In 2010 I had told Brian (my hubby of 4 yrs at the time) "Just as a heads up I think I may want to have kids in a couple years." Well he took this as a binding contract because when I mentioned that I wanted a baby a year later, he looked at me with wide eyes and firmly told me "you gave me 2 yrs!" lol Ok well I waited another six months, and by this time it seemed like everyone on facebook was pregnant except me. So after talking about it for a few days, and an emotional break down on my part, Brian finally gave in. So after my pills ended in August 2012 we were officially going to start trying... by the end of August we were pregnant... apparently one time is all it takes! Later we found out several of our close friends (6 couples) and both Brian and my sister were pregnant as well. Guess 2012 was the year of making babies in Joplin, MO!
I loved my pregnancy and didn't have any complications. I would go work out with my other pregnant friends and had a whole community of other first time moms where we could share all the crazy things that were happening to our bodies. I left work 4 weeks before my due date. They were all very sweet and I left with mixed emotions. Sad because I would miss the people I had worked with for the past 5 years but also excited to start this new journey. Even though I had a great pregnancy, I was still very ready to get this over with once my due date came and went.....
Why we ended up in the hospital...
Well it did the trick. I woke up that night at midnight with contractions 4-5 min apart. I called Judith and she had me take some calcium, which would stop labor if it was a false alarm, and told me to try to get some sleep. It didn't work so I called a hour later, as directed, and she said she would be on her way. I also called my mom, who wanted to be there, so she could come up as well. I told Brian what was going on and he go up when everyone started arriving. When everyone arrived, we all just sat in the living room and watched the contractions come and go... it was very anticlimactic. Soon Judith went to the nursery (which was still a disaster since my "nesting" never kicked in) to pray and get some sleep while waiting on my body to do its thing. Shay (her daughter) stayed up with me and read a book.
I should probably mention one very key part of this birth. Addison was head down but she was posterior, which means she was looking at my pelvic bone rather than looking toward my back. This isn't impossible to do but it does make it a little harder. Plus, her chin was up and she would have to tuck her head down in order for her to come out.
The contractions gradually (and I mean as slow as molasses in January) got stronger. I had "back labor" which meant that all the pain was in my lower back and not my stomach. I don't remember my stomach ever hurting. Brian would push as hard as he could on my lower back which made the pain bearable. He did this with EVERY contraction. He was amazing through this whole process. I really couldn't have done it without him. By then end of it, I think he was just as tired as I was.
I would sit on the potty, which made the contractions come even more. I liked to walk back and forth or sit in the warm pool we put up in the living room. The contractions made me want to arch my back but I fought it with all my strength since Judith said it wasn't good to do. She also had me "tone" which is a very low sound in the back of your throat. If you get high pitched, you apparently tense up down there and you want it to be as relaxed as possible. Brian would tone with me because sometimes I would get high pitched with out me knowing it. I would zone in, and it was just me and him in the room and I could get through one more.... always just getting through one more contraction. If I started getting whinny, Judith would tell me to give thanks to God because with pain that meant we were progressing. I would say out loud "Thank you Lord, Thank you Lord" In my head there was a lot more to that prayer but that's all that would come out. We tried to get some sleep but that just wasn't happening. Every time I would start to drift off, here came another contraction.
They had me drink some Vitamin Water and I ate some honey on saltine crackers to try to get some more energy. I lay on the bed trying to just put my mind in a different place. I wanted this to be over. Judith kept giving me some homeopathic stuff to put under my tongue to help my body along, but they were sweet and I finally just couldn't do it any more. The taste just made me want to throw up. She checked me again and I was at a 9. I still didn't have that erg to push but I was going to try anyway. I think this was partly because of how she was positioned. Judith tried to get her to turn around or to tuck her head but she just wouldn't do it.... I think she got the stubborn gene from both of us. I also had a lip on my cervix that Judith had to hold down with every contraction. I could reach in and feel her head but I was touching her soft spot and not the crown of her head. We tried every which way to get that baby out. Judith had me try one last way, but when I moved, Addison slipped all the way back up inside. We were starting at ground zero again.
Judith looked at me very sweetly and told me she thinks we should go to the hospital. I was exhausted. She listened to Addison's heart and everything was fine. Neither one of us were in any danger but that baby just wasn't cooperating. We loaded up into her van. I'm on all fours in the back with Brian and my mom is driving behind us. The 20 min drive wasn't that bad. The movement kept me slightly distracted. Judith called ahead to explain everything and that we are coming in due to non progression. They said they would be ready for me when we got there. They lied.
Dr. Lacey asks me how long we've been married. I say 5 years. "To the same man???" I laugh. He then makes a joke about being married 4 or 5 times that I later found out was true :( He had me arch my back 'like a mad cat' and then the lay me on my back very quickly. All of a sudden, I get very calm. There's no pain. For the first time in almost 24 hrs, there's no pain! I tell the nurses they don't know how good that feels and they all just smile. For the first time I'm scared. I'm trembling a little and I feel this heavy pressure on my chest and shoulders. They don't tell me this is normal so I just freak out a little in my mind. The blue sheet is up and I can't see anything. They let Brian in and I tell him I'm scared. He says everything will be fine. "No I'm scared for when they cut me" Then a nurse leans over the curtain and says "Oh honey, they've already done that"... Whew.... I feel tugging and a pain along my right rib cage. "Did they cut me high" The nurse assures me its very low and I can even wear a bikini again. They later explain that pain was were the spinal tap ended and I could feel when the were tugging me.
Neat fact: They take your uterus out, sew it up, stick it back in, and then sew up your belly... makes more sense than trying to do it on the inside!
They bring her to me in recovery and she is screaming. Apparently she was very hungry. Brian said she was calm through all the stuff they did but when they put their finger in her mouth to see if she was hungry, she let them know! So the lady is telling me how to do it and Addison all of a sudden latches on... my graugy eyes get very big and every one laughs... not exactly what I expected. At least she's a good eater!
I wasn't too happy with the service at the hospital. No one really explained anything and there were a couple times I had to remind the nurses that I had already called for meds. I don't know if it was because I was "self pay" or what? The night nurse tech was my favorite. I think she was in the grade below me in high school. And the last night we had a nurse that really explained things like why my shoulders and chest still hurt like my muscles were tensing up. (During surgery you get air in there and you have to pass the gas to get that feeling to go away).
There was never a time I felt like I couldn't do it
Baby blues or Postpartum depression?
If there are any questions I can answer, please feel free to ask. I'm not shy and can maybe send you in the right direction to find an answer.
I f you click on Judith's name above it will take you to her website. She is amazing and I highly recommend her!!