Benjamin’s birth story
Near the end of my pregnancy, I was starting to get concerned about my blood pressure and swelling. When I was transferred to the hospital with Nathan, the medical staff was very concerned about my blood pressure. I don’t know for sure what the numbers were, but they must have been high since they were talking about putting me on mag sulfate to regulate the numbers and keep me from seizing. They also let me know that they had found some uric acid in my blood tests, which might indicate that I was becoming preeclamptic. Because of this, I’d been concerned about developing pre-e with this pregnancy and was constantly on the lookout for signs of preeclampsia. Near the end, I started reading high on automatic blood pressure machines. But, whenever I was checked manually, my blood pressure was in the range of normal.
My due date was April 6, 2010. There was only one day in our “window” that we *really* didn’t want to labor on. Josh was in the process of transferring to patrol, and had an important interview scheduled for March 31 (39w1d). On the 29th, I got adjusted at the chiropractor, and subsequently had twelve hours of Braxton hicks/prodromal labor. Josh was a little nervous I might be in labor on the one day I really needed NOT to be. But, the 31st came and went without incident.
On march 31st, I spent the day painting the baby’s room, which, looking back, was probably my way of nesting. I also poached 5-6 chicken breasts so I could make casseroles later. But, all this time on my feet caused my ankles to grow even larger. I had a talk with my baby and insisted that he needed to come out because I was starting to become concerned that this pregnancy would end in pre-e and a hospital induction if he didn’t come out soon.
I started having some contractions around 11am on April 1. I had thought it would be cool to have an April 1st baby, but hadn’t really thought too much about it, since I had gone ten days past my EDD with Nathan, I was sure that I’d at least be after my EDD with Benjamin. I timed contractions for a while, and they were just all over the place. Some three minutes, some five, some ten. So, I just wrote it off as more prodromal laboring. Josh was scheduled to go to work, and kept asking me if I was in labor or not. I just couldn’t be sure…especially after getting faked out on after the chiropractor’s appt. My contractions were about 3-5 minutes apart and about 30-45 seconds long. Josh decided that I probably really wasn’t in labor and went to work. I was a little put out about that, but I tried to remember that he didn’t want to use up precious leave time on a false alarm. After Josh left for work, my contractions slowed WAY down. They spaced out to 10-15 minutes apart. After that, I was starting to think that it was gonna be another day of prodromal labor. At around 4pm, I nursed Nathan down for a nap and the contractions increased to every three to four minutes and I just couldn’t sleep through them. I really don’t like to labor while lying down. Around eight pm, I had a more intense contraction that prompted me to text Josh and let him know that if I had more contractions like that, he would need to come home. I had read that you shouldn’t get in a tub in early labor because it can cause the contractions to stop. But, at this point, I was sick of having contractions that didn’t seem to be going anywhere, and decided that a tub was the best choice. I got in the tub, and continued to have contractions about every 4-5 minutes. Since the tub didn’t make the contractions go away, I was sure this was the real deal. I called Josh and told him to come home. It was too difficult to try to time contractions and chill in the tub with Nathan trying to jump off the toilet. J
Once Josh got home, we went to the grocery store for labor supplies/food and to see if the outing would have any affect on my labor. The trip did seem to space some things out, but the contractions didn’t go away. We rented The Blind Side to watch in the meantime. Had a hard time paying attention to the movie during contractions, so I gave up trying to watch. At around eleven, Josh and I decided to try to get some sleep. I was not expecting to get any. I tried to lie down with my ipod and sleep through contractions, but I just couldn’t get comfortable enough to sleep. I remember reciting the ABCs in my head whenever I would have a contraction to distract myself. Finally, I gave up on sleep and spent some time in the shower. I called Sharon around 12:45 thinking that I was getting close, and when I started to talk to her on the phone, the contractions spaced out again. She offered to meet me at the birth center to be checked, but I didn’t want to go too soon, so I told her I’d think about it for an hour or so and call her back when things picked up some more. Got out of the shower and spent some more time trying to watch the movie.
I had Josh call his mom to come and watch Nathan, since I wasn’t sure when we would need to leave, and I knew it would take about 45 minutes to an hour for her to get to our house. She got to the house at about 2:30. I wanted to wait and see if her being at the house would affect my labor at all before I called Sharon again.
Started to have contractions that I needed a little help to get through with counter pressure from Josh. He slept on the floor between contractions, and when I would have a contraction, he’d get up and apply counter pressure on my back while I sat on the ball. I started to feel like it was time to go, because I didn’t really feel “safe” laboring at home anymore. Just because I wasn’t prepared to catch a baby all by myself. J I told Josh I was gonna get in the shower while he packed the car, since he wouldn’t be around to provide counter pressure. Called Sharon around 3:30ish. Josh let her know that I was needing counter pressure and was currently in the shower moaning through contractions. She said she’d meet us at the birth center. I waited until everything was ready to walk out the door before I got out of the shower. I got dressed quickly and kissed Nathan (who was asleep) goodbye, knowing that pretty soon he wouldn’t be my only baby anymore.
I got in the backseat of the SUV, and hugged the back of the seat with my knees in the seat. I vocalized through a few contractions on the way to the birth center. Apparently, Josh was under the impression that the speed limit was optional at four in the morning. Josh and I finalized a boy’s name in the car on the way, and I told him that I was really hoping when we got there that I wasn’t gonna be just two centimeters (Like I was when I went in with Nathan). We got to the birth center around four fifteen, and we beat Sharon there. She arrived a few minutes later. Once we got inside the birth center, Sharon did a cervical check. I was four to five centimeters dilated. I don’t know what I expected to hear, but somehow, that disappointed me. Glad it wasn’t two, but felt like it should have been more than four.
Josh and I took up residence in one of the birthing rooms (the one with the GIANT tub) and I allowed him to get stuff from the truck between my contractions, which I didn’t like to endure without a little back counter pressure. I labored on the ball for a few contractions and had some vitamin water to drink…I thought about eating something, but food just didn’t sound great. After a few contractions I asked Sharon when I could get in the tub. She let me know that she was just waiting for me to ask. I wanted to kick myself for not asking sooner, as it was a BIG tub and I knew it would take a while to fill. The hot water ran down when the tub was about half full. I went ahead and got in, planning to turn the water back on in a few minutes. Even at half full, it was still plenty of water. I jokingly asked Sharon to tell me how much longer it would be until we met our baby, knowing that she wouldn’t be able to tell me. Josh was sure it wouldn’t take long since Nathan’s birth was about 3 hours from 4 centimeters until he was born. I was unsure that it would be that fast, since this labor wasn’t being augmented like his was.
Sharon checked my blood pressure in the tub, and according to the automatic bp machine (which I was notorious for reading high on) it was something outrageous like 150/110. She told me she’d take it again manually in a few minutes (she never did get a chance to, I told her later, I really didn‘t want her to check it, so I just decided to have the baby instead). I had a two or three contractions in the tub, that I bore down slightly with at the end of each contraction, because it just felt right. At 5:00am, during a contraction, my water broke and immediately my body started pushing. I called out to Sharon to let her know that my water had broken and I was pushing. I should have been prepared for that feeling of being out of control, since the same overwhelming urge happened with Nathan, but until that contraction ended, I felt like I wanted to jump out of my own skin. I just needed a minute to take a break and re-center. Around this time we started the water up again. My water broke at 5:00am and Benjamin was crowning at 5:02. I remember him moving his head around while he was crowning, that was a bizarre feeling. I was sure that he was gonna be bigger than his big brother while I was pushing. His head was delivered at 5:05 with a nuchal cord, and born in water at 5:07. I pulled him up out of the water (with Sharon’s help) and put him on my chest. He was covered in vernix, which was weird for me, as Nathan didn’t have any vernix at all when he was born. Sharon covered him immediately with a towel, so we still didn’t know whether he was a boy or a girl. Josh and I bonded a bit with him and then we checked together to find that we had another baby boy in our family.
Benjamin Lee Dasher, born April 2, 2010 at 5:07am, 9lbs, 22 inches long.
http://fruitfulvine.com/index2.asp?P...byAlbumID=2069
Near the end of my pregnancy, I was starting to get concerned about my blood pressure and swelling. When I was transferred to the hospital with Nathan, the medical staff was very concerned about my blood pressure. I don’t know for sure what the numbers were, but they must have been high since they were talking about putting me on mag sulfate to regulate the numbers and keep me from seizing. They also let me know that they had found some uric acid in my blood tests, which might indicate that I was becoming preeclamptic. Because of this, I’d been concerned about developing pre-e with this pregnancy and was constantly on the lookout for signs of preeclampsia. Near the end, I started reading high on automatic blood pressure machines. But, whenever I was checked manually, my blood pressure was in the range of normal.
My due date was April 6, 2010. There was only one day in our “window” that we *really* didn’t want to labor on. Josh was in the process of transferring to patrol, and had an important interview scheduled for March 31 (39w1d). On the 29th, I got adjusted at the chiropractor, and subsequently had twelve hours of Braxton hicks/prodromal labor. Josh was a little nervous I might be in labor on the one day I really needed NOT to be. But, the 31st came and went without incident.
On march 31st, I spent the day painting the baby’s room, which, looking back, was probably my way of nesting. I also poached 5-6 chicken breasts so I could make casseroles later. But, all this time on my feet caused my ankles to grow even larger. I had a talk with my baby and insisted that he needed to come out because I was starting to become concerned that this pregnancy would end in pre-e and a hospital induction if he didn’t come out soon.
I started having some contractions around 11am on April 1. I had thought it would be cool to have an April 1st baby, but hadn’t really thought too much about it, since I had gone ten days past my EDD with Nathan, I was sure that I’d at least be after my EDD with Benjamin. I timed contractions for a while, and they were just all over the place. Some three minutes, some five, some ten. So, I just wrote it off as more prodromal laboring. Josh was scheduled to go to work, and kept asking me if I was in labor or not. I just couldn’t be sure…especially after getting faked out on after the chiropractor’s appt. My contractions were about 3-5 minutes apart and about 30-45 seconds long. Josh decided that I probably really wasn’t in labor and went to work. I was a little put out about that, but I tried to remember that he didn’t want to use up precious leave time on a false alarm. After Josh left for work, my contractions slowed WAY down. They spaced out to 10-15 minutes apart. After that, I was starting to think that it was gonna be another day of prodromal labor. At around 4pm, I nursed Nathan down for a nap and the contractions increased to every three to four minutes and I just couldn’t sleep through them. I really don’t like to labor while lying down. Around eight pm, I had a more intense contraction that prompted me to text Josh and let him know that if I had more contractions like that, he would need to come home. I had read that you shouldn’t get in a tub in early labor because it can cause the contractions to stop. But, at this point, I was sick of having contractions that didn’t seem to be going anywhere, and decided that a tub was the best choice. I got in the tub, and continued to have contractions about every 4-5 minutes. Since the tub didn’t make the contractions go away, I was sure this was the real deal. I called Josh and told him to come home. It was too difficult to try to time contractions and chill in the tub with Nathan trying to jump off the toilet. J
Once Josh got home, we went to the grocery store for labor supplies/food and to see if the outing would have any affect on my labor. The trip did seem to space some things out, but the contractions didn’t go away. We rented The Blind Side to watch in the meantime. Had a hard time paying attention to the movie during contractions, so I gave up trying to watch. At around eleven, Josh and I decided to try to get some sleep. I was not expecting to get any. I tried to lie down with my ipod and sleep through contractions, but I just couldn’t get comfortable enough to sleep. I remember reciting the ABCs in my head whenever I would have a contraction to distract myself. Finally, I gave up on sleep and spent some time in the shower. I called Sharon around 12:45 thinking that I was getting close, and when I started to talk to her on the phone, the contractions spaced out again. She offered to meet me at the birth center to be checked, but I didn’t want to go too soon, so I told her I’d think about it for an hour or so and call her back when things picked up some more. Got out of the shower and spent some more time trying to watch the movie.
I had Josh call his mom to come and watch Nathan, since I wasn’t sure when we would need to leave, and I knew it would take about 45 minutes to an hour for her to get to our house. She got to the house at about 2:30. I wanted to wait and see if her being at the house would affect my labor at all before I called Sharon again.
Started to have contractions that I needed a little help to get through with counter pressure from Josh. He slept on the floor between contractions, and when I would have a contraction, he’d get up and apply counter pressure on my back while I sat on the ball. I started to feel like it was time to go, because I didn’t really feel “safe” laboring at home anymore. Just because I wasn’t prepared to catch a baby all by myself. J I told Josh I was gonna get in the shower while he packed the car, since he wouldn’t be around to provide counter pressure. Called Sharon around 3:30ish. Josh let her know that I was needing counter pressure and was currently in the shower moaning through contractions. She said she’d meet us at the birth center. I waited until everything was ready to walk out the door before I got out of the shower. I got dressed quickly and kissed Nathan (who was asleep) goodbye, knowing that pretty soon he wouldn’t be my only baby anymore.
I got in the backseat of the SUV, and hugged the back of the seat with my knees in the seat. I vocalized through a few contractions on the way to the birth center. Apparently, Josh was under the impression that the speed limit was optional at four in the morning. Josh and I finalized a boy’s name in the car on the way, and I told him that I was really hoping when we got there that I wasn’t gonna be just two centimeters (Like I was when I went in with Nathan). We got to the birth center around four fifteen, and we beat Sharon there. She arrived a few minutes later. Once we got inside the birth center, Sharon did a cervical check. I was four to five centimeters dilated. I don’t know what I expected to hear, but somehow, that disappointed me. Glad it wasn’t two, but felt like it should have been more than four.
Josh and I took up residence in one of the birthing rooms (the one with the GIANT tub) and I allowed him to get stuff from the truck between my contractions, which I didn’t like to endure without a little back counter pressure. I labored on the ball for a few contractions and had some vitamin water to drink…I thought about eating something, but food just didn’t sound great. After a few contractions I asked Sharon when I could get in the tub. She let me know that she was just waiting for me to ask. I wanted to kick myself for not asking sooner, as it was a BIG tub and I knew it would take a while to fill. The hot water ran down when the tub was about half full. I went ahead and got in, planning to turn the water back on in a few minutes. Even at half full, it was still plenty of water. I jokingly asked Sharon to tell me how much longer it would be until we met our baby, knowing that she wouldn’t be able to tell me. Josh was sure it wouldn’t take long since Nathan’s birth was about 3 hours from 4 centimeters until he was born. I was unsure that it would be that fast, since this labor wasn’t being augmented like his was.
Sharon checked my blood pressure in the tub, and according to the automatic bp machine (which I was notorious for reading high on) it was something outrageous like 150/110. She told me she’d take it again manually in a few minutes (she never did get a chance to, I told her later, I really didn‘t want her to check it, so I just decided to have the baby instead). I had a two or three contractions in the tub, that I bore down slightly with at the end of each contraction, because it just felt right. At 5:00am, during a contraction, my water broke and immediately my body started pushing. I called out to Sharon to let her know that my water had broken and I was pushing. I should have been prepared for that feeling of being out of control, since the same overwhelming urge happened with Nathan, but until that contraction ended, I felt like I wanted to jump out of my own skin. I just needed a minute to take a break and re-center. Around this time we started the water up again. My water broke at 5:00am and Benjamin was crowning at 5:02. I remember him moving his head around while he was crowning, that was a bizarre feeling. I was sure that he was gonna be bigger than his big brother while I was pushing. His head was delivered at 5:05 with a nuchal cord, and born in water at 5:07. I pulled him up out of the water (with Sharon’s help) and put him on my chest. He was covered in vernix, which was weird for me, as Nathan didn’t have any vernix at all when he was born. Sharon covered him immediately with a towel, so we still didn’t know whether he was a boy or a girl. Josh and I bonded a bit with him and then we checked together to find that we had another baby boy in our family.
Benjamin Lee Dasher, born April 2, 2010 at 5:07am, 9lbs, 22 inches long.
http://fruitfulvine.com/index2.asp?P...byAlbumID=2069
