The Birth Story – Long!

First of all, Kelly came out to check on us today and Maggie weighs 7lbs. 2 oz. Everything looks well. We got her footprints done and did the PKU test (where they poke her poor little heel). Nursing is going really well, although being the bearer of such blessings is putting me in quite a bit of pain. I keep telling myself one day at a time… it’ll be comfortable and easy before I know it. We are REALLY enjoying just watching our beautiful girls. I want to put up some pictures of both Anna and Maggie as newborns to compare them sometime, but between eating, feeding and sleeping whenever possible, we haven’t got much done around here. Hopefully we will fold our clothes tonight!

Ok, without further ado, here it the birth story I typed up!

MEN or those who are squeamish… this is the FULL BIRTH STORY and it is NOT EDITED to keep you from embarrassment. I suggest you have your wives read it to you if you’re interested and they can edit out anything that would bother you!

Ok, click here for the birth story:

I had a midwife appointment on the morning of October 6, 2009. It was pleasant and simple with nothing new. I think for the first time I actually left early from an appointment, having exhausted most of our chatting subjects already. I visited Melissa afterwards and finally saw her labor pictures from Jackson’s birth, five months before. We visited and relaxed and I got to see my Mom briefly too before I left. Melissa joked that she thought maybe I’d be in labor that morning when I came to visit her, since she was in labor when I went to visit her five months before. Anna only took a half hour nap and Melissa made me some really, really yummy iced chai tea while I was there. I’m still craving another glass of that. I was 40 weeks, 3 days pregnant.

Brian and I went to bed at about 9pm after reading a bit and having a relaxing evening. I hadn’t been having much for contractions – no more than usual and no harder than usual. At 11pm I woke up from a strange dream about exploring a cool alien ship with Brian. I couldn’t say what sensation made me wake up, but I got up to go to the bathroom and noticed that my underwear were quite wet. A large dose of adrenaline later (and about three seconds) I sat down on the toilet… Maggie kicked a little bit and another small gush came out! It really was my water breaking!

So what do you do when you are leaking irregularly and various amounts? I mean, I hadn’t really thought about this… my water didn’t break with Anna until right before transition. Speaking of which, as soon as I remembered this, I had a jolt of fear that I was about to be in intense pain without any preparation. I hurried back to our room with a huge towel between my legs (so not cute) and woke Brian up. I sat on that towel and called one of the midwives to let her know. She said that it takes varying amounts of time for the contractions to start and to call her and have her come out as soon as I had regular contractions. She suggested I get some rest and try not to get too excited (so that I could rest.). I nearly laughed right then… don’t get excited? My muscles were all shaking like with a fever from the adrenaline already.

I did try to rest though. After getting a drink, going to the bathroom a hundred more times, and putting my “I’m in labor” paperwork on the fridge for reference, I went back to bed and tried to relax. A few light contractions came and went and then stronger ones began to come at regular 8-9 minute intervals. I called my mom about then (about midnight?) and asked her to come out in case this was it. We really wanted to make sure we had somebody to help with Anna if she woke up. After two or three contractions had come in a row that were of the same intensity and at regular intervals, I called Kelli and told her to head out again. It was about 12:30 in the morning by now… a fast hour and a half since my water had broken. (Early labor/Latent labor: 11:30pm-12:30am – 1 hour)

We tried to relax in bed a little longer, but I became convinced that things were moving along (which is surprising to me since an hour and a half of contractions in those intervals is only like a total of 10 contractions) so we got up, shut Anna’s bedroom door and began to set up the birth tub. We put new sheets and plastic on the bed. While Brian was setting up the tub (which was a bit of a pain and took half an hour) I emailed everybody to let them know I was in labor. We called Brian’s parents and also my friend Hollie to let them know.

Somewhere between 12:30 and 1, the contractions switched quickly from 8-9 minutes apart to only 1 ½-2 minutes apart. They were pretty intense, but I didn’t have to interrupt Brian from setting up the tub. I walked around a little, timed my contractions on the computer a little and looked forward to the midwives and my Mom getting there. I think after the tub was set up, I had Brian call Kelli on the road to let her know the contractions were much closer together and to have Kelly come out too. We were happy to hear that they were both already on the way.

Even though Kelli, Kelly and my Mom were coming from three different parts of town, they all got to our house at the same time! About 1:30, we were very glad to have all three women walk in the door. I had been looking forward to everybody being here! I was at an emotional high, having all my pieces in place… midwives and mom arrived, birth tub set up and being filled, and having no doubt that I was in labor. However, at that same time I also entered quickly into transition. Yes, transition already! I didn’t realize it was transition, or the last bit of labor at the time, I just knew that the contractions were beyond what I could cope with anymore and that there was very little break between them.

Kelly went and finished preparing the tub, using the water that we had thankfully started boiling on the stove so that we didn’t have to wait for the hot water heater to reheat. I could find no position that would ease the pain of the contractions, but found myself throwing myself onto my hands and knees on the couch whenever a contraction would hit. I had begun moaning with every contraction, paying attention to the sound and trying to lower it if I began to get too high pitched. I don’t know that it helped, but after I started, I couldn’t not moan during contractions.

I was pretty beat really quickly. The contractions were too hard and my muscles were shaking from trying to be on my hands and knees and rock for the last half an hour. I was SOooo very glad to climb into the birth pool once it was ready. I noticed the relief to my body’s muscles immediately. The contraction pain even seemed less for the first couple. It was about 2am? Kelli came to listen to Maggie’s heartbeat during a contraction then… and I had a nice big break from contractions. Well, it seemed like heaven. It was probably less than five minutes though. I laid my head on the side of the tub near Brian and wished I could doze off. For some reason I was feeling sorry for Kelli having to wait so long for a contraction so that she could listen to Maggie’s heartbeat. However, the contractions were so awful that I wasn’t willing to move at all in order to encourage one. J

Contractions didn’t start and slowly peak like they did at the beginning. They hit me like a train, held for awhile as I tried to find a way to escape them and then slowly eased off. I felt like I couldn’t breathe properly during contractions at this point. I’m not sure why. I stayed on my hands and knees during contractions except for maybe one where I sat down – not that it helped with the pain, but I couldn’t just sit relaxed, I had to be in a position where I was more active. At some point I threw up… thankfully I had felt nauseous earlier so we had a bowl close. Kelly and Kelli were in the living room when something changed. Brian says that my moaning got really low with one and then got really loud and then gutteral with the next. I don’t remember noticing ANYTHING different, except that I was at the limit of my endurance. Praise God for his mercies, I really was almost to the end of the journey.

Since I hadn’t noticed the change in my voice, I wasn’t aware that I was about to start pushing. I had felt pressure low down for a long time, but hadn’t felt any urges to push really, so I still didn’t realize that I was anywhere near pushing. I mean, that would have made me happy, but I was aware that I had only been in labor for very few hours. So I had never taken off my underwear. I mean, there were lots of people there it seemed like and I would take off my underwear once we got nearer the end of labor! I was already there? Oh… (Active labor: 12:30am-2:42am – 2 hours, 12 minutes)

With the next contraction, my body began pushing involuntarily. And Maggie is low. Very low. I sit up on my knees, leaning my hands on my thighs, groaning with the contraction. I was so glad that it was time to push, I was so overwhelmed by the contraction, I was irrationally fearful about pushing, and my body had totally taken over for me, relieving me of the need to think about how to have this baby. Ok, so I am completely surprised that my midwives have never had to cut underwear off of somebody before. They offered to help me take them off. But really, I was pushing Maggie out RIGHT THEN and they wanted me to coordinate my muscles to turn around, straighten my legs, pull of the underwear and then get back to involuntary pushing? No way! This is just too funny for me. I said, “I can’t move! Just cut them off!” They looked at each other with a funny expression but didn’t do anything. I said, “I know you have scissors somewhere!” Brian did one of his greatest services to me in our marriage at that point and sent my mom to the kitchen for some scissors and then quickly cut the darn things off. (I think Brian recognized the stubbornness in my voice better than my midwives).

Kelli told me then how to pant when I’m pushing in order to slow it down so that I don’t tear. She says, “You’re not going to tear this time” and I knew then that I had the power to prevent tearing. But as the urge to push comes, I was barely willing to stop at all between pushes – I felt with my own hands as her head descended with each push through my pelvis and towards the world. Her head was only an inch from emerging as I reached down to feel for her after the first pushes. I kept both hands there, feeling her head move out as I pushed. I did try half-heartedly to pant a little, but eagerness and pain hurried my pushing. Sorry Kelli, but tearing didn’t seem important at the time. J

It was a miraculous feeling to feel her head emerge and I got of my knees and sat down leaning against the tub so that she’d have more room to come out. Kelli felt the cord around her neck (all I saw was the back of her head) and asked me not to pull her immediately towards me as I pulled her up in a minute. I got a respite from contractions at this point for long enough to feel wonder and joy and amazement. The break would have been longer, but Maggie started kicking and squirming (an odd sensation!) and started another powerful contraction. All this time, my pushes felt so powerful. I had to hold back as I pushed – it was good to be strong. I gave another strong, gentle push and her shoulders and body slid out. (Second stage labor/Pushing: 2:42am-2:51am – 9 minutes)

Kelli tried to unloop the umbilical cord from her neck, which was all the way around, and I let my hands slide over her body as it did a slow somersault under the warm, clean water. Kelli said something exasperated about how she couldn’t figure out the cord, but that somersault must have helped, because I slowly lifted her towards me and the cord wasn’t tangled anymore. The cord was pretty short, but I was able to lift her onto my chest with no trouble. And our second miracle was here. Brian and I had been next to each other the whole time, him taking the place right beside me just outside the pool, wiping my neck and face with cool cloths, offering encouragement and holding my hand. He was right behind me then, watching me have the honor of holding my baby girl first, both of us staring at her with relief and joy and wonder. It was 2:51am, less than four hours since my water had broken.

She had such a peaceful entry to the world. She didn’t fight much and only half-heartedly coughed up some of the mucus and fluid from her lungs. Melissa arrived just about thirty seconds after I lifted Maggie out of the water. After snuggling with Maggie in the water for awhile, we cut the cord. I handed her first to Brian who dried her off and wrapped her in blankets. I stayed in the pool until the placenta was delivered (note to self, sit down in the water next time so the gross thing doesn’t splash as you push it out). Kelli patted Maggie, listened to hear heart and lungs and generally tried to stimulate her so that she’d breathe better. Her muscle tone and breathing weren’t good, although she was pretty pink so we weren’t feeling like there was a breathing emergency.

Brian helped me into bed after the placenta was delivered and I had gotten into a dry shirt. I wanted very much to be nursing Maggie… I had almost an overwhelming urge to hold and nurse her to “make her better.” Well, God gave mothers special instincts for their children and Maggie latched on immediately and nursed for at least 20 minutes straight while the midwives did some cleaning up and Brian and I had some privacy with our new daughter. When we called them back to do her newborn exam, her muscle tone was much improved and she was still good and pink, although she was still pretty wet in the lungs. (APGARs for 1, 5, and 10 minutes: 5, 7, 9)

Maggie was 7 lbs. 8 oz., same as her big sister was. She was 19” long and her head was 13 5/8” around. I had two small tears, neither requiring stitches. The total time of labor, from about 11:30pm until she was born at 2:51am was only 3 hours, 21 minutes! I took a couple ibuprofen, had a sip of water, got a few more clothes on and Brian and I laid down together with little Margaret Rae in front of me, diapered, dressed and wrapped in a blanket. We didn’t hear her cry more than a little cry here or there until almost 24 hours later. She has slept well and nursed well her first 2 ½ days. She is laying here beside me now sucking on her thumb (yes, already!) and has her eyes open… a rare thing so far.

Anna slept through the entire labor and delivery and woke up THRILLED to have Grandma over at our house. We got lots of great naps that next day (which were so needed!) thanks to her being there and we were feeling so happy and rested so that we completely enjoyed having all our family over the evening of her first day! Grammy and Pappy and Grandma and Grandpa and Melissa and Austin and Jackson were all here for pizza! Mom stayed another night and day. I have been so much more mobile and relaxed than after I had Anna. My afterbirth pains have been pretty severe and accompanied by chills (weird) but they are already fading and will be forgotten just as quickly as labor pains. God is good, Maggie is precious and we are loving our new family of four!!!