I had a pretty easy time giving birth to my children. Bryan is my first born. I went into the early stages of labor in mid-morning. I went to the hospital around noon. They told me it was the very early stages and sent me to a regular hospital room because the hospital only had one birthing room at the time(now they have 3)and it was occupied.They told me I was going to be there right through the night and into breakfast before I delivered anyway.
They moved me into the birthing room at 8pm and were surprised when they checked on my progress that I was almost 100% ready to go. My contractions never got closer than 5 minutes apart. At 9:12pm, I delivered a very healthy 7lb 1oz 21 inches long baby boy.
Three years later I returned to the hospital to be induced into labor for my second child, Shannon. I went in at 8:00am. The first thing they did was break my water. At 12:30pm, when not much was happening, they decided to hook me up and give me lots of pain! The labor is more intense when you are induced. At 4:50pm,I delivered a 8lb,14oz, 21 inches long, very healthy baby girl.
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Ame S.
My original plan included no pain meds,no IV if possible,no shave,no episiotomy, none of the "usual" stuff. I planned to give birth at St. Luke's Birth Center with my midwife. Of course some of it went according to plan and some didn't. I was extremely apprehensive about labor pain(as I'm sure any first time mom is) and all you see on tv is women screaming their way through child birth.Our childbirth educator assured us that it is not like that but of course I was sure she was lying in order to keep us from being scared senseless. I was due on Dec. 29,1996 and my due date came and went to my dismay. On New Year's Eve, I had fallen asleep while watching Dick Clark's New Year's Special and at 11:45 pm I suddenly woke up. I lay on the couch with cramps (thinking it was the pizza i had eaten earlier disagreeing with me)and watched the ball drop in New york. At around 12:15 am, I realized that it wasn't indigestion and woke my husband, Scott.
I called my midwife and she said I should probably take a shower and that I shouldn't bother coming down yet, but I insisted I'd rather be safe than sorry. I was trying to time my contractions, but it honestly felt like one long contraction. The birth center is an hour away so I wanted to make sure that I got there in plenty of time. We arrived and my midwife,Anne, told me I'd probably have to go back home for a few. But then she did an exam and found out I was already 7 centimeters dilated! I got in the whirlpool while Anne called the attending nurse. Around 3:30 am, Anne did another exam and we found out I was still about 7-8 centimeters, so we decided to break my water. Well, that's when things got off track. I had been having an excellent labor so far. The pain was bearable, and when I was in the whirlpool, I actually hadn't felt anything. But she found meconium in the amniotic fluid, so it was off to the hospital for a transfer for me. I was a little scared, but I was more concerned about my harder contractions. They were still bearable. I could talk and walk, but they were definately stronger.
When we arrived at the hospital, I was wheeled up to a birthing room. They put a contraction monitor on me and found out that I was basically having one long contraction. They took off the monitor because it was useless since my uterus never uncontracted. As soon as I was on the bed, I felt like pushing and they gave me the go ahead, But my pushes were pretty weak. They said I was getting dehydrated so I ended up getting an IV put in. I basically slept for a while and then they woke me up to push. I pushed for 1 hour( and ended up getting an episiotomy at some point) and I had a baby girl weighing 9 lbs 5oz at 6:40 am on New Year's Day. She was 21 inches long. She looked exactly like me and I was instantly awake and ready to take on the world. Luckily, she hadn't inhaled any of the meconium, so she was perfectly healthy. I had never seen anything so wonderous in my entire life as that precios baby.
It took the midwife 2 hours to stitch me up. I had an episiotomy, a few 1stdegree tears, a 2nddegree. In retrospect, I wish I had done the exercises for stretching the perineum more. The best thing I brought with me to the hospital was reading material and puzzle books. I really wish someone had told me that my stomach would feel like Jell-o after giving birth (they skipped that in education class). I am most proud that I stuck to my no pain meds. The only thing I remember well about the whole birth experience was Lillian Marie (Lily) actually being born. The labor part is a blur. I was on a natural endorphin high the whole time. It was just a fabulous experience in all and I can't wait to have another child!
Monica E.
The Parenting Corner
On Halloween night, after a day full of uncertainty and questions (as well
as light contractions) I told my mom I was ready to go to the hospital.
Unfortunately, the nurses didn't agree with my idea that I was in labor
(after all, I was only dialated to 1 centimeter - same as the prior two
weeks).
After the return trip home, I settled down for a couple of hours of uneasy
sleep, only to be awakened by a honest-to-goodness contraction. As
sure as I was that this was the real thing, I let my mother sleep until
5:00am, then I pratically tore down her door. By seven o'clock (yes, it
took
two hours to convince her and my dad that they were real labor
contractions) we went for another drive to the hospital. This trip was a
lot more
uncomfortable because I was in a lot more pain. After I went through
another centimeter check (still one, but "almost" two) the nurses called
for a
visit from my obstetrician, who, at 9 o'clock, pronounced me 3 centimeters
dialated and in need of a C-section.
At 11:30 (I have no idea why they waited so darn long) I walked into the
delivery room, IV and catheter in place. I was given a spinal, which
deadened all sensation from mid-chest to my little feet, and the surgery
began. While I could not feel any pain, I did feel tugging and pulling. In
addition to the screamingly cold operating room and my own fear, I was so
looking forward to hearing my baby cry for the first time. When the
nurse told my mother to stand up, I knew it was about to happen, and all
of my emotions welled up as my nervousness cranked up to the highest
notch. The nurse began to shove down on my fundus and at 12:07pm, my son
Dagan was born.
As his cry echoed in the large, white room, I felt so many things - from
confusion (is that really my baby?) to joy to impatience - I wanted to see
my baby! Unfortunately, the doctor decided to put me back together at that
moment, and I got sick right when they asked, "Do you want to see
your baby?" I heard a nurse say, "Mommy doesn't feel good right now," and
I frantically said "Yes!" As my newborn baby was presented to me,
I said "Why, he's cute!" They took off his hat so I could kiss his little,
soft, warm head, and I thought, "Hey, I'm a mom now."
Star...
I have 2 beautiful daughters. One is 10 1/2 and the other will be turning 7 on the 22nd of February. I'll start by telling you about my first born.
My pregnancy wasn't a very fun one. From what I can remember of it, I think I lived hugging the old porcelan bowl. Little did I know that that would be mild compared to my labor! I was in labor for 33 hours after I arrived at the hospital. I felt the labor pains for 2 weeks before that. First thing they did was induce me. I'm sure you know that being induced feels like you have a constant contraction that just never eases up. The pain I felt was almost as if my hip bones were getting ready to fly off my body! I finally told the doctor to do something about the pain (the pain killers they gave me didn't help much) so then he suggested that needle in the back. So I did. My problem was that I couldn't dilate anymore then 4 centimeters. As soon as I got that needle in my back I fully dilated and went to the delivery room. I delivered a very healthy beautiful 7 lb baby girl. I saw her being born step by step and till this day it brings tears into my eyes. First thing they did was put her on my belly and I held her bawling my eyes out. That high I felt that night at 11:39 p.m. was extraordinary. All I kept saying was my beautiful little baby girl. Right there and then I knew that I would be willing to go through all that pain again to have her. It was all worth it!
My pregnancy with my second and last daughter was just as bad as my first. Always at that porcelan bowl! I was in labor for 30 hours for her, so almost as long as my first born. My pain for her while in labor was totaly different from the first one. I felt the labor one month before I was actually in it. The pain felt more like really bad menstrual cramps then anything else. Still very painful. Again, they induced me in hopes to get me to dilate but it didn't work. I begged for that needle in my back again and I got it. About 5 minutes after recieving the needle, I was rushed into the delivery room. This time there were a few complications. The cord was wrapped around her neck and the first thing I saw as she was coming into the world was her beautiful tiny little face. She was facing the wrong way. Again, I cried my eyes out filled with joy. My husband was doing the same thing. I had my kids 3 1/2 years apart and both times I felt that wonderful high of bringing my own creation into this world. All the pain was worth having my babies. I'd go through it again if I had to.
The best acomplishment I've ever done in my life is bringing my 2 beautiful girls into this world. They mean the world to me. I'm 34 years old now and don't plan on having any more children, but having my 2 girls, it's a constant high on life for me. I hope you enjoyed my labor story. Thanks for giving me the opportunity to tell you about it. Star :o)
