Birth Stories - Beware

FishMama over at Life As Mom is hosting a Birth Story Swap in celebration of her daughter's birth. Since I love hearing these stories (and all the gory details), I thought I would participate and share mine. Warning: If you don't enjoy these types of stories, stop reading NOW!!

~ Miss Abigail ~
I had a great pregnancy with Abby. I was finishing up my senior year of college and only had classes two days a week. I was able to get as much rest as I needed during my days at home (funny thing - I thought it would be that way with number 2 - ha). Everything was textbook up until her due date which was October 28 (2003). I did not want to have a Halloween baby so I was anxious to go into labor and looked for every sign that it was starting. I went for a check up on Oct 24 and my doctor said I was dilated 3cm and probably wouldn't make it through the weekend. After two embarrassing false alarms (as soon as they would hook me up at the hospital, the contractions would stop), I went back to my doctor on my due date. Still at 3cm, still no more progress. She told me to relax and come back in a week (thankfully their practice only allowed you to go one week over before intervening). I was so relieved when we made it to November 1 and she had avoided Halloween (although that may have been fitting). We decided to induce on November 5. We showed up early that morning and they got the pitocin started. I was doing pretty well. I really wanted to go as long as possible without an epidural. A few hours later, my doctor broke my water and the contractions started picking up. Along with the contractions, my blood pressure started rising. They insisted that I lay on my left side to try and lower my bp. It was so hard trying to deal with the contractions without being able to move. I started running a fever and had to have antibiotics in my IV (not fun). The nurses kept telling me that getting an epidural would lower my bp and I would be able to move around. Finally, around lunch, I agreed.

Wow, what a difference. I was able to talk, laugh, sit up, and just enjoy the company. Around 4:00, I had dilated to 7cm. We were starting to get nervous and excited. Around 6:30, I was up to 9 cm and my doc said she would be back within the hour to start pushing. Now, Miss Abigail had been low in the birth canal all day. We had been able to feel her head for hours. So, we thought we were doing great. When the doc came back at 7:30, she said that my cervix had started swelling and that i was no longer 9cm but back to 6cm. About the same time, Abby heart rate started dropping. We repositioned and she bounced back. I asked to wait a little bit before we made a decision and the doc left to go home for a while. Apparently, she was monitoring me the whole time and was back within 30 minutes. I don't quite remember exactly what happened then but I know she talked with Josh outside and then they insisted that a c-section was the best option for both of us. As soon as I said ok, everyone started frantically getting things ready and rushed me to the OR. Abigail was born at 8:24pm and weighed 8lbs, 7oz. She was 22 1/4 inches long and PERFECT. I didn't get to hold her for a few more hours but she was amazing. We were thrilled. Little did we know that that was only the beginning of her strong-willed, stubborn nature.

~ Mr. Kaden ~
Unfortunately, Kaden doesn't have a very exciting story. Based on my experience with Abby, I was encouraged to have another c-section with him. And honestly, that was ok with me. We scheduled his due date and counted the time until October 5 (2006) finally arrived. I had a pretty easy pregnancy with him too. However, I was driving an hour each way to work with a 2 1/2 year old, so I didn't get quite as much rest. We showed up at the hospital on his appointed day, and he was born at 7:49am. He weighed 6lbs, 11oz and was 20 inches long. He seemed so much smaller than Abby. He was jaundice so he had to be put in a Bili-bed for a few days at home. I wish I could say more about his story, but it really was that simple with him.

Whew...it's been a while since I've thought through those stories. It's nice to get them written down.