Annabelle Karen McDowell
Born March 15, 2010
7 lbs., 4 oz.
20.75 inches
This little one was so very content to stay in her nice, cozy home that we had to come in and get her!
On Friday the 12th, we went in for a non-stress test to make sure that the baby was doing well in the womb and that there wasn't any cause for concern to get the baby out quickly. We found that she was, in fact, very happy and healthy exhibiting a strong heart rate with the required variations that they look for.
We discussed option for moving forward to bring the baby into the world, from not doing anything to induction with pitocin. We decided along a gentle, natural course of action which included stripping the membranes followed by a round of the herb caullophyllum (which is a homeopathic inducer). Doesn't sound gentle, but to me, it was the most non-invasive option (aside from not doing anything at all).
So, Andrew and I headed over to Nature's Pantry and picked up the herb caullophyllum. That afternoon, I began taking 6 tablets every 10 minutes to kick start labor. The midwives were convinced that the herb plus stripping the membranes would result in having the baby the next day.
Well, it wasn't as easy as that. The combo of items did jump start the labor a teeny bit. I started to lose mucous and have occasional contractions. But they were so infrequent and erratic that I wasn't even really sure if that was what they were.
Keeping track of them, we found they arrived every hour or so. Overnight, they had sped up to every 10 minutes or so, but when I got up Sunday morning they all but disappeared. The pain was merely uncomfortable, not anything that would have me believe that "this is it!".
We had scheduled an appointment for Sunday night to be induced at the hopsital as a last resort. And unfortunately, it came down to that. So alas, we will never experience the rush to the hospital after my water breaks (which is probably good).
We arrived at 8PM and checked in. We went through the standard check-in process with lots of vitals and paperwork being taken. When I was checked, they found me to still be only 3 CM dilated. At that point, and after three attempts, they inserted the hep-loc for the eventual pitocin drip the next morning, and finally, they inserted a cervidyl strip which would be step 1 in the induction process.
(As an aside, it was my complete intention to labor naturally this time around just like the first. I believe that my body was made for this action and that although terribly painful, I would be able to handle it because it is how a woman's body is intended to work. It is a powerful and amazing machine, so why not let it do the job it is meant for?)
From moving around and such, the strip became dislodged and we waited about an hour before they could reinsert it. Apparently, that was all I needed because my body took the queu and jumped into active labor almost immediately. It was requested that I stay on my back for the first hour or two in order to keep the cervidyl in place, that was no fun because my body gave me back labor again (even though baby was in the correct position for birth). The midwife speculated this could possibly be because of the position of the head, but otherwise wasn't really sure why.
Andrew took his spot at my back and placed extreme pressure on my back at every contraction. He tells me his arms are sore today from how hard he had to press. The pressure on the back during the contraction helps to distract the feeling but also to relieve some of the pain (a fraction).
After the hour or so was up, I was disconnected from the monitors and allowed to move around freely. But only two or so positions were really tolerable. So, I only spent a fraction of the time in the tub and spent a lot of it on my side or hands and knees.
It was a relief when the midwife, Katie, showed up because I knew we were making progress. However, I paid way too much attention to the clock, asking Andrew what time it was frequently. I was under the impression that this labor would only by about half the time of the first so I was monitoring how far I supposedly had to go. Of course, when I'd get the "only 20 minutes have gone by" answer I was crushed. Better not to ask.
I labored in mostly just a sports bra, covered up with blankets when possible. But when you get to a certain stage of labor, you just don't give a fig what you look like anymore or who sees what.
So anyway, labor continued slowly but Andrew was constantly urging me through. Telling me that this contraction was almost over, I could make it or that we would see our baby soon, or that I was doing great and I could handle it. I had my eyes closed 99% of the time, but hearing his voice and knowing he was supporting me made it much more possible. I could never do that without his support. Never.
By around 5:30 AM I was ready to push. Since the water hadn't broken yet though, Katie felt it would beneficial in getting us the final centimeter or so we needed to go in order to start pushing. So she broke the water and immediately I had an intense, terrible contraction. But the urge to push was there, so with prompting to push through the pain and remembering how the more I worked now the faster it would be over. After about 45 minutes of pushing, baby started to show. I felt tons of painful pressure as she slowly emerged. Toward the end, when I knew she was close I just kept pushing and pushing. Once she started to crown though, Katie told me to slow down. I remember screaming in pain and actually saying, or yelling rather, the word "pain" or "help" or something and just wanting the baby out. Out out out! But due to Katie's instruction I didn't tear or even have any abrasions at all. Amazing, to me anyway, since Baby was larger than our first. Baby did emerge slowly, and again Andrew was able to catch the little one and announce that she was a girl!
A GIRL!? I couldn't believe it. That was not what I was expecting to hear. I was so expecting it to be a boy. But we've now been blessed with a little sweet beautiful girl. I kept saying I can't believe it! Andrew was clearly moved, with tears in his eyes. Those first few moments together are so special and full of love and tenderness.
And, I admit, relief. I can't convey the amount of relief I felt for this labor to be over.
To be completely honest, and not to scare women anticipating a natural birth but, this labor was excrutiating. I heard myself saying through tears and gritted teeth, "I can't do it...I'm scared...Pain...Owee..." I, for some reason, was deathly afraid that Andrew would leave his post and I to go through a contraction without the minutely helpful pressure being placed. I thought about asking for drugs many, many times. I heard my mom saying that she didn't understand why someone wouldn't want to use an epidural. Just didn't make sense. And the phrase one of the nurses said, "just let us know how we can make you more comfortable" kept ringing in my ears. However, I didn't ask. Not sure why really. I guess I knew that I would be disappointed in myself if I did.
