I thought I had better write down everything I can remember from the day that Gabe was born before I forget it all. So, here goes...
I had been having contractions all week long, but at my OB appointment on May 18th, the doctor said there was no change in my progress. However, she was willing to let me go past my due date, provided I came in for some fetal testing. I also let her strip the membranes to try to get things moving. That was on a Thursday. So, Friday rolled around, and I started having contractions, but I was trying not to get my hopes up, because I had been wrong all week. But I had lost my mucous plug overnight, and I thought that was promising.
I can't remember when I called Joe, but he was home that day by 2 or 3 in the afternoon. We were still not sure if this was the real thing. My contractions were close together, but they didn't feel particularly strong. I remember thinking to myself that I was tired, and it wouldn't be so bad if the contractions stopped, because then I could at least get some sleep. That was about 9pm. The contractions got markedly more intense at about 9:15pm, and we decided to call Maureen, since she was going to stay with Evelyn overnight. She was going to come over at around 10:30, but after a few minutes, we had to call her back to see if she could come a little sooner, since things really seemed to be moving now. She came over at 10. I kept trying to give her all these instructions about Evelyn. She was trying to get me out the door.
On the way to the hospital, I could not sit in the seat. I had to kneel in the front seat and lean my forhead on the headrest. By this time, I had to focus pretty hard during the contractions. No walking, talking, etc. during contractions.
We got to Labor and Delivery at about 10:30. This lady who was confirming some of my information was all mouthy with me. She was pissed because I came in just as she was about to leave. We know this because she told us so. She wasn't even looking at me, and I don't think she realized how hard I was laboring. Anyway, this super-angelic nurse named Michelle asked Joe to finish the check in process, and she took me into an exam room so she could check my progress. Now, it just so happens that Michelle was the very same nurse who was there for Evelyn's delivery. She is everything that a L&D nurse should be. Calm, compassionate, speaks in a low voice. We were hoping that she would be our nurse again. More on that to come. When she checked me, she said that I was about 4cm dilated. I was so disappointed to hear this. I really expected to be further along. She strapped some fetal monitors on me, and left the room. Joe was with me, by this time. At 11pm my water broke. We told Michelle about it when she came back, and they started prepping me for Labor and Delivery. They put in a port, and just before we left the room, Michelle said that our nurse would be Anne, and that she is hearing impaired. She said she is an excellent nurse, but to make sure that she could see our faces when we were talking to her. We walked down the hall to a labor and delivery room. Michelle helped us with our breathing techniques on the way. I guess we should have practiced them more, but it's a little like riding a bike. Michelle helped us get set up in the room. I sat on a birthing ball in between contractions, and I stood up and bent over the bed during the contractions.
We met Anne, our labor and delivery nurse. She started out by asking a lot of questions about my medical history. I still needed to have fetal monitoring done. They were trying to get what they called a "reactive strip", which is a logue of the baby's activity/condition during an awake state. I think they needed this because I did not have an IV. Anyway, they were never able to get it, and they wound up doing fetal monitoring during the entire labor. This might not have been so bad, except for the fact that Anne had a real knack for pressing the fetal monitor right on the part of my lower abdomen that hurt the most during each contraction. It must have taken her years to develop such a talent.
Pretty soon, I started feeling the need to push, and I told Anne. It was surprisingly soon. Like maybe 15 minutes after we got there. In her bitchiest voice, she said, "well, you're going to have to get in the bed if you want me to check you." I think she was pissed that I did not have an epidural, and that I was not in the bed, because she treated me like crap. I got in the bed, and she checked me again. I think at that point she said I was 7cm dilated. I think they had already called the doctor at that point. I sure as hell hope they had, 'cause it gets ugly at this point.
So, I got back out of the bed to try to get those last 3cm. And sure enough, I really felt like I needed to push. I waited a few minutes, and then I told Anne about it. She said (annoyed) that it had not even been ten minutes since she had checked me last. She wanted to wait a little longer. Here is where it gets a little fuzzy. I know that from that point on, I was not checked again until the doctor came in. But, somehow, I wound up in the bed again. I think I had to get in bed, because if I stood up any longer, I was going to have the baby right then. So I lay on my side, holding onto the rail for dear life and staring at Joe while trying to breathe through the contractions. Anne was totally uninvolved. She just stood back watching us, and she would say, just keep puffing through those. Joe says that we carried on like this for 45 minutes, waiting for the doctor to get there. My abdomen was convulsing from me trying not to push. But you can't really keep from pushing at that point.
Finally, the doctor walked in. Everything was all set up except that they had to lower the table. It was Dr. Paul, who is not my regular OB, but I thought she was just fine. When I put my legs in the stirrups, the baby's head was already right there. I pushed twice, and after that Dr. Paul did an episiotomy. It was a little weird, because all I saw was this huge syringe sticking in my crotch, and I could tell when she cut my flesh, although it didn't hurt. Joe said he couldn't watch. Obviously, there was no discussion about this, because there was no time. Anyway, it was a very minor episiotomy. On the third push the head was out, and then came the rest of the body. The first thing the doctor said was, "he's huge".
Indeed, he was huge. 9lbs 13oz huge. The women in my family tend to have big babies, but I guess I thought that with Evelyn's 7lb 11oz birth weight, that I had escaped this trend.
Now, here is the last thing. You would think that since Anne had decided to be so indifferent to my pain during the entire labor, that she would just leave me the hell alone. But, no. She has to help clean me off after I get sewn up. We go in the bathroom so I can try to pee pee. She takes this washcloth, and started to SCRUB my hindquarters with it. Not gently blot, being sensitive to the fact that I had just given birth. I do one of those hissing inhales, like when something really hurts, and I asked her, "can I do that instead?" She said, "If you want to", like I was crazy or something.
Gabe was born at 12:45am, so the whole thing was pretty quick. I am grateful that I have short labors.
I guess that's about it. All in all, a pretty smooth labor.
