Member- hogoboom2012
- 2 years ago
- Wedding: August 2012
I loved reading birth stories on here and finally had a chance to sit and write ours out. Sorry if this is crazy long!
Quick backstory – we began TTC in summer 2014 and it took us 26 months to finally get pregnant with our son. I have endometriosis, PCOS, a missing ovary/fallopian tube due to ovarian tortion and responded poorly to oral meds, Darling Husband has mild MFI. We were blessed that it only took injectable IUI’s for us and we didn’t have to pursue IVF. Pregnancy was a roller coaster just like our TTC journey – ruptured and bleeding cysts from weeks 11 to 21, a placenta previa and preterm contractions were the big adventures. So thankful for the support from my TTC and pregnancy after infertility friends on these boards. They were a huge support through all of it!
We’d been given the goal of 38 weeks by the L&D nurses and we made it to that goal on Monday, May 22. DH and I walked up and down through the neighborhood and talked about how excited we were to meet our little boy soon and stopped to get ice cream on the way home. It was the first night I didn’t have any Braxton Hicks and actually felt really good when we went to bed so I was certain we had at least a few more days!
Around 1:30a on Tuesday, May 23, I woke up with cramping. I got up for a couple minutes, drank some water and was able to drift back off to sleep so didn’t think anything of it. At 2:30, I woke up suddenly because my water had broken and was gushing all over our bed! DH and Snickers (our cat) have never jumped off the bed so fast! I had no contractions, so while Darling Husband stripped the bed and started laundry, I called the OB office and was told to grab our things and come into the hospital. We ate breakfast and showered before heading to the hospital – a little over an hour away. On the way, I had a few light contractions but nothing bad or even really painful. We were both bummed that my OB wouldn’t be the one on call to deliver our son after seeing us through years of struggles to get here! But we were ready to meet our son too.
When we got to the birthing center in the hospital around 4:45a, where they took us into triage and checked everything over. They confirmed that my water had definitely broken and that I was having some contractions. Baby’s heart rate looked great and I could feel some kicks so things were looking good. I wasn’t dilated much and my cervix was still very posterior but because my water was broken, they had to keep us. We moved to a labor room and then my OB came into the room. She had switched shifts around and was on call for deliveries that day after all! She was literally dancing around the labor room because she was so excited to be part of our delivery team! It was a huge answer to prayer! Once everything was checked over, they said we could walk the halls to try and get labor really started and avoid pitocin (the one drug I really did not want to have!).
Around 8, the nurse asked us to come back in so she could hook me up to the monitors for a few minutes to get a good pattern on the baby. Contractions were noticeably more uncomfortable in the bed so I was hoping to keep walking or get in the shower as soon as she had a good trace on the baby. Instead, around 8:15 she came back in and asked me to lay on my left side. At 8:30, the OB came in and said that his heart rate was dropping and they needed to place internal monitors to find out what was going on. Placing the leads was more painful than I was expecting but it gave them a better idea of the intensity of my contractions and his heart rate. OB estimated I was around a 2 and 70-80% effaced at that point – we still had a long way to go, but it was progress!
Over the next several hours, Darling Husband and my mom were amazing at holding my hands through the contractions and reminding me to breathe through them. The contractions still weren’t consistent, but they were good and strong. I’d get 3-4 on top of each other and then a break for a few minutes. I focused on trying to breathe through them like I did when breathing for weight lifting and that helped a lot. Both Darling Husband and my mom were incredible, but I was amazed at how well Darling Husband did through all of it especially!
At 1:30, the nurse returned and hooked me up to IV fluids. That seemed odd since my OB said I could avoid them, but I figured I hadn’t been drinking enough between contractions since every time I tried, another contraction started. At 1:50, I got some staydol to help me relax more before the next cervical check.
Around 2:25, my OB came in and said that the baby was looking stressed and the IV fluids weren’t helping like she’d hoped. His oxydation wasn’t great and if we waited too long, she was concerned he would crash. She recommended a C-section if things didn’t improve soon. It didn’t take long (around 2:45) before things started to really pick up and a lot more people came into the room as the doctor was growing more tense. Nurses were helping my mom take off my jewelry and get me prepped while Darling Husband was given juice and a “bee-keeper” suit to wear. They were in a hurry to get me out the door to the OR and ran into the doorframe with the bed twice! DH was asked to wait outside while they prepped me for surgery. My OB held my hand while the spinal was placed and through the next contractions until it kicked in. The anesthesiologist was incredible at helping me stay calm even when I started shaking really bad and feeling light headed.
They brought Darling Husband in and began surgery. Andrew David was born at 3:16 that afternoon and his cry was the best thing I’ve ever heard!!! He was 6lbs 13oz and 19.75″ long. A C-section was absolutely the right decision as the cord had been wrapped around his neck twice and I’d had a placental abruption. DH got to cut the cord and I got to see his face very briefly before he and Darling Husband left to go spend the next few hours in oxygen therapy because of the amniotic fluid he’d swallowed. The OB continued to work on stitching me back up, but had to call for another doctor to come in and assist with it because of complications from my endometriosis. I was moved to a postpartum room for recovery and waited there until Darling Husband was finally able to bring Andrew in and I could meet him.
I didn’t realize fully how scary it was for a little bit until looking through the pictures and seeing the absolute relief on my OB’s face as she was hugging Darling Husband afterwards. So thankful that she was the one on the floor that day and was watching us so closely. The entire day was one of the roughest that I can remember but all of us had a peace throughout it too that things were going to be OK. We could feel God’s presence with us from the start and we’re so thankful that our son is here safely.
He’s three weeks old now and we’re completely in love. He’s starting to get more aware and loves cuddling with Daddy and bathtime. His sleepy smiles are the best and he’s growing quickly! I love being his mom!
