I’m currently a mother of two toddlers and have already had my fair share of parenting experiences. Thinking back to the beginning of when it all happened feels like an eternity ago already but it was an amazing experience on so many levels.
Being a first time parent is so difficult, I was for sure clueless! Hopefully my stories and experiences can help you or at least entertain you.
Here’s the story of my son’s birth.
Late and a Paranoid Nervous Wreck
I was 6 days past my due date with no dilation in my previous doctor visits and my doctor had scheduled to be induced in the morning.
As most very exhausted pregnant women, I went to bed early. After only a few hours of rest I woke up suddenly with an uncomfortable feeling as if I was spotting.
I didn’t know what to think. I made my way to the bathroom to pee and sure enough there was a little blood on my panties.
I sat on the toilet for a good hour before calling my husband to wake up and get his advice. I waited so long contemplating because I was at the end of my pregnancy and was a nervous wreck, even if I kept it to myself sometimes.
At every doctor visit for the past few weeks my doctor would check if I was dilated, and seeing her concerned expression when she realized I wasn’t left me worried. I thought something was wrong with me. I even cried on the way home after our last visit because we had to schedule to be induced.
So back in the bathroom. My husband called the on-call doctor, who was not too concerned, but advised coming to the hospital just in case it could be something serious and seeing as that we would be there in a few hours anyway it couldn’t hurt.
Heading to the Hospital
I was terrified, nervous, and excited, but mostly I was worried something was wrong. But I decided to take my time since I wasn’t having contractions and I didn’t want to forget anything.
It was probably 11pm when this all started but we knew we were going to the hospital to have that baby either way because I was scheduled to be induced at 7am. So instead of rushing, we started preparing for the next 3-4 days.
We finished packing our things, took showers, took the dog out, and called our parents as we were leaving (giving them some extra rest time because it was the middle of the night).
We made it around 1am. I got checked in to my room, changed into a gown, put on the fetal monitoring band and laid on the bed.
Going Into Labor
Just as we settled in, the nurse came to ask a bunch of questions and get some information. Everything was fine and calm.
Seconds after the nurse walked out I felt something burst like a balloon from inside me and immediately felt fluids spreading onto the bed. I froze for a moment and started panicking, I don’t even know what I said to my husband to call the nurse back but I had a gut feeling something was wrong and I was anxiously crying.
I sensed he was trying to be the calm one but he was nervous too. The nurse came in to check on me and said “oh your water broke.”
It took me some time for me to believe her. REALLY!? That’s what happened!? Is this a mother nature kind of joke!
On TV you see someone’s water break and its just a few drops, sometimes they don’t seem to notice. Yet I get a terrifying explosive feeling!
I was still emotional and fighting the feeling that something was wrong but I figured, they know what they’re doing and I decided to trust that.
After calming down and talking to my doctor, she and my nurses started watching the contractions in the baby monitor charts and tells me “I guess you won’t be need your labor induced!”
Waiting Out the Labor
By 7am my entire family is in the room with me: my husband of course, my parents, his parents, his sister, and even a nurse friend who was on her day off. The room was large enough that they could all congregate several feet away from my bed and sometimes I could barely hear their conversations.
They were a good distraction from the labor pains but at the same time I felt like I was an exhibit and they weren’t sure how to be around the situation (neither would I in their shoes!)
Having them all there made me a little uneasy, and although I probably could’ve taken a few quick naps had I been alone, I loved having them all there to support us both. After all, I’m not the only one going through crazy stuff, my husband is over there freaking out about what I’m going through and only able to sit on the sidelines.
My worries up until now have purely been in my head. Being late and not dilating before entering labor are perfectly normal things that I was not fully aware of.
The "Minion Ball"
The entire morning and afternoon went by very well with the dilation progressing very well. But later in the afternoon it stopped completely.
At this point I’ve already had an epidural and my nurse friend and mom were telling me how horrible my contractions looked compared to all the other soon-to-be-mom’s live monitor charts in the nurse’s station.
I was starving and very tired but wired in excitement so I couldn’t sleep. And of course they don’t let you eat anything except for ice chips and water and it was impossible to sleep because people are in and our of your room or you’re having contractions.
After several check-in’s from my doctor and hearing her somewhat concerned whispers she tells me and the nurses to try different positions with a specific yellow medicine ball. This is the part I may have somewhat erased from my memory by choice.
They had me holding this giant yellow exercise double ball, which we called the “Minion Ball” (the Minions movie had just come out, on our due date actually, and I was very excited).
With the ball they had me reposition my giant belly, while still leaking through my vagina, to each side and then on my stomach with this giant odd-shaped ball between my legs. Or at least I think that’s what we did because, like I said, I kind of wanted to forget this.
This was like doing yoga in labor but with a huge odd shaped medicine ball and on a hospital bed. It was very awkward and uncomfortable.
Some of my emotional anxiety was back. I just knew this wasn’t going to work, and I wanted to beg to stop.
This probably lasted an hour in total, and it didn’t result in any changes.
Just before midnight my doctor came in and said that waiting too much longer would result in dangers for me and the baby and she recommended doing a cesarean. My husband and I were both in complete agreement (and I never would have expected to be this okay or prepared for major surgery).
Surgery Time
With some prep time, a little photo shoot, and another dose of medication through my epidural I was taken into surgery.
By this point my emotions were mostly in check, I guess deep down I knew I would never get to push my baby out vaginally, and I was actually terrified of the pushing experience.
My whole family looked concerned and tried to console me upon telling them we would be going into surgery but I was probably the calmest one there, besides the staff. For some reason I finally felt like something might go right.
We arrived to the freezing cold surgical room, they helped lay me down and started setting up. They covered me from the breast down with a blue blanket and raised it like a curtain.
My husband sat beside my head throughout the whole process while holding my hand. My arms had to be laid out straight to the sides and were covered in blankets because I was freezing and shaking.
Throughout the entire surgery all I could think about were my arms. They were shaking uncontrollably as a result of long labor, nerves, the very cold room, but mostly, the drugs!
The First Time We Met
Everything went perfectly, our son came out crying at 12:31am and my husband got to cut the umbilical chord before bringing him over to me for our first encounter.
He was a sweet baby boy.
I wanted to touch him but I couldn’t control my arms and I could barely twist my head back to be able to see him.
I knew he was in safe hands and the nurses took him for his bath while the doctors finished the surgery and sent me back to my room.
After Surgery
They brought him back to me for our first attempt at nursing, my body was still shaking from the drugs and they had to hold him for me.
I honestly don’t really remember what happened just after that, my shaking nerves started to calm down and my memory faded. I think I dozed off because I was relieved my baby was okay and the adrenaline and drugs were wearing off, making me a little delusional.
I got moved to a regular room, and the next 2 days consisted of me being in bed recovering from both labor and surgery while daddy cared for our newborn and brought him to me for nursing struggles.
Yes, daddy did just about everything to take care of our child except nurse, which was one of the few things I was able to do at the time.
My recovery was a little complicated because of everything that happened within the entire labor process and surgery. That’s a whole other story and it took me a little while to be able to do certain things but our baby was with us and safe.
This birthing experience was not at all what I expected, I was neurotic at the end of my pregnancy and for no reason because everything went smoothly even if it wasn’t the more “standard” delivery method.
Readers:
How were you before and after your birth experience?
How did motherhood affect you as a person and a family?
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My name is Paula and I’m a mom of two scrumptious cuties. Thanks Mommy Blog became a project for me to help guide other new moms and current moms through any of my own personal experiences and struggles. My hobbies include singing, doing jigsaw puzzles, baking, designing and trying to stay creative.
We had a very similar labor experience, I think this just comes downs to show that it doesn’t matter how much we plan, it is all up to the babies and how they wish to be born. Delivery is the time they start showing us who the real boss is… Read more »
I was almost going to have a c section with my second child. She was breech forever and the night before I was to go in to induce labor, she turned herself all the way around (which felt great lol). Congratulations on your new bundle <3
I had an emergency c section with my first too…and then had my second naturally. It is funny how differently things can go for labor and delivery, but so important to be flexible and open minded…do what is best for you and baby! So glad you both are doing well… Read more »
I had a c-section with my second baby. It wasn’t an emergency c-section thought, my baby was breached. I don remember the shaking. I couldn’t control myself. I didn’t like the recovery. It was so painful. But I’m glad I did it because it meant that after all that I… Read more »
Yea the important part is always our little bundle of joy being good and healthy, despite the crazy things we endure. Sorry you had your struggles as well!