Tyler and I were told our first baby, a boy, would come on or around September 30, 2011. Since most first time mothers go until 41 weeks and 1 day and I was sure our little guy would come late, we decided on the due date of October 5, 2011. We're glad we did! I remained ever so patiently pregnancy as BOTH my due dates came and went. I guessed he would come on October 7th-only I was one day off. He chose the beautiful fall day of October 8th to arrive. Well… I'm getting ahead of myself here.
During pregnancy, I was being treated by the midwives at New Beginnings in Orem and delivering at Orem Community Hospital. We took childbirth classes with Megan Marshall who taught Hypnobabies (a relaxation technique for childbirth) and hired Angie Rosier who would be our Doula. I researched every little thing about childbirth and was well prepared for bringing our little boy into the world. My body was well prepared for labor as well, being a 4, 5, and even 6-7 cm dilated and 90% effaced before labor even began. I guess those pre-labor contractions were doing their job. My doula said this kind of preparation is very rare, especially for a first-time mom.
Our midwife Dena. Such an amazing woman!
Our childbirth teacher Megan.
Our amazing doula Angie. Love her!
Pre-Labor (4 weeks before the birth)
Since September 30th was my medical due date, my midwife wanted to schedule an induction for October 7th when I was 41 weeks. On the 30th I went into L&D for a routine non-stress test. Tyler and I then visited the chiropractor to see if he could 'start things' by giving me an adjustment. I wanted to do whatever necessary to avoid an induction. That evening Tyler and I went to have dinner at La Jolla Groves and coffee at Nordstrom. I remember us thinking that this could be our last night out just the two of us. We walked around the mall for a while until I started to feel a few contractions. They came very inconsistently that evening (about every 7-11 min, 20-40 sec.) and stopped around 10 p.m. Nothing happened for another week.
Early Labor (October 5-7)
I had an appointment on October 5th, and decided to have my membranes stripped for the first time hoping to start labor. Nothing happened. On October 6th, I went into the office around 9:30 a.m. for my second membrane strip. I decided to put off the induction until Monday the 10th to give us the weekend to see if we could get labor going. I was 5.5 cm and 90% effaced. Light contractions started around 10:30 a.m. They were still only about 30-45 sec and 7-8 minutes apart though. They lasted all day and through the night. We decided to get some sleep expecting that the next night we may not get too much rest. The contractions in my thighs were the only thing that really surprised me-those were hard to sleep through.
Active Labor (17 hours-all transitional labor (incl. 1 hour, 10 minutes pushing), 11 hours of this was natural)
Finally on October 7th, things begin to happen! Even though I had contractions the whole night before, I sent Tyler to work around 9 a.m. due to a slowdown in labor. I went into L&D around 10:30 a.m. for a routine non-stress test again. Dena my midwife was there and gave me 'The Dena Strip' my third and luckily final membrane strip. This was to say the least...memorable. Looking back I would say this was worse than transitional labor! Becky was my nurse and was awesome to help me! I found out later that all the nurses knew that they were 'not very nice to me'. I was 6-7 cm and 90%. They wanted to admit me and break my water to get this baby here. Angie my doula said that all I needed was a sneeze and I would go into labor. They tried to bribe me to stay by offering the best room in the house-#16. I wanted to labor at home for a while until I knew this thing was really in progress, so I declined and let them know that I hoped I would be back later today.
I headed home around 11:30 a.m. and had to pull over for a strong contraction. The ‘Dena Strip’ seemed to have done its job. I texted Tyler at 11:55 and told him "Maybe come home". He responded at 11:59 with "On my way". Labor warmed up and I was having contractions about every 3-5 min, 45-60 sec long. I labored on my birth ball, hands/knees, and laying on my side on the couch for an hour or so. I used my relaxation techniques well during this time and felt very comfortable! With how far along I was already, we decided to head to the hospital soon. We didn't want a freeway birth story. Tyler packed the remainder of our bags and the car. We called Dena and Angie at 1:30 to let them know we were on our way in. Angie was worried about missing the birth! Little did she know we’d be spending the next 14 hours together. We got in the car and were on our way.
We arrived and all the nurses were happy to see us. They all were amazed at how well I was doing. Becky was assigned as my nurse and they gave us room #16. Julie, a woman from church was also working there as a nurse. I felt comforted to know she was there. I changed into my own nightgown and Dena arrived to check me. Tyler started going through baby name books, mostly finding names he did not want to use. Angie arrived at 2:25 p.m. just in time to get the good news. I was 8 cm and 100%. All signs indicated that this baby would be coming very soon (by dinner time)! Dena was reviewing my birth plan and discussing some points with us. Becky was looking up the policy on using the tub without fetal monitors. They decided that I could be in the tub for 30 minutes out of every hour and on the monitors the other 30 minutes. This was great news since I was so excited to use the tub to relax. The hospital did have telemetry units but they were in use because of the twin sisters that were being in labor. They were also using the birth ball-grrr.
At 3:00 Angie filled the tub and I got in-I loved it! I hardly felt the contractions. I listened to my scripts and Tyler kept me sipping on water and juice. He continued to look up names-last minute at all? At 3:30 I got on the bed to be monitored for a while. The baby looked great! Dena was good to be in the room the whole time and sit and talk with us. I absolutely loved the atmosphere of my birthing time. The lights were dimmed, the room was calming, the company perfect. I've read a lot of birth stories in Ina May's Guide to Childbirth. It's funny because in a lot of these stories, the women spoke about the feeling of companionship from the midwives and other women in the room along with their husbands. I actually thought it was cheesy when reading it. I can now say that I had that same feeling. I looked around and saw my awesome midwife, nurse, doula, and best-for-last husband sitting around chatting, laughing, caring about me. It was divine. As I lay in the bed, Angie massaged my hips and back with counter pressure during the contractions. This was also divine! I remembered to give the nurses our gift of chocolates which they LOVED. Around 4:05 I got back in the tub again. Tyler got lunch/dinner from the complimentary snack room (which was a life saver for him). At 4:40 I got back in bed to be monitored again. I finally got to use the birth ball around 5. Becky and Dena were so fun and had a great relationship between them and also offered a lot of support to us. Angie said that Tyler and I were so sweet to each other and to everyone else. I know I didn't yell at him at least, hehe. I was doing so well dealing with what is normally transition. It was really easy up to this point. Dena put on some music and even sang us a lullaby.
5:40 came and Dena checked my progress again. I was trying not to concentrate on the numbers too much, so Dena, Angie, and Tyler went in the hallway to discuss. I could tell it wasn't great by the look on Dena's face. Nothing had changed in my progress, and I was actually swelling and becoming more rigid and less likely to open. This was very curious to everyone. Angie and Tyler discussed with me the possibility of breaking my water. We decided to go for it, hoping it would add more pressure and get things moving. The fluid was clear which was great news-I was hoping there wouldn't be meconium. I sat up in bed for a while and then stood at the bedside. Tyler did an abdominal lift a few times and I leaned back into him. He was so supportive and tenderly encouraging. He offered great suggestions as he helped me through labor. He didn't leave my side and was so amazing! Becky and Dena made sure to get me a great nurse that would be comfortable with my birth style. My new nurse Michelle came on shift and we loved her as well.
Tyler and I 'slow danced' so I could hang on him. I loved this time with me and him. Angie filled the tub again for me. At 6:45 I got back in for a little bit. The intensity was getting stronger. I got out at 7:00 so that Angie could massage my hips and back since I was feeling increased pressure. They put me back on the monitors to see how little 'Peanut' was doing. He was such a trooper and had no issues. Dena checked me again and there was still no progress. My cervix was more on the right side and the baby was in an ROP (right occiput posterior) position. This was when I started to get frustrated and lose focus. My birth team was great to keep working with me and keep me on track. I got on my hands and knees and did pelvic tilts for a while. I was doing great, but things started to get difficult. Angie had me change to exaggerated sims on my left side while she did press releases. This was not comfortable. Angie also brought her little miniature pelvis/baby that she uses for demonstrations. Dena LOVED it. Dena used it to show us where the baby was lying and where he needed to be. We needed him to turn and add more pressure so that I could progress more. He was being stubborn. Angie, Dena, and Michelle 'jiggled' my belly like crazy (traditionally called the Rebozo method) in an attempt to get Elijah to rotate while I was on my hands/knees. This was pretty horrible, but if it would help I was up for it. Around 8:20 Angie did more exaggerated sims on my right side with press release. I did all that was asked and encouraged and I did great! I was feeling very pushy also-which probably wasn't helping my swollen cervix.
Around 9:00 Dena checked me again, and I was still not progressing and the baby hadn't rotated. She was also worried about CPD, (cepalo-pelvic-disproportion)-a very rare case where the baby's head is too large to fit through the pelvis. Dena said that she never tells moms that their pelvis is too small for birth, but both she and Michelle were worried. Dena called her back up, Dr. Thorpe, to see what he thought. I started to get a fever so they started an IV for fluids and Tyler, Angie, and I discussed our options. The staff were beginning to consider a Cesarean-which we wanted desperately to avoid. Angie talked about the possibility of a Csec and also about getting an epidural-yes it was natural to this point. She suggested it not in preparation for a Csec or for pain, but as a relaxation tool to help me dilate and reduce the swelling. Dr. Thorpe wanted to test the strength of the contractions. He was an awesome doctor and gave us the chance to do this without a Csec. Most other doctors would have called it by this time. We decided to go with the epidural in an effort to avoid the Csec if possible. I kept feeling 'pushy' so Dena checked me again in hopes I was ready. I remained at an 8, but now the baby was in the opposite position (LOP). I realized at this point that he could not follow directions. At 10 p.m. Kevin Vick a nurse anesthetist came and placed an epidural. Tyler and I agreed that he was quite a creepy morbid guy. Maybe it was my timing.
At 10:30 we measured the contraction strength. If they were strong enough to progress labor (but weren't succeeding) at this point we would most likely be going in for a Cesarean. Twenty minutes later it was apparent that the strength of my contractions weren't strong enough...which was actually great news and kept more options open for us. Pitocin was started. Tyler was more relaxed now that I was relaxed and repeating his joke that this experience was intense..."like camping". Yes, I married a dork. It made everyone laugh though. Everyone laid down for a little rest. Tyler was in the pull out bed and Angie in the chair next to me. I didn't get any sleep, but I did get rest. Angie was great to keep an eye on me through the night. They raised and lowered the pitocin a few times throughout the evening. Peanuts heart rate was struggling a little so I used oxygen and laid on my right side and that helped probably due to him lying on his cord. It was now October 8th, the day Elijah would be born. At 12:25 a.m. he had a few decelerations which meant he was most likely moving lower into the pelvis. The pit was decreased to give Peanut a break. Michelle checked labor and even though there was still cervix, the baby had come down quite a bit and was at a +1/+2 stations. I remember Michelle saying she touched his eye. I was intrigued, felt a little bad, but also very excited. This was great news since part of the concern was if he could fit down into the pelvis. They turned off the pit and I was at a 9+ dilation. Elijah looked great, so we all rested a few more hours.
I continued to listen to my relaxation scripts and that allowed me to rest a little more. at 2:30 a.m. Michelle checked me again and had great news! I was completely dilated and the baby was at a +2 station and back into the ROP position. Dena came in and said it was time to push. This was a very surreal moment for Tyler and I. Even though it's what we were waiting for, it was still like "what? really? are we really going to do this??". We pushed from 2:35 to about 3:45. Elijah was now in an OP or posterior position and trying his hardest to move! My epidural was actually quite light and I could feel when a contraction was coming. I was able to move my legs and push with feeling. That made me so happy and I felt so blessed. Some women may think I'm crazy, but I wanted to feel it. Dena called Dr. Thorpe again. She wanted him to come in to turn the baby manually. We stopped pushing as he came in. He arrived around 4:00 a.m. and tried to manually rotate the baby. I pushed as he rotated. 5 minutes later they discussed with us using forceps. The baby was in a ROP/ROA position and needed to make a turn forward. They also decided to give me antibiotics since my fever was getting worse. If forceps were not successful after a few pushes, then a Cesarean would be necessary however Dr. Thorpe was confident it would work. He also said an episiotomy would become more likely with the use of forceps. We discussed with Angie and she informed us of the higher risk of severe tears, so we opted to go ahead with it. It was so great to have her there to discuss all of our choices with. Dr. Thorpe placed the forceps at 4:20 and worked with me through 2 contractions.
I felt Elijah's head rotate nicely and came to crowning. Tyler shouted "he has hair!". I was so excited!!! The forceps were removed at 4:23, Dr. Thorpe stepped back and Dena stepped in to deliver our baby. This made us very happy that Dena would be the one to bring Elijah into the world. Elijah was born at 4:25 a.m. on Saturday, October 8, 2011.
Elijah
Dena placed Elijah right on my chest. The awe I felt seeing my little baby, God's miracle right in front of me made me sob. It was such an emotional moment. I looked up and saw tears in Tyler's eyes as well. He was so excited for this moment and it didn't disappoint. Tyler cut the cord (it took 2 cuts) at 4:27 a.m. The respiratory therapist and nurse took Elijah over to the warmer to weigh him and check his Apgar scores. Tyler stayed right next to him the whole time. He weighed in at 8 pounds, 8 ounces and was 21 inches long with a 37 cm head circumference (average is 34). He had healthy Apgar scores of 8 & 9. They gave him back to me all wrapped up for a little bit.
Around 5 a.m. the nurses wanted to check his blood to check for infection due to my fever, so Elijah and Tyler went down to the nursery. Angie also left at this time and headed over to a triathlon-talk about a super woman!! Tyler and Elijah only should have been gone a little while; however the staff had a very difficult time getting blood from our little baby. They had to poke him quite a few times in order to get the blood from him. They came back around 6:15 and I was able to nurse my baby for the first time. It was a longer wait than I wanted, but Elijah did a great job. I was so tired from such a long 2 days that I had a hard time keeping my eyes open while nursing. We nursed for about 20 minutes and our new happy family fell asleep for a few hours.
Before Angie left, she did a quick interview by asking what stood out to us. Tyler response was "how surreal it is. Kind of weird-half her, half me. It's an intense experience, seeing Lacey go through all that." I answered "how emotional I was once he was born and how emotional Tyler was". She took awesome notes during the whole event and it’s thanks to her that I have all these details!
The nurse took Elijah around 8:30 a.m. to have the pediatrician see him. Dr Jensen came in shortly after to request an IV put in Elijah to administer antibiotics due to my fever as a precautionary measure. They took Elijah until about 11 a.m. due to his difficult veins again. They couldn't successfully get in an IV and ended up giving him 5 shots instead. They would have to do this twice a day unless they could get an IV in. We woke up, ate, shower, & got all cleaned up. The nurses were amazing help!
Tyler and I were excited to give the family a call and announce our new arrival! At this point we didn’t know what we were going to name him yet, but we decided that we had to let people know something, so we made the plunge and decided on Elijah which means 'The Lord is My God'. We called family around at 2:55 p.m. Tyler's mom Sandy and sister Corinne visited around 4:30 , shortly followed by my mom Dora and brother Dakota. My sister and brother in law (Bama & Bret) came next, and then Tyler's dad made it the next day due to work. We called, texted and facebooked our friends and family. We had a lot of visitors the next afternoon (Sunday). It was very busy and everyone was very excited to see little Elijah. The nurses had to take Elijah to get his dose of antibiotics and get his blood tested again. They were finally able to get an IV in his head on Sunday evening as well- which meant no more shots!
Monday afternoon we were discharged from the hospital and left around 1:30 p.m. We had such a great experience at Orem Community. They offered great nurses and care. My midwife and doula were such a blessing. We loved how excited our family was to meet our baby. Of course I couldn't have done any of this without my amazing husband. He was perfect support throughout labor and birth and the love he gave to me and our new little boy priceless. Next stop, home- with our new little bundle of joy. A perfect blessing from God, our baby boy Elijah.
OH that made me cry! Love you guys so much! What troopers you all are and what a blessing.
ReplyDeleteWhat a beautiful birth story and perfect little baby boy! So happy for you guys!
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