it was all your pushing!!
ReplyDeleteSarah did really really well with a LOT of pain. I'm soooo glad she accepted the pain meds and then the epidural as I think she's right and her body was just too tense to relax and open up that cervix. Once the meds kicked in, everything started moving forward again.
And Sarah, you Thomas missed the conversation the nurses had with me over whether or not to put that chair behind Thomas. I told them it was a good idea. ;)