Birth Stories

Second Verse, Much Different Than The First!

My first birth is posted here.  21 months after the birth of our first son, we welcomed our second son.  He was a vastly different experience than we had the first time around!

The day before T-Rex was born, we had our 39 week appointment with our midwives.  When we went in, his heart was doing some funny things, and our loving midwife decided to take another look.  We'd been down this road before, but hearing thos erratic beats that late in the game was very distressing.  We went to the "Super Big Hospital with Lots of Machines that go 'Ping!'" and had an echo done.  When I was laying on the table, I greyed out twice because I was on my back for so long.  We took our results back to the midwives and along with a mitral valve prolapse, we were told that I had low amniotic fluid.  Combined with the heart defect and higher risk of cord compression because of the low fluid levels, we had officially risked out of our birth center.  Before we left, the OB overseeing my now "not-so-low-risk" pregnancy stripped my membranes.  We went home and tried not to think about losing out on our midwifery experience...

We went out to dinner at my favorite restaurant, but I couldn't eat.  We went to see a movie, but I couldn't get comfortable.  I then went to a friend's house to give her a crash course in childbirth (she was due in 3 weeks - just 2 weeks after me!) and I kept pausing.  She noticed and asked if I was having contractions, but I brushed it off.  As I drove home, I started to wonder if I was really in labor...  As a precaution, I called my husband and told him we might wanna think about heading to the hospital.  Luckily, our son was already with friends - we thought it best after the chaos of the day to let him hang out with his buddies for a few more hours.

I got home and my husband decided we needed to go to the hospital.  THAT was a good call!  We got to labor and delivery just shy of midnight.  Our midwife met us there and pronounced that I was 5 cm's.  I was crestfallen!  As much as my contractions hurt and after hours of "pausing" every few minutes, I thought for sure I'd be further along!  My midwife assured me it wouldn't be long, and I got into bed and sat still for the monitors as best I could.  Our doula showed up as they were hooking my wires up and that made me relax a little.

I labored in bed, but it wasn't long before we knew I had to move.  T-Rex's heart rate was all over the place, so I was rolling from one side to the other every couple contractions.  At 9 cm's, I asked for pain medication.  I felt like my hips were going to shatter and it would just radiate up my spine and I would die.  The Nubain helped me relax more between contractions and my midwife broke my water to help me dilate the last lip of cervix. 

I started pushing at 2 AM on the morning of July 19th.  My doula and my husband were incredibly helpful.  Without them, the patience and determination of my midwife, I don't think I could have done it.  I pushed for 45 minutes the first time, and yet after an hour, we'd made very little progress.  I was beyond exhausted and starting to feel as though I couldn't do this - that where we had avoided the C-section before, we wouldn't this time.  Another hour later, he was finally descending.  At 4:38 AM, he was born!  He weighed 6 pounds and 10 ounces - he was more than a FULL POUND larger than our first baby and his head wasn't perfectly aligned.  He had a small bruise on his forehead, but was otherwise perfectly normal and healthy. 

His birth taught me that even when we're really well prepared and have the best support team, things can still go differently than we planned or intended...  But that doesn't make it a bad birth experience.  It took me a while to stop thinking I was a wuss because I accepted the Nubain.  When I had time to sit down with them, my husband, midwife, and doula all agreed that the break it gave me was probably what enabled me to push effectively.  Without that 30 minutes of rest, I probably would have succumbed to exhaustion and had either a C-section or instrument-assisted delivery.  Every thing that happened throughout T-Rex's birth happened for a reason.  After that experience, I will never forget that lesson! 

Submitted by Heather

A Tale of Two Births

My name is Stephanie and I am the mother of two beautiful boys. My two experiences are vastly different. With my first son, Ethan, I was tempted into an induction at 39 weeks. I was a "good candidate" the doctor said and would have a baby in about 12 hours after they started. Any risk of c-section was completely glossed over as highly unlikely since as I was such a "good candidate". I went to work on Wednesday, September 4th and told them I was being induced the next morning and my maternity leave was going to start on Thursday. I was totally excited and decided to take the rest of the day off to go and get my things together. I went home, gathered my things, and had my sister-in-law drive me to the hospital to begin my induction.

I reported to the hospital at 6pm Wednesday night. I ate dinner and they gave me an Ambien and inserted a foley bulb in my cervix to increase my dilation. At 6am Thursday morning they started the pitocin. I was 3 cm and 90% effaced. At 7am the broke my water (the point of no return).  By 10 am I was at the highest level of pitocin. I was still at 3cm. (Knowing what I know now, there are so many things I could have done to try and help me to progress!  But no!  There I was, flat on my back, waiting for my labor to magically improve!)

At 12pm I asked for a shot of Staydol and slept for an hour (I was at 4cm.) From 12pm till 4pm I made no progress and was in a LOT of discomfort so I gave in and got the epidural. I slept again for two hours and when they checked me at 7pm I had gone to 7cm. They checked me again at 9pm and I was almost 9cm. I was thinking, "Okay, a centimeter an hour... That's not bad.  I can handle another hour no problem!" It is now 11:30pm and I am throwing up and getting the shakes and chills. I have gone back to 7cm and now they say, "Hmm the baby's head isn't molding. Thats not good." Why they couldn't tell that before, I don't know, but that is neither here nor there! Now since my body has been without food since 8pm the day before and has been trying very hard to have a baby all day, I am getting a little shaky and Ethan's heart is starting to race. At 12am Friday the 6th of September, I was taken to the operating room for a c-section. At 12:23am September 6th Ethan was born. He was 8lbs 6oz and 19 inches long. The doctor said that he was face up and had his head tilted to the side, so instead of the top of his head, the side of his face was being pressed into my pelvis. He had a nice little bruise on his face where the contractions had shoved him into my pelvic bones.

For any one who hasn't had a c-section they strap you to a table at your wrists and ankles, it hurt when they pulled Ethan out, and worst of all, I didn't get to hold my baby till about 20 minutes after he was born. I still feel sad when I remember those missed moments. I don't feel that I failed to bond with him or that we aren't as close as we would have been if I had been able to hold him right away. If anything I think I was more protective of him than I would have been in an attempt to "make up" for those lost minutes.

Now my second son, in contrast, was completely different! In between having Ethan and getting pregnant with Colin, I met Heather. Heather was my doula for Colin's birth and she really helped me to see where I could have done things differently. So when I got pregnant with Colin I felt prepared to go about my pregnancy and birth with as little help as possible and definitely NO induction.

When I went to my first pre-natal appointment I discovered that my doctors assumed I was going to have another c-section. They quickly informed me that a vaginal birth after c-section (VBAC) was risky to both me and to my baby. Needless to say I left my appointment just a little freaked out! I immediately called Heather and she gave me all kinds of sources and information so that I could find out for myself what I was getting into if I wanted to pursue my desire for a natural birth. I decided that all in all the risks were minimal and not that much greater than childbirth is anyway! Having a baby can be a risky business even when you are young and healthy.  There are all kinds of things that could happen and I wasn't going to have surgery because of "what ifs".

On April 19th 2008 I was a few days shy of 40 weeks and my labor started. I actually went to bed with mild contractions figuring that they were just Braxton Hicks and would go away. I woke up at 11pm thinking that something was going on! I hung around the house, completely comfortable, staying calm and keeping track of the contractions, which were much easier to handle than the pitocin induced contractions. I called Heather around 1am to let her know what was going on since my contractions were getting closer together and hadn't gone away. I had had some false labor before so I didn't want to wake her up for nothing! Heather came and sat with me at home and helped me through some really intense back labor. I labored at home until 5am. When I got to the hospital I was 6 cm and 100% effaced. They put me in bed and started an IV and pestered me to get an epidural for the next 30 minutes. At this point I was beginning to feel the need to push and told the doctors that they could do the internal monitoring but that I wanted to push NOW. The doctor was skeptical that I was ready to push because I had only been there for an hour, but when they checked me I was 9cm and Colin was crowning!!! So much for internal monitoring!  I pushed for 10 minutes and Colin was born at 6:15 am on April 20th, 2008. He was 8lbs 10oz and 21in long. Thanks to Heather's coaching and encouragement I was confident in my body's ability to give birth and that I could handle the pain of the contractions. I focused on my breathing and was able to stay firm in my decision to limit medical intervention to as little as possible because I knew that Heather was there to support me. It was the most amazing feeling in the world to have Colin in my arms immediatly afterwards. Having a natural childbirth was actually less painful than my c-section. Heather was definitely my rock!

Submitted by Stephanie

The Birth of Maximilian

My birth was not quite what I expected, but brought into this world my beautiful baby boy, Maximilian!  I knew as soon as I found out I was pregnant that I wanted a natural birth and I planned accordingly.  I hired a doula and got started with my birth plan.  I discussed with my OB my wishes and was supported.  My doctor delivers at [a local hospital known for their high C-section rates]so I was prepared to fight for my right to birth naturally.  Early labor started the night of my due date, proving strong enough to prevent sleep but light enough to let me know active labor was still to come.  Bottom line, I didn't sleep at all the 24 hours before I went into active labor.  Things picked up the next night and I begin to really understand what laboring was all about.  My husband, Ben, and I tried many things; counter pressure, taking a bath and shower, massage and laboring on the birth ball.  Finally at around 1:30am we headed to [the hospital], meeting my doula and family there.

I was 3 centimeters upon arriving, which was a little frustrating considering how long we had been in active labor, but we continued to labor at the hospital for another 7 hours, making it to 7 centimeters.  I found much relief from the shower- I think I spent a couple of hours in there!!  My husband, doula, and mom were all there to support me and take care of my needs, massaging me or bringing me something to drink/eat.  My doctor arrived in the morning and, two hours after the nurse had said I was at 7 centimeters, she told me I was at 6 centimeters!  I was so devastated!  I didn’t think I would reach the end of the line, but aftering hearing that, it was hard to go on.  I was so exhausted and discouraged.  My labor had slowed down and I was actually falling asleep in between contractions!  It was wild!  I decided to get an epidural, despite everyone encouraging me to go on (hard decision but at the time I felt it was necessary).  I was able to get some well needed sleep.  I must say, it was strange to not feel the contractions after feeling them for so long!

My doctor was really great, knowing I wanted as little intervention as possible.  Once I got the epidural, I asked to dilate without Pitocin, but after about 5 hours, I was still at 7 centimeters!  I asked her to break my waters which helped me progress to 10 centimeters after another couple of hours.  Then came pushing!  I turned down the epidural to feel the contractions again, but, after 2 ½ hours of pushing, my doctor informed me that Max’s head was tilted in a way that was preventing him from come out.  She told me we could continue to push as long as I wanted, so I asked them to bring out the squat bar.  It was very funny trying to squat with the epidural- I had to basically hold myself up with my upper body!  I pushed for about 30 more minutes, but eventually I couldn’t do it anymore and they delivered Max with forceps.  My doctor was supportive of our request to delay cutting the cord so she just laid him right on me!  What a beauty!  He cried when he came out, but stopped as soon as he was laid on me.  He had a short cord, so he barely reached the bottom of my breasts.  We nursed after some well deserved resting and he was then cleaned up.  7lbs. even and just beautiful!

Looking back, I realize that my request for the epidural probably caused my difficulty pushing, and ultimately the forceps.  Though now I wish the labor and delivery was different, at the time I felt I just couldn't go on.  My exhaustion really limited me.  I did avoid a C-section, which is a true blessing!  My hope for next time is that I experience transition and deliver naturally!  I am choosing to use a midwife and I am considering a home birth.  My son arrived into this world after a long, long journey and ultimately it was holding him in my arms that made my unexpected birth exceptional.

Maximilian Alexander

 

Submitted by Mari