If you want to read Part ONE of this birth story (the pre-labor stuff) go here.
So. On April 30th around 5:45am I woke up with a contraction. I was 40w 4d pregnant, and had done some acupuncture the night before. I didn't think anything about the contraction and I went back to sleep. About 10 minutes later, I had another contraction. I needed to get up to go to the bathroom anyway, so I got up and a few minutes later, I had another contraction. Andrew was already up getting ready for work. So I decided to just jump in the shower. I told him I had had a few contractions, but I didn't think they were going to continue. I asked him to wait a few more minutes before he left for work so he could time some contractions for me. After the shower I got in the bath, and after about 20 minutes I realized my contractions weren't stopping. In fact they were about 2-3 minutes apart, and 60-90 seconds long. Andrew asked what I thought. And the first thought was "These are way to close together and way to long, they are supposed to be 5-10 minutes apart and 30-45 seconds long at the beginning."
He asked if he should go to work still. He had a 30 minute commute (that was getting longer by the minute because we were approaching 7am, and that meant morning rush hour). I told him he HAD to go to work. If he didn't, the contractions would stop (they'd probably stop anyway, right?). So he left. I stayed in the tub and listened to music for another 10 minutes. The contractions continued. I thought I would get ready for the day since the kids were still sleeping and IF the contractions continued, so be it. But after being out of the tub for 2 minutes I realized that I had to focus through the contractions to keep them in check. I sent a text message to Andrew saying that I thought it was a mistake that I sent him to work. I knew he wouldn't get the text for another 20 minutes because he was riding his motorcycle and wouldn't check his phone till he was at work. I decided to call my doula and give her a heads up. It was about 7am. I told her I'd be having contractions for about a hour, and I thought I MIGHT be in labor.
Through out the conversation I had a few contractions and I COULD talk through them. But it was not ideal or comfortable. Mariah, my doula, said she thought it sounded like very very early labor. She said it might go somewhere, but....it could be days still. That didn't sit well with me. Sure, I wasn't ready to say "I'm for sure in labor"....but I wanted it to be labor! She said she'd check back with me in an hour or so. But, that I should stop timing the contractions, get something to eat, and just ignore the contractions. So, I headed downstairs and got a bowl of cereal. But with every contraction, I couldn't ignore it. And I had to stand up and sway during each contraction. I sent Andrew a text and after texting back and forth for a few minutes, he decided he would come back home.
Around that time my girls woke up. I helped them get dressed in between contractions. But it was becoming apparent that the contractions were not stopping. Andrew got back home around 8am, watched me through one contraction and proceeded to call his parents to come get the girls. They came over and got the kids and I was able to relax a bit knowing that I could again focus just on my contractions. Mariah called back around 8:30am and I told her I'd like her to come out to my house. She said it would take her about 45 minutes. So Andrew and I got into a routine. We turned on some music and I got a glass of ice water, really more for the ice than water. He worked on various house things to get prepared for us to be gone, and every time I felt the beginning of a contraction, I would call for him. He would come over and hold me while I buried my face in his shirt and held onto his arms. I would sway back and forth and breathe deeply and slowly. We did this for every contraction over the next hour or so. And it worked really well. I started to think that maybe I was handling them too well, that maybe I would stall and that this wasn't really labor. I had never had labor start or progress spontaneously, so I didn't know what to expect.
Mariah arrived a little before 10am and helped me through a few contractions. She said she thought I was still in early early labor. After about 30 minutes she decided she would just leave and stay in the area and check with us again in an hour or so. She said that we could have a baby that night, but probably not until the next day. I told her I wouldn't mind having a May baby, but tomorrow seemed SO FAR away. She left and we continued in our usual pattern of talking in between contractions, but standing and swaying during them. I worried when the contractions would be more than 5 minutes apart, and I worried when they were only 2 minutes apart. But no matter what the timer showed, they were consistent. I started to have to hum, moan, or say "ooooooo" through the contraction in order to stay relaxed.
I texted Mariah around Noon to let her know that the contractions were definitely getting stronger and closer together. She called shortly after and said she'd be heading back and we can talk about where to go from there. Once Mariah came back, I decided to send Andrew to grab some lunch. While he was out I mentioned to Mariah that I really wanted it to BE labor. And I didn't want to stall, again. She stopped me quickly and made me repeat that I was in a safe place, and my baby could come, and that I would be successful. I really really wanted to believe all those things.
Mariah said I should try walking stairs during the contractions to see if that would help labor progress. I really didn't feel like it NEEDED to progress any more than it was, but I was willing to try what she recommended. In between stair contractions we talked about non-labor things. Like how Andrew and I met, and how it just so happened that that day, April 30th, was our 9 year Anniversary of attending our Senior Prom together and our first kiss. When Andrew got back I stood next to the table and ate most of the salad he got me. The contractions started to get harder and eventually I decided I wasn't interested in eating anymore. At this point I would sit on the birth ball in between contractions and get up and sway with Andrew during each contraction. Mariah offered some back counter pressure during the contractions. Around 1:30pm I asked her when we should head to the hospital.
She said that she thought that I was still in early labor because I wasn't having any trouble talking in between (and even during) some of the contractions. She said I wasn't acting like I was in active labor. I expressed my concern about the 30 minute drive to the hospital and that I didn't want to be stuck in a car if these contractions got even worse. I'd rather head in now, and see where I was. Although Mariah thought I'd only be 1-2 cm, she agreed that we could go to my Midwife's office and be checked and then decide if we wanted to go to the hospital. She called my Midwife to give her a heads up and after 5-6 more contractions, we finally got in the car. Mariah followed behind us in her car. We left at about 2pm. We had been laboring at home for about 8 hrs at this point.
Andrew was the only one smart enough to start taking some pictures!
In the car I would get on my hands and knees and lean on Andrew during the contraction. They didn't seem to be overpowering, but they were definitely strong. So I just relaxed in between contractions, and tried to work through each contraction as they came.
We got to my Midwife's office (which is across from the hospital) around 2:30pm and I immediately went into the bathroom to get away from the patients and to labor privately until my Midwife was ready for me. She saw me walk in and said "YAY for Acupuncture huh?!?!?!" I laughed and said I was going to step in the bathroom for a few contractions and I'd be out in a second. Andrew helped me through a few contractions and we heard that Mariah had arrived. I left the bathroom and walked around the corner to a exam room. I had a few contractions on the way and I just stopped, asked for Andrew, and worked through them. Eventually we made it into the room, and I made it on the table. I was NOT looking forward to being checked, but I knew it was important.
I reminded myself to have LOW expectations for cervical dilation. I tried to remind myself how little it really means. So we were ALL shocked when she checked me and said "You are at 7CM and have a bulging bag of waters!" My Midwife did a happy dance while I stared at her in shock. And then she quickly said "We have to go to the hospital NOW!" She called over to the hospital while I worked through a few contractions in the office. And she explained that I needed my antibiotics for Group B Strep ASAP. She asked if we wanted to drive over to the hospital or walk. And I promptly said there was NO WAY I wanted to get back in that car. I had a few more contractions and she said, "Ok, lets walk, and I'm walking with you. Let's go."
Andrew ran to the car to grab our bag and we held the elevator. I had a few contractions in the elevator, but he was quickly back. I asked if he grabbed the camera, and he said "No, but it's fine, lets go." In unison, myself, Mariah, and Kristi all said "NO! Go get it!" I told him I would labor in the elevator for a few more contractions if it meant we would HAVE the camera for the birth. He turned around and ran back to the car. I laughed about it for about 30 seconds until the next contraction. And Kristi just stared at me and said "Keep laughing. You're doing awesome!"
She decided to take us under ground through a access tunnel to the hospital. I had a few contractions in the tunnel, but we just resumed our normal process. I'd stop, ask for Andrew, sway and moan through the contraction, and then keep walking. A hospital employee passed us during one contraction and was super worried. She asked if she needed to call someone..... I don't think she realized that I was walking with my Midwife, Doula and Husband (who has EMT training). After the contraction was done I had a good laugh about her too. We continued to Labor and Delivery Triage, stopping every few minutes to rock through the contraction.
Kristi really wanted to just admit me straight to a Labor and Delivery Room, but unfortunately they didn't have a nurse set up for me yet. So we went into Triage so Kristi could start my IV and Antibiotics and they could get a "strip" to see how Zek was doing. I told them they could do whatever they wanted as long as they didn't make me lay down. I stood while they hooked up the monitors and prepped for the IV. After some searching and waiting through a few contractions, the IV was in. But they were having trouble keeping his heart rate on the monitor. It was probably because I would move with each contraction, but there was no way I could stay still. I mentioned that I felt liquid dripping down my legs. Kristi asked if my water had broken, but I didn't feel a pop or gush, just drops of liquid. She said she'd watch it through a few contractions, but it was probably just "bag sweat" where the bag of waters is sweating small amounts of fluid, but it's not broken. Andrew was kind enough to take a few pictures in Triage.
When we arrived at Triage
My "I'm 7+cm and in between contractions" smile.
Trying to keep Zek on the monitor. And this was
seconds before I called for Andrew to hold me
through a contraction.
We headed to an L&D room and as usual, I stopped a few times on the way to do my thing. Once in the room my midwife turned down the blinds, asked if I wanted music and tried to help me get comfortable. They needed me to do another 10 minutes on the monitor because the last strip wasn't good enough. I again said that I didn't mind, as long as I could stand. My midwife said "Of course!!" I had said through my whole pregnancy that I wanted to get in the tub during labor. So, they started filling up the tub, and I worked through a few contractions. I mentioned that I'd heard that once you get to 7-8 cm the pain doesn't increase, and that made me happy. They all kinda laughed at me that I was still thinking critically about the benefits of being 7-8cm dilated. There were a few contractions that were harder to handle and I felt were starting to over power me. But I forgot them quickly.
As soon as the tub was filled I got in. The warm water felt really good. But I quickly realized I didn't want to be on my back or in any sitting position at all. I tried being on my hands and knees during the contraction, but the water wasn't high enough to cover all of my belly, so I didn't get much relief. I stayed in the tub for about 45 minutes, but I wasn't impressed and quickly felt overwhelmed by the contractions. It was much harder for both Andrew and I to deal with the contractions while in the tub. So I decided to just get out and go back to my stand/sway with Andrew routine. The only bright moment of being in the tub was when I got to talk to my sister Jana. She called and I was in between contractions, so Andrew answered and put her on speaker. This was my first labor without her by my side, and hearing her voice was very comforting and reassuring during a difficult time. She praised me for doing so well, and reminded me that I could do it. I told her I hoped to be sending her a picture of a baby soon.
Trying out some hydrotherapy
Trying to relax in between contractions
Andrew trying to offer some back counter
pressure during the contractions.
After I got out of the tub I felt better, and then worse. I began to feel pressure, which I knew was good. But it was still difficult to manage. I knew Zek was moving down, and I hoped I was making progress. After standing for a few contractions I realized that there was liquid dripping down my legs again. Upon looking down, I realized it looked A LOT like blood. Bright. Red. Blood. I was panicked at first, and then my Midwife said that it was probably some amniotic fluid mixed with bloody show. She still wasn't convinced that my water had broken, but she thought it might have a leak. My legs were starting to feel really tired. And although I wanted to sit in between contractions, it made it harder to get into the right position for the contractions. So I stayed standing. At this point I started to doubt myself. I thought "maybe I should just get an epidural, or laughing gas, or something." I mentioned that medication sounded pretty good, and Kristi said "Juli, I know it hurts, but you are almost there!" To which I responded "Do you promise?" Everyone said that it was such a genuine and vulnerable question. The tone of my voice was pleading. She reassured me that I was in fact very close. What I didn't know at that time was that my Midwife was mouthing "Nitrous?" (aka laughing gas) to Andrew, asking if she should offer it. Andrew quickly shook his head remembering that I didn't want to use any pain meds, even laughing gas. He's awesome. If I had heard the conversation, the outcome might have been different.
A few contractions later my body shifted and started doing little pushes at the peak of the contraction. When that happened, amniotic fluid would squirt out. So, that confirmed the leak in my water bag. Which meant they needed to keep Zek on the monitor for a few minutes just to make sure he was tolerating labor well. I waved them off, again, telling them to do whatever, but I was going to continue in my process. A few contractions later Kristi said "Let's talk about the position you want to birth in." I was really happy, and really surprised to hear that. I know that eventually I had to push, but I didn't know WHEN that would be.
She said I could push however I wanted, I could squat at the end of the bed, or sit on the bed, or whatever. I knew I wouldn't be able to stay upright during pushing, so I reluctantly got onto the bed on my side. I immediately panicked because I knew the next contraction would be a million times worse. Andrew, being the saint he was during this entire labor, immediately took charge. He rocked my body back and forth on the bed during the contraction to give me my "rhythm" back. I immediately calmed down knowing he would take care of me.
She checked me and told me I was complete, but that my bag of waters was still intact and the leak was some where high. So she decided to break the bag since it would probably break mid push anyway. At that point Andrew and Mariah started to pull my legs back which I instantly resisted because it hurt! But they explained that my pushing would be much more effective. My body completely took over and began pushing. I quickly realized I could fight it, or help it. So I tried to focus on putting my energy behind the push. My Midwife told me to only push when I felt like it, but I couldn't stop myself. I had one HUGE contraction that lasted for over 3 minutes and moved him down very quickly. Kristi asked for some olive oil (and the nurse poured the WHOLE cup into her hands, luckily Kristi just dumped the excess onto the towel and moved on). She helped stretch me right as his head was crowning, and his head came right out. I had been pretty loud and panicky through this point, so Andrew and Kristi both said "His head is out!" To which I replied "Then WHY does it still hurt????" Her reply....."His shoulders." He wasn't sure which way to rotate his head, so he just kept switching directions, so his shoulders were stuck. She asked for one big push, helped his shoulders turn, and he was out. My sweet baby boy was finally here. When I commented about his shoulders getting stuck Kristi said, "He has broad shoulders" and then proceeded to look at Andrew like "Duh, look at his dad's shoulders!" We had a good laugh about that. Honestly, I think Zek's twisting was not by accident. At our 35 wk ultrasound he had the cord wrapped around his neck, but at birth, he didn't. He must have rotated out of the cord during pushing and crowning. Smart Baby!
I did it. I think I was shocked more than anyone else. I had actually given birth without any augmentation or medication. I was shocked, happy, and in love with my baby. This was the point that I remembered the camera and asked Mariah to take a few pictures.
Andrew cutting the cord
In awe of what just happened and our beautiful son
I was SO HAPPY to have him here and be done with labor. Unfortunately my body had other ideas, I wasn't done yet. I realized that Kristi had a concerned look on her face. I asked what was wrong, and she quickly explained that my placenta was not detaching. She asked if I had ever had issues with placenta retention, and I hadn't. We all knew that the placenta could stay in place for a while after birth, but the issue was that my body was bleeding heavily like it WANTED the placenta to come out, but it wouldn't. Kristi said she was just going to wait a minute, and that I should try breastfeeding to encourage the process. She asked the nurse to hang some pitocin, but explained that she wouldn't use it unless it was an absolute necessity. A few minutes later she asked the nurse to page Dr. Lovelace, the OB that she worked with. She was vigorously massaging my belly trying to get the placenta to detach, but the only thing that occurred was more bleeding. She said that my uterus wasn't contracting anymore, like it had just gone to sleep after Zek came out. Again, she requested that they page Dr. Lovelace. I asked if everything was going to be ok and she explained that she just wanted to err on the side of caution. And she asked them to start the pitocin. A few minutes later she asked that they call his cell phone and tell him it was urgent and to come now. 30 seconds later, he arrived and she gave him a quick explanation of the situation. She also made it clear that I had ABSOLUTELY NO pain medication on board. Aka, proceed gingerly. He did the same basic things she was doing, massage and even some gentle tugging on the cord. But the placenta stayed put. It was at this point that Kristi asked me if I wanted some pain medication in my IV, in case he had to manually remove the placenta. I consented thinking that I definitely didn't want to feel that!
He did a quick internal exam and said that my placenta was at the very bottom of my uterus, but it just didn't want to move. He asked me to give him 2 good pushes and that he would get it out. Sure enough, I gave him 2 pushes, and out came a huge placenta. a second later the nurse came into the room with the pain medication to which I said, "No thanks, I'm good!" I didn't need it anymore, which was a relief. Kristi and Dr. Lovelace inspected the placenta and said it was intact. Then they inspected me and determined I had a few 1st degree lacerations. I told them that if it was ok, I'd rather just let them heal on their own instead of getting stitches. They both said that would be just fine. Finally, almost an hour after birth, they were able to clean me up (it was like a crime scene after all the blood that I lost) and they covered me and Zek (who still hadn't left my arms) in warm blankets. I was shaking uncontrollably at this point because of the hormones and adrenaline. I continued to shake for another hour and it was so frustrating to not be able to control it.
As I was shifting blankets I realized that Zek had pooped ALL OVER the blankets. So they decided to weigh him real quick while they grabbed me clean blankets.
He weighed 8lbs 5.6oz, which would be rounded up to 8lbs 6oz. WOW! He was a full pound bigger than Beth at 7lbs 5oz (Ami was 7lbs 3oz). The nurses were great and explained that they would come back after shift change to do the rest of his newborn procedures. This meant I could have another 45 minutes just holding my sweet baby.
My breastfeeding champ
My support team. Mariah-Doula, Kristi-Midwife
Around 7:30 a nurse came in to do the newborn procedures. She was quick and very kind and Andrew stayed with Zek the whole time. I got up and got cleaned up and dressed. And right around that time some food came for me. We made phone calls and sent texts (which I later found out that half of them didn't go through, sorry family and friends!).
There were many moments of me looking at Andrew and saying, "I'm really shocked that went how we wanted it!" The only thing that didn't go "to plan" was that I wasn't at the hospital long enough to get the full dose of my antibiotics for Group B Strep. But. My bag of waters stayed intact until 15 minutes before he was born. So, the risk of infection, while being LOW anyway, was even LOWER. During my labor I didn't worry about the time, or trying to stall in order to get the full dose. I knew things would work out. I was really, honestly, surprised that labor started on it's own, I handled contractions well, and we birthed a baby without pain medication. And I have to say that I feel like I had a secret weapon who made a huge difference. My weapon? Andrew.
From the very beginning Andrew did exactly what I needed him to. Even when I wasn't sure WHAT I needed. He never got frustrated or showed that he was tired. He never gave up, and was constantly encouraging me. He put my needs above his throughout the entire day. And it didn't stop there. He was amazing during our entire hospital stay and was always making sure I was taken care of.
My doula, Mariah, was also very important to our process. She supported Andrew when he needed a break and reminded me that I COULD labor and birth a baby naturally.
My Midwife, Kristi, never once questioned me or my body. She let me labor exactly how I wanted and was honest with me every step of the way. She trusted the process and praised me for my ability to listen to my body.
I learned so many amazing things during this pregnancy, labor, and birth. Patience is so important. And Heavenly Father will ALWAYS reward faith and patience. He knows what we need much more than we know (like relaxation, a good meal and a full nights rest before labor). I learned that every labor is completely different. And just because I was handling labor well, didn't mean it was going to stop, stall or that it wasn't the real thing. Labor is different for everyone and you CAN trust your body to know what to do and when to do it. I also learned that once labor happens, there's no need to rush it. You don't need to force your body to labor any faster or better. It was amazing to be able to have such an ideal labor. It was hard at times, but I didn't have the stress that I thought I would, which I'm sure made my labor easier at times.
So. Stats. Zek was born at 5:52pm. Total Labor Time was 12 hrs. We stayed at home for about 8 hrs, and were in the hospital for 3 hrs. The other hour was spent driving to the hospital and in my Midwife's office. I pushed for about 15 minutes. Ezekiel Andrew Aldrich was 8 lbs 6 oz and 21 in long. His head circumference was 14 in (which was 1/2 in bigger than Beth's head). We stayed in the hospital for about 40 hrs and we are now home doing very well! Zek is a nursing champ and wants to nurse VERY often. The girls love him and want to help with him constantly.
We feel very very blessed to have Zek in our home. From the beginning he has taught us patience, faith, trust, and overwhelming joy. We love him more than words can express.
Until Next Time,
Happy Blogging!
