A year late, but better late than never :) Here's the story of the actual birth:
September 1, 2010
We arrived at the hospital birthing class shortly after eating a delicious dinner at Paradise Cafe. This was the final class and the first one Josh had attended. It was completely pointless. The topic was newborn care which means how to swaddle, how to strap your kid in the car seat, how to give a bath, signs of postpartum depression, etc. Common sense took us much further than this class!
We left the class early to get checked in at the hospital for the induction. That was completely nerve wracking, especially the IV part. Thankfully the nurse was confident and she gave me good hints how it would hurt less (like relax and breath). At 10pm the doctor on staff came in to insert the pill on my cervix so it would soften and be ready for all the pitocin I would get in the morning.
I remember them telling me not to eat anything else until the baby was birthed and I thought that was the most outrageous thing I'd ever heard. Also, I didn't know at the time, but I'm hypoglycemic- no wonder the thought of starvation sends me into a mini panic attack! I talked about it so much, the midwife finally said I could have something small in the morning if I was discreet about it.
They wanted me to sleep that night. That's easier said than done. All these things were beeping around me and I was having some contractions, just enough to keep me awake. Being in the hospital around all the medical "stuff" made me think I was close to death.
Josh was sleeping just fine on the tiny couch. I wanted someone to talk to, but I also knew the he was running on empty and needed to rest for the next day. After five months away I was happy to have him next to me, talking or not. I finally drifted off in the early morning hours.
September 2, 2010
Morning arrived. I think I woke up around six am. They were ready to get the pitocin started. I sent Josh to get me toast, peanut butter, and a banana. I don't know if that qualifies as something small, but I felt much better knowing that I wouldn't be surviving on those disgusting jello shots and juice.
The pitocin started and I began to feel contractions...I thought they hurt at this point. Little did I know they would get so, so much worse. The nurse asked what my intentions were for an epidural- I said no, knowing that I could always change my mind.
I spent the morning in pretty good spirits. We were laughing and talking in between the minor contractions that were coming about every 4-5 minutes. I was walking the halls with Josh and the IV, occasionally stopping to check email or post a status on Facebook.
The midwife came in around noon to check me and I was only at 2 cm. We decided it was time for a water break. That was really painful! And the water gush was weird and gross feeling.
After that things really began moving along. I was experiencing contractions one minute long and only 30-45 seconds apart. It was a crazy feeling to have no break in between. The rocking chair was my favorite place, although I was getting some back labor from it. We called the midwife back to help me through. She walked in asked me a few questions and told me it was time to get out of the rocker and do some exercising. I explained I was on the verge of puking with every contraction, yet I wanted to show her I was willing to do what it took- so off we went to walk the halls. With each contraction she would have me stop, hold the rail, and imagine I was running up a big hill. I kept crying to her that running is way easier and doesn't even compare. After the contraction she had me Plie (a ballet term meaning move up and down at the bend of your knees), then we would continue walking. As we rounded the corner back to the room I puked all over the hall. She said we didn't have to do that anymore and I was so thankful.
For the next part- still nauseous, I got on the birth ball and went into survival mode I wasn't talking or laughing. I was showing signs of transition even though I was probably only at 3-4 cm dilated. People around me kept telling me to relax though the contraction, but with no time in between I could only focus on the next one. I began begging them to turn the pitocin off. When that didn't work I asked for the minor pain meds. The midwife suggested that I not take those. Trusting her, I told them to get the epidural. No one argued with me. That was perfect. If someone had said no, I would have turned even crazier than I already was. The epidural was there so fast. The anesthesiologist worked quickly to get it in between the 30 second contractions.
4pmish- I laid in the bed and waited for it to take effect. It began working on my left side pretty quickly but not on my right. Lexie's heart rate dropped. They turned the pitocin off immediately, it was so quiet in the room and I could tell it was serious. That didn't work, so they turned me to the right. Her heart rate began to come up. It's a really strange feeling to just have contractions on one side of your body. I told them I still felt it, and they turned it up, the pain subsided a little but never went away completely. That was fine with me- I was just happy to have 60% relief!
The rest of the time was a blur- I was on my back breathing through the pain. They would come in to check me every so often. Around 7-7:30 I was breathing pretty heavily and feeling a lot of pressure by 7:50 I could tell that something had changed, I told the nurse, she checked me and told me I was ready to push. I explained to her that I was not pushing without the midwife who she had already called, but hadn't arrived yet. I had found my strong personality match as her reply was something like- "that's fine, but you body is going to have this baby whether you push or not" Luckily through all that the midwife came in.
She put both her hands in my you know where and began to stretch me with some slippery stuff which helps the baby slide out without trauma to the mama. Then she told me when to push. It worked and with about four pushed Alexis Kate was born. They immediately gave her to me which I felt was pretty disgusting since she was covered in ickiness. I was very concerned that everything was okay with my body and that I wasn't going to die.
It wasn't love at first sight with Alexis. Most newborns have to grow into their cuteness, she was one of them. I definitely felt protective of her and was in awe of how I was carrying a baby in my body and all the sudden she's here in my arms.
I think it's safe to say it was love at first sight with Alexis and Josh...it's interesting because it shows in their relationship today.
We were in Office Max last week when out of the blue she told the sales man "I'm a Daddy girl!"
Well, that sums up the birth of Alexis complete with all sorts of run on sentences, I'm sure :)
Sorry, I don't love editing.
