So… I did it! I gave birth to my
son! It happened a little over a week ago, on January 27th, at 12:01
PM. We are just settling down, and I finally have time to write down his birth
story.
On Tuesday, January 26th,
I went to my doctor to check on the baby. I did not feel any signs of labor,
and I truly believed I still had at least a week before the little one was
born. The doctor came and checked my cervix. (I swear he pushed a magic button!)
He got so deep into me, I even asked him if he was about to pull the baby out
of me right there. What I felt while he was checking my cervix was exactly what
contractions feel like (now I know, haha). He said I was spotting and was 1 cm dilated,
so we were making progress. It was all good news, and I left to go to my second
NST appointment. The NST appointment went well – I felt like it went even better
than the last time. The doctor there told me everything looked perfect, and
they let me go home. Oh! Also, they printed a 3D picture of my son. I always thought
babies look different in 3D photos comparing to how they look when they are
born. But come on!.. :-D
At home, in the evening, at
around 7 PM, I started feeling contractions. As nobody really tells you what
contractions really are, I only assumed (hoped?) that was it. I felt light menstrual
pain that came and went. The contractions were really far apart, I would say,
there were 20-25 minutes between them. We finished evening like we usually do:
Had light dinner, watched a show, then I did some computer work (OK, shopping,
haha), and finally, we went for a walk with Ralphie. I continued having this
occasional pain, but it didn’t increase, or came closer together, so I kind of
lost hope these were the contractions.
We went to sleep at around 10:30,
and at around 11, I was awoken by strong pain. That definitely felt like I was
in labor! The pain lasted for about a minute, and was gone. I fell back asleep,
but woke up in 10-15 minutes because another contraction came. By midnight, I
was no longer able to stay in bed, and I told Mike I was having real
contractions, and it was time to start timing. At around 2 AM on Wednesday, my
contractions were 4 minutes apart and lasted for approx. 60-90 seconds. Mike
called the doctor, and he told us to go to the hospital. Mike took my bag, and
we slowly went to the car. It was a short 20 minute ride to the hospital, and I
had 2 or 3 contractions on the way. We arrived to LIJ, filled out all the
paperwork (that was fun! I am sitting there having contraction after
contraction, and the lady keeps asking me “have you been here before?”, “why
are you here?” and other standard questions. My doctor warned me about this
part, so I was frustrated and amused at the same time), and had to wait for
another half an hour until we were admitted to the exam room. In the exam room,
I changed into a hospital gown and laid in bed. I also started bleeding, and I
had to use the pad they gave me, which was bulky and uncomfortable. Lying down
was much more painful than sitting or walking, and I think I even screamed at
some point. I also threw up. A LOT! At that point, I drank probably a gallon of
water (try breathing for 4 hours like you have just finished a race! It makes
you really thirsty), and it all came out. All of it! I mean, it was a lot of
throw up. Anyway, finally, a doctor came in and examed me. She said I was 5 cm dilated,
and was going to have a baby today. It sounded surreal. I looked at the clock –
it was about 4:30 in the morning, and I happily assumed, with such an incredible
progress, I would give birth by 8, latest 9 in the morning. They moved me to
the maternity ward, and hooked me up to the IV. I requested no epidural. From 5
AM to 7 AM I was having regular contractions, but my water hadn’t broken. I
also did not dilate a cm more. By 7 AM I was so tired, that when they told me I
stopped making progress, honestly, I felt quite desperate. They also told me,
they cannot break my water until 9:45 AM: My strep test was positive and they
required 2 doses of antibiotics before they could break my water, to avoid an
infection. The first dose was given to me at around 6 AM, and the second dose
wasn’t coming for another 2 hours. The two hours went pretty quickly. I was
falling asleep between contractions. I also threw up a couple of times.
Finally, at 10, they gave me the second dose of antibiotics and broke my water.
I flipped to my left side. Immediately, contractions started to get stronger
and came more often. By 11, I was 10 cm dilated and ready to push. A doctor
came in, and the active labor started. My son was born on Wednesday, January 27th,
at 12:01 PM, weighing 7lb 3oz, and measuring 20.50in long.
They did have to stitch me up,
which took another half an hour.
These were the facts. Now a
little about the emotional side.
My decision to give birth without
any meds was firm, unless my or my child’s medical condition required
otherwise. There is something about natural birth that always attracted me. I
am not afraid of pain, especially knowing that so many women went through it,
and did just fine. Contractions were painful, but manageable. The fact that
they only last a minute really helped. Having contractions is similar to
menstrual pain, but “concentrated.” At first, you realize the pain is coming,
and you start breathing fast. Then, the pain comes, and lasts for about 30 seconds.
It’s important from the beginning to find the most comfortable position. It is
true that it hurts less if you are comfortable. As contractions got closer
together, my mind turned off. I was no longer able to concentrate on the pain,
and I just lived through it. Somehow I also realized that I will meet my baby
very soon, and I as if rushed the next contraction. The worst part of the labor
was that moment when I realized that I needed to push. It was such a strange,
new sensation that I did not know how to react to it. I can’t even say it was
painful, it was just… really strange. It’s like that emotion you feel when you
are about to throw up. You know it’s a relief, but you do not want to do it.
Your body tells you it’s time, and you do not know how to help it. I had three
contractions that ended with the desire to push, and it was the hardest part of
the labor. And finally, they set me up on the table preparing for labor. They told
me how to breath, and the doctor told me to push. He put his fingers into the
birth canal, and told me to push his fingers out. It didn’t hurt to push –
especially after such painful contractions. I gathered all the remaining energy
and I pushed. I pushed for ten seconds – all nurses were counting out loud;
then, I took a deep breath of two, and I pushed for another ten seconds. Then
one more time, and if I still could, one more. Then I rested for a minute. And
then I pushed again. My body told me when to push, and the doctor guided me,
too. Finally, it turns out, I did it! I really did not feel how the baby was coming
out. All I felt was the desire to push. And then after another push, it was
over! They quickly put a cloth on my belly, and tossed the baby on the cloth.
They wiped him, and cut the cord. And then I heard his cry! And all I could
think about was, thank God!
And then it was over. In my case,
they had to put in quite a lot of stitches, and because I did not have any anesthesia,
it did hurt quite a bit. But all the labor pain was gone. Right away, I started
to breath normally, and my mind turned back on, I was alert and I couldn’t wait
to hold my baby. That moment when I held him for the first time was unforgettable.
My son was so alert, too. He didn’t cry, and he didn’t sleep. He was looking at
me and at my husband with his big blue eyes. My maternal instinct to take care
of him turned on immediately, but the realization that I am, in fact, his
mother, is just starting to come upon me.
