I can’t believe our little lady is already two and half weeks old! I feel like I will never forget her birth and everything leading up to it, but I want to write it down to make sure (especially since I have already realized that lack of sleep = stupidity/forgetfulness). It’s a long post because I wanted to try and record as many details as possible and warning in case you didn’t read the title of this post – if you don’t want to read about a birth, don’t read this! I love hearing people’s birth stories though, I think it’s the most miraculous thing in this world.
Friday afternoon the day I was actually 40 weeks; I went and had a massage. The girl I’d been going to throughout my pregnancy swore she could put people into labor and so I figured, why not give it a shot? I don’t know for sure if it was the massage or the three walks a day I was taking, the pineapple, spicy food, or bouncing on an exercise ball, but something worked!
Saturday morning, we went on a 2 mile walk with Sadie. I came home, had a bath, and contractions started around noon. It basically felt like how you’d feel the day after doing a lower back workout at the gym, but I knew it was contractions because it would come and go. I hung out for a little bit and talked to my sister, who decided she and Ben would go ahead and head our way since she felt like it would definitely happen that day or night and then she and Ben could be here when we left for the hospital to be with Sadie, etc. So Patrick and I went to the grocery and got things to grill out that night and they got in town around 5ish. My friend Robin came over as well and we spent the evening grilling out and talking. I think it was sooo helpful to have people there because while I was keeping track of the contractions, I wasn’t sitting by myself just waiting for the next one to come; instead I was distracted by conversation. Plus, I ended up having a good meal for dinner, which ended up being a lifesaver since I didn’t eat again until lunch the next day and needed that strength later that night J
Around 9:30 - 10 PM, the contractions were definitely more intense, but still not the unbearable pain I had imagined. I didn’t want to go to the hospital only to have them tell me that I wasn’t ready yet and to go back home, but since they were about 4.5 – 6 minutes apart, I decided I’d rather go and have them send me home but have some idea of my progression than wait any longer. So I had Patrick get his stuff together (I’d packed a bag for myself and Aubrey weeks prior, ha) and we left for the hospital a little before midnight. Once in triage, the nurse checked and said I was between 3.5 – 4 cm dilated. She brought in an IV to hook me up to and actually asked me if I wanted the epidural right then, which caught me off guard since I was still managing the contractions pretty well. I said no, not yet and they let the doctor know I was there and checked me into a delivery room. We met our L&D nurse (who is an ANGEL) and she started monitoring me.
By the time the doctor came in to check me, I was 5 cm dilated
and the contractions were getting much stronger. She told me she was going to go ahead and
break my water. She warned me that once
she did, things would progress very quickly.
She also told me to keep in mind that if I did decide that I wanted an
epidural to keep in mind that from the time I told her I wanted one, it would
actually be 45 minutes before it was in my system (after calling the anesthesiologist,
him coming and administering, etc).
Well, let’s just say that as soon as she broke my water, the pain was awful. I felt two contractions after that and said
“yep, we can go ahead and order that epidural now!” Once the anesthesiologist got there, they
were less than two minutes apart and it was terrifying to have him putting that
needle in my spine while trying to go limp, slump over, hunch your shoulders
(which btw is exactly the opposite of what you naturally want to do during
extreme pain). If my nurse hadn’t been
there/the amazing person she was, I don’t know what I would have done. She kept me calm, focused, steady breathing… she
was incredible.
After that, I couldn’t feel the contractions any more, just
pressure during them and my body shaking uncontrollably. Really strange that you know your body is
reacting to something and you can’t feel it… anyway, a lot of time the epidural
slows down the labor process, so I told Patrick to take a nap and I would try
to rest (it was now close to 4 a.m. I think)
Well not too long of a time went by and I felt the pressure during the
contractions becoming really intense. I hesitated
to call the nurse back in because I didn’t want to bother her for no reason
(that’s the thing about having a baby, you have nothing to compare it to in
order to know if the pain/pressure/whatever is real or if you need to suck it
up and deal with it a while longer, lol).
I called her back in and asked her to check me and she told me that I
was basically ready to push and she couldn’t believe how quickly everything
went. She went to tell the doctor and I
told Patrick to wake up (the man can sleep anywhere/through anything, I swear)I could actually feel the pushing which sounds horrible but actually was a blessing. One, because despite the pain and the physical and mental effort it took, it is something that is indescribable and literally miraculous that our bodies can do and I’m kind of glad I was able to experience it. Two, because I could feel pain, I was MOTIVATED to get her out. I only pushed for about 20 – 25 minutes. The hardest thing I’ve ever done in my life, but I will never ever forget it. You’re literally using every ounce of strength you have while holding your breath to push this baby, three times in a row, then taking a break in between where they put an oxygen mask on you to replenish your air supply. However, during the “break” you can’t let the tension go because if you do, the baby could regress, sort of like a two steps forward one step back type of thing. This is when I really focused and where I swear, being a runner and practicing yoga helped me immensely, keeping my concentration. And praying. I was praying and centering my thoughts on her birth so intensely and I absolutely believe that it made me stronger and her delivery smooth. Once her head was visible, I was so anxious because I knew once her head was out; the hardest work would be done. At one point, the doctor encouraged me to reach down and feel her head to keep me motivated to keep going… which sounds weird I guess but the whole experience was so surreal, it was amazing. And it worked – I had a surge of energy and started doing four pushes in a row instead of three at a time – we were so close to meeting her!
And at 5:40 AM October 6th, we did! Aubrey Grace Agnew came into the world at 7 lbs, 5 oz and 20 inches long - exactly the same measurements as Patrick was when he was born! Once she was born, they put her immediately on my chest and it was the most incredible thing in the entire world. Patrick and I were both in complete awe and amazement that our daughter was just brought into this world and seeing her there was just incredible. Hearing her cry for the first time was the most beautiful sound. They took her to the side to clean her and check her vitals, etc then brought her back for about an hour of skin on skin time. She nursed right away which is incredible in and of itself – how crazy is it that they just instinctively know how to do this?
right after she was born :)
All in all, I would describe her birth as beautiful and
perfect. It went quickly, all of my
nurses, the doctor and Patrick were absolutely wonderful, we even had a great
view of the Charlotte skyline from our hospital recovery room J I could not have asked for a better delivery
and am overwhelmed with gratitude at how well it went.
view from our hospital recovery room
Aubrey at two days old
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