Birthing Our Boy

I went in for my post-partum visit this past Thursday and my doctor asked me if we were planning on having another baby. She's so funny. I really had to chuckle while I gave her my response. I just had a baby. Actually, she also sorta laughed considering what I went through to deliver this little guy. I said that at this point we're happy with two and how I don't think I want to go through another baby surprising us with his/her position at the last minute. She understood and then commented that perhaps there's something funny about the shape of my pelvic bones. Perhaps. Or maybe we have some silly children who love moving around. I think it's the kids.

For WEEKS I had been having contractions. They started off mild, more of a tightening like Braxton Hicks, nothing major, but definitely contractions. The first weekend they started Eric was convinced the baby was going to make his appearance. I, on the other hand, was not as optimistic. I didn't want to get my hopes up and I just had a feeling. They came on very regularly, 5 minute intervals for hours and then tapered off and disappeared into the night. The next day they would come back, again, regular, continuous. But nothing that would make me believe it was time. That first weekend our neighbor came over to decipher my contractions since she just had a baby a few months ago and determined that my contractions where like the painless ones she'd had that actually led to her quick and easy delivery. Oh, how I hoped mine would turn out the same! 

I called the advice nurse that first weekend the contractions started to get her opinion on my status since we were going to be driving an hour away for a wedding and she believed that these contractions would lead to my delivery within a week. I made it through that week.

At my appointment at the end of that week, my doctor believed she'd probably be seeing/hearing about me having the baby within the next week. Yup, made it through that week as well. Contractions coming and going, but not increasing in frequency. Great.

At this point, it had been two weeks and I was a mere week from my due date. On the Monday of that week, the contractions were stronger and were coming every 5 minutes. Okay, I thought, let's call and see what they say. Off we went to L&D around 5PM. They checked me, 3.5cm. Not enough to admit. We waited and walked for two hours and still no change; back home we went. Bummer. 

Somehow, the contractions did not keep me awake that night and I slept soundly. When I woke up the contractions were still there, still painful, still 4-5 minutes apart. I did not want to go in and have them send me back home again. But, at 1PM, after walking to the library and having to stop every few minutes, I finally decided to call again. The nurse agreed we should go back, BUT...there was no room! Ahhhh! They were going to send us all the way to Redwood City but at the last minute the nurse decided they'd make it work. Thank goodness.

We were admitted for observation and again am told I haven't progressed. Oh, man. At this point I start crying, am feeling very frustrated, and tell Eric I want to go home. He convinces me we should stay because they will check me after two hours before they will send us home again. I begrudgingly decide to stay even though I'm not feeling optimistic; despite the fact that my contractions were definitely getting stronger and more painful.

A little over two hours later, they finally check me. I very clearly remember the doctor's name was also Johnson and thinking this was a good omen. =) Five and a half centimeters! I laughed/cried while the doctor, nurses, and Eric all cheered. It was about time! This meant I could finally be admitted and placed in a regular room and not the itty bitty uncomfortable room they put women in for observation. It also meant time for the epidural! This time around I wasn't going to wait it out and see how far I got. As soon as I was uncomfortable, I wanted drugs.

Once we were in our huge room, they quickly came in and started the procedure for the epidural. It felt like it took them a long time, but once they finished and the drugs were administered I felt great. From this point on, which was about 5PM until hours later, I felt fabulous! Eric and I hung out watching TV, reading magazines, listening to the music we brought, and chatting with our awesome nurse.

They checked me a few hours later and said I was moving along. That continued for a while until they decided to break my water to get things moving along faster. Things did progress faster after that and a while later I started to have a lot of pressure and pain. They checked me again and said I wasn't fully dilated yet so they brought in the anesthesiologist to give me other pain killers so I could feel better and get some rest. Whatever she gave me was heavenly! I quickly fell asleep, I believe it was around 1AM and slept for a while. When I woke up they checked me and said I was really close. It was at that point that they started to question Sebastian's position.

Oh, Sebastian. There were three doctors that started to check me and try and figure out what position Sebastian's head was in. He was definitely head first. Good. He definitely had his chest toward my back. Good. But....what was that they felt at the opening? An ear? An eye? A forehead? Well, it took a while and a lot of discussion amongst the doctors and with us, but they finally figured out he was "face presenting." Something that is very, very rare. Basically, he was facing the exit. It's funny now, but he still loves pushing his head back in that position. I have to be careful because his heavy little head will quickly bounce back. He loves looking around. Anyways, at this point they bring up the fact that I cannot deliver him vaginally if his head is in this position. One option is to give me pitocin to make my contractions stronger and hopefully push his head into the right position. We try that option and it doesn't work. The only other option is to try pushing and see if it moves. I pushed a few times and he moved lower, but his little face did not adjust. At that point it was time for the c-section.

Since he'd moved lower when I pushed, I could not get them to move me into the OR and give me more drugs fast enough. The pressure/pain was unbearable. But, since it wasn't an emergency, they went along with business in a slightly faster pace. It wasn't fast enough for me! They took care of some things in the room and then wheeled me into the OR. They did a bunch of things (drugs!), the doctors and nurses chatted, they brought Eric in, and at 6:17AM on the 18th, Sebastian was born! It felt like forever before I actually got to see him and I had to wait even longer to hold him, but once I did it was fabulous. He nursed immediately and I got kiss and snuggle my little guy.

It's a little disappointing to think about how I labored all the way to the end and then ended with a c-section. But it was really the only way he could have come out. At least, out of the 12 or so hours that I was in active labor, I was only uncomfortable for a few. My boy also came out very healthy and that's all that really matters. 

The Bean Birth Plan: Part 2

...continued from other post.


Perhaps it's my inner hippie, but all this serenity, daydreaming, natural, and relaxing stuff sounds just like what I want. Yes,please! It got my attention and so this past weekend the hubby and I picked up the Hypnobirthing book at our local bookstore in order to get a grasp of how it works. I read it throughout that first evening and the next morning. It was really very interesting. The book starts with a look at the history of women's laboring experiences, moves into the physiology of labor (how your body is actually reacting to labor, the stages....etc.), provides the method, and ends with information on the months after baby arrives. Those are definitely not the only topics focused on, but more of a gist. 

After reading the book and discussing it with the hubby, we are convinced this is for us. The hubby and I will be going through the training for hypnobirthing with a doula in the City. The hubby gets to learn the methods as well- he'll be my partner in crime. Our thinking right now is that it'll be one more strategy to work with as we await meeting (I labor and deliver) our baby girl. Even if I decide to get drugs and feel the hypnobirthing strategies are not working for me, we at least tried it. It can't hurt. I am excitedly anticipating our classes next month. I'll be sure to write about how it goes. 

The Bean Birth Plan: Part 1

*For some unknown reason, blogger completely and utterly jacked-up the formatting on my post. Therefore, I've taken what I'd written after the information from the Hypnobirthing website and included it in another post.

Throughout my pregnancy I have been taking mental notes on type of birthing experience I would like to have with the bean. I have read a number of books on the subject, I've spoken with my experienced friends and mom. watched movies on the subject, and just explored. Basically, I've been a sponge. Not a dirty stinky one after nearly 7 months of taking it all in, but instead a happy, organic one with a cutie design on the top. Yeah, that's me.

As we are quickly approaching our bean's birthday and the hubby and I have completed our childbirth preparation class from our hospital, it's time we come up with a serious plan. The plan is...we need more preparation! Well, that's actually only one of the things we need. I went into the childbirth prep class not really expecting anything, but at the same time hoping for some strategies/methods/skills...whathaveyou, to help me go through labor in the best way possible for me. But, we didn't really get more than 20 minutes of this in 8 hours of class. I was also really hoping the instructor would have some information or experience with women that utilized hypnobirthing. Alas, when we started off our class with  introductions and questions, (mine being about hypnobirthing), the instructor gave me a blank stare. She said she'd look into it, but she never really brought it up again throughout our two classes. Oh well.

By the time we attended our class through the hospital, I'd already done some research and found the Hypnobirthing website. After reading, I felt good about that method and decided it was something I could seriously take on. The hubby has been extremely supportive of this idea as well. Love him.

Here's a portion of the description as found on the Hypnobirthing website:

"HypnoBirthing® - The Mongan Method is as much a philosophy as it is a technique. The concept of HypnoBirthing® is not new, but rather a "rebirth" of the philosophy of birthing as it existed thousands of years ago and as it was recaptured in the work of Dr. Grantly Dick-Read, an English obstetrician, who, in the 1920s, was one of the first to forward the concept of natural birthing. The method teaches you that, in the absence of fear and tension, or special medical circumstances, severe pain does not have to be an accompaniment of labor.

You will gain an understanding of how the birthing muscles work in perfect harmony--as they were designed to--when your body is sufficiently relaxed and you trust birth. You will learn how to achieve this kind of relaxation, free of the resistance that fear creates, and you will learn to use your natural birthing instincts for a calm, serene and comfortable birth. 

When you have your baby with HypnoBirthing®, you will not be in a trance or a sleep. What you will experience is similar to the daydreaming, or focusing, that occurs when you are engrossed in a book or a movie or staring into a fire.

You will be conversant and in good spirits--totally relaxed, but fully in control. Awake throughout, you will be aware of your body's surges and your baby's progress; but because you will have trained yourself to reach complete relaxation, you will be able to determine the degree and the manner in which you will feel the surges. You will experience birthing in an atmosphere of calm relaxation, free of the fear that prevents the muscles of your body from functioning as nature intended them to. In this calm state, your body's natural relaxant, endorphins, replaces the stress hormones that constrict and cause pain."

Look for Part 2 of this post- what we've decided to do.

The Bean Bump: Weeks 27/28

{Week 27}

{growing!}

Week: Welcome to Trimester numero 3!!

Bean Size: My girl, you are an eggplant, but much much cuter.
Total Weight Gain: I'm sticking to 20. But, probably closer to 25.
Maternity Clothes?: Can we call it super hot mama clothes instead? It might make me feel better about my options.
Sleep: It sucks. I wake up a lot throughout the night. Every time I turn to the other side I wake up for a few minutes and get a work out just getting into a comfortable position again.
Movement: Our little girl is going to be a dancer. Sometimes she's practicing ballroom dancing, sometimes it's tap dancing, and most often it's interpretative dancing.
What I Miss: A normal sized left foot and ankle. Yup, only one ankle and foot tends to swell. Luckily, not very much at this point and it goes back to normal over night. I call it my granny foot because it looks like one to me. The hubby points and laughs.
Status of the Button: It's in, but it's working on opening up as wide as possible. I don't like what the inside looks like and I'm happy that weird looking thing will go back after the bean arrives.
What I'm Looking Forward to: Summer! Sweet smelling baby with lots of dark curly hair (this is currently what I'm imagining on our babe). I just can't imagine her having light hair. I will be surprised if this does occur. Little feet. Hubby with a baby in pj's. He's a big fan of baby pj's. So far, they seem to be the only article of baby clothing that get him excited and oooh'ing and ahhh'ing. Cute.
Best Moment this Week: Walking the doggies in the sunlight after work every day. Finding a children's boutique that sells used gear and clothing. I bought an ADORABLE little leopard print sweater, an Ipood onesie (this is for my Apple-employed hubby- for the baby to wear, not him), and a few other pieces.
Preggers Bod-New and Exciting!..maybe: The granny ankle...not so good. Still having lots of energy and my hair looking pretty good...yes! Workin' the Zoomba...good. My arms looking kinda fatty....not good at all. I've kept using weights at the gym, but not nearly as much. I'm sad about the bad changes.
Bean Milestones: My dear little girl, you are soo talented! You can open your eyes and turn your cute head around if you notice a light shining in. I think daddy and I will have to play with a flashlight. Your bones are also almost developed. How exciting!
Food Cravings: Ananas! I can't get enough pineapple. Oh, and watermelon. I think the bean is ready for summer, too. We also love sugar. I.can't.stop.eating.sugar!
How's the Rice?: Wonderful. He's busy as a bee at work. He did such a great job of massaging my back during our childbirth prep class. I think he's got a new job.

Tid Bits: We also had our first childbirth prep class this weekend, just like our friends, Lawrence and Elizabeth. Our instructor (nurse) was really entertaining and very informative. We both felt like we got a lot of good information out of it and we're looking forward to next weeks session. We did the whole ice in the palm of your hand thing and I felt like the breathing really did make a difference in the pain. I've been looking into hypnobirthing and we are considering going through the training with a doula, but we haven't make a decision just yet. From what I've gathered, it's a lot of meditating and I feel like this is something I've had a fair amount of training in. Didn't know this about me?! Yeah, I've attended trainings, meetings, and such for transcendental meditation and other methods. I've even got a mantra just for me! I'm thinking I'll just brush-up on my skills and practice more often. Anyone ever heard of someone utilizing that technique?

Giggles

I spotted this quiz on another blog and thought I'd give it a try just for giggles. I had a good laugh after getting the response. hehe.

Prediction Labor Quiz


Your labor prediction quiz results are below.....

Get your bags packed early just in case you need them. Make sure your partner has a phone available when he's away because this baby just might come early. We predict your baby will come 2-3 weeks early. Your baby will most likely be born in the morning. Justmommies predicts that your baby will weigh approximately 7.3 pounds and that your labor will be about 12 hours long.


Riiight....I'm packing my bags right now. Twelve hours...I guess that's better than 40!

The Business of Being Born

Some women (or people) will argue that it's never too early to think about the birthing plan. It seems like the nine months that we're happy to have in order to plan and prepare actually end up going faster than you'd think. We're already close to ending our third month and that is surprising and exciting.

I'm the type to explore every possible angle of something I'm interested in or in this case taking part in. So as I've been reading as much as possible, the topic of a birthing plan has already come up. It actually was brought up by my best friend's husband on the day we told them our happy news. He suggested watching the documentary, "The Business of Being Born." Just this week, I found in on the internet and started watching it. I haven't finished it, but what I have seen/heard has really stuck with me.

zSHARE video - The Business of Being Born.avi.flv

The hubby and I have had a few conversations about the birthing plan and it seems we're very much in agreement on what I (we) want. We know that a midwife/doula may be offered through our plan, but if not, we're leaning towards hiring one ourselves since my healthcare plan covers EVERYTHING. Meaning, we don't have to pay any additional fees, except for my $15 co-pay (that I only have to pay once for the entire pregnancy). We're very lucky and happy about that. Now, we still want the hospital/obgyn thing, but perhaps also the addition of a midwife. We haven't come to any conclusions yet since we want to talk to my doctor first, but it's nice to think we have options.

Anyhoo, the movie is very interesting and I highly suggest watching it. Maybe I'll finish it after this post...