Baby Colton was born in the wee hours of Thursday morning at 2:12 a.m., five hours short of the time labor was scheduled to be induced. After a 1.5 hour labor that can only be described as 'intense', he entered the world with a lusty cry, weighing in at 9 pounds, 3 ounces, and measuring 20.5 inches long. Here's my birth story:
I joked during pregnancy that since my labor with my first was 8 hours, and my labor with my second was less than half that at 3.5 hours, my third child would be born after a 1.5 hour labor. I learned from this, be careful what you wish for.
Colton's due date was May 28, but it came and went without any signs of him coming out, as did each of the next 12 days, so at that day's appointment with my midwife, I was scheduled to have an induced labor on June 11, beginning with a 'cervix ripening' with Cytotek, followed by Pitocin the following day to start contractions. I was really unhappy to be facing induction, especially since I had been warned that the baby when last checked was posterior, and I had been hoping to have a third medication-free labor but thought the combo of Pitocin and back labor would kill me.
Wednesday evening came and still I hadn't gone into labor on my own, so I went for the cytotec as scheduled at 4 p.m. By 8 p.m. they sent me home with instructions to return at 7 a.m. for pitocin. I had gotten a little crampy from the appointment, but nothing much had changed so DH picked me up, with kids in tow, and we started home. On the way, DH suggested we drop the kids off at the home of our friends who had so generously offered to take them whenever I went into labor. At first, I said no, since, after all, I wasn't in labor and I didn't want to wear out our welcome with our friends. As we continued to drive, I reconsidered. With the children safely tucked away, I could be free to welcome labor anytime it began, instead of trying to fight it and wait until morning if it did start in the middle of the night. In a very uncharacteristic move for me, I agreed that we should drop off the kids. DH and I continued home, and went for a long walk, during which absolutely nothing happened. We went to bed a little after 10 p.m.
At 11:15 p.m., I woke up realizing I'd been dozing through some contractions. I asked DH to time them. They were 5 minutes apart, and then soon 3 minutes apart. We got ourselves ready and left for the hospital. I was uncomfortable but feeling pure joy at having gone into labor without having to be fully induced. We checked in at 12:40 p.m., with contractions 2 minutes apart and with the first check showing I was already 4 centimeters dilated. The midwife was called and DH and I set to our now-familiar waork. We thought we'd start laboring in the jacuzzi tub, which worked well in the past. It didn't feel as comforting this time; I wasn't able to sit but only squat and lean over the edge of the tub. I did the best I could, blowing out through the contractions and being surprised I didn't feel like really vocalizing until suddenly, I felt something I hadn't felt before - my water breaking on its own. In the past, the medical staff had always had to break it for me. I also felt the pain increase tenfold and let me tell you was I vocal now! There was meconium in the water so I wanted out of the tub. DH called for the nurse and when I stood up, I felt like the baby was on his way out. This is where I got really scared because I felt myself losing a grip on being able to manage the pain - I didn't want to be one of those Baby Story women screaming uncontrollably as their baby entered the world. DH and the nurse managed to shuffle me to the bed when I did NOT want to go, I felt like I was in too much pain to move. I looked down and was happy to see my feet moving along, very slowly. As soon as I sat on the bed, I saw the midwife arrive and the shocked look on her face to see how far along we were. Assessing the situation without even having to check on my dilation, she calmly told me I could start pushing anytime.
I asked her to check, and sure enough, I was 10 cm, fully effaced, and the baby was low and ready. I was relieved and delighted to be able to start pushing and at the same time, overwhelmed by how quickly everything was going. I have never "gotten" the pushing stage of labor, never felt the urge to push, and am definitely not one of those lucky women who tell me pushing feels good because it relieves the pressure. On one push, I felt progress, only to feel the baby schloop back up when the contraction was over. This is where I said "I can't do this!" and I am mad at myself now for saying it. The midwife told me I needed to push through the pain, because on the other side of that pain, I would not have to push again, I would never have to feel another contraction, I would be resting with my baby on my chest. I gave it everything I had and soon heard DH's voice soften with wonder as he said "Oh, Jen..." and I knew then it would be over soon. A few pushes later and 2 minutes more than 1.5 hours after check-in, Baby Colton emerged into the world, soft and perfect, and crying at the top of his lungs.
We are all doing ok, though my milk is not in and I think things will get a lot better when it is.
http://i6.photobucket.com/albums/y21...h_IMG_1603.jpg
I joked during pregnancy that since my labor with my first was 8 hours, and my labor with my second was less than half that at 3.5 hours, my third child would be born after a 1.5 hour labor. I learned from this, be careful what you wish for.
Colton's due date was May 28, but it came and went without any signs of him coming out, as did each of the next 12 days, so at that day's appointment with my midwife, I was scheduled to have an induced labor on June 11, beginning with a 'cervix ripening' with Cytotek, followed by Pitocin the following day to start contractions. I was really unhappy to be facing induction, especially since I had been warned that the baby when last checked was posterior, and I had been hoping to have a third medication-free labor but thought the combo of Pitocin and back labor would kill me.
Wednesday evening came and still I hadn't gone into labor on my own, so I went for the cytotec as scheduled at 4 p.m. By 8 p.m. they sent me home with instructions to return at 7 a.m. for pitocin. I had gotten a little crampy from the appointment, but nothing much had changed so DH picked me up, with kids in tow, and we started home. On the way, DH suggested we drop the kids off at the home of our friends who had so generously offered to take them whenever I went into labor. At first, I said no, since, after all, I wasn't in labor and I didn't want to wear out our welcome with our friends. As we continued to drive, I reconsidered. With the children safely tucked away, I could be free to welcome labor anytime it began, instead of trying to fight it and wait until morning if it did start in the middle of the night. In a very uncharacteristic move for me, I agreed that we should drop off the kids. DH and I continued home, and went for a long walk, during which absolutely nothing happened. We went to bed a little after 10 p.m.
At 11:15 p.m., I woke up realizing I'd been dozing through some contractions. I asked DH to time them. They were 5 minutes apart, and then soon 3 minutes apart. We got ourselves ready and left for the hospital. I was uncomfortable but feeling pure joy at having gone into labor without having to be fully induced. We checked in at 12:40 p.m., with contractions 2 minutes apart and with the first check showing I was already 4 centimeters dilated. The midwife was called and DH and I set to our now-familiar waork. We thought we'd start laboring in the jacuzzi tub, which worked well in the past. It didn't feel as comforting this time; I wasn't able to sit but only squat and lean over the edge of the tub. I did the best I could, blowing out through the contractions and being surprised I didn't feel like really vocalizing until suddenly, I felt something I hadn't felt before - my water breaking on its own. In the past, the medical staff had always had to break it for me. I also felt the pain increase tenfold and let me tell you was I vocal now! There was meconium in the water so I wanted out of the tub. DH called for the nurse and when I stood up, I felt like the baby was on his way out. This is where I got really scared because I felt myself losing a grip on being able to manage the pain - I didn't want to be one of those Baby Story women screaming uncontrollably as their baby entered the world. DH and the nurse managed to shuffle me to the bed when I did NOT want to go, I felt like I was in too much pain to move. I looked down and was happy to see my feet moving along, very slowly. As soon as I sat on the bed, I saw the midwife arrive and the shocked look on her face to see how far along we were. Assessing the situation without even having to check on my dilation, she calmly told me I could start pushing anytime.
I asked her to check, and sure enough, I was 10 cm, fully effaced, and the baby was low and ready. I was relieved and delighted to be able to start pushing and at the same time, overwhelmed by how quickly everything was going. I have never "gotten" the pushing stage of labor, never felt the urge to push, and am definitely not one of those lucky women who tell me pushing feels good because it relieves the pressure. On one push, I felt progress, only to feel the baby schloop back up when the contraction was over. This is where I said "I can't do this!" and I am mad at myself now for saying it. The midwife told me I needed to push through the pain, because on the other side of that pain, I would not have to push again, I would never have to feel another contraction, I would be resting with my baby on my chest. I gave it everything I had and soon heard DH's voice soften with wonder as he said "Oh, Jen..." and I knew then it would be over soon. A few pushes later and 2 minutes more than 1.5 hours after check-in, Baby Colton emerged into the world, soft and perfect, and crying at the top of his lungs.
We are all doing ok, though my milk is not in and I think things will get a lot better when it is.
http://i6.photobucket.com/albums/y21...h_IMG_1603.jpg
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