After going to sleep after a tough day 1 of induction, I woke up refreshed and ready to have a baby on March 26th. I got up walked around the OB floor to get things moving on their own, showered, ate breakfast. They told me a light breakfast which meant toast and cereal. I also polished off two pieces of pizza. I was not going to starving all day!
Around 8am, we once again started pitocin, and waited, and waited. They turned it up, then turned it down, then up, then down. I was having contractions and a lot of them. However, they were very mild and too close together. At noon my doctor came in and checked me...I was maybe a 2, but she broke my water. That was interesting to say the least. After that she told my nurse that I could have the epidural at any time because I was having this baby today.
After she broke my water my contractions got a lot more intense. They were all in my back, nothing in my belly. I would describe the pain as similar to having a kidney stone. I was breathing through them and then all the sudden I couldn't talk, breath, or focus through them. I asked my nurse for meds in my IV. I had, had them the day before and it took the edge off. Well, this time no dice. About an hour and half after my water was broken I asked the for epidural. I was now crying through my contractions and I honestly have never felt such bad pain in my back. Brendan massaged my back, but to no relief.
Around 2pm the epidural man arrived and he was my best friend that day. He came in, gave me the epi and I was a new woman. My back felt better and then I rested until around 5pm, when my nurse checked me again. I was at 4cm. Getting frustrated, I turned on Oprah, she always makes me feel better. After that I rested yet again and was feeling no pain, or my legs for that matter. At one point around 6pm my nurse came in and said that Drew's heart rate wasn't picking up on the monitor. This happened about a thousand times, especially when I would move. So I thought nothing of it. She first had me turn on my left side, then right side, then she left and three nurses came rushing in, turned me all different ways and I ended up on my hands and knees. I couldn't move my legs so this was tasking. I believe Brendan was supporting my arms, two nurses were supporting my legs and Drew's heart rate came right back up at this point. Then I was able to rest again, after having a few tears due to being so scared after the fact. I was also checked at this point and I was at 7cm.
The next 6 hours is seriously I blur. I stayed at 7cm for four long hours. After being checked at 11pm, and I was 8cm, I lost it. I mean completely lost it. I had been at this for 40 hours, had no energy, was emotionally and physically exhausted. My nurse who was so sweet, got all cheery that I was 8cm and I started losing it. I think this is the closet to mental breakdown I've ever had. I started crying, saying I can't do this, I can't do this. I yelled at my mom, and after the nurse called my doc and she wanted to give me sugar water, my breakdown went to a whole other level. I couldn't breath I was crying so hard, I was so frustrated with my body, with everything. I just wanted my baby. My nurse called my doctor back and she came in right away. It was now 11:30pm and she asked me, are you done? I was still in hysterics and she checked me. I was at maybe a 9, and she asked me if I could push. I looked at her like she was crazy. First, I'm not dilated all the way and second, I can't push for two hours because he hasn't descended for you to tell me that he won't fit. I said ummm, no way! Drew was sunny side up this whole time and they discovered my pelvis is very narrow.
My doctor could see how upset and frustrated I was. Brendan was so supportive through this whole thing and kept telling me he would support whatever decision I made. My doctor called the specialist who was not on call, but my mom, thank the lord for her asked if we could ask him to come in if I was going to have a c-section. My doc said she would ask, and she did, and he said YES! He also looked at Drew's strip from being monitored and could tell he was under stress. He said unless she can push him out in 10 minutes, we needed to go down for a c-section. My doc said I wasn't fully dilated, and he said, then she needs a section now. Although a c-section is not what I had initially planned, I knew that it was in the best interest of my baby and my sanity! Within 20 minutes I was heading down the the OR to meet my baby.
When we got there, the nurses had Brendan suit up and they told him they would call him when we were ready to go. This part took forever, as my epidural man couldn't get me numb enough to start. There was one section just above where they would do the incision that would not get numb. He maxed me out on meds and they called Brendan in, told me they were going to start and if I felt anything but pressure and tugging to let them know immediately. I mean I couldn't move anything else on my body. The epi man said I was numb up to T-4 in my back. Brendan came in, sat right by me and held my hand. I then started feeling pinching, and they immediately stopped and told me they were going to have to put me under general anesthesia. Brendan unfortunately had to leave, he kissed me goodbye and we had a baby. Andrew Davis was born at 1:18am on Saturday March 27th.
After Drew was born Brendan and my parents went with him to the nursery. He scored and 8 and 9 on his apgar tests and was pink, and perfect. His cord had been around his neck and he was indeed sunny side up. The doctor said there would have been no way I would have been able to push him out the way his cord was, I would have wound up having an emergency c-section.
I was having some issues of my own. During surgery my resting heart rate was 160. They could not get it to come down, which delayed Brendan from being able to come to see me in the recovery room. He was getting worried to say the least. In recovery I was given adenosine to lower my heart rate. It basically restarts your heart and it worked perfectly. After my heart rate returned to a normal state Brendan was able to come and see me and he brought pictures and video of the little guy. At 3am I was able to hold my little man for the first time. After all that, he was well worth it and I was in love with him from the moment I saw him.
After all is said and done, 40 hours of induction was tough, but this beautiful baby boy I am currently holding while typing this is so worth the pain, the frustration, the tears, everything. God has blessed us more than we could have ever imagined and we are simply in love with our little boy.
Here is a pic of when I first saw Drew. I do not look cute, I have no makeup on, my hair is a hot mess, but I love this picture, for it's meaning and how utterly happy we are in it.
More pictures of labor and delivery to come.
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