This is a great forum. It's so neat to hear all the stories of different births. Ds's was totally different than I had imagined it, but I really have no regrets at all.
I totalled up the hours of contractions from start to finish and it's somewhere around 103! Ugh! I went into labor (sort of) early on Tuesday morning and Samuel was born at 11:15 on Saturday. It was Holy week in a pastor's family, one week early and we had just had the midwife tell us it was going to be a couple more weeks because I hadn't dilated at all yet (this was on Monday). So, we went to the hospital (this was always the plan, midwife-assisted at the hospital, no drugs). But, even though I was having very regular and strong contractions, I did not dilate more than two centimeters until late on Friday. We left the hospital on Tuesday, believing them when they said we'd be ready to have the baby that day. Well, no luck. I decided to go home with a sleeping pill that night to try to get some rest. Contractions slowed to about 10 minutes apart, but never stopped. WE were sent home again on Thursday morning after another check by the midwife.
Finally, on Friday, after so much frustration and total exhaustion, I called the midwife after having gone out at midnight to buy Tylenol PM so I could sleep, she said to come in. I was so terrified they would send me home again, I almost didn't go. WHen they checked, though, I was 5 centimeters. However, the contractions were now totally irregular. So I agreed to a pitocin drip to keep things moving. I also gladly took the epidural out of pure exhaustion after four days with sleep in 10-minute increments.
Samuel was born after only 20 minutes of pushing and it was the most wonderful experience of my life! I really have no regrets, even though it was not how we planned it. He was big for me and I had 4th degree tearing, so a lot of stitches by a wonderful surgeon, but it healed well and I'd never know it happened that way.
They tell me it's unlikely this will happen with my next baby, but it sure gives me pause to think about a second one after that long week! Thanks for reading!
I totalled up the hours of contractions from start to finish and it's somewhere around 103! Ugh! I went into labor (sort of) early on Tuesday morning and Samuel was born at 11:15 on Saturday. It was Holy week in a pastor's family, one week early and we had just had the midwife tell us it was going to be a couple more weeks because I hadn't dilated at all yet (this was on Monday). So, we went to the hospital (this was always the plan, midwife-assisted at the hospital, no drugs). But, even though I was having very regular and strong contractions, I did not dilate more than two centimeters until late on Friday. We left the hospital on Tuesday, believing them when they said we'd be ready to have the baby that day. Well, no luck. I decided to go home with a sleeping pill that night to try to get some rest. Contractions slowed to about 10 minutes apart, but never stopped. WE were sent home again on Thursday morning after another check by the midwife.
Finally, on Friday, after so much frustration and total exhaustion, I called the midwife after having gone out at midnight to buy Tylenol PM so I could sleep, she said to come in. I was so terrified they would send me home again, I almost didn't go. WHen they checked, though, I was 5 centimeters. However, the contractions were now totally irregular. So I agreed to a pitocin drip to keep things moving. I also gladly took the epidural out of pure exhaustion after four days with sleep in 10-minute increments.
Samuel was born after only 20 minutes of pushing and it was the most wonderful experience of my life! I really have no regrets, even though it was not how we planned it. He was big for me and I had 4th degree tearing, so a lot of stitches by a wonderful surgeon, but it healed well and I'd never know it happened that way.
They tell me it's unlikely this will happen with my next baby, but it sure gives me pause to think about a second one after that long week! Thanks for reading!
