Part 1
Tuesday, January 7 to Wednesday, January 8Going into my 38 week OB appointment with my four and a half year old daughter wasn't really my idea of a good time. I was unsure how she would handle the pelvic exam.
After donning her blue gloves and prodding around my whole abdominal section and lower half, my doctor said I was 2 centimeters dilated. She estimated the baby to be 8-9 pounds and said that if we let the pregnancy go much longer, I risked having a C-section. We both preferred a vaginal birth.
She started to ask if I wanted to schedule an induction for the following Monday, but I barely let her finish her sentence before I said, "Yes!" 7AM on Monday, January 13, 2014, I was to arrive at the ER ready to go inside with my bags.
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After the most excruciating pregnancy that defied everything I knew about pregnancy from carrying Maya, I was 2 weeks beyond patience in giving birth. No amount of agony could prevent me from making that happen. To be honest, the pain I was in on a daily basis that seemed to have still a month to go seemed unbearable.
My only regret would be that I was very curious to learn what true labor, not induced labor, would feel like. But, I knew, by scheduling an induction I would take the epidural at the earliest moment. My doctor even said by 3 centimeters, she would consider it.
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That afternoon, we went to Maya's pediatrician for a bruise she'd incurred. I announced to him that his new patient would meet him on Monday. He was very proud and congratulatory.
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We played over at a neighbor's house that evening before dinner. Maya and her oldest friend took turns in his swing, and he taught her to kick a soccer ball into a net.
My friend insisted I stay seated in her lawn chair. I was having abdominal cramps that really weren't more than anything I'm used to. She half joked as Maya and I left that I was already having labor pains. I laughed off that thought.
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Let me preface this next part with the fact that I haven't slept without medicinal assistance in more than a year and a half. With medicine, I fall asleep a little more quickly and, when I wake up in the night, I don't have a hard time falling back to sleep. Prior to pregnancy, this occurred once a night. During pregnancy, this waking up ranged from 3-7 times a night.
The night of the 7th to 8th was no different, with one exception. Each time I woke, my abdomen hurt more and more. It never once felt worse than menstrual cramps, so I chalked it up to a full bladder.
In fact I labored through the entire night! That morning, I said bye to my hubby as he headed to work. I made breakfast and did laundry (a challenge in and of itself - try getting a huge belly over the side of a washing machine to reach the wet clothes).
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Maya and I played Goldieblox, a game I bought her for Christmas after wanting it for a year. It teaches little girls engineering. My friend and I had made plans to bring the kids to the YMCA for play time, which was my idea because I could go off site and take a nap.
The plan was to meet at 11 and bring a snack for the kids. Maya wanted to stay for two hours. At 10:36, I texted her that I was going to call my doctor because of the pain in my lower half. I asked her if labor felt like menstrual cramps that come and go. She told me to stay home and call the doctor.
James said he'd come home right away and told me to get the bags by the front door. I thought it was a false alarm, so I felt guilty cancelling Maya's playdate and letting James leave work. I called and made an appointment for my OB/GYN for 1:10. The nurse told me to start timing my contractions. I did. It appeared they were 12 minutes apart. She had told me to come in when they were 7 minutes apart. Delivery would be imminent when they were 3-5 minutes apart.
At noon, I was in such pain so frequently that I laid with my preggy pillow on the floor of my room because I feared I'd fall out of bed. By 12:45, I decided I'd had enough pain, I found bloody show in my underpants, and I bloody couldn't wait 25 more minutes or wait in a waiting room for an emergency appointment only to hear the doctor tell me what I instinctually knew!
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"It's time."
James started ordering. Maya around. She was her usual spirited self - arguing with every single thing he said. I was very calm and told her the car was leaving, her sister was coming, and I expected her to be there with us.
In the car, I used my breathing and my counting trick I use to fall asleep each time a contraction came. Maya kept kicking my chair because I had it pushed so far back to relieve the pain. I called and cancelled my appointment and told them to tell my doctor I would be in the ER.
James dropped Maya and me off at the Emergency Room entrance. I had her YMCA backpack in one hand and her tiny hand in my left. The ER receptionist was busy working with a patient, but she stopped to ask me what I needed. I was patient. Pissed, but patient.
Seriously, look at me! I'm HUGE, I'm breathing heavily, my knuckles are white on the counter I'm gripping. It's literally noon. Only one other person is here waiting, and I can see from his face that he thinks you're an asshole, too.
Another nurse came out to ask me if I wanted a wheel chair or if I could make it up the elevator myself. She said she had to find someone to staff her station if I needed an escort. To hell with waiting. I told her I could walk. Plus, sitting down hurt way more than walking.
James caught up to us in the hall to the elevator. The three of us walked to the Labor and Delivery floor all by ourselves. I stopped in the hallway when a contraction hit.
"Mommy, you're squeezing my hand!" Maya said.
"I'll go get someone," James said.
"No. I can do this."
Down the long hallway, past the surly receptionist, through the electronic doors, past the nurses' station, and into room 8, I finally rolled my large belly and butt into the L&D bed.
I breathed a sigh of relief and finally let go.
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Stay tuned for Part 2
