It was Monday, November 21, 2011 and my due date had been Sunday, November 20. I was scheduled to get induced on Tuesday, November 22 after going to the doctors the previous Thursday and there was still no sign of anything happening. The doctor decided I needed some mechanical assistance to get things going. I was full term with no complications so he thought it would be in my and the baby's best interest to get induced. My last day of work had been Friday, so I was enjoying my first "official" day off of work. I was going a little crazy thinking about labor and delivery, being induced, the pain,etc. I wanted to get out of the house for a bit by going to Carter's and Babies R Us to pick up a few newborn outfits (since I didn't have any) and a few other baby items I still needed. I was all set to enjoy one more day off on Tuesday, as we were scheduled to check into the hospital Tuesday night at 6PM for them to start Cervidil over night and Pitocin in the morning to induce labor. We were hoping for a baby by Wednesday night...
...Well at around 8:30PM on Monday Edward and I were sitting in our office (paying some bills) when all of a sudden I felt like I had kinda wet myself. Without saying anything to Edward, I ran upstairs to the bathroom As something continued to leak out of me over the toilet, I yelled, "Edward come here! I think my water broke, but I'm not sure." It wasn't like in the movies or on television where there's this big gush, so I really wasn't sure what was going on??? I didn't want to call my doctor and sound like an idiot. Instead, I decided to call my sister (since she has had two kids) to see if it was indeed my water that had broke. She was already in bed sleeping. No help. I then decided to call my mom. I described what had happened and she said it sounded like my water had broke and to call my doctor. So I did. He called me back, I explained what had happened to him and he said that it probably was a tear. He said to wait an hour and see if fluid continued to leak and if so to go to the hospital. If we got there and it wasn't, my doctor said maybe they would just admit me anyways and start my induction a night early. I thought it was a win-win situation either way. I waited the hour and the leaking continued. I made the executive call that we should head to the hospital. I didn't feel like I was "in labor" so to say... I didn't feel any different-no contractions or pain. We didn't rush to the hospital. I took a shower, shaved my legs, painted my toe nails, blow dried my hair. Edward also took a shower. We put a few last things in my hospital bag and off we went...
....We arrived at the hospital at 11PM. The doctor there checked me and yes, it was my water that broke and I was 2 cm dilated! Edward called both of our parents to let them know I was being admitted and that he would keep them posted. The hospital called my doctor to let him know my status. He wanted to see if there would be any natural progress in labor over night. I put on my hospital gown, got hooked up to monitors and mentally prepared for what was about to happen...
...Throughout the night I had a few contractions, but nothing regular. The nurse actually told me when I was having one and I didn't even realize that it was a contraction. She also kept telling me to get some rest, but that wasn't happening. How could I rest?!? I was anxious and staring at the monitors watching if anything was happening. By 5 am I think I had only slept an hour or so...
...My doctor came in at 9AM and since there was no progress in labor over night (irregular contractions and I was still only 2 cm dilated) he wanted to start Pitocin to help move things along. He informed me that he would be at the office all day, but that he would be back at the hospital around 5PM as he was going to be the doctor on call that night (he is the head of labor & delivery at the hospital). The chief resident would be with me all day and keep him posted on my progress. He said that maybe by 6PM I would be 10 cm. And with it being my first delivery, pushing could take up to a few hours. He was hoping for a baby before midnight...
...They started the Pitocin at 9:30AM. The amount is increased in half-hour increments and the contractions get more intense as the dosage is increased. From 9:30-11:30AM things were a breeze. The contractions were manageable and the pain wasn't bad at all. I could do this!
...I was checked at 11:30AM and was 3.5 cm dilated. The doctor told me it was a good time to get up and moving to progress things since I had planned to get an epidural and then would be confined to the bed. The nurse brought me a birthing ball also to use. I went back and forth from standing/walking around the room and sitting on the birthing ball. Things were starting to get difficult....my contractions were getting more intense and the pain was definitely increasing. I remember watching The View on the television and then there was an infomercial on afterwards for WEN hair care by Chaz Dean with Alyssa Milano. Where has she been all these years?!? Haha...
...The doctor came back at 1PM to check me and I was 4.5 cm dilated. I was ready for the epidural at this point. Almost half way there, she though it was a good point to get it. She informed me that the anesthesiologist was in a c-section, but that he would be out in 20 minutes. In my head I was calculating how many more contractions I would have to make it through without any drugs...
...1:20 no anesthesiologist. 1:30 no anesthesiologist! 1:45 STILL NO ANESTHESIOLOGIST!!! This was my breaking point. The contractions were coming so quickly and the pain was awful. I couldn't do this any more. I looked at Edward and said, "YOU NEED TO GO GET SOMEBODY NOW!!!" He left the room to find my nurse. She didn't know what was taking the anesthesiologist so long, but informed me I was doing great. Now I was in bed, burying my head into the side of it and squeezing the bed rail...
...FINALLY at 2PM the anesthesiologist came into the room. The procedure to get the epidural took about 1/2 hour from start to finish. He told me I would start to feel my toes go numb and eventually my legs. After a few minutes of waiting, I started hitting my leg and telling him I could still feel it. My right side was numb, but I could feel everything on my left side. The anesthesiologist had me lay on my left side, hoping the epidural would take. He even increased the dosage, but it never took on my left side (which meant I could still feel every contraction on that side). The doctor then came in and tried to make me feel better by saying it was a good thing because now I would feel when I needed to push and know when to push with the contractions. She checked me again now that I had gotten the epidural and I was already 6.5 cm dilated. She decided to call my doctor and let him know that I was progressing quickly and that I would probably be 10 cm before he was supposed to be back at the hospital...
...At 3:20PM the doctor was back in my room for another check and shocked she said, "Wow, you're 8.5 cm already! I'm going to get your doctor on the phone now and tell him he needs to get here real soon." I couldn't believe that I had dilated two centimeters in less than an hour. I was also a little panicked thinking that my doctor's office was about 20 minutes away from the hospital and he needed to get there FAST!...
...There was a shift change with the nurses at 3:30PM so the nurse that had been with me all day was saying goodbye to me and my new nurse was introducing herself when I started to have an urge to push. I told them I felt like I needed to push, but they warned me not to start pushing because most women feel like they need to before they're actually 10 cm (and I was only 8.5 cm ten minutes ago). Another contraction came and I said again, "I really feel like I have to push." My new nurse said she would get the doctor again to check me and she left my room to get her...
...My nurse came back and said the doctor would be back in a few minutes. It was now 3:45PM and I pleaded to her again that I had to push. She decided just to check me on her own to see where I was. When she checked me, the look on her face said it all, "Oh my gosh, you're 10 cm and the baby's right there!" From this moment on it was like a scene out of one of the television medical shows. She paged all the doctors and for a nursery nurse. I remember hearing her say, "Nursery: we need a nurse down here now, we have a baby coming. Three doctors came rushing in and started flying through the cabinets to get all the equipment ready. They told me to only start pushing gradually while they set up everything (Yeah...kind of hard when you have a baby right there ready to come out)...
...At 4PM everyone was in place and the chief resident said she just got word that my doctor had arrived to the hospital. "He's downstairs right now," she said. I couldn't wait. She gave me the green light to start pushing then...
...Three pushes later at 4:11PM Henry came flying out....literally. I didn't even realize he was out because my eyes were closed when I was pushing. Edward shouted, "Amanda, look. Open your eyes. He's here!" I opened my eyes, looked down and there he was on my chest. I remember holding his slippery body and then Edward cut his umbilical cord...
...My doctor walked in the room moments later and said, "AMANDA, WHAT HAPPENED!?!" "I couldn't wait for you," I replied. He felt so bad that he didn't get there in time, but it all worked out. He took over and finished up everything. I won't go into details, but there was an issue with a missing gauze strip and all the doctors searching around for it. I was so close to having to get an x-ray done (to make sure it wasn't inside of me!), but then Edward saved the day and found it in a pile of towels...
...The nurses and doctors took bets on how big our baby was before they put him on the scale. Everyone was surprised that he weighed 8 lbs 5 oz. Most were guessing 7-7 1/2 lbs. He sure was packed in me!
...I will never forget the first few moments of holding our baby and thinking how perfect he was and that just minutes before he was inside of me. It truly is a miracle! Edward and I then had to decide on his name, since we still were between three different ones. He just looked like a Henry to me...
...The next morning when my doctor came to check on me, he apologized again and was still amazed at how fast I went. Now he knows for the next time around.
So there you have it...how baby Henry entered into the world. Overall, I have to say the whole labor and delivery wasn't that bad. It had its moments, but then it was all over. Honestly, I'd rather do it again compared to being pregnant for nine months.
