So this is normally the part of my birth story where I talk about all the complications and how badly I hemorrhaged afterwards. Except this time I had a doctor that actually listened when I told her my history and it was a game changer. I think I lost less blood than I did with E. It was amazing to not only feel okay minutes after delivery, but to have a calm delivery room. No one rushed the baby away, no extra help rushing in, just a quiet room.
Birth Story Part II - Active Labor/Birth
Despite willing it to be true, I didn’t have a baby by morning. Both E & G were born on a Sunday at 2am, but this baby decided to be different. I also didn’t get a ton of sleep either. I wasn’t feeling painful contractions, but lying down was uncomfortable. Unless I was sitting up or walking around, I’d get a little crampy, just enough that I couldn’t fall asleep. I think I managed to sleep from 11:30 - 1 am and again from 3:45 - 4:30 am when contractions slowed down a bit. Because they slowed down, I got a second dose of medication at that time.
I was feeling a bit frustrated and impatient (as was everyone who knew I was at the hospital waiting for updates!) but I managed to eat a granola bar and some apple juice and started to get my mind around the fact I might be here for a while.
Birth Story Part I - Early Labor
I was rereading G’s birth story, and laughed that I said the labor went too fast. I guess I had it coming then. Third babies have a reputation for being tricky. First babies take a while, second babies are quick, and third babies do what they want. They’ve got extra room and can flip all over, and apparently are in no rush to be born. This one wasn’t, anyway. Just absolutely did not want to be born. Usually leading up to your due date there will be some sign that labor is approaching, but not with this one. Usually at some point during labor the nurses will let you know that the baby isn’t happy and we either need to move positions or work towards a quicker delivery. Not this one - every time they checked her she was perfectly happy.
Birth Story Part III - Complications
Right before G was born, I looked at the nurse and said, “Remember, I’m a bleeder!” I was laughing, but we’d talked about it seriously before, and she started getting the necessary medicine ready, but I bled faster. Just like last time, the moment I delivered, I started to hemorrhage. One bad thing about being more alert than last time, is that I was also much more aware of how much I was bleeding and how concerned everyone was. Even with all the medication they gave me, it still took a while to get everything under control, and I ended up losing about twice as much blood as a C section, double what I lost when I delivered E.
Birth Story Part II - Active Labor
After I got my first dose of medicine, Tom and I settled in to wait. We ordered dinner, and watched Game night and Jumanji in our room. Around 4:30 I mentioned to Tom that my head was a little itchy, and that was weird. A little while later, it was REALLY itchy and I couldn’t stop itching. I must have been freaking him out a bit, because he said he was going to go find our nurse. By the time they returned, not only was I going crazy with an itchy scalp, but my hands had turned bright red and my palms were also super itchy.
Knowing that I was already allergic to one type of antibiotic, the nurse got worried and immediately stopped the vancomycin and called the doctor. Within a few minutes, my itchiness had gone away, and my hands were no longer red. After some brainstorming between the doctor and pharmacist, it was decided that I was having a transfusion reaction, and not a reaction to the actual antibiotic. Because my itching stopped so quickly, and the antibiotic was still in my system, it was decided I could safely finish my dose, just at a slower pace. Luckily after the dose was slowed, no more itching! And in better news, as long as I delivered by 5am the next morning, I wouldn’t need another dose of antibiotics.
Birth Story Part I - Leading up to Labor
I’m having a hard time putting into words G’s birth story, partly because I’m still not sure how I feel about it. It seems like it went by almost too quickly? Is that possible in labor? After 9 months of building up to it, it was over so fast, and looking back, I feel like I could have done it so much better! It’s almost like I want a second chance to see if I could have… I’m not even sure. Enjoyed it more? Savored each contraction? It’s really an odd feeling.
Birth Story Part III - Post Delivery
When baby E arrived, all I could think about was how hot I was (I was still fighting an infection and fever), and as they put him on me, my first thought was "WHY IS HE SO WARM!?" He wasn't there for long, though, since he was rushed off to be checked by the emergency team. It was mostly a precaution, and he turned out fine. His Apgar scores were 7 and 9, so nothing to worry about.
I, however, was another story.
Birth Story Part II - Active/Transition
The next few hours of labor were actually fun haha. Hello epidural. Basically Tom, Stacey and I just hung out in the room. I put on random movies that we'd already seen and didn't need to watch too closely - "Definitely, Maybe", "White House Down", and "Delivery Man" (which was hilarious because the whole movie there are lines telling you not to have children!). I slept a bit, and should have slept some more, but I was too excited to get more than an hour or two nap. We chatted about our families, shows we watched recently (Call the Midwife was a favorite topic of conversation) and Tom would tell us about all the other dads he would meet out in the hall.
Birth Story Part I - Early Labor
When I hit 40 weeks, I was pretty sure this baby wasn't going to come any time soon. None of the signs they tell you to look for were present - the baby hadn't dropped, I wasn't nesting, I didn't have a burst of energy, and none of the other things they tell you to look for had happened. I also hadn't felt a single contraction - Braxton Hicks or otherwise. In fact I felt great and the exact same that I'd been feeling for the past month or so. Also knowing that I was born 2 weeks late, I was ready to assume this baby would be late too.