A Birth Story Part 2

We last left off with me sitting in triage getting admitted.  Once I was setup I was moved to Labor&Delivery (L&D).  I'd like to say that if the nurse puts your IV in on the side of wrist ask them to put it somewhere more comfortable.  I regret not doing this and I was in a great deal of pain.

I get into L&D and I am greeted by my amazing nurses Tracy and Maureen.  Tracy was my actual nurse and Maureen was nurse who would pop in when she was bored.  I loved the experience thanks to these two lovely ladies.  They kept my mom and I laughing and shared stories with us about Dr. Megaphone.

Tracy & Brody

Maureen & Brody

I was put on Pitocin at 9am which was being given to me via IV drip and they kept playing with how much I was receiving in hopes of regulating my contractions.  I didn't start to feel the contractions until about 1 pm, at this point my sister and best friends/cousins were in the room visiting me.  I got the wonderful news that my sister took a pregnancy test that morning and was pregnant as well as the other 2!  We are really close friends even though we live 5 hours apart and I am so excited to have our kids born within 7 months of each other.

The 4 of us all pregnant for 1 day!

At about 1:30 pm I asked them to leave because I could feel he contractions more and more and I didn't want them to see me in pain.  At this point my mom called the baby daddy and told him that he should head the hospital.  After they left I stuck it out for another hour trying to ignore the pain that had increased to a point where I felt like I couldn't get a break.  The Pitocin was causing the contractions and it sucked.  I felt nothing at first, then I start to feel some slight discomfort when they would start then I was shaking from the pain.  I like to think I handled labor pretty well for a first timer.  Tracy said that if I ever decide to have a second child that she thinks I can go all the way without any meds so I assume I took it like a champ :)

Labor feels like really bad menstrual cramps.  Imagine cramps times 10 and that is as bad as it gets.  Now you might find yourself thinking that you've had bad periods before and that you'd be able to labor without much pain and you may be right.  But for the most part I think many women are mistaken in thinking this.  I always thought I had a high tolerance for pain but labor can be so intense at times one may feel like they are going to pass out or vomit.  Once my labor got to this point and I could no longer control the pain mentally I asked for an epidural.

Tracy waited for the epidural to kick in before giving me the oh so painful cervical exam.  I had a fear that she would do the exam and that I would only be 4cm dilated but that wasn't the case.  I made it to 8cm before getting the epidural.  I was afraid of epidural only because I had heard it can cause paralysis if not administered correctly.  Luckily I had a good experience and I am fine.  The epidural did not hurt in any way, the IV in the wrist hurt more.  I did have a side fear that I would get a contraction while he was doing it and luckily we avoided that.  Once the epidural was set I felt a tingling shoot down my left leg.  Kinda like I had been electrically shocked. 

After I got the epidural it was easy peasy.  I did get the thing jammed up my pee hole to drain my bladder (twice) but since I had the epidural I couldn't feel it and I was also given an oxygen mask to wear.  At about 3pm we were at 10cm and were ready to push.  The baby daddy showed up and I had discussed with him previously the conditions in which I would allow him to attend the birth of the baby.  He wasn't allowed to touch me, talk to me, assist in the delivery, look below my waist OR see the baby before I do.  He agreed to these terms and respected them the entire time while in the room.

I pushed for about an hour and a half but was getting nowhere because the baby's head was stuck under my pelvic bone.  The doctor came in after Tracy tried to rotate him to a better position and had no luck.  My doctor looked at the monitor and seemed troubled about something but at that point I was exhausted and didn't hear any of it.  Apparently it had to do with the baby's heart rate going down but that was only because Tracy had been manually moving the thingy around on my abdomen to find the strongest beat previously.  Once the doctor couldn't flip his head he explained to me that he was going to use a vacuum to help assist the baby out and he also stated that he was giving me an episiotomy, but I was so exhausted from pushing I couldn't comprehend anything he was saying.  Once the vacuum was on I did 2 pushes and his head was out.  they suctioned his nose and mouth and on the next contraction I pushed and the rest of him came out.

Here are some photo's of the day:

Me joking around before the pain started.

Sticky Broderick out of the womb.

 

Me looking like a mess holding Little Man.

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A Birth Story Part 1

Brody is 10 days old today.  It's crazy how fast time is passing.  Well I'm sure you're all wondering how Little Man got here so here is his story.

I had a good weekend leading to his birth.  Friday I had my 37w 6d prenatal appointment where I left feeling oh so discouraged that I was still only 1 cm dilated that I made my facebook status "Stupid vagina."  All of this got better since my awesome cousins came up from Virginia to attend our family reunion that is always held on the first Sunday after the 4th of July.  Saturday night we all went to one of my best friends house for an annual campout where my belly got rubbed more times then ever before.  Gay men love preggo's.  I mean they LOOOOOOVE preggo's.  They wait on you hand and foot as if you were Brad Pitt or Ryan Reynolds.  They all took turns talking into my poked out belly button telling Little Man to come out.  And if that wasn't enough my other cousin fed me Oreo truffles to get his ass  in gear.  To my astonishment this actually worked.

I woke up like normal for my morning bathroom break at 6am.  I felt slight cramping but it was so dull it may as well have been nothing.  I made my way to the bathroom and did my thing but after I wiped I felt a lot of fluid come out.  I was all "WTF was that?"  So I wiped again and more fluid came out.  At this point I realized the pee wasn't coming out of the pee hole, the "pee" was coming out of the baby making hole.  I tried to call for my mom since I was unable to stand up without creating a mess but the air conditioning was on in her room and she was 2 rooms away from me, plus I locked the bathroom door so she wouldn't be able to get in anyway.  I finally stood up and made my way to her room where I woke her up and told her that I thought my water had broke.  Her sleepy face replied "Are you serious?" and I explained to her that now is not the time for joking so she got up and we called the GYN.

The doctor said that I should head over to labor&delivery (L&D) and I asked if I had to go immediately or if I had time to pack my bag.  He gave me the ok to pack my bag so we got my checklist out and packed.  I refused to go to the hospital unbathed so I jumped in the shower to shave and clean myself up.  Afterwards we headed to my work so I could print out a few extra copies of my birth plan.  On our way to the hospital my mom asked if I would mind if we stopped at Dunkin Donuts so she could get some caffine in her.  I agreed and told her we should should go in and get something to eat while we were there.  Yes, I am that girl who goes to breakfast while she is in labor.

After breakfast we get the hospital and make our way to the ER.  We had no idea where the ER was since I told my mom just to park in the garage and we would walk through the hospital rather then drop me off at door alone.  We eventually find the ER and are met by a nurse with a wheelchair.  I asked if I could walk there myself but its hospital policy that they put you in a wheelchair.  We get up to the triage area of L&D where there are 2 other girls who think they are in labor as well.  I didn't truly believe I was in labor because I was just at the GYN 2 days ago and there were no changes PLUS the doctor told me that it is normal for most first time moms to go past their due date....I was not having this.  I was all for Eviction Day.  Little Man was more then welcome to come out before ED but he was certainly not allowed to extend his stay. 

After being hooked up and put into that oh so sexy hospital attire the triage nurse calls my doctor.  Once in the room he jokes about how long it took me to pack my bag because we arrived at the hospital nearly 2 hours after i had called him.  My mom tells him it took so long because I showered, ran to work and stopped for breakfast while on the way there.  He looked at her and asked if she was joking.  Apparently they don't want you to eat before hand because you might vomit.  Well luckily I cleaned out my stomach before I got changed so there was less of a chance of me getting sick.  After giving me a quick invasive check he tells me that I am at 3 cm and that I will be staying until the baby comes out.

That's it for part one since I have to go and tend to the Little Man's needs.  Stayed tuned for Part 2.

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Weekend Update

Sorry I have been absent from blogging this past week.  My dad has been moved from one hospital to another within that time.  He is now at a univeristy hospital that is better equiped to help him get better.  So my family has been running around trying to visit him as  much as possible.

Last weekend my cousins came up from Virginia for our annual family reunion.  Unfortunately none of us made it to the reunion on account of my water broke at 6am on July 10th!!!!!!!  But that is a whole nother post that'll I'll hopefully have up on Tuesday. 

Broderick Anthony McDonald

Born on July 10, 2011 at 4:58pm

Weight:  7lbs 5oz

Length:  19 inches

Head Size:  13 3/4 inches

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Sweat, Pee, Swell and Bitch

Sweat, pee, swell and bitch are pretty much all that I am capable of doing right now. 

I'm going to say that pregnancy has defeated me.  Things that use to be daily routine stuff like putting on pants or getting in/out of the car are now a task and a half.  Since everything is that much more difficult I bitch. A lot. 

The sweat.  I am always complaining about the boob sweat/full body sweat.  And when I'm not complaining about sweating I'm bitching about the fact that when walking from the car to the hospital to visit my dad last night I needed to stop walking for a moment so I wouldn't pee my pants. 

OH! and let's not forget the swelling.  I feel like I look like an angry Stay Puft Marshmallow Man 24/7.  Minus the weak sailor neckerchief and hat of course.

Only 16 day's left until Little Man gets removed from the premises.

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Breastfeeding Class

As I have mentioned before I plan on breastfeeding Little Man.  Breastfeeding was something I thought I'd never do but after gaining some knowledge on the topic I can't imagine using formula.  This class was uber informative.  Covering everything from breast anatomy to knowing if your baby is getting enough to eat.  I scanned in the handouts that I received and youcan find them at the top of the blog so anyone (even those of you who are just thinking about breastfeeding) who plan to breastfeed can read up on it.

The class was taught by a lactation consultant from the local breastfeeding resource center.  The consultants from this center are the same consultants that assist in breastfeeding techniques and such at the hospital I'm delivering at.  I thought I learned everything that there is to know about breastfeeding but I was dead wrong.

Some interesting points of the class were:

• Laid back breast feeding
• Babies will suckle longer if mom has eaten garlic or vanilla flavored foods.
• If the baby is placed on mom right after birth (aka Kangaroo Care) the baby will actually pull themselves to the nipple to feed.  **I found this super interesting and I'm going to try it.
• Babies only need 1oz of nutrition in the first 24 hours of life.
• Babies should be pooing bright yellow by day 5

There were a whole ton more of interesting things I learned but I can't recall them all.  I found the handouts extremely resourceful and I'll hopefully get the chance to upload them later today.  I strongly feel if anyone is teetering on the idea of breastfeeding to enroll in a class.  I'm not saying you have to do it but I found it most helpful and I'm glad that I took this class.

This was my final birth preparation class which means Little Man is due for eviction in 17 days.  I spent a grand total of $165 on classes preparing for his arrival.  Sure I didn't need to take the 4 classes but being a chronic planner I needed to gain knowledge of what is to come.

Dad update: 
It was really sad seeing him last night.  He looked scared and lonely and extremely uncomfortable.  He didn't want my mom to leave but we share a car and I had the breastfeeding class so we had to.  He is VERY bitter that there is a tube going in his nose and down his throat to his stomach.  He is being snappy with the hospital staff telling them that he wants the tube removed immediately.  I fear that if they don't sedate him until the tube is removed he will eventually get so fed up with it that he'll try removing it himself.  My mom tried to explain to the nurse that my dad isn't a typical patient since he has a slue of health issues related to his heart and lungs and having the tube in his throat makes it even more difficult for him to breathe.  Hopefully the tube will be removed by the time my sister and I get to the hospital to see him tonight.

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Weekend Recap

Oye what a weekend!  Thursday night was suppose to be dinner and movie night with my mom, sister and girlfriend Becky but quickly turned into "what the.." night.  I decided Thursday afternoon that I would make a quick stop at my aunts for a swim before dinner.  While on my way home I called my mom to see if she wanted to run my bathing suit out to me or if I should just come in and get changed before we headed over.  She then proceeds to tell me that my dad has a doctors appointment that night.....I live with my parents and I am aware of all doctor's appointment so this was a shock to me.  Apparently when she got home from work that afternoon my dad confessed to her that he was having a hard time hearing so she called the doctor and they squeezed him in that evening.

While they are at the doctors my sister arrives at the house and we order dinner for all of us only to get the call that they will be admitting our dad to the hospital because he had lost another 8lbs in a period of 20 days.  Now I'm sure all of you pretty lady's out there reading this are like "Shoot!  I wish I could lose 8lbs in 20 days." but for my dad who now weighs a whopping 105lbs it is life threatening.  He can not put weight on.  A year ago he was 150 and now he is this skinny skinny old man.  His entourage of doctors had been throwing around the idea of putting in a feeding tube to help him gain weight and after Thursday night's weigh in the ball finally got rolling.

So after we ate my sister dropped them off at the hospital where they sat waiting for the paper work to go through for a few hours.  We were all under the impression that the tube would be put in the next day and very well would have had his heart not gone into AFib (a cardiac arrhythmia for those of you who aren't sure what it is) during the night.  They won't do any kind of procedure until they could get his heart under control so with it being a holiday weekend and all nothing has been done to him yet.  The poor thing just sits there in his room lonely as can be.  I feel bad for him because he seems so lonely.  When we leave from visiting him he looks like one of those sad puppies that they show on those super sad SPCA commercials.

I spoke with my dad this morning and they will hopefully be putting the feeding tube in this afternoon.  So keep your fingers crossed that this works!

Other then running between home and the hospital to visit him I had the wonderful pleasure of attending my friends wedding on Sunday.  The bride was gorgeous and groom was all smiles when he saw her.  The ceremony was out doors and I sweat and sweat and sweat some more.  I was frantically fanning myself with the card.  Of course when I stand up and my sister does the sweat check for me she tells me that I have wet spots everywhere.  So off to the car we ran and we turned on the AC to hyper cold and and dried me off.  We returned for the cocktail hour and enjoyed drinks and laughs with our friends.

About 10 minutes into the cocktail hour I begin to feel some menstrual cramping.  The cramping was becoming more intense and wasn't letting up.  So I began to panic.  My sister noticed I was acting strange and asked what was wrong so I told her that I was having some contractions she tells our friends and I call my mom to figure out if it is true labor or false.  After sitting down for a bit and drinking a lot of water the contractions stopped (thank goodness!!).  I think it was a combination of being a bit dehydrated and overheated. 

I wasn't trying to make a big deal out of it because I wasn't sure if it was nothing but my sister got excited and told them.  I knew once my friends got a hold of the news that I was possibly in labor it would cause an interesting outcome.  The outcome of the news was that the entire night the baby would be called Benjamin Franklin, thanks to Doug and whenever Stephen felt like it he would start a chant about labor or casually slip it into the lyrics of the song that was playing over the speakers.  I was grateful that Little Man stayed in and allowed me to enjoy the evening with close friends.

My 4th of July was spent on bedrest.  Bedrest does WONDERS for swollen feet and legs. Hopefully I'll get enough bedrest in to be able to work up until this little guy is born.  That was is for the weekend recap.  Tonight is my final child preparation class, breastfeeding.  Hopefully I'll learn lots of stuff that I'll be able to share in tomorrow's post. 

Have a Happy Tuesday!

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Congrats to All the New Mommies!!!

Congrats to all my fellow bloggers who have had their babies!

To read about their birth stories visit their page and don't forget to leave a comment congratulating them on their new family!

Congrats to Margaux of Young Nesters

Darwin Lewis was born on June 27, 2011 at 1:30am

7lbs 1oz and 17.5 inches long

Congrats to Maggie of The M's Munchkin
Timothy Hayes was born on June 27, 2011
7lbs 9oz and 21 inches long

Congrats to K of From Infertility to Pregnancy
Brooklyn Nicole was born on June 28, 2011 at 10:10am
6lbs and 19 inches long

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