I really tried my best at learning about the birthing process and and thinking about what I wanted it to be like. I decided against writing out a strict birth plan because I really wanted to keep my mind open until I was in the experience but I did try to learn as much as I could so I could make well-informed decisions. My doctor has been great with me and I really trusted her to give me options and tell me what was going on and she really did. That said, you probably know I never went into labor on my own so I went to be induced at 7am on Sunday, December 19th.
Seth and I had a big night before the induction and didn't get home and to bed until around 12:30 in the morning. I had a pretty hard time sleeping but woke up around 5:45am to shower and get ready. Even though I wasn't in labor, we still did a bit of rushing around last minute throwing things in the birthing bag! We got breakfast on the way and by the time we got to the hospital I could definitely tell I was a bit nervous.
My nurse was just starting her shift at 7 as well so she set up the room while I was getting checked in. She had to do a lot of preparation such as taking my blood pressure and temperature and all kinds of stuff before we started anything. There was a little scare with my blood pressure at first because it was extremely high but then it went down pretty quick. My doctor in and checked me but I was still only 2cm-- the same as the Monday before so we talked about things and she decided she was going to skip the meds to soften my cervix and go straight to Pitocin. That's about the only thing I wish I had done differently. Who knows if it would have helped. Around 9 I was started on the IV and Pitocin.
The rest of the day is a blurry mess! They brought in a birthing ball and and we talked out a plan. I was having tiny contractions but I wasn't feeling them so the idea was to psych the baby out by "pretending I was still home waiting for labor to progress". I bounced on the birthing ball and walked around the labor floor. Jeeze those halls were cold! I tried to do it about 30 minutes or so at a time. I would bounce 30 and walk 30 or until I got tired. Then for a while Seth, my mom and I played some Phase 10. We got to phase 7 and I'm pretty sure I was winning. Around 3pm my doctor checked me and I still hadn't really progressed so we decided to break my water. They told me if I could I should probably get some rest before I started feeling it hardcore. I may have slept a little bit but I don't think I was hurting very much yet. The next time they checked me after my water was broken my doctor said it was a bit green. Later they talked to me about the risks of meconium aspiration and let me know it would talk minute to clear out the baby's lungs and to not get scared if I didn't hear her as soon as she comes out.
Eventually, though the contractions started hurting and I don't even remember how I dealt with them. I walked a little through them and bounced on the ball a lot. I leaned over the bed and my mom rubbed my back and shoulders. I had no concept of time at all! It was around 7 or 8pm that I decided to get some meds in my IV. Seth was amazing, he didn't say much but he held my hand let me squeeze and it was so good just knowing he was there. I suppose my pain got a bit more intense but I really wanted to go as far as a could without an epidural. Mostly though, instead of getting stronger and closer together and causing me to dilate, my contractions just started to get closer together. SUPER CLOSE TOGETHER. My doctor said they were strong enough to start changing my cervix and causing me to dilate and push the baby down but it just wasn't happening.
By midnight, I had been in a lot of pain and was still only 5cm and my doctor mentioned Cesarean section and I knew it had been coming for a while. The meconium staining kept getting worse-- the last time they released more fluids I saw it and started bawling because I know how hard that can be on the baby and it looked BAD. It was bad. My doctor talked to me again and I decided to get the epidural. She said it looked like the only way I would have the baby without a c-section was if the epidural worked enough to take away my pain AND make my hips and pelvis relax enough so that the baby could move through because she had a super cone-shaped head. Of course I wanted to do everything I could to have the baby as naturally as possible but we were running out of time.
The epidural took a while to get in and was Seth's least favorite part. I was using him to put my head on his chest and stuff and he probably locked his knees, he was like "I don't feel good. I don't feel good." and almost passed out so the nurse switched him and he sat down. Poor babe! I was in pain before, but if it wasn't for them telling me pretty much you're getting an epidural or c-section I wouldn't have gotten one yet. BUT I did and after it was in place it AMAZING. It took absolutely no time to work too, as soon as I got it in and laid back in bed and was smiling and crackin jokes. It was awesome! Unfortunately, it didn't do anything for my progress except make it a bit faster when they took me for my surgery. :(
The meconium was SO bad and every time they moved me the baby's heart rate was dropping. My doctor talked to me again and explained she understood it wasn't what I wanted but that I was definitely off the labor curve and with the strength and frequency of my contractions I should have been to the point of pushing. So, they prepped for surgery.
I said I had read about all the aspects of labor and giving birth--but I lied. I know about c sections...it's major surgery, they cut you open, I didn't want one. I don't really think I was even scared when it came time. I just wanted my baby to be okay. I remember a few things about the surgery...It was FREEZING. Like thinking about it makes me want to die because I was shivering soooo hard. They told me I would because of all the anesthesia but it sucked! I couldn't stop crying either. Seth held my hand and I'm glad he got to be in there. I also remember my doctor saying, "This is the most meconium I've seen like this in a lonnnnnng time" and another doctor saying "I've never seen this much." I also remember the pressure and tugging when they were getting the baby out and my doctor saying something about her being unsure of how big she is or how big her head was but I could tell they were having a hard time getting her out even in c-section.
At 1:44am Natalie Marie Gebhard was born. She was 7lbs 4.5oz and 20.5in long and BLUE. I am not sure how long they worked on her but the poor babe was on that table getting the poo sucked out of her lungs FOREVER. All I could see was the top of her little cone head but I didn't know what was going on. She had swallowed a lot though and every time they got it sucked out and let her breathe her vitals would drop. Her apgar scores at 1, 5 and 10 minutes were 6, 6 and 7. Seth got some pictures while she was on the table and we got to say Hi and kiss her before they took to the NICU. We tried to be strong but it was so hard to see our baby be taken upstairs and we didn't even get to meet her really. I could tell Seth was upset but I had already been crying the entire time so I may have just cried harder.
Seth, Mom, my sister Kayla, and friend Melissa got to go meet her in the NICU while I was coming down from surgery. Around 5:45am they moved us upstairs to the mother baby unit and got us settled up there. We were asking when we could go up to see Natalie and the nurse said she would find out and bring a wheel chair for me but when she came back she said Natalie was on her way downstairs! She was in the room with us by about 6:10am and the rest is history! Here are a few pictures of my baby!
