This new little one on the way has made me think – I never wrote down Annie’s birth story. Since I’ll likely post the birth story for The Bean, I thought I might go ahead and write Annie’s down too…before my mind becomes complete mush and I mangle the two together – and so that later she won’t ask me why I didn’t write hers down. 😉
Uhhh, Honey?
Two days before my due date, I was out walking around our neighborhood at about 7am. Walking uphill toward the townhouse, I felt something weird run down my leg. My first thought was “Good grief! Now I’m peeing and I can’t even stop it.” But then I had a realization that my water had just broken. My next thought was “Thank God everyone is asleep and doesn’t see me walking around the neighborhood in wet pants.”
I went home and woke Barry up. I said “I think my water just broke.” I swear, I’ve never seen my husband move that fast. I wasn’t in a hurry though. I took a shower, got ready, put on my make-up and everything. Then we headed to my OB office because my appointment was that morning anyway.
An examination confirmed that I wasn’t ready to be in labor. They were worried about infection so I was sent to the hospital for pitocin…after being ordered to start walking for a few hours. Already this birth was NOT going the way I had planned it. Not at all. I did NOT want to be induced. I was a little mad, especially later when I found out they didn’t even need to induce me yet.
Not as Planned
They started me on a pitocin drip as soon as I got to the hospital. I had the BEST nurses…they really made things a lot easier to bear. Let me tell you something…pitocin contractions are PAINFUL! I had hoped to hold off on an epidural for a long time…but no, I got it right away because I hurt so bad. (I’m hoping to do things MUCH differently with this new baby – post coming soon.)
So, here’s my most embarrassing moment…epidurals sorta make you all, well – loose. I kept hearing someone passing gas. Finally I said to the nurse, “Is that ME?” She laughed and said, “Well honey, it sure ain’t me.” Yeah….
My labor did not progress all day. There was talk of a c-section, but Barry and I resisted. The pitocin was messing with me, so I had to have oxygen…and that was SCARY. Finally, around 10:30pm, it seemed like the baby was finally ready. I had my feet up in the air, I was naked from the waist down, and everyone was looking at my lady parts…and you know what, I didn’t care one lick. Labor takes away your sense of modesty for sure.
Annie Arrives
I labored a while longer and pushed for about 10 minutes. Annie was born at 11:40pm. When she came out, my first thought was “WOW! That came outta me?! That is HUGE!”
Barry really enjoyed telling everyone that she was a girl and giving her name – AnnaLeigh Joy. We had kept it a secret (the name), but we were all surprised that she was a girl…even my doctor was convinced she was a boy. Even today, she keeps us guessing.
All in all, things went well…even if it didn’t go how I thought it would. But, most of life is that way. 😀 We Mamas just have to go with the baby flow.
Even though it didn’t go as planned, Annie still arrived. She and I were happy and healthy, and I feel blessed. I’m so grateful that things turned out the way they did.
How did YOUR first birth turn out?
*This post is linked at Finer Things Friday on Amy’s Finer Things.
My first and only birth (so far) was not exactly what I had planned but it all worked out in the end. I was placed on bed rest at 30 weeks for preterm labor but my daughter was breech. At 34 weeks I started having what I thought was back labor with contractions every 5-8 minutes and really intense pain. I called the dr and they had me come in. It turns out I had a double kidney infection that was causing the contractions. I was already high risk because of type 1 diabetes so they hospitalized me and put me on magnesium. I spent the next 2 weeks in the hospital (including Christmas) and finally asked for an amnio to check her lungs at 36w 4d. It came back all clear and they scheduled the c section for the next day because she was still breech and I was already high risk and the placenta was in a bad place for trying to turn her. I actually had a very fast recovery and overall the birth and recovery was a pretty good experience.
That’s wonderful! And that’s the important part – that you and the baby are just fine. 🙂
My first birth, like most women, I imagine, did not go as planned. I was all prepared for an all-natural, no-drugs labor and delivery. I had a midwife who was fantastic and really encouraged me to go that route. She even let me go 2 weeks past my due date to see if I would go naturally on my own. However…not the case. Not even a little bit. Would you believe I never dilated? Not even one lousy little centimeter. And to top it all off, the night before I was supposed to go in for my “where do we go from here” appointment (to schedule an induction), my headstrong daughter decided to flip on me. I guess she was tired of being upside down. And MAN DID THAT HURT! So, she made the decision for me. The midwife decided that she was too large to try and turn manually, so I was scheduled for a c-section the next day. I left her office, got into my car, and started crying. That’s not what I wanted or what I had planned. I was so let down and scared about having a c-section. But all went well and my 10 lb 1 oz daughter was born the next day. It was a very painful recovery, but she was healthy and that’s all I could have asked for. And I was only slightly grateful I didn’t have to give birth naturally to a 10 lb baby.
#2 went the same route – no dilation, no contractions, nothing. Some women might say I’m lucky. But hey, God gave me two healthy beautiful children. I guess in the end it doesn’t really matter how they exited my body, right?
Healthy, beautiful children is what it’s ALL about! Great job, mama! 🙂 Who cares how they got here – they’re here…amen?!
I was induced at 38 weeks when I had my little girl. I had gestational diabetes that I was able to manage it with diet. The doctor wanted to induce at 37 weeks due to pre-eclampsia, but was willing to wait one week and watch me carefully and I was sent home with instructions to spend as much time as possible at rest. I had gained 12 lbs (water weight) in less than a week and had severe pitting edema. I went into the hospital the night before for cervadil as my body was not ready for labor. They started the pitocin drip at 7 am the next morning. By 11 am they had the pitocin drip up as high as it would go. They kept asking me my pain level and I kept telling them I wasn’t in any pain at all. The pitocin was causing contractions, but they weren’t causing any dialation, so they didn’t hurt. The doctor checked me about half way through and said I was still at zero and asked if I wanted to have them forcibly dialate me with a catheter. That would be the only way they could break my water to see if that would help the contractions do their magic. He didn’t recommend it and said it would be very painful, but he wanted to let me know it was available. I passed on that option. Finally at about 5pm, I got really emotional when the doctor checked me and I was still at 0. I felt like I had failed because my body wouldn’t do what it was supposed to do. The doc felt it was best to call it a failed induction and took me in for a c-section. That was the best decision for me and I am grateful that the Lord provided the perfect doctor for me. I fully support every woman’s right to have whatever kind of birth she feels is best for her and her baby (assuming it is a safe and healthy option). It gets really old having people pass judgement on other’s women’s choices about not having a natural childbirth. Each woman has a very different and personal experience when delivering their child. The most important thing was the health and safety of me and my baby girl and I would do it all over again the exact same way to have her safe in my arms. My little one was a chunky 9 lbs and had no health effects from being born via c-section. Chances are, if I have another one, I will battle gestational diabetes again (I have PCOS and that is common with that condition) and possibly pre-eclampsia (another common occurance with women who have PCOS)and I will probably have another c-section, and I’m ok with that.
You are 100% correct! As a Mommy, our goal is to bring a healthy baby into this world..and it sounds like you did just that. 🙂 Thank you so much for sharing your story!
Well, ya look great in the picture! I forbid anybody to take pictures of me after giving birth. It doesn’t go well for me. Ever.
It sounds like your caregivers were more interested in managing your birth than in helping you have a baby. That’s been my experience with 2 of my 5. Just felt like they were taking all kinds of unnecessary steps just to make me and my baby more convenient for them. I guess that’s human nature. Someday, I hope medical schools and nursing schools will teach future providers to guard against that urge to just get it over with already. Anyhow, that’s a beautiful baby, and a lovely mama to match, so all’s well that ends well, right? I hope your next birth is as good as my 2nd and 4th! 😉
Yes, I agree. It’s hard to know you’ve been lied to….but, we’ve both got healthy babies, right? 🙂
What a great birth story. I’ve been 8 months to write mine, and I think it’s about time now. Thankfully I jotted down some notes a week after so I wouldn’t forget things. I just love reading these stories. What a cute newborn she was.
You’re not doing too bad. Annie was almost 3 by the time I finally got it written. LOL
I like reading everyones Labor stories! My first I woke up in labor on my due date, no water broken, debated for hours wheter I was truely in labor or not. Hubby and I went to breakfast where my contractions became pretty regular at about 3 min apart but then after about an hour when we got back home they spread back out. I staid at home all day walking, bouncing on an exercise ball, debating whether I should go to the hospital since my water had not broken and the cotractions were painful but not as I expected “real labor” to be. Finally I told my hubby to go to bed about 9pm and get some rest since we would be going to the hospital soon. Contractions continued and I finally got into the bath about 12am to get some relief. At that point Hubby had enough and said, get your stuff we are going to the Hospital. When the nurse checked me I was at a 5, and my Dr. was on call for only the next 6 hours so they said, lets get you going and gave me Pit. Soon after I gave into the Epi and progressed quickly to an 8. However, that is where the realitivley easy labor stopped! I remained at an 8 for another 8 HOURS! Every contraction she would come down and then go back up, after Dr. broke my water, and examined several times, they said they thought she was turned sideways and was just not going to come out that way! So, C-Section it was at that point. After 36 hours in labor with NO SLEEP and a C-Section later, here was a healthy 8lb 3oz perfect baby girl. She was in-fact turned sideways and her head was back, presenting forehead first! Crazy girl! I am really hoping to have a VBAC if at all possible next time around and try to do the whole thing naturally. Did I mention after all of that my Dr. did not even get to deliver her!
Girl, you went through it! Thanks for sharing. 🙂 I hadn’t known how things went for you…
It was kind of crazy, you could actually tell that she was trying to come forehead first, she almost had the “cone head” but in the front a little :). Hope things go as you plan this time around! Congratulations!
Thanks Court! 🙂 I’m tickled to know that you’re reading here…I didn’t know!
I had decided that I wanted a Natural Childbirth and my husband and I knew that we wanted privacy during the labor and delivery so we hired a Doula so we would have a support person and someone that was medically trained that could help us make decisions if needed and looking out for our best interest and our babies. We had informed family and friends that we were not going to tell anyone I was in labor but that we would call as soon as I delivered. My doctor kept telling us that my baby would be over 10 pounds if I delivered full term and they kept pushing induction but that was not what we wanted, however we finally agreed to let them strip my membranes on Thursday to see if that would get me going and the doctor said that if the baby was ready to come then this would work but if he wasn’t ready then we could do it again next week because I did not want to be induced with Pitocin because of everything I had read that says it makes your contractions stronger and I knew I wanted a natural birth. On Friday I lost my mucus plug and that weekend we walked like crazy and had sex, we tried every natural induction we had read or heard about.
It was Monday, I was 38 weeks, 3 days and I had worked 8:30 to 5:00 and got home and my husband asked how I was feeling and I told him that I had felt a little nauseous all day (which was strange because I had a perfect pregnancy, never sick or nauseous) and that I was going to lay down for a few minutes then I’d start supper. After about 30 minutes of resting I got up and made this huge supper of chicken, rice, broccoli and cheese and cheddar biscuits, then after supper I decided that since I was so close to my due date that I should repaint my toenails so I started doing that and my husband was playing with our Bull Terrier with my Yoga Ball. (which I had been sitting on for the past month or so do help open up my pelvis and stretch the perineum to avoid an episiotomy per my Doula’s instructions, not to mention it felt great sitting on that ball, I would even sit on it at the dining room table when we ate supper) I stood up and kicked the ball at our dog and she jumped because it scared her and I laughed and my water broke, it was 8:52 PM. My husband called our Doula while I got cleaned up and finished painting my toenails. I called our doctors office and the doctor on call (the only one in the practice we hadn’t met yet) wanted me to come in immediately even though it was in our birth plan that they had that I would labor at home for a while, finally after arguing with her I told her that I would be in shortly and left it at that. Our Doula got to our house at 11 PM, my contractions hadn’t started yet so she gave me some homeopathic crystals to put under my tongue and put me in the shower for nipple stimulation and by 11:30 PM the contractions had started. We labored at home until 1:00 AM then I decided I wanted to go to the hospital because I just assumed that I was really far along, once I got there I was 4 cm. I spent the majority of my labor with the back of the hospital bed straight up and my knees against the back of the bed and I was leaning over the back, this was the best position for me and believe me I had tried them all that night. I was not hooked up to an IV machine so I was able to remain mobile and upright the entire time. I did labor in the tub for 1 to 2 hours when I got tired to slow down my contractions and this freaked Wellmont out, they had to get my doctor to approve it and kept saying “You cannot have a water birth” so they reluctantly agreed and I was able to get some rest. I got to 10 cm but I was not at station +3 so I started pushing to help the baby to descend and it felt good, I also labored and delivered naked because the hospital gown bothered the daylights out of me, for my next birth I will wear a nursing tank top. Around 7:30 AM the shift changed so I got new nurses and a doctor and it was one of our favorites from the practice. Around 9 AM everyone left and came back with this huge covered cart and everyone was in goggles and covered up and I knew it was time. I had put in my birth plan that I wanted to avoid an Episiotomy and this doctor was in agreeance with that however he did perineal massage for what seemed like forever and finally he said “I’m going to have to do an Episiotomy, your perineum is not stretching enough and you will tear if I don’t”, so I agreed to it. I pushed a couple of times and got to touch the baby while I was pushing and at 9:31 AM here he came, he had a big cone head from all the pushing but that went away after a day or so. After he was born we called our parents and they were there about an hour later. It was a perfect labor and delivery in our opinions, we wouldn’t have changed a thing!
What a GREAT story! 🙂 Thanks so much for sharing!!! I love reading all the birth stories I can get my hands on! It pumps me up!
My story with my first is very similar to yours too. I woke up in the morning with my water breaking about 2 weeks before my due date. I blame it on the earthquake that happened in Illinois the previous weekend. They told me I needed to come in right away to avoid infection for the baby even though I was having no contractions. NONE! What a bunch of lies(like you said.) We were there by 8 a.m. only the hospital was so full of moms giving birth that they made me wait in the waiting room. We found out they were sending home scheduled inductions because they couldn’t hold another person. I finally got put in a room about 11:30 or 12:00 (tiny interview room) where they have you sign all the fun papers before baby comes. They hooked me up to monitors, still no contractions. A laboring room finally opened and they got me in about 1:30. Hooked me right up to the pitocin as I was still not having any contractions. Those have got to be the most awful contractions in the world. I apparently almost bit my husband because I was in so much pain (oops). I finally pushed out my first little bundle of joy about 7:30 at night. Not to long laboring and didn’t give in to the epidural but looking back, man I wish I would have. Then because they were so booked they sent me to some other section of the hospital to recover for my first night, they were working on the main water line, No WATER to take showers or flush toilets or wash hands!! Yuck. They had bottled water, not cold and hand sanatizer. Eww. I had an awful nurse that came in the middle of the night to tell me we couldn’t have crying babies! Yes you read that right!! I was confused too. My husband and I decided she didn’t normally work in the maternity ward 🙂 If she did, she needed to find a different job because she was confused. Babies they cry, all the time. We had awful delivery nurses, we had to switch rooms the second day. Finally got water turned on. The last nurse we had I wish I could have had the whole time. Super sweet, and helpful and we got out of the class you are supposed to attend before you leave. I wanted to leave ASAP. She asked how the stay was, I told her EVERYTHING, we ended up getting a $50 gift card to a really nice restaurant just because we had such a terrible stay. That was nice but didn’t make up for all the bad.
My second was much much less eventful. My water did not break, but my body could not decide if I was going to have contractions or not. We tried everything to get them to come. They finally did, we went to the hospital, the doctor didn’t want to wait all night because I was the only patient. She broke my water, I went into hard labor and 30 minutes later (maybe it was that long) less than 2 minutes of pushing my daughter arrived. We were one of three couple in there the whole weekend. We had colds, the nurses stayed out of our room. It was quiet peaceful and oh so different from the first one. I just wish I had discovered the drink and snack room before the morning that we left:) The nurses were so bored we ended up with tons of free samples, diapers, etc.. because they were cleaning they had so little work to do.
I love reading you blog. It’s probably my favorite! Don’t tell anyone else. I love your humor, and you raw honesty about everything. More people should be like you. Thanks!
Megan, thanks so much for sharing your story!! I am always in shock to hear how many women are told the same thing when their water breaks. If my water breaks this time, I just won’t call. LOL
I appreciate your kind words. 🙂 Thank you!
I was 1 week overdue and I was scheduled to be induced on Friday. When I called that morning to confirm, they said that they were “full up” and I would have to come on Sunday. I was really disapointed and should have taken my mom up on her offer to go get my toes done. My SIL wrote everything down, so I have a very detailed birth story.
My water was broken at 11:14 and the Pitocin was started at 11:37. No epidural, but I had Phentinil around 3:30 because I couldn’t relax my muscles. Pain makes me tense. At 7:35 that night, I started to push and Blayke arrived at 7:56. As soon as I started to push, my husband, dad an brother practically ran from the room. My husband will almost faint if he has to get a shot himself, so I didn’t expect him to stay there. I had Chili’s food by 8:45 (hubby works there).
Except for getting sick from massive heartburn, it was a pretty easy delivery. He wasn’t that big, 6 lb. 13 oz.
Chili’s, yum! For me, it was Subway! 🙂
I have always wanted a natural, drug-free childbirth, partly because I hate needles and partly because I dislike drugs in both my system and my baby’s. I read all the information I could regarding labor and delivery. After telling my doctor for the entire pregnancy that I was going natural and not inducing, he finally believed me at 39 weeks or so when I was dilated to 4 cm and not in active labor. I delivered just short of 41 weeks. My story: I worked until around 4:30 p.m. and went home. We were suppose to go out for dinner with friends, but I felt uncomfortable so we stayed home. After a while I realized I was having contractions. My husband started timing and realized they were about 1 1/2 minutes apart. Luckily the hospital was only 10 minutes away. I arrived completely dilated and effaced. When a doctor (my OB/GYN was out of town) arrived she broke my water, and the little one came out two pushes later. She was born at 7:29 p.m. less than 3 hours after leaving work. I had my perfect natural, drug-free childbirth. I was rather excited because I know it does not always happen they way you imagine.
Wow….that’s awesome! 🙂 I’ve been reading too. Next on my list, the book by Ina May.
I am convinced we would have had a c-section had we not had a doula. The doctor was talking about “needing to do something”. Our doula suggested breaking my water since that had not happened yet, the doctor’s response was, “well we could, but it won’t do anything”. Well Mr. M.D, half hour later our sweet little girl was out.
No matter, we are all healthy and God knew how it would happen!
I am SO EXCITED about having a doula this time!! 🙂
I am SO glad!
Were/will you be able to find a Christian? Makes a huge difference in where your support and strength is coming from.
🙂 My good friend, Brandy, is my doula.
But here’s my question. How did you work through your anger/disappointment over the fact that it didn’t go as you planned/hoped and the fact that the doctors did something that didn’t need to be done which impacted your labour/birth a lot? I’m six months out from my son’s birth and, though I was able to labour and deliver him without drugs as I had hoped, there were many complications when he came out, some of them caused by the medical care I was given. Things that have the doctors recommending a c-section for future babies and me dealing with a lot of anger and disappointment over how wrong it seems to have gone. How did you work through it?
I prayed….a lot. I had to dwell on the fact that I had my awesome, new baby girl and she was perfectly fine. 🙂 It takes time….and you need to talk through it. I have a doula this time, so she’s helping me work through the past problems and really focus on how I want things this time. You might consider seeking out a doula to help you with this baby. 🙂 And let me know if I can help you. I’ll pray for you right now.
I was induced at 37 weeks with my first because of high blood pressure issues. After 2 days in the hospital with no progression he was born by c-section. I did not want the surgery but now I know God was looking out for us. His umbilical cord was wrapped around his neck and if he had tried to come down the birth canal he would have most likely died. God’s plan is always the best plan. Baby #2 took 14 hours and a doozy of an episiotomy to get her out. She was stubborn then and still is today. :)But I love her so much.#3 was the easiest of all. I call her my sweet little surprise because not only was she herself a surprise but I couldn’t believe how easy her birth was after the first being somewhat difficult. Scheduled to be induced I arrived at the hospital already in labor and dilated to 4 and didn’t even know it! 4 hours and 2 pushes later she was here.
🙂 You have some great stories there, Christy. Thanks so much for sharing them with me!
All five of ours have been home births and awesome. I feel very blessed to have had such good births without complications, etc. With our first, my water broke at midnight and I didn’t start contractions until noon the next day. Then she was born at 6:25pm. I think docs at the hospital are just too eager to get things going and too afraid of being sued, thus the pitocin and c-section rate.
I think you are 100% right. When I found out that I didn’t really need to be induced, I was MAD. lol
That is funny! My sister-in-law had baby # 4 on labor day. My brother called my mom and said “hey Mom, it’s labor day”, my mom said that yes she knew, Then he said “no, it is really labor day, Michele is in labor!”
LOL That’s really awesome!
My first time in labor took a looooong time. I woke up around 10AM on Saturday having contractions, waited until around 9PM to head to the hospital and my doctor (who wasn’t supposed to have been on call Saturday, but was on Sunday) had just left the hospital a couple of hours earlier. But my water hadn’t broken yet, so they were just going to let me wait it out and let her get a few hours of sleep. She said she’d be back at 7 in the morning. I was going to try it without the epidural, but I only made it until around 3 in the morning. They came to check me around 7 and accidentally broke my water while they were checking me. She got there around 8AM Sunday morning. I started pushing around 10AM and at 11:44 AM Sunday my first son was born.
I didn’t realize until I had my second son that the epidural wasn’t working right on that first one. It was still really painful! The second time around the contractions were faster, stronger and a lot harder than the first time, but labor was a breeze once I got the epidural! I was laughing (and making the doctor laugh at me) when I was trying to push. And the second one was almost a pound heavier! He came a lot faster, too. The same waking up with erratic contractions, but only about 6 hours of serious labor and 30 minutes of pushing. The strangest thing between the 2 was that my first son was 8 days early and my second son was 1 day late! (Well…2 hours actually. 😉 )
That just goes to show that each child is different! Even in the way they enter the world….
I’m so glad you’re having the baby in a hospital as so many bloggers seem to want home births. I think it’s very risky and after all the object is a healthy baby, not an experience to make good blog material.
Carole, I’m actually a fan of home births. 🙂 I’ve had several friends birth at home and several birth at hospitals. I think it’s just personal preference. I prefer the care of the nurses and of course, breakfast in bed. LOL
Barry is more comfortable with me at a hospital…
This story made me laugh only because even when in pain and things are not going as planned you do not lose your sense of humor. And what is it with first kids looking like they popped straight out of daddy? Can you, please, explain this? 😛 Love.it.so.much.
My birth story didn’t go as planned either. I didn’t plan for back labor, having to get my water broken, or a really fast and furious delivery. I expected a long labor like other first time moms have. Let me just tell you, fast and furious is overwhelming! 😛
I loved your story too, Leigh Ann! I can’t wait to read all your future ones. 😉
My first was an induction at 37 weeks due to high blood pressure and it ended with a forcepts delivery…but my girl was healthy 7lbs 9oz (she’s 17yrs old now), My second was an induction at 40 weeks due to my doctor going on vacation and it ended with a c-section…but my son was healthy 9lbs 7oz (he’s 12yrs old now) My third was a home birth VBAC at 43 weeks (that’s not a typo!) My best birth experience for sure!! my son was healty 10 pounds 3 ounces!!! (he’s now 10yrs old) My fourth came through adoption! So that was 5 years worth of “labor” but I picked him up a day after his birth he was healthy 7 pounds (he’s 10 months now) I learned so much thrugh each of my birth experiences…God definetly has a plan and He uses every experience to teach us something! Thanks for sharing your birth with us!
What an AWESOME story!!! 🙂 Our God does indeed have a plan!!
My first time giving birth was May 5, 2006. I had a Dr visit on May 3 and he told me I would probably go sometime over the weekend. I REALLY wanted MY Dr to deliver. He scheduled me to be induced on Friday. Well, I get up at 4am Friday morning so excited that this was the day. I take a shower and while in the shower, I have this strange pain in my stomach, so I when I get ready I wake my husband and tell him we need to go. His response “We don’t have to be there till 6:00, right??” I said “YEAH But I am hurting and we need to go”. So up he went. I delivered at Holston Valley in Kingsport, TN. I was ok till half way down Stone Drive I was really hurting. Needless to say I didn’t need to be induced after all, but I didn’t progress very fast. I FINALLY got my epidural at 4cm, I was in so much pain, the epidural was awesome! My contractions went from 60 on the scale to 100 and I didn’t feel a thing!! 60 was pretty darn painful, thank goodness I didn’t have to feel what 100 was like!! I got up to 9cm and wasn’t progressing much so they did have to give me pitocin to speed it up a bit.
Finally at around 2:30 or 3:00 that afternoon they said I could start pushing. I pushed for what felt like eternity when the Dr stopped me and said that her head was not coming out my pelvic bone was too narrow. So he was going to use suction, forceps and if that didn’t work, he brought up the dreaded words… C-section. The suction worked….it slipped off once and I thought my husband was going to pass out, the sound of the suction coming loose was so loud, he thought her head popped off. Everything was fine, she was delivered at 5:47pm, healthy and precious. She had a bruise on her head for about 2 weeks from the suction thing. It took 12+ hours of labor and 2 1/2 hours of pushing, but she was finally here!!
She turns 6 this year, I can’t believe it!! Time goes by so fast. She’ll be a big 1st grader next school year!!! 🙁
I loved the part “so up he went.” LOL Husbands are so funny!
What a great idea! I never wrote down my first’s birth story either, and you’re right, I’ll probably be mixing up the two if I don’t write the first down before the second one comes!
I wish I’d only had to push for 10 minutes!
Write it down, girlfriend! 🙂
My first pregnancy, I went into labor – on Labor Day weekend! Go figure! My husband and I even had tickets to go to a baseball game that evening (his beloved Texas Rangers were playing!). But I woke up around 5 a.m. with what I thought were just bad gas cramps. They were coming in waves, but not in regular intervals. So we waited and called the OB office when they opened. My water hadn’t broken, and I was 2 weeks from my due date. The OB had me come it right away, thinking everything was fine, but they’d check it out anyway. I get called back, hop up on the table – and my water breaks, right then and there! She checks me out and says I’m already at 3 cm, to go ahead and get myself checked in. Her office is in a building attached to the hospital, so I insisted on walking over to admissions. I was checked in by 10, gave in to the epidural at noon, and my son was born about 2:30. My sister and best friend had been in the room with us (my BF was going to be a sort of doula for me), but they stepped out just about 2 to run to the cafeteria to get a drink. By the time they got back, I was pushing and they wouldn’t let them in the room! When they were allowed back in, I had my beautiful baby boy in my arms. 9-1/2 years and a second son (almost age 7) later, I’ll never forget that day. We still have the baseball game tickets in his baby book!
Labor on Labor Day. That’s CLASSIC! lol
My first born was a really easy birth. He was born a month early, and at the time I was a cashier at Wal-Mart. We were in the middle of the flu season so when I started getting sick I thought I had the flu turns out I had actually been in labor for a few days. I went for my check up and told the nurse I felt awful and when she heard my symptoms including the diarrhea which I never heard as being a sign of labor but apparently it is. So the Dr comes in and checks and I was 7cm dialated I thought wow this is a breeze lol. The hard part came later. What we didnt expect was having all the family there during it seemed to take away from the moment. He was born a few hours after I was admitted to the hosp. The second child was much harder than the first and I expected it to be another breeze, it was no where close, but then again she weighed almost 11lbs and he was only 6 and the second go round we didnt call everyone at first. We all learn being a mom nothing ever goes as planned.
🙂 Yeah, calling everyone is a first time blunder. LOL I don’t plan on doing that again either.
With my first I wanted to do everything natural. We were dead set that there would be no induction and no pain meds. However, old OB had other notions and convinced us he was so huge that he needed to come and gave us the whole, “well I’m out of town next week so you risk not having me to deliver.” We fell into the trap and went in for induction. I do have to say though, I went 19hrs without any pain meds! But because of the induction my body was resisting it and I didn’t progress past a certain point so csection 🙁 I was heartbroken… This time around I had a fantastic OB, he was even the Dr. that was on the Bates family show on TLC. He prayed with us the whole pregnancy and at the birth of my son. He’s was truly a God-send.
My 2nd son was born Feb. 16th this year and it was AMAZING!!! I went for a VBAC and my OB was so encouraging. He actually doesn’t like to do csections (what ob/surgeon doesn’t like to do csections? One that is completely looking at the best interest and health of their patient, and that makes me happy). Well, I’m a teacher and I went into early labor on my due date. I was still teaching and all day kept feeling these twinges and pains, I realized over an hour later I was having contractions so I started timing them. When I had my last class of the day I text my husband and said, “BTW, I have been having contractions all day” I get this frantic phone call, “Like how close? Do I need to come get you? etc…” (love the hubs) I told him no I was fine. He insisted that he leave work which was a good thing because by the time school was out and I got home my contractions were 5-6mins apart and I needed his support. We went to the L&D but I wasn’t that far progressed so went home. It got to the point 3hrs later where they were 1 1/2 mins apart so we went back. I still hadn’t moved from 2cms but they admitted me anyway. I did opt for some pain meds this time which was hilarious cause it was Nubain and Phenergan and I was so out of it (good because it helped me sleep, thats why I got it). Well, I still ended up with an epi the next morning because my contraction were so strong (baby was positioned funny).
I labored throughout the day, it came time to push and I was so excited even though I was exhausted!!! When he was born my Doc said, “reach down and pull out your baby.” I was like, “WHAT?” It was the coolest thing ever!!! I pulled my own baby up onto my chest. Talk about a night and day experience with my 2 births. VBACs are the way to go for sure. I keep telling people don’t do major surgery if you don’t have to! I’m already ready to do it again and my son is only 7weeks old! LOL (The previous comment happens to make my hubby weak at the knees, haha)
That is AWESOME!!! It’s also a relief to find out that some doctors tell you things to make it easier on themselves….I felt lied to a lot with my first birth. I won’t make the same mistake again…I’m getting INFORMED! 😉
What a story!! As a doula, I am surprised you only pushed 10 minutes with your first baby!! That is great!!
My first labor, I was young, a bit naive and had seen my mom have these easy births, so sort of figured that was the way it was, I figured I could do it on my own without a midwife. I woke up in the middle of the night after being soaked with my water breaking…which was not fun, I got up, changed, and went down to use the bathroom, when I got upstairs and told my husband to call my mom. I was already shaking, and many other signs of transition, I was weak though from being sick the whole pregnancy, that I had some complications, lack of strength….finally, I decided to try the shower, it took the pain away and I stayed in there until I had the baby, in a supported squat with my husband holding me. My labor was about 7.5 hours from the time my water broke. I learned that while some births turn out great in the end, I love home birth, but I love having a trained midwife as a care provider now! My mom went to school now…so she can still be there! = ) I have four sons now, all born at home.
Awesome!! Thanks for sharing, Martha! I am looking forward to using the shower as pain relief this time…our hospital doesn’t have a birthing pool. 🙁
My first was planned because we needed a lot of people present: pediatric cardiologist and cardio-thoracic
surgeon, NICU nurses and staff, and a number of other doctors and nurses. I was induced at 8:25 am (2 hours late). I labored until 7pm, after getting an epidural after just 2 hours. I pushed for more than 2 hours and was getting prepped for an emergency c-section (his heart rate was dropping) when I started throwing up again and with nurses helping push on my belly, my first son arrived at 9:27pm. He was taken away within minutes to be evaluated by his cardiology staff at the attached children’s hospital. I didn’t see him until he was 18 hours old and was already on a ventilator. It wasn’t what I hoped for delivery-wise, but I wouldn’t have changed it for anything because the staff was there and he arrived safely.
And a safe arrival is what is the most important! 🙂
Love birth stories! I went into labor with my daughter on a Wednesday afternoon. Contractions very quickly stabilized and were 3 mins apart but not very strong. First mistake, called the doctor. We had taken Bradley classes but my husband freaked out that they were regular so quick. Second mistake, went to the hospital. I was a 3! Labored all night, did I mention it was ALL back labor? In the morning I was a 4. Doctor knew how much we wanted a natural birth so I was given the option of pitocin or going home to labor more. Went home and labored all day. Called our Bradley instructor and tried every trick in the world to relieve back labor and speed things up. That night I was beyond exhausted b/c I had been laboring for 30 hours and (third mistake) we went back to the hospital. I was at a 5!! Are you kidding me? Doctor said your choices are a csection or pitocin. Hooked up to pitocin and got an epidural. Slept a very little bit that night. In the morning I was a 7. They pumped me up to the max with pitocin and water finally broke. Quickly went to a 10 but no urge to push. Epidural was wearing off and finally felt the urge to push. Pushed for 2 hours and our daughter was finally born after 45 hours of labor. Delivery was awful b/c my OB didn’t make it in time (after 2 days!) and staff doc delivered. Birth plan was not followed at all. Shortly after my blood pressure bottomed out from the epidural and they had to pump me full of fluids and administered ephedrine to get my heart working right. Delivery was not what we planned at all and it took me a long time to get past it. We planned a home birth with a midwife for this baby but at only 7 weeks there have been some complications. Switched to an OB last week and praying everything turns out all right. OB is very supportive of natural labor and working with a doula, which we will have this time. Good luck this time and I hope things go much better.
Ashley, I just said a prayer for your future birth. 🙂 Thank you so much for sharing your story here.
Wow Stacy, what an experience! You have a great attitude about that birth (don’t great nurses make all the difference?). I hope this next birth is beautiful and smooth.
Here’s my daughter’s birth story:
http://summerdoula.com/2010/05/29/leslees-birth-story/
Yes!!! Terrible nurses would have been hard to deal with!
Thanks for sharing Annie’s birth story! I love her full name, AnnaLeigh Joy!
And no, things don’t always go as planned, so I’m not going to tell you my first or second birth story. But I have two happy and healthy children, and that is all that matters!
Amen sista! 🙂
Oh my goodness–Your first labor is STRIKINGLY similar to my first labor! My water broke first…I had JUST gone to the bathroom, so I thought when I stood up I was still peeing on myself…haha! It was in the middle of the night. I took a shower and we were off to the hospital. They immediately gave me pit. and hooked me up to a catheter, and I finally gave in and got the epidural after 8 1/2 hours (those pit. contractions HURT…I can say after the second time that natural contractions are MUCH more bearable!). All in all, I was in labor 16 1/2 hours. I can’t believe you only pushed 10 minutes! I pushed an entire 2 hours the first time and an hour and a half the second time! My babies tend to be sunny-side up, which is what makes my pushing stage so long. Hoping this one decides to take a different route when it comes to that!! I hope your water won’t break this time. Mine did the second time as well (man, I’d love to have a labor w/ some cushion–but so far I haven’t!), BUT my contractions started on their own right after, so I was able to go natural, and it really was much better! AND, my second labor was half the time of my first. I really hope yours will be, too!
Excited for you! As always, you are hilarious!
That gives me hope that this one will be a bit better all around! 🙂 I’m just thankful there were no complications.
I was 26 weeks into my one and only pregnancy and I went into labor. No one knows why but it happened. My twins were born weighing 1.9 lbs. and 1.14 lbs. They spent 70 days in the NICU and now, 12 years later, they are healthy, happy, smart as whips and taller than me! It was not the birth I had planned AT ALL!!!! As you found out with your precious Annie, it doesn’t matter HOW they get there, only that they GET here, safely! It is a good thing that you are writing down the birth stories. My kids are always asking me about the day they were born and, having it written down while its fresh, makes it so much easier to recall those little details you might forget….like the gas!!!!!
LOL I could forget the gas part. 🙂 But I’m sure my kids will find it hilarious.
For my first, I started to have contractions at about 9:30 in the morning while in the waiting room at my OB’s office. When I was finally called back, they were about 3 minutes apart. The doctor checked me and said that I was 3 to 4 cm and that I could go walk around the mall until I felt that I should go to the hospital. We went to my parents house to tell them it was the day and then went to our house to get everything that we would need and call the rest of the family. By 12:00 I decided that it was time to go to the hospital. The nurse told us that they had been waiting for us, got me checked in and hooked up. I started to push at about 1:00pm and 2 hours later, after having the nurse look me in the eyes and say “Beth, you need to get the baby out”, my 10 pound 3 ounce baby boy was born at 3:06 pm without any drugs. I broke blood vesels in my eyes and face, my face puffed up and I looked like I had a bad rash. But I had my beautiful baby boy. Happy day!
Beth, that’s a wonderful story!! 🙂 Thank you for sharing it!
Beth’s labor sounds like my first! Went into OB for first 1 wk visit and my OB was new at office preggos (she’d finished up hospital preggos) they told me I prob wouldn’t have the baby for a few days and sent me home. 4 hours later I had an 8lb 12oz boy and my husband had driven from Provo, UT, in a rental car (he’s a trucker and was in the oil field) to Casper, WY, in 6 hours. I couldn’t walk after he was born for several weeks. My 2nd wasn’t as wonderful – a lot of stress and other health issues caused her to be born a month early, too early for full lung development. After 6 hours of labor, she was 7lbs,6oz and I could walk right after. A 2wk hospital stay for her after lung collapse, surgery, and Life Flight to Denver, at 1.5yr old she is healthy with one small incision scar. Both my kids drive me nuts with constant chatter. Glad to have them, and you’ll be glad to have yours doing the same! Hope
Children are such a blessing! 🙂
Oh, gracious, that’s an awfully long time to be in labor! My first labor started with my water breaking, too. I much preferred that to my experience the 2nd time around. Laboring with the water intact is more painful!
It is a long time to be in labor….especially pitocin labor. I’m praying in advance that this one goes a bit better. 🙂
Anne, is it really less painful with the waters broken? That would be nice. My water broke just before I started pushing so I was working with the extra pressure the whole time, ouch. At least they weren’t drugged contractions.
I’ve heard both – that it hurts worse after it breaks…and some women say it’s a big relief when it breaks.