I have some great pics from last weekend and this week, but Daniel has needed the camera in studio the past few days, so those will have to wait. In the meantime, a few people have asked for my labor story, so I will satisfy their request today!
Warning: I promise not to go into graphic detail, but if words like "dilated" or "contraction" make you nervous, read no further.
On the 15th (Baby's due date), I was barely dilated and only partly effaced. We scheduled our induction date for December 23, and I began impatiently mall-walking with my mom every morning, trying to encourage Baby to come on his/her own. In hindsight, I see that God's timing was perfect, but that last week, I was SO READY to meet Baby. On Sunday the 21st, Daniel was finally finished with the semester, had gotten one good night's sleep, and the only thing on our minds was having this baby!
Sunday, December 21: Partly to distract us from the waiting, and partly to celebrate our anniversary (December 28) a little early since we were going to be induced on the 23rd, Daniel and I went to dinner at Brio. The food was delicious, and the Christmas lights spectacular as always. On our drive home, I began having contractions, and by the time we were home and starting a game of bridge with my parents, they were coming about every 5-6 minutes! I called my doctor, who told me to wait until they were 4-5 minutes apart for at least a couple of hours before heading to the hospital.
Monday, December 22: At 2AM, they had been 4-5 minutes apart for and hour and forty-five minutes. Our suitcases were zipped and by the door; I had even packed some sandwiches for Daniel. I cannot describe the disappointment when all of a sudden they tapered off to about every ten minutes. So, the sandwiches went in the fridge, and we headed to bed. Unfortunately, my contractions continued about every 10 minutes throughout the night and were strong enough that they woke me up almost every time. Not my best night's sleep. At my appointment that morning, I was dilated to 2cm and 80% effaced, which encouraged me... at least my contractions were accomplishing something! But, all we could do was wait. I tried to nap during the day, but my contractions continued to be just strong enough to keep me from getting any real sleep.
Tuesday, December 23: At 1AM, my contractions finally began to pick up again, and at 2AM we decided to go to the hospital because I was experiencing some bleeding. After being examined, they said the bleeding was probably just from my cervix dilating, but since we were scheduled to be induced in four hours anyway, they just let us stay. By 6AM I was dilated to a 7, and by 8AM I was at a 9. We thought Baby was moments away. I kept telling myself, "Just one more hour... you can do this for one more hour." One more hour turned into 7 hours, and I was still at a 9! By this time I could hardly stay awake between contractions, and although they and we tried everything they could, my body was stuck. At 3PM, we decided to start the pitocin. This was the scariest part of the day for me. I wanted so badly to have this baby without pain medication, and I had read of women who fainted because the pitocin so intensified their contractions. I was so exhausted by that point, however, that I knew this Baby needed to happen soon or else I would need even more help getting him/her out! This being the low point, Daniel decided to call my mom to come and give me a little boost. I know God put that thought in his head, because I needed a boost at that point, and it was so cool to have her witness Elli's birth! The pitocin did increase the contractions' intensity, but the pain was still manageable. By 4PM, I was fully dilated and ready to push! After about an hour of pushing (which seemed a lot shorter, actually), we finally welcomed little Elinor Faye into our arms at 5:02PM.
My favorite moment of the whole labor/delivery experience was Daniel saying, "It's a girl! Megan, it's a little girl!" Wow... that's probably one of my favorite moments of all time.... still makes my eyes tear up. It made every moment of waiting so worth it! Daniel was amazing the whole time. He was so encouraging, helpful, and thoughtful. I could not ask for a better partner.
In conclusion, this history would not be complete without mentioning our AWESOME labor and delivery nurse. Kim's shift was from 7AM- 7PM on the 23rd, so she was with us for the hard part of the day. She is my hero! Not only was she caring and thoughtful, she had such great ideas to help me manage the pain. Countless times she pushed on my lower back, or squeezed my hips (which sounds strange, but helps immensely!), or spoke encouraging words when I felt like giving up. She was truly a Godsend.
So, that is my labor story. Those 44 hours were the longest of my entire life but also the most rewarding. I am praying (hard!) that next time is significantly shorter, but I will do it all over again in a heartbeat!
Warning: I promise not to go into graphic detail, but if words like "dilated" or "contraction" make you nervous, read no further.
On the 15th (Baby's due date), I was barely dilated and only partly effaced. We scheduled our induction date for December 23, and I began impatiently mall-walking with my mom every morning, trying to encourage Baby to come on his/her own. In hindsight, I see that God's timing was perfect, but that last week, I was SO READY to meet Baby. On Sunday the 21st, Daniel was finally finished with the semester, had gotten one good night's sleep, and the only thing on our minds was having this baby!
Sunday, December 21: Partly to distract us from the waiting, and partly to celebrate our anniversary (December 28) a little early since we were going to be induced on the 23rd, Daniel and I went to dinner at Brio. The food was delicious, and the Christmas lights spectacular as always. On our drive home, I began having contractions, and by the time we were home and starting a game of bridge with my parents, they were coming about every 5-6 minutes! I called my doctor, who told me to wait until they were 4-5 minutes apart for at least a couple of hours before heading to the hospital.
Monday, December 22: At 2AM, they had been 4-5 minutes apart for and hour and forty-five minutes. Our suitcases were zipped and by the door; I had even packed some sandwiches for Daniel. I cannot describe the disappointment when all of a sudden they tapered off to about every ten minutes. So, the sandwiches went in the fridge, and we headed to bed. Unfortunately, my contractions continued about every 10 minutes throughout the night and were strong enough that they woke me up almost every time. Not my best night's sleep. At my appointment that morning, I was dilated to 2cm and 80% effaced, which encouraged me... at least my contractions were accomplishing something! But, all we could do was wait. I tried to nap during the day, but my contractions continued to be just strong enough to keep me from getting any real sleep.
Tuesday, December 23: At 1AM, my contractions finally began to pick up again, and at 2AM we decided to go to the hospital because I was experiencing some bleeding. After being examined, they said the bleeding was probably just from my cervix dilating, but since we were scheduled to be induced in four hours anyway, they just let us stay. By 6AM I was dilated to a 7, and by 8AM I was at a 9. We thought Baby was moments away. I kept telling myself, "Just one more hour... you can do this for one more hour." One more hour turned into 7 hours, and I was still at a 9! By this time I could hardly stay awake between contractions, and although they and we tried everything they could, my body was stuck. At 3PM, we decided to start the pitocin. This was the scariest part of the day for me. I wanted so badly to have this baby without pain medication, and I had read of women who fainted because the pitocin so intensified their contractions. I was so exhausted by that point, however, that I knew this Baby needed to happen soon or else I would need even more help getting him/her out! This being the low point, Daniel decided to call my mom to come and give me a little boost. I know God put that thought in his head, because I needed a boost at that point, and it was so cool to have her witness Elli's birth! The pitocin did increase the contractions' intensity, but the pain was still manageable. By 4PM, I was fully dilated and ready to push! After about an hour of pushing (which seemed a lot shorter, actually), we finally welcomed little Elinor Faye into our arms at 5:02PM.
My favorite moment of the whole labor/delivery experience was Daniel saying, "It's a girl! Megan, it's a little girl!" Wow... that's probably one of my favorite moments of all time.... still makes my eyes tear up. It made every moment of waiting so worth it! Daniel was amazing the whole time. He was so encouraging, helpful, and thoughtful. I could not ask for a better partner.
In conclusion, this history would not be complete without mentioning our AWESOME labor and delivery nurse. Kim's shift was from 7AM- 7PM on the 23rd, so she was with us for the hard part of the day. She is my hero! Not only was she caring and thoughtful, she had such great ideas to help me manage the pain. Countless times she pushed on my lower back, or squeezed my hips (which sounds strange, but helps immensely!), or spoke encouraging words when I felt like giving up. She was truly a Godsend.
So, that is my labor story. Those 44 hours were the longest of my entire life but also the most rewarding. I am praying (hard!) that next time is significantly shorter, but I will do it all over again in a heartbeat!
5 comments:
Sounds like you were a strong woman! After an hour on pitcoin and fits of crying I took the epidural! And isn't the whole experience just amazing? I had no idea what to expect going it but it is definitely a miracle!
I have tears reading your story! I loved it.
I'm crying! Good for you Megan! That's so great! Women having babies are a complete miracle!
You are the woman! Seriously. That is one incredible story. Thank you for sharing.
I got a little teary just reading "It's a girl!" How precious :-)
Post a Comment