Brian's birth story
Brian Edward P.
7 lbs, 15 oz
20 ¾ inches
Saturday, August 13, 2005, 9:02 PM
I decided that something was up around 7:30 PM Friday. Jeff tried to time several of the suspected contractions but they seemed to be coming in short bursts, then going away for a while. We called Marilyn (our Doula) around 8 PM to let her know something might be happening. She told us to make sure we got some sleep, and to call her in the morning to let her know how things were going.
We headed for bed around 9:30 PM. I was still having contractions, but the back pain was overshadowing them. I had thought at first I had a kidney infection, but the pain was coming and going. Jeff tried to help by rubbing my back and side, but nothing seemed to give relief. Luckily I was able to doze between contractions.
At 5:00 AM on Saturday, I had just gone back to bed when a gush of water clearly indicated that things were progressing! A few short words were exchanged and hubby found out that the back pains mixed with contractions had kept me up nearly all night. I had let him sleep so we wouldn’t both be bitchy on Saturday. We called Marilyn and she came over to see what she could do. Jeff scrambled to get together what we needed for the hospital - with two weeks to go, we hadn’t packed our hospital bag yet.
For the first couple of hours I managed the contractions by alternating between sitting on the edge of the bed and standing, swaying back and forth. Jeff was having some trouble timing the contractions because they did not seem regular - first close together (less than two minutes) then further apart (6 or 7 minutes). I was getting frustrated with the pain, so Marilyn suggested we move from the bedroom to the baby’s room to help us focus and remind us why I was working so hard.
Moving to the bright, sunlit Winnie the Pooh nursery did in fact help, and I worked into a rhythm of pacing through my contractions. The contractions seemed to be lasting a long time, and I was having trouble determining when they began and ended. Marilyn gave me two vibrating cylinders to hold in my hands to give me something to focus on. Don’t laugh - they worked!
The best we could tell, the contractions were coming every 5 minutes or so, but some seemed to be coming just 2 minutes apart. The real concern was that I didn’t seem to be getting much of a break between contractions, so we decided it was time to go to the hospital. We called the midwife (Joanne) and fired up the air conditioning in the car. We left at 10:00 AM. I was having some real trouble in the car, especially due to the twisty and hilly route (supposedly the fastest) to the hospital. I maintained my focus by breathing deeply and chanting to myself, “Just breathe, and let your body do the rest.”
When we arrived at the hospital, we saw what was probably the cause of the unusual contractions that morning. The midwife asked us to get a baseline of the contractions and the baby’s heart rate using the external monitor.
The graph was showing that my contractions were coming in pairs - two contractions, the second beginning before or as the first ended. The pairs were coming about 5 minutes apart, but each pair was lasting over two minutes, leaving a shortened 3 minute rest in between. Joanne checked my cervix, and I was 4 cm dilated, fully effaced, and at 0/-1 (our collective memory is fuzzy here) station. Joanne suggested that I might want to sit in the Jacuzzi, but I was feeling better standing and didn’t really want to move down the hall with the contractions so close together.
Experiencing double contractions is rare. I found out (after the fact) that they can happen if the baby is moving down or turning. This would explain the back labor as well.
Everyone in the delivery room was helping me work through the contractions. They were all supportive and encouraging. Joanne was helping me focus on my breathing while Jeff was holding cold compresses on my neck and trying to keep me cool. Marilyn kept magically producing bits of relief, including a mini hand-held fan and a CD player. She had been at the hospital many times in the past, so she knew where to find ice, washcloths, and drinks, and it seemed like she could read our minds and get us what we needed before we asked for it. Around 1 PM, I was feeling some pressure so Joanne checked and found that I had made it to 6 cm, and a little short of +1 station.
By 2:00 PM I was feeling a little worn down, acting a little disoriented and starting to have doubts about this whole labor thing (transition here we come). After a few more contractions I again felt pressure, like I needed to push. Joanne checked me again, and I had made a little progress to 7 cm. Joanne suggested that I go sit in the Jacuzzi, and this time I decided to give it a try. I relaxed right away, and I was able to get my second wind. I started breath counting (a meditation technique that helped me deal with chronic back pain many years ago), but I decided to count out loud to help focus. After about two hours, I decided to go back to the room.
Joanne checked again when we got back to the room, but I was still at 7 cm, +1. Looking at new monitor traces, it was clear that the contractions were not as strong. They were still coming in pairs about 3-4 minutes apart, but without the strength of the earlier ones. Joanne recommended that pitocin be used to strengthen the contractions, but didn’t want to use it without me getting an epidural. That was fine by me: I had already decided before she checked me that if the tub didn’t help I was going to ask for an epidural so I could conserve my strength for pushing. After almost 20 hours of labor, anyone who questions my decision can bite me.
It took 4 tries but they finally got the IV in. After the epidural was in place (around 5:00 PM), the nurses began ramping up the pitocin drip. The Stadol (given while I waited for the anesthesiologist) and the epidural allowed me to get some rest. At about 7:30, I was feeling the urge to push, and this time it wasn’t just the baby moving down - I was fully dilated, +2 station.
Pushing was hard work, but the work was a relief from the waiting. I pushed for about 1 and ½ hours, with lots of encouragement and slow, steady progress.
Finally Brian’s head started to crown, revealing a thick layer of hair. Ring of fire? You betcha. I lost it for a minute - the pain was overpowering. I was able to reach down and feel his head, which was an amazing feeling. I gave another push, and his head came out. For a moment even the Midwife was surprised: instead of facing posterior (toward my bottom) or facing anterior (toward my front), Brian was looking at my right leg. She had never seen that happen before. Not even a day old, and already he was showing the family stubborn streak.
Another push and the shoulders came free. In what seemed like one continuous motion, Joanne cut the cord and unwrapped it from around Brian’s neck, which let him come the rest of the way out and arrive to rest on my belly. His head was 13 inches in circumference. No wonder it took so long to get him out! I escaped with some first-degree tears thanks to the good perineum support from Joanne.
After a brief visit with Jeff and me, Brian was taken over to the warming table to be suctioned and evaluated. He had a lot of mucus but all was well, so he was bundled up and given back to me so Jeff and I could spend some time with him before his first bath and the move to the post-partum room.
7 lbs, 15 oz
20 ¾ inches
Saturday, August 13, 2005, 9:02 PM
I decided that something was up around 7:30 PM Friday. Jeff tried to time several of the suspected contractions but they seemed to be coming in short bursts, then going away for a while. We called Marilyn (our Doula) around 8 PM to let her know something might be happening. She told us to make sure we got some sleep, and to call her in the morning to let her know how things were going.
We headed for bed around 9:30 PM. I was still having contractions, but the back pain was overshadowing them. I had thought at first I had a kidney infection, but the pain was coming and going. Jeff tried to help by rubbing my back and side, but nothing seemed to give relief. Luckily I was able to doze between contractions.
At 5:00 AM on Saturday, I had just gone back to bed when a gush of water clearly indicated that things were progressing! A few short words were exchanged and hubby found out that the back pains mixed with contractions had kept me up nearly all night. I had let him sleep so we wouldn’t both be bitchy on Saturday. We called Marilyn and she came over to see what she could do. Jeff scrambled to get together what we needed for the hospital - with two weeks to go, we hadn’t packed our hospital bag yet.
For the first couple of hours I managed the contractions by alternating between sitting on the edge of the bed and standing, swaying back and forth. Jeff was having some trouble timing the contractions because they did not seem regular - first close together (less than two minutes) then further apart (6 or 7 minutes). I was getting frustrated with the pain, so Marilyn suggested we move from the bedroom to the baby’s room to help us focus and remind us why I was working so hard.
Moving to the bright, sunlit Winnie the Pooh nursery did in fact help, and I worked into a rhythm of pacing through my contractions. The contractions seemed to be lasting a long time, and I was having trouble determining when they began and ended. Marilyn gave me two vibrating cylinders to hold in my hands to give me something to focus on. Don’t laugh - they worked!
The best we could tell, the contractions were coming every 5 minutes or so, but some seemed to be coming just 2 minutes apart. The real concern was that I didn’t seem to be getting much of a break between contractions, so we decided it was time to go to the hospital. We called the midwife (Joanne) and fired up the air conditioning in the car. We left at 10:00 AM. I was having some real trouble in the car, especially due to the twisty and hilly route (supposedly the fastest) to the hospital. I maintained my focus by breathing deeply and chanting to myself, “Just breathe, and let your body do the rest.”
When we arrived at the hospital, we saw what was probably the cause of the unusual contractions that morning. The midwife asked us to get a baseline of the contractions and the baby’s heart rate using the external monitor.
The graph was showing that my contractions were coming in pairs - two contractions, the second beginning before or as the first ended. The pairs were coming about 5 minutes apart, but each pair was lasting over two minutes, leaving a shortened 3 minute rest in between. Joanne checked my cervix, and I was 4 cm dilated, fully effaced, and at 0/-1 (our collective memory is fuzzy here) station. Joanne suggested that I might want to sit in the Jacuzzi, but I was feeling better standing and didn’t really want to move down the hall with the contractions so close together.
Experiencing double contractions is rare. I found out (after the fact) that they can happen if the baby is moving down or turning. This would explain the back labor as well.
Everyone in the delivery room was helping me work through the contractions. They were all supportive and encouraging. Joanne was helping me focus on my breathing while Jeff was holding cold compresses on my neck and trying to keep me cool. Marilyn kept magically producing bits of relief, including a mini hand-held fan and a CD player. She had been at the hospital many times in the past, so she knew where to find ice, washcloths, and drinks, and it seemed like she could read our minds and get us what we needed before we asked for it. Around 1 PM, I was feeling some pressure so Joanne checked and found that I had made it to 6 cm, and a little short of +1 station.
By 2:00 PM I was feeling a little worn down, acting a little disoriented and starting to have doubts about this whole labor thing (transition here we come). After a few more contractions I again felt pressure, like I needed to push. Joanne checked me again, and I had made a little progress to 7 cm. Joanne suggested that I go sit in the Jacuzzi, and this time I decided to give it a try. I relaxed right away, and I was able to get my second wind. I started breath counting (a meditation technique that helped me deal with chronic back pain many years ago), but I decided to count out loud to help focus. After about two hours, I decided to go back to the room.
Joanne checked again when we got back to the room, but I was still at 7 cm, +1. Looking at new monitor traces, it was clear that the contractions were not as strong. They were still coming in pairs about 3-4 minutes apart, but without the strength of the earlier ones. Joanne recommended that pitocin be used to strengthen the contractions, but didn’t want to use it without me getting an epidural. That was fine by me: I had already decided before she checked me that if the tub didn’t help I was going to ask for an epidural so I could conserve my strength for pushing. After almost 20 hours of labor, anyone who questions my decision can bite me.
It took 4 tries but they finally got the IV in. After the epidural was in place (around 5:00 PM), the nurses began ramping up the pitocin drip. The Stadol (given while I waited for the anesthesiologist) and the epidural allowed me to get some rest. At about 7:30, I was feeling the urge to push, and this time it wasn’t just the baby moving down - I was fully dilated, +2 station.
Pushing was hard work, but the work was a relief from the waiting. I pushed for about 1 and ½ hours, with lots of encouragement and slow, steady progress.
Finally Brian’s head started to crown, revealing a thick layer of hair. Ring of fire? You betcha. I lost it for a minute - the pain was overpowering. I was able to reach down and feel his head, which was an amazing feeling. I gave another push, and his head came out. For a moment even the Midwife was surprised: instead of facing posterior (toward my bottom) or facing anterior (toward my front), Brian was looking at my right leg. She had never seen that happen before. Not even a day old, and already he was showing the family stubborn streak.
Another push and the shoulders came free. In what seemed like one continuous motion, Joanne cut the cord and unwrapped it from around Brian’s neck, which let him come the rest of the way out and arrive to rest on my belly. His head was 13 inches in circumference. No wonder it took so long to get him out! I escaped with some first-degree tears thanks to the good perineum support from Joanne.
After a brief visit with Jeff and me, Brian was taken over to the warming table to be suctioned and evaluated. He had a lot of mucus but all was well, so he was bundled up and given back to me so Jeff and I could spend some time with him before his first bath and the move to the post-partum room.