((This is pretty much copied and pasted from a message board, so there might be some weird stuff... like some weird phrases that used to be smiley faces. And, this is a birth story - it gets kinda, birthy and messy and stuff...)))
For some reason I wrote a LOT of back story... so if you only want to read the birth, I put a break in the story:giggle... And I did write this in about 10 sessions over the past month, so it may be disjointed an repetitive;)
My first labor was augmented with AROM and pitocin during early labor, and my second labor may or may not have been jump started by a sweep and some castor oil... My third was my only completely left-alone-to-happen-on-it's-own labor – and that baby was born at 40 wks 6 days. So, this time, I fully expected to go to 41 wks, easily. So I was prepared for that... What I did not count on, was that this time, my body would actually react to the pregnancy. I would actually get aches and pains and OH MY GOSH THERE IS A BOWLING BALL SITTING IN MY PELVIS TRYING TO BREAK THROUGH feelings towards the end...:giggle I never had anything that intense with my other pregnancies, so it totally threw me for a loop. With my other pregnancies, even DD2, which was my 40 wk 6 day one, I never reached that "okay, I am DONE" point:no. I was enjoying being pregnant, and in no hurry for that pregnancy to be over. So I was *very* surprised when all of this pain made me feel DONE DONE DONE at, like 36 weeks or something... probably sooner:shifty It got much worse just before 38 weeks. At 37 wks 6 days, after I had spent a loooonnnng 2-3 days cooking a million freezer meals for after baby was here, he slowed down in movement, and then for a period of at least 2-3 hours, stopped completely. I was terrified all day, and was CONVINCED that he had died. I have never been so scared in my life. I was also terrified of going into the hospital, because I was UC'ing and did not want to hear anything negative about my choice to UC. Everything was fine, baby perked right up about an hour after we got there (of course...) – and then they did an U/S, and MIS-diagnosed (IMO) me as having low amniotic fluid:rolleyes, and put me on strict bedrest... They told me to come back for another AFI the next day, and for GOODNESS SAKES, get under the care of a doctor... oh and there are bits and pieces in your amniotic fluid that might be meconium, so baby might need to be suctioned... So yeah, I was relieved that baby was okay, but now I had all these worries in my head. If the baby wasn't moving every SECOND of the day, I was mildly to seriously panicking :/ That, paired with the level of discomfort I was in, made me pretty miserable from that point on. I tried not to complain, but that did not work very well-lol... I knew I would not have a baby by my due date, and even though I really wanted to go into labor on Friday the 17th (DH had friday thru monday off) I knew that would be unlikely, and so I was not surprised that it did not happen. I wanted to at least have the baby by early Tuesday morning, so that hubby could go to work that evening... (we can not afford for much time off work for DH - only for the actual birth.) So, I was kind of hopeful when on Monday morning, I noticed more frequent ctx that were not quite painful, but different than the BHs. Well, that went nowhere:/ Since DH had to go back to work on Tuesday, I just had a lovely feeling that with my luck I would go into labor on Tuesday, and he would have to miss work (the lovely things I worry about - lol.) Of course:giggle On Tuesday AM I woke up to ctx that were considerably stronger, and some bloody show. So later in the morning, when hubby, for the millionth time in the past 2 wks, asked me when I though I would have the baby, I immediately said today.
[B][I]So now, moving from the LOOOOOONNNNNNGGGG back story to the actual birth story;)
Hubby was going to have to leave for work at noon. I knew I did not need hubby there at this early point, so I told him to leave. We planned on having my mom come over (and then stay for some time after the birth) to take care of the kids so I could just do my thing:-) Hubby hooked up the drain and fill pump to the sink before he left, so that I could set up the tub and all that whenever I needed it. I sat on the computer and timed the ctx for about an hour after hubby left. When I saw that they were mostly 5 minutes apart, I called my mom and let her know. A little while later I bought a new book for my nook, and the kids and I walked down to the park so they could play for a little while while I read:yes My mom arrived while we were at the park. I think this was around 3 or so? I think I have more precise time frames in my popcorn thread:shrug3 I could still talk through ctx, but was not wanting to deal with the kids fighting and questions and general needy kid-ness anymore, so it was a good time for my mom to get there:yes We walked back up to the apartment, and my mom probably started feeding kids or unpacking or something:giggle while I went into the master bedroom. I sat on the couch trying to read/watch tv for a while, and then I thought it might be a good idea to start getting the tub ready. I did not need it yet, but I knew that waiting until I needed it would not be a good idea... since I would likely have to put it up myself. So I spend a while laying out the tarp, laying down sheets, and the pool... Then it came time to pump it up:-/ We have a manual pump, and I lasted like 2 pumps before I told my mom that she was going to have to come in and do it for me. The kids each wanted a turn pumping it up, and we got some cute pictures of them doing that:) They REALLY wanted to actually get in the pool, so I asked my mom to give them a bath, and then they could get into the tub for a little before I did. Got the tub filled up and I think the kids got in for a few minutes, and then they went to play some more with grandma. I was still trying to read/watch some TV in between contractions, but it was getting irritating. I was not able to actually focus on the show/book for long enough to even remember what the heck was going on after the ctx:giggle so much for my grand *multi-tasking-during-labor* plan :giggle I alternated between sitting on the couch, trying to squat on the floor, and sitting on the toilet during ctx. I really liked being on the toilet during my last labor, so I spent LOTS of time there this time as well... Around 7:30, things started gettting more intense. And this is when I started worrying. My last labor was around 15-18 hrs, and only started getting intense for the last several hours... So things were getting much more intense, much much sooner than last time. It did not occur to me that I might be having a quicker labor:no It only occurred to me that I was going to have a MUCH MUCH longer intense part of labor:giggle So I was kind of starting to freak out. Kind of starting to wonder why I was not at the hospital with some drugs. Kind of wondering what I was thinking trying to be some natural birth-y person again:shifty It wasn't the transition panic, just a general panic... that lasted on and off until baby was born about 4 hours later. So, at this point, i called hubby and told him to come home. I knew from the time he left, he would be useless to me for at least 1.5/2 hours (time to drive home and then to wash off his dirty mechanic-mess:giggle) I figured that I might really need him at that point, so he started on his way home. I think this is when I started the tub-potty-tub-potty rotation:giggle I was really surprised at the lack of relief I was getting from the tub:scratch I lived in that tub for HOURS last time... which I am sure slowed down my labor considerably:giggle But no matter what position I was in, I was just super uncomfy, and not really able to relax. I was really irritated-lol. At some point hubby got home and showered - I think he got out of the shower around 9:30 or 10??? He came out while I was moaning through a ctx in the tub. I remember that he sat down on the floor next to me, and I immediately jerked my head up cause ALL I could smell was the awful deodorant or spray of some sort that he was wearing:sick Aound 10:45 or so is when I started telling hubby that I was feeling panicky. I had felt this way for a long time, but I was allowing myself to actually tell him this. That I was not wanting to do this any more. That it hurt, and I did not like it... you know, all that stuff;) At this point, if I was in the water during ctx, I wanted to have DH right in my face so I could be looking at him. During my last labor, when I got to that definite *I am so over this NOW NOW NOW* I reached down and broke my water. Baby came pretty soon after that. So I was debating doing that again. I did not know if I was at the same point or not, and all I kept thinking was that I was just barely 12 hours into this, that I could not imagine another 6 hours of this (bringing it to the same length as my last labor) Hubby did not want me to, and I REALLY did want to let it happen on its own, but was sooooo tired... Luckily, I did not have to make the decision:giggle at 11:11 I went back onto the toilet, and at 11:12 my water broke - on the toilet. My first thought was *oh good, now I don't need to make the decision,* followed immediately by *um mom, you guys might have to physically lift me into the tub, cause I am GOING to have this baby in that water!* So I was able to walk myself to the tub and get it. Sometime during one of the next couple ctx's, I just started pushing. I don't remember feeling the urge to push. I did not feel the urge with my last birth either – only with my second. Anyways. I just started pushing... Just like how it happened the last time - I was tired and done, so I was gonna push gosh darn it!!!;) So, I was pushing, and feeling as the head was descending. I think it was one ctx to get the head down, and then another to get the head out. As I was trying to feel what was going on, I must have said at least 3 times *what the H is this? this is NOT a head*:lol Did the same thing last time also... I guess when I am feeling a hairy scalp of loose skin that slides around on the skull, it just does not feel like a human head to me:snooty But it did not really feel like anything else either, hence, my yelling/asking about what the heck was coming out of me:giggle When he started crowning, and I kept feeling more and more hairy-ness (his head, not me:giggle) getting wider, and then wider, and then wider... I really started to freak out. Again I started yelling about what the H was coming out of me?!?!?! I was going on and on about how it was like a giant gorrilla or something... I am not sure exactly what I said:no Once the head was out, I could feel his eyes and nose and all that facing my right thigh. Aha! I was indeed a head! And apparently he decided to come out widest part first:shrug3 that explained the gorilla thoughts:giggle So, head out. Oh, and while I was pushing his head out, my mom had grabbed the fishy net to scoop some stuff out:shifty during one of my pushes, I remember feeling the edge of the net on my butt, and FLIPPING out. I yelled at my mom, asking her what the HECK she was doing, and to get that thing away from my body!!! I guess she was trying to catch stuff as it came out??? :giggle:giggle:giggle On to the body. Still, no pushing urges, so I just pushed. Man oh MAN, pushing is just not as effectives w/o the help of a ctx behind it:no It took a few contractions (and me trying to push in between them) to get his body. Again, just like last time. You could tell my mom and hubby were kind of starting to worry about the body not being out immediately, and he was doing that turtle thing where his head is kinda trying to pull back into the birth canal... what is it called? So my mom got into the tub (just her feet) and I was moving around into different positions to push in, trying to just shift his little (apparently not) shoulders a bit. I was not concerned at all, I just knew I had to keep pushing. I was telling them to leave me alone, to not touch me, to go away and let me push, I know I need to move mom, I know I need to push, tyvm, stop TOUCHING ME:P~ I was also asking, several times, for someone to PLEASE go wake up the kids. They all asked to be woken up for the birth. I must have asked about 10 times during the pushing stage, and each time they said no, later, not now, in just a minute... I am still kind of irritated about that, but meh:shrug3 So, even though it might have seemed like it was taking FOREVER, at 11:21, baby's shoulders popped out, and I pulled him up out of the water. I laid him on my tummy, and for several seconds, he was just sprawled there, not moving or crying, and as blue as a smurf:-/ I patted him and snuggled him and rubbed him a little, and he was fine. I saw immediately that he was a boy:heart and then they all decided that it was okay to wake up the kids :rolleyes At some point I got out of the tub (where there was NO blood... totally different from the immediately black pool from last time) At some point I got out of the tub and tried to push the placenta out. Nada. I was having gnarly ctx, and eventually I could feel it just sitting there. I got into a squat on the floor, and pulled a little, pushed a lot, and out it plopped. I went into the bathtub to rinse off and rest for a little with the baby. At this point I was still intending
to have a lotus birth. But then I looked in the placenta bowl, and as I turned it over, chunks were falling of and creeping me out... I gave the bowl and the baby to my mom while I showered off, and then went into the living room to witness the cord cutting:) And then the baby weighing. When he came out, I immediately commented on how, even though his head felt HUGE, he looked so tiny! Yeah right. Baby was 9 lbs 13 or 14 oz, and 22 inches long... Awesome - my biggest baby yet:heart and my weird self loves that his birth date and time are all 1's and 2's:
2/21/12 11:21 PM
Jiraiya Michael David
I apologize in advance, but the pictures are mostly very, very blurry and just bad quality:( There are ALOT, they are BIG, and there is some birth nudity:shifty I cropped some of the unnecessary bottom area, but there are underwater shots of his head coming out:shrug3
Trying to find some relief in the water...
that relief never came...
The hose was on here, and I kept trying to get the hot water directly on my lower belly during ctx... not helpful at all
back from one of my tub-toilet trips. Not super thrilled with anything right now
about to have a contraction, so I am kind of running around trying to figure out a good postion to get into - I am not a fan of ctxs while standing up
I found my position
back to the toilet, where my water broke
starting to push
i think this is when the head came out
and then getting the rest of him out
and he's out
you can really see how horribly blue his face was
and then his first outfit with my sister
that relief never came...
The hose was on here, and I kept trying to get the hot water directly on my lower belly during ctx... not helpful at all
back from one of my tub-toilet trips. Not super thrilled with anything right now
about to have a contraction, so I am kind of running around trying to figure out a good postion to get into - I am not a fan of ctxs while standing up
I found my position
back to the toilet, where my water broke
starting to push
i think this is when the head came out
and then getting the rest of him out
and he's out
you can really see how horribly blue his face was
and then his first outfit
with my sister 
