Mama: Ashley
Baby: Levi
Due Date: Thursday, March 14, 2013
Birthday: Tuesday, March 19, 2013
My husband and I had intended on a very natural labor and delivery. We took the Bradley Method classes and hired a doula and felt very prepared. Saturday, March 16th I started feeling weird...upset stomach and different feeling Braxton hicks contractions. That morning I timed them and they were pretty consistent but then died off later that day. Sunday morning at 1:00 AM I woke up from a very strong contraction. I tried sleeping but awoke with each one. I woke my husband up around 7 AM and he started timing the contractions and they were between 6-7 minutes apart. We called our doula and let her know that I was handling them well and if anything changed we would have her come over. Monday at 3:00 AM comes and I lost my bloody show. I thought to myself, "this baby could come today!". I could not sleep that night because the contractions were keeping me up. My husband and I started timing them around 4:00 AM and they were between 5-6 minutes apart and getting more intense. We called our doula and she came over around 8:30AM. I knew we had to get rest so we took a nap and around 1:30 PM my water broke. I was in the middle of a contraction and felt a pop. I could not contain my laughter. Our doula even came in the bedroom to see if everything was okay. It was by far one of the best moments of labor. Contractions were between 3-5 minutes apart and since my water broke we decided to head to the hospital (a little later than we were told to but I just loved being at home so much).
We got to the hospital around 5:00PM and when they checked me I was only 70% effaced and 1cm dilated. I was crushed. At this point I had already been in labor for 40 hours and I was sure I was having this baby yesterday. I break down and cry and then get very serious and ask what we need to do to get this baby out. We walk...and walk...and walk. I was checked a few hours later and was then at 3cm dilated and found out at that point that our baby was not in the right position. We did exercises, stretches, and side laying. Fast forward and now it's Tuesday. My husband, doula, and myself are all sleep deprived. It's been 25 hours after my water has broken and medical intervention is being spoken. The bathroom becomes my husband's and my safe place. The place where we go to think, discuss, and where I cry. This is not how I thought my labor would be like. The birthing class said I should have had my baby 15 hours ago. And now we are talking about medical intervention. So...Pitocin it is. At first the contractions were manageable and then they got ferocious as expected with Pitocin. I was checked again and was only at 6cm. My midwife really thought I just needed rest so I was given a narcotic because I desperately did not want an epidural. After no progression we decided on an epidural since the narcotic wasn't helping me rest. I very much felt like a failure at this point. I remember talking with my doula and she told me that I have already been through so much and I just need rest and at this point an epidural would do that for me. I finally slept for an hour and I felt great. My midwife was sure that once I rested and she came back a couple hours later that I would be at 9cm and ready to push. She came back to check on me and I was still at 6cm. Our baby was trying so hard to come through, which made it hard for the midwife to feel exactly what position he was in. She then breaks out the C word...C-section. She had noticed his heart rate dropping with contractions and at that point wasn't a huge concern but could become one. She told us we could give it more time but we decided on a second opinion and decided it was best to have it done before I needed to be rushed into surgery. I get prepped and at 10:38PM on Tuesday March, 19th our son was born. Born with a very large cone head because he was trying so hard to come through. He also ended up being face up and crooked. Poor guy! If you're trying to do the math, it was almost 3 days of labor. Next time there WILL BE a time limit! During labor I wanted what was best for him and I thought that meant no medical intervention but now looking back I realize that he was working very hard for 3 days too. He was healthy and has been since! It was definitely not the birth story I thought I was going to tell!
Thanks, Ashley, for sharing your marathon of a birth story with us! Levi is absolutely precious!
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