dogmom
06-29-2006, 03:53 AM
On June 17, in a desperate bid to go into labor I decided the thing to do was go out on a friends boat for the afternoon. It wasn't that insane, it is on a small manmade lake and my DS has been begging to go since January. I thought for sure I would start labor in the middle of the lake, but instead I started on the way home in the car around 4p. Unfortunately, when the contractions did come they were about 10 minutes apart and not horrible.
I called my OB service and taked to the midwife on for triage during the day. Now my goal with this call was to get them to say, "Oh this is your second baby? You were 5 cm and 70% effaced on your OB visit yesterday? You live and hour away? You were going to be induced in a couple of days and are full term? Well, come on in and if you don't go naturally we'll help you along." What I got was, "Well, I wouldn't want to do anything that your body is naturally going to do in the next few days or so." from the midwife. No, no, no....I'm done! I'm thinking. But she did say I could come in.
So after the phone call the contractions stop for 40 minutes. I take a shower, my DH puts my DS to bed. (Screaming because he's had no nap and been out on a boat all day and exhausted.) I then get really nauses and trow up, which starts the contractions up again. They are still 10 minutes apart, but stronger. I call the OB service again. This time the OB resident is on call for triage (after 7p). Once again, my goal is to get them to say, "Come on in, and don't worry, we won't be sending you home without a baby." I don't quite get that, but she seems to indicate that is a possibility.
My DH calls MIL to say, "Are you up to coming over, Harvey is already in bed." (My MIL had a heart attack in May on mother's day, but it back to normal and at work, so he wanted to make sure she felt OK with it. She had indicated she was up for it earlier in the month, but we had a neighbor as a back up.) My MIL said, "Well, will I have to stay they overnight?" My DH was like, "Ummm, probably." So she goes, "Well Sunday (the next day) would work out better for me." My DH was like, yeah, I'll tell my wife to just hang on there until morning because it's more convenient for you. We called my neighbor and finally get to the hospital at 9:30.
The OB checks me when I get there, I'm about 8 minutes apart, contactions still not nearly as strong as when labor started with my son. I was still only 5 cm dilated! I was crushed. So they sent be out to walk the halls. I spent an hour pacing as fast as I could with my DH falling asleep in a chair. I got to the point when they were 3-4 minutes apart and I couldn't walk through them. Came back in to the LD area around midnight and the nurse had changed since I left. I was now 6 cm and 100% effaced, still not a lot of progress. But the nurse was, "OK, this is Sunday now, they were going to induce you on Tuesday? This is ridiculous, let's get you a room in L&D with a comfortable bed instead of a stretcher and get this show on the road." I wanted to kiss her. Then she said, "Has anyone asked you about an epidural yet? I don't see you preference here." I was like, Yes I would like one, no one has asked yet, and I want to kiss you again, because now these contractions were hurting.
I get into L&D, get my epidural (It was perfect,took the pain away but could still feel everything to push, I'm buying this guy flowers when I get back to work!) They break my water at 2:30 after the epdiural, I'm regularly going every 3-4 minutes now and the contractions are stronger. I take a nap and wake up around 3:45 feeling a lot of pressure and the urge to push, call the nurse and wake up my DH who is snoring next to me. She goes, I'll get the doctor, go ahead and push if you feel like it will make you feel better. I start pushing at 4:11 am after the resident OB checks me and finds I'm fully dialated. The attending, resident and med student are all there and at least two of them stay with me during the pushing and are very helpful. Nurse is great, DH is helpful. Apparently I'm doing a great job pushing although I don't feel like I'm getting anywhere. My daughter has decided to come out OP (face up), but I think, "Oh, but she was 40th percentile on the last ultrasound and my son was 9 lbs, so this will be much easier because she is smaller."
At 5:06 everyone goes, "One more push," and I think, "You guys are sniffing glue, I feel like I got a lot more to go." At 5:08 a feel this huge relief of pressure then hear my daughter crying.
She was 8 lbs 13 oz (so much for 40th percentile!) and 22 inches. And, in a true quirk of genetics, she also has red hair like her brother even though no relatives on either side has red hair and my DH is half African American. We kept the name Eve Lilith like we planned.
So, everyone is obviously home by now and healthy. BF going OK, big brother is adjusting, and my DH got a daughter for Fathers Day.
I wanted to upload pictures, but the application isn't working, I will try later.
Jeanne
Mom to Harvey
1/16/03
& Eve
6/18/06
I called my OB service and taked to the midwife on for triage during the day. Now my goal with this call was to get them to say, "Oh this is your second baby? You were 5 cm and 70% effaced on your OB visit yesterday? You live and hour away? You were going to be induced in a couple of days and are full term? Well, come on in and if you don't go naturally we'll help you along." What I got was, "Well, I wouldn't want to do anything that your body is naturally going to do in the next few days or so." from the midwife. No, no, no....I'm done! I'm thinking. But she did say I could come in.
So after the phone call the contractions stop for 40 minutes. I take a shower, my DH puts my DS to bed. (Screaming because he's had no nap and been out on a boat all day and exhausted.) I then get really nauses and trow up, which starts the contractions up again. They are still 10 minutes apart, but stronger. I call the OB service again. This time the OB resident is on call for triage (after 7p). Once again, my goal is to get them to say, "Come on in, and don't worry, we won't be sending you home without a baby." I don't quite get that, but she seems to indicate that is a possibility.
My DH calls MIL to say, "Are you up to coming over, Harvey is already in bed." (My MIL had a heart attack in May on mother's day, but it back to normal and at work, so he wanted to make sure she felt OK with it. She had indicated she was up for it earlier in the month, but we had a neighbor as a back up.) My MIL said, "Well, will I have to stay they overnight?" My DH was like, "Ummm, probably." So she goes, "Well Sunday (the next day) would work out better for me." My DH was like, yeah, I'll tell my wife to just hang on there until morning because it's more convenient for you. We called my neighbor and finally get to the hospital at 9:30.
The OB checks me when I get there, I'm about 8 minutes apart, contactions still not nearly as strong as when labor started with my son. I was still only 5 cm dilated! I was crushed. So they sent be out to walk the halls. I spent an hour pacing as fast as I could with my DH falling asleep in a chair. I got to the point when they were 3-4 minutes apart and I couldn't walk through them. Came back in to the LD area around midnight and the nurse had changed since I left. I was now 6 cm and 100% effaced, still not a lot of progress. But the nurse was, "OK, this is Sunday now, they were going to induce you on Tuesday? This is ridiculous, let's get you a room in L&D with a comfortable bed instead of a stretcher and get this show on the road." I wanted to kiss her. Then she said, "Has anyone asked you about an epidural yet? I don't see you preference here." I was like, Yes I would like one, no one has asked yet, and I want to kiss you again, because now these contractions were hurting.
I get into L&D, get my epidural (It was perfect,took the pain away but could still feel everything to push, I'm buying this guy flowers when I get back to work!) They break my water at 2:30 after the epdiural, I'm regularly going every 3-4 minutes now and the contractions are stronger. I take a nap and wake up around 3:45 feeling a lot of pressure and the urge to push, call the nurse and wake up my DH who is snoring next to me. She goes, I'll get the doctor, go ahead and push if you feel like it will make you feel better. I start pushing at 4:11 am after the resident OB checks me and finds I'm fully dialated. The attending, resident and med student are all there and at least two of them stay with me during the pushing and are very helpful. Nurse is great, DH is helpful. Apparently I'm doing a great job pushing although I don't feel like I'm getting anywhere. My daughter has decided to come out OP (face up), but I think, "Oh, but she was 40th percentile on the last ultrasound and my son was 9 lbs, so this will be much easier because she is smaller."
At 5:06 everyone goes, "One more push," and I think, "You guys are sniffing glue, I feel like I got a lot more to go." At 5:08 a feel this huge relief of pressure then hear my daughter crying.
She was 8 lbs 13 oz (so much for 40th percentile!) and 22 inches. And, in a true quirk of genetics, she also has red hair like her brother even though no relatives on either side has red hair and my DH is half African American. We kept the name Eve Lilith like we planned.
So, everyone is obviously home by now and healthy. BF going OK, big brother is adjusting, and my DH got a daughter for Fathers Day.
I wanted to upload pictures, but the application isn't working, I will try later.
Jeanne
Mom to Harvey
1/16/03
& Eve
6/18/06