Joined
·
944 Posts
This was my second birht and the first had been such a nightmare that I was paralyzed at some point with fear. I tend to get that way when I am pregnant I realize now. Usually I am very proactive aobut researching things and taking care of myself, but for some reason I can't get that way when I am pregnant. I can't even write about the things I experience when I go through it. ANyway,
This time I was going to give birth at a differenct hospital mainly due to insurance reasons. I had heard good things about this hospital though and I decided I would get a Doula. I knew I wanted to labor at home as long as possible but had no plans for a drug free labor until much later (at 36 weeks that is what I decided on) My first baby was on the large side (9 lbs 5 oz) and the OB showed some concern about this baby also being large. I think I really carry the babies out in front and my stomach gets REALLY BIG! So he was talking about doing an induction rather than waiting for the bayb to get bigger and bigger. I agreed to the ultrasound to measure the baby, and discussed with the OB that I didn't want to induce, so no plans were made yet. But every week there was the discussion, and I told the baby not to wait to long, drank red raspberry leaf tea and scheduled acupunture.
Then at 11:30 PM on May 30th my water broke.
So here was the show, on the road. I knew it was going to happen since I had felt the baby drop, and I had lost my mucous plug. Anyway, off to the hospital and they tell me that I will get pitocin at 7 AM unless my contractions have started. So I spend the night walking around the hospital instead of sleeping because I wanted the contractions to start on their own.
But nothing! So at 7 AM I get the IV and I was OK with that because lst time I got an infection and after DD1 was born they took her away from me to the NICU for observation. I definately did not want that to happen again. The OB knew I wanted to labor without meds (though technically it wasn't drug free as soon as the IV got started) so he assured me they would increase the pit very very slowly. My Doula came to the hospital and at first we hada little party. Reading magazines, discussing baby names, walking around the hospital (they were very liberal about letting me wander around. They had a telemetry unit for the baby monitor, but I had to share it with someone else so mostly I was unplugged). I was really hungry so we were joking about scrounging food from other hospital trays. I like to color (in coloring books) so I did that some too.
At some point the cotractions started to get more serious and they were very erratic. Not always the same length and not always spaced apart and certainly not at regular inetervals. Of course they were just getting harder and harder. I had the most wonderful nurse who spent the whole afternoon in my room helping me and DH and the Doula were talking me through the contractions. THe nurse really supported natural childbirth and never suggested drugs. SHe never made me go back to bed if I didn't want to, just to monitor the baby, so I was mobile when I wanted to be. At some point the pit was shut off and I went into the shower. THe contractions became manageable again, but I was very tired. I was falling asleep between contractions and I wanted to sit down. No matter where I sat though, the pain would become very sharp and painful. Finally I said I couldn't do it anymore and asked for an epidural. THe nurse checked me and I was 7 cm and she was surpised because I hadn't dilated much since the last time she checked much earlier. Also the baby was not descendign the way she liked, and then I had to sit very still for the epidural.
I took the best nap of my life! For an hour. DH figured that the epidural would slow everything down so he went to have lunch and brought back the newspaper. When he got back the OB was checking me out and asking if I could feel the contraction and move my legs etc. I could all those things. I coudl move my legs and feel them and I could feel the contractions too. He was concerned too that the baby was not descending and felt around the head and had me change positions a few times when he said that my pubic bone hangs down low, and that the baby was stuck up above it so I needed to lie down on my back.
Then he said, "lets see how it feels to push". I pointed out that I didn't feel the urge to push, but he said that with an epidural and baby not descending I may never feel the urge to push. After a couple of pushes I did feel the urge and after what felt like a short time (but was actually an hour) my DD2 was born. I could really feel it when she was coming out and it was so spectacular. THe nurse put a towel on my chest and I thought "Jeeze, I am not goingt to throw up now!" They put her right on my tummy and we got to bond for a while. Then they quickly cleaned her up and brought her back to me and we hung out nursing and gazing for a while. I was such a wonderful experience. I felt elated and so happy.
So do I have any regrets about getting the epidural. No, not anymore. First I did, because I am usually very persistent and I usually accomplish what I set out to do. But now I realize that all the reasons not to have an epidural did not really come to pass. I had it for two hours, and I had a very light one. Maybe, if I hadn't had the pitocin, if my water hadn't been broken, if I could have used the tub (hospital policy was that you can't use it if your water is broken of if you are past 7 cm), and if I had know my pelvis was in the way of the baby I could have managed my labor differently. But I am so so happy with how it went. It was really so beautiful and I felt really strong and DD2 is so beautiful and lovely that it was the best possible birth for me.
I didn't get the initial bonding time with DD1 because she had to go to the NICU and I only got to see her for a couple of minutes. Then the nurse didn't take me to the NICU for hours and hours. I was in tears and so unhappy. It makes such a difference to have that initial time with your baby. Then after she was in the nursery for her bath (with DH) she was in my room the whole time. Generally the nurses were very nice at this hospital too, friendly, and they treated me like a woman who had had a baby, not a patient.
This time I was going to give birth at a differenct hospital mainly due to insurance reasons. I had heard good things about this hospital though and I decided I would get a Doula. I knew I wanted to labor at home as long as possible but had no plans for a drug free labor until much later (at 36 weeks that is what I decided on) My first baby was on the large side (9 lbs 5 oz) and the OB showed some concern about this baby also being large. I think I really carry the babies out in front and my stomach gets REALLY BIG! So he was talking about doing an induction rather than waiting for the bayb to get bigger and bigger. I agreed to the ultrasound to measure the baby, and discussed with the OB that I didn't want to induce, so no plans were made yet. But every week there was the discussion, and I told the baby not to wait to long, drank red raspberry leaf tea and scheduled acupunture.
Then at 11:30 PM on May 30th my water broke.
So here was the show, on the road. I knew it was going to happen since I had felt the baby drop, and I had lost my mucous plug. Anyway, off to the hospital and they tell me that I will get pitocin at 7 AM unless my contractions have started. So I spend the night walking around the hospital instead of sleeping because I wanted the contractions to start on their own.
But nothing! So at 7 AM I get the IV and I was OK with that because lst time I got an infection and after DD1 was born they took her away from me to the NICU for observation. I definately did not want that to happen again. The OB knew I wanted to labor without meds (though technically it wasn't drug free as soon as the IV got started) so he assured me they would increase the pit very very slowly. My Doula came to the hospital and at first we hada little party. Reading magazines, discussing baby names, walking around the hospital (they were very liberal about letting me wander around. They had a telemetry unit for the baby monitor, but I had to share it with someone else so mostly I was unplugged). I was really hungry so we were joking about scrounging food from other hospital trays. I like to color (in coloring books) so I did that some too.
At some point the cotractions started to get more serious and they were very erratic. Not always the same length and not always spaced apart and certainly not at regular inetervals. Of course they were just getting harder and harder. I had the most wonderful nurse who spent the whole afternoon in my room helping me and DH and the Doula were talking me through the contractions. THe nurse really supported natural childbirth and never suggested drugs. SHe never made me go back to bed if I didn't want to, just to monitor the baby, so I was mobile when I wanted to be. At some point the pit was shut off and I went into the shower. THe contractions became manageable again, but I was very tired. I was falling asleep between contractions and I wanted to sit down. No matter where I sat though, the pain would become very sharp and painful. Finally I said I couldn't do it anymore and asked for an epidural. THe nurse checked me and I was 7 cm and she was surpised because I hadn't dilated much since the last time she checked much earlier. Also the baby was not descendign the way she liked, and then I had to sit very still for the epidural.
I took the best nap of my life! For an hour. DH figured that the epidural would slow everything down so he went to have lunch and brought back the newspaper. When he got back the OB was checking me out and asking if I could feel the contraction and move my legs etc. I could all those things. I coudl move my legs and feel them and I could feel the contractions too. He was concerned too that the baby was not descending and felt around the head and had me change positions a few times when he said that my pubic bone hangs down low, and that the baby was stuck up above it so I needed to lie down on my back.
Then he said, "lets see how it feels to push". I pointed out that I didn't feel the urge to push, but he said that with an epidural and baby not descending I may never feel the urge to push. After a couple of pushes I did feel the urge and after what felt like a short time (but was actually an hour) my DD2 was born. I could really feel it when she was coming out and it was so spectacular. THe nurse put a towel on my chest and I thought "Jeeze, I am not goingt to throw up now!" They put her right on my tummy and we got to bond for a while. Then they quickly cleaned her up and brought her back to me and we hung out nursing and gazing for a while. I was such a wonderful experience. I felt elated and so happy.
So do I have any regrets about getting the epidural. No, not anymore. First I did, because I am usually very persistent and I usually accomplish what I set out to do. But now I realize that all the reasons not to have an epidural did not really come to pass. I had it for two hours, and I had a very light one. Maybe, if I hadn't had the pitocin, if my water hadn't been broken, if I could have used the tub (hospital policy was that you can't use it if your water is broken of if you are past 7 cm), and if I had know my pelvis was in the way of the baby I could have managed my labor differently. But I am so so happy with how it went. It was really so beautiful and I felt really strong and DD2 is so beautiful and lovely that it was the best possible birth for me.
I didn't get the initial bonding time with DD1 because she had to go to the NICU and I only got to see her for a couple of minutes. Then the nurse didn't take me to the NICU for hours and hours. I was in tears and so unhappy. It makes such a difference to have that initial time with your baby. Then after she was in the nursery for her bath (with DH) she was in my room the whole time. Generally the nurses were very nice at this hospital too, friendly, and they treated me like a woman who had had a baby, not a patient.
