On Tuesday, Jan 3rd, which was my estimated due date according to the measurement I had at my first ultrasound, I could tell that something was happening. On and off throughout the day I had contractions, but nothing consistent until that evening around 10 pm. At that point the contractions began to come consistently every 7-10 minutes throughout the rest of the night. I hung out, waiting for that moment where the doctors say to go in when contractions have been consistent every 3-4 minutes for an hour. The morning of the fourth it was easy to see the mucous plug had dislodged and I began bleeding, which is a good sign that labor is happening. I continued contracting throughout the morning and bleeding. At around 2:30 I decided to call the nurse and ask for advice. I knew my contractions weren’t where they would want them to be but I was concerned about the bleeding and that I hadn’t felt Leo moving around much. She said I should go to the Hospital and be checked out. I was sure they would send me home, but Rich and I packed some basics just in case and got to the Hospital around 3.
They put me in a room and checked everything out. I was only dilated to a 1. They said to walk around the labor and delivery hallways for an hour and then they would check again. So Rich and I walked around, and then went back to the room to be checked again. I was now dilated to a 2+. They said I had a choice. They could send me home or I could try walking around for another hour. I took another hour of walking. In that second hour something changed. I know that contractions are supposed to get progressively more intense, but something about these were different and went from being manageable to super painful. The contractions also changed from being consistent to erratic. I would have 2 or 3 a minute apart and then nothing for 5-6 minutes. The nurse came back and checked me again. I hadn’t dilated any more. She said she would talk to the doctor one more time to see if they would admit me or send me home. She could see I was in a lot of pain. That moment was frightening for me. I was in so much pain I was afraid of going home, and then not knowing when I should come back again with my contractions being so erratic, I didn’t think I’d be able to handle it.
The nurse came back and told us the doctor said I could stay, and I broke down, hysterical with gratitude at finally getting to stay at the hospital after already going through 17 hrs of laboring at home and another 5 hrs in hospital triage. Rich cried in relief too, god- I love that man. They hooked up the IV that contained penicillin to treat my Group B strep and soon the anesthesiologist came to administer an epidural. He had fantastic bedside manner and even though he was inserting a 17 gauge needle into my spine, he quelled any nervousness I may have had. I didn’t get the zing that many women get, in fact it wasn’t any worse than the IV they had just given me. Soon after, the pain began to subside and we settled in for the night. After a couple hours they came in and broke my water. They noticed that Leo’s heart rate would drop each time I had a contraction and they kept moving me into different positions. Some positions would help, and other positions would make it worse. The epidural kept failing on my left side and I would start feeling a lot of pain on the left to the point where 3 times during the night the anesthesiologist had to come in and up my dose. Even with the extra dose though, I could always feel the pressure of contractions and was able to move my feet. My legs on the other hand, were numb enough that Rich and the nurse had to help me when I changed positions.
My dilation progressed very slowly through the night, and once I hit 7 cm I stalled out. They also discovered that I had a fever and had to give me two more bags of different antibiotics along with the penicillin I already had to treat the fever. At this point I hadn’t eaten since lunch the previous day, and muscle fatigue had kicked in, I found myself shaking uncontrollably. All I could do was suck on ice with lime flavoring, close my eyes and focus on relaxing my body and opening my cervix.
Early that morning of the 5th, Dr.Loewen came in to check on me. They found out part of the issue. Leo was in face presentation. They joked that he wanted to look outside first before deciding if he wanted to come out. This position creates a larger area for me to push through the birth canal and was what was creating all the pain on my left side.
At this point they decided to do 4 things. First, they gave me pitocin to see if it jumpstarted my dilation, they filled me up with water, and they put me in this position where I was partway on my belly with my right leg up in a stirrup in hopes of getting Leo to move into a position where I could deliver vaginally. They also gave me some sugar so I would have some calories and strength to push. I wish they had given that to me hours ago, because soon after my shaking and nausea dissipated. I could feel that the Pitocin strengthened my contractions, and it did speed up the dilation process. Within three hours I was finally dilated to a ten. During this time the doctor came in and helped Leo reposition himself to the best (cephalic) birth presentation. Right after she repositioned him, the pain in my left side went away, and that’s when I knew that was what had caused the abnormal level of discomfort I had been dealing with.
Since it was my first baby they assumed I would be in the pushing phase of labor for a while so the doctor left and the delivery nurse put me in position to begin pushing Leo out. After one or two sets of pushing she realized he was going to come out much sooner than she had thought and she called the doctor back in. Within 45 minutes I had pushed Leo out, needing only one stitch up inside on my hymen. They were impressed with my core strength, and I said, “All thanks to Yoga.” This is where they found what the other issue had been. Leo’s cord had been partially wrapped around his neck which is what had been causing his heart rate to drop during contractions. Even with Pitocin, my contractions never became quick and regular. They stayed about 5-6 minutes apart. The doctor and nurses said my uterus must have known that is what Leo needed to keep him from going without oxygen for too long.
At 11:24 on the 5th of January, 2012 Leo was born. 6 lb 15 oz. They measured him at 19 inches, but later he was measured correctly at 20.5 inches. The pediatrician said it is hard to measure newborns and they are often measured wrong right at birth. Rich cut the cord and they put him on my chest skin to skin while I delivered the placenta. He was alert, content, perfect, and beautiful. He took to the idea of breastfeeding right away.
They moved us up to our recovery room and gave Leo his first bath. My whole lower half was super-duper swollen from all the fluids and I had to keep a catheter in for another day. Everyone in the hospital up to this point had been fantastic, I couldn’t have had a better experience with hospital staff. But starting Thursday night until we left Saturday afternoon, it went downhill. We had a lot of unnecessary interruptions Thursday night that prevented anyone from sleeping. Friday morning the shifts changed and we were introduced to Tracy, the spaciest nurse in the world, and our nurse for the next two days. In that time she never learned our names. She never even learned if Leo was a boy or a girl. She forgot to write down medication administration times, she forgot to administer medications, she forgot to drain my catheter, she would forget the answer I gave her to a question she had just asked 30 seconds ago. She had no bedside manner, no sense of privacy or decorum, and I had no faith in her skills to adequately take care of me or Leo. Even on Leo’s labwork forms she didn’t write in Leo’s name and put his birthdate as January 7th. Thank goodness for CNA’s and nursery staff and Rich who kept an eye out for me, taking care of all the things she forgot to do.
Leo’s tests came back well except that he had lost 8 oz which was barely in the ok range and they found out he had the ABO incompatibility(hemolytic disease). More on that here: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/ABO_incompatibility
This made him super sleepy and added an extra challenge to establishing breastfeeding, which as many people know can be a challenge anyway. A lactation specialist came in, which I hadn’t asked for, and as I have heard with many others, created an uncomfortable and unenjoyable learning experience. She had a couple of interesting tips but I had taken a class and read the books and was actually doing well without her help. She disregarded the knowledge I had, stressed Leo out so he wouldn’t latch like he had been, then continued to pull him off my nipple incorrectly causing soreness that hadn’t been there until then. It seems lactation specialists need to seriously revise their approach to helping women take on breastfeeding. I wouldn’t be surprised if they were a huge contributor to women’s frustration and quitting attempts at breastfeeding. Because Leo was so tired from elevated bilirubin levels he would only eat a little at a time, and therefore; I had to have him at my breast just about every hour, Rich and I trying to keep him awake any way we could so that he would eat. This is the best way to help the liver process and eliminate the bilirubin from the system.
We were able to go home Saturday, which I was so ready for. I couldn’t wait to get away from the constant interruptions at the hospital and have time to bond with my family. We had to have a light bed and blanket delivered to the house because his bilirubin level had gone up. We kept him under the lights for almost 24 hours straight, stopping only to feed and change him. The next day we went back to the doctor and tested his levels again. They hadn’t gone down, but they hadn’t gone up either. We went to the doctor again the next day, he had gained a couple ounces which is a good sign, but his bilirubin level hadn’t changed. The doctor said that since he had maintained and was a couple days older we could stop using the lights but to monitor him closely and if he became super sleepy again and not eating that we should bring him back in.
And so here we are, up to date, Leo just a little over a week, and doing well. He’ll get his bill of health at an appointment next week, and then I as the worrisome new mom can give that sigh of relief.
Thank all of you who gave your love and support through this process, and for your excitement and interest in Leo. I know some of you may have found it strange that we didn’t want to have visitors the first week, yet after going through that process I find it strange that people would want visitors right away, especially with a first baby. Labor(and my pregnancy) is already a physically and mentally exhausting experience, then to move straight into bonding and adjusting to a new baby with all the testing, monitoring, feeding, physical recovery in the hospital, etc. and on top of that having some health issues arise that need to be addressed-a lot of people coming in and out would have been disruptive and draining for Rich, Leo and I. I had a friend tell me that she only let family come to the hospital with the birth of her baby, and even then, by the end of the day, she had hardly had a chance to hold her own baby. Having this past week to spend with Rich and Leo has been a wonderful chance to establish a routine, adjust to change, and create that amazing bond that happens when 2 becomes 3.
Rich heads back to work next week and Leo and I will begin to adjust once again and form a routine together. As I get to know Leo and his patterns I become more relaxed and confident in my ability to be a mother. As I become more relaxed, the idea of having company becomes more appealing, and I’d love to slowly start introducing Leo to the world. So for those of you who have yet to meet the little guy, we’ll get together soon, but I warn you- he is super cute, and he just may make your heart melt, like he has Rich and mine.
And with that I say,
Namaste.
They put me in a room and checked everything out. I was only dilated to a 1. They said to walk around the labor and delivery hallways for an hour and then they would check again. So Rich and I walked around, and then went back to the room to be checked again. I was now dilated to a 2+. They said I had a choice. They could send me home or I could try walking around for another hour. I took another hour of walking. In that second hour something changed. I know that contractions are supposed to get progressively more intense, but something about these were different and went from being manageable to super painful. The contractions also changed from being consistent to erratic. I would have 2 or 3 a minute apart and then nothing for 5-6 minutes. The nurse came back and checked me again. I hadn’t dilated any more. She said she would talk to the doctor one more time to see if they would admit me or send me home. She could see I was in a lot of pain. That moment was frightening for me. I was in so much pain I was afraid of going home, and then not knowing when I should come back again with my contractions being so erratic, I didn’t think I’d be able to handle it.
The nurse came back and told us the doctor said I could stay, and I broke down, hysterical with gratitude at finally getting to stay at the hospital after already going through 17 hrs of laboring at home and another 5 hrs in hospital triage. Rich cried in relief too, god- I love that man. They hooked up the IV that contained penicillin to treat my Group B strep and soon the anesthesiologist came to administer an epidural. He had fantastic bedside manner and even though he was inserting a 17 gauge needle into my spine, he quelled any nervousness I may have had. I didn’t get the zing that many women get, in fact it wasn’t any worse than the IV they had just given me. Soon after, the pain began to subside and we settled in for the night. After a couple hours they came in and broke my water. They noticed that Leo’s heart rate would drop each time I had a contraction and they kept moving me into different positions. Some positions would help, and other positions would make it worse. The epidural kept failing on my left side and I would start feeling a lot of pain on the left to the point where 3 times during the night the anesthesiologist had to come in and up my dose. Even with the extra dose though, I could always feel the pressure of contractions and was able to move my feet. My legs on the other hand, were numb enough that Rich and the nurse had to help me when I changed positions.
My dilation progressed very slowly through the night, and once I hit 7 cm I stalled out. They also discovered that I had a fever and had to give me two more bags of different antibiotics along with the penicillin I already had to treat the fever. At this point I hadn’t eaten since lunch the previous day, and muscle fatigue had kicked in, I found myself shaking uncontrollably. All I could do was suck on ice with lime flavoring, close my eyes and focus on relaxing my body and opening my cervix.
Early that morning of the 5th, Dr.Loewen came in to check on me. They found out part of the issue. Leo was in face presentation. They joked that he wanted to look outside first before deciding if he wanted to come out. This position creates a larger area for me to push through the birth canal and was what was creating all the pain on my left side.
At this point they decided to do 4 things. First, they gave me pitocin to see if it jumpstarted my dilation, they filled me up with water, and they put me in this position where I was partway on my belly with my right leg up in a stirrup in hopes of getting Leo to move into a position where I could deliver vaginally. They also gave me some sugar so I would have some calories and strength to push. I wish they had given that to me hours ago, because soon after my shaking and nausea dissipated. I could feel that the Pitocin strengthened my contractions, and it did speed up the dilation process. Within three hours I was finally dilated to a ten. During this time the doctor came in and helped Leo reposition himself to the best (cephalic) birth presentation. Right after she repositioned him, the pain in my left side went away, and that’s when I knew that was what had caused the abnormal level of discomfort I had been dealing with.
Since it was my first baby they assumed I would be in the pushing phase of labor for a while so the doctor left and the delivery nurse put me in position to begin pushing Leo out. After one or two sets of pushing she realized he was going to come out much sooner than she had thought and she called the doctor back in. Within 45 minutes I had pushed Leo out, needing only one stitch up inside on my hymen. They were impressed with my core strength, and I said, “All thanks to Yoga.” This is where they found what the other issue had been. Leo’s cord had been partially wrapped around his neck which is what had been causing his heart rate to drop during contractions. Even with Pitocin, my contractions never became quick and regular. They stayed about 5-6 minutes apart. The doctor and nurses said my uterus must have known that is what Leo needed to keep him from going without oxygen for too long.
At 11:24 on the 5th of January, 2012 Leo was born. 6 lb 15 oz. They measured him at 19 inches, but later he was measured correctly at 20.5 inches. The pediatrician said it is hard to measure newborns and they are often measured wrong right at birth. Rich cut the cord and they put him on my chest skin to skin while I delivered the placenta. He was alert, content, perfect, and beautiful. He took to the idea of breastfeeding right away.
They moved us up to our recovery room and gave Leo his first bath. My whole lower half was super-duper swollen from all the fluids and I had to keep a catheter in for another day. Everyone in the hospital up to this point had been fantastic, I couldn’t have had a better experience with hospital staff. But starting Thursday night until we left Saturday afternoon, it went downhill. We had a lot of unnecessary interruptions Thursday night that prevented anyone from sleeping. Friday morning the shifts changed and we were introduced to Tracy, the spaciest nurse in the world, and our nurse for the next two days. In that time she never learned our names. She never even learned if Leo was a boy or a girl. She forgot to write down medication administration times, she forgot to administer medications, she forgot to drain my catheter, she would forget the answer I gave her to a question she had just asked 30 seconds ago. She had no bedside manner, no sense of privacy or decorum, and I had no faith in her skills to adequately take care of me or Leo. Even on Leo’s labwork forms she didn’t write in Leo’s name and put his birthdate as January 7th. Thank goodness for CNA’s and nursery staff and Rich who kept an eye out for me, taking care of all the things she forgot to do.
Leo’s tests came back well except that he had lost 8 oz which was barely in the ok range and they found out he had the ABO incompatibility(hemolytic disease). More on that here: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/ABO_incompatibility
This made him super sleepy and added an extra challenge to establishing breastfeeding, which as many people know can be a challenge anyway. A lactation specialist came in, which I hadn’t asked for, and as I have heard with many others, created an uncomfortable and unenjoyable learning experience. She had a couple of interesting tips but I had taken a class and read the books and was actually doing well without her help. She disregarded the knowledge I had, stressed Leo out so he wouldn’t latch like he had been, then continued to pull him off my nipple incorrectly causing soreness that hadn’t been there until then. It seems lactation specialists need to seriously revise their approach to helping women take on breastfeeding. I wouldn’t be surprised if they were a huge contributor to women’s frustration and quitting attempts at breastfeeding. Because Leo was so tired from elevated bilirubin levels he would only eat a little at a time, and therefore; I had to have him at my breast just about every hour, Rich and I trying to keep him awake any way we could so that he would eat. This is the best way to help the liver process and eliminate the bilirubin from the system.
We were able to go home Saturday, which I was so ready for. I couldn’t wait to get away from the constant interruptions at the hospital and have time to bond with my family. We had to have a light bed and blanket delivered to the house because his bilirubin level had gone up. We kept him under the lights for almost 24 hours straight, stopping only to feed and change him. The next day we went back to the doctor and tested his levels again. They hadn’t gone down, but they hadn’t gone up either. We went to the doctor again the next day, he had gained a couple ounces which is a good sign, but his bilirubin level hadn’t changed. The doctor said that since he had maintained and was a couple days older we could stop using the lights but to monitor him closely and if he became super sleepy again and not eating that we should bring him back in.
And so here we are, up to date, Leo just a little over a week, and doing well. He’ll get his bill of health at an appointment next week, and then I as the worrisome new mom can give that sigh of relief.
Thank all of you who gave your love and support through this process, and for your excitement and interest in Leo. I know some of you may have found it strange that we didn’t want to have visitors the first week, yet after going through that process I find it strange that people would want visitors right away, especially with a first baby. Labor(and my pregnancy) is already a physically and mentally exhausting experience, then to move straight into bonding and adjusting to a new baby with all the testing, monitoring, feeding, physical recovery in the hospital, etc. and on top of that having some health issues arise that need to be addressed-a lot of people coming in and out would have been disruptive and draining for Rich, Leo and I. I had a friend tell me that she only let family come to the hospital with the birth of her baby, and even then, by the end of the day, she had hardly had a chance to hold her own baby. Having this past week to spend with Rich and Leo has been a wonderful chance to establish a routine, adjust to change, and create that amazing bond that happens when 2 becomes 3.
Rich heads back to work next week and Leo and I will begin to adjust once again and form a routine together. As I get to know Leo and his patterns I become more relaxed and confident in my ability to be a mother. As I become more relaxed, the idea of having company becomes more appealing, and I’d love to slowly start introducing Leo to the world. So for those of you who have yet to meet the little guy, we’ll get together soon, but I warn you- he is super cute, and he just may make your heart melt, like he has Rich and mine.
And with that I say,
Namaste.
No comments:
Post a Comment