So over the weekend Ryan and I decided to try as many natural approaches to start labor as we could in order to attempt to avoid our scheduled medical induction on Monday the 28th. We walked two malls (did lots of window shopping), at some spicy Thai food, ate some pizza, ate spicy corn chowder (thanks Darcie), snuggled together, bounced on the exercise ball, ate pasta sauce with lots of basil and oregano, took extra evening primrose oil, drank raspberry leaf tea and even strongly considered castor oil- I took a half of a half of a dose but my heart wasn't in it and I couldn't talk myself into taking the full thing. I didn't want to be too tired or sick for my impending labor so taking the rest of the castor oil dose was not an option for me.
By Sunday evening nothing was happening so Ryan and I had a long talk and decided we trust Cheri incredibly and if she (after attending over 3000 births) felt that the induction was the best plan- then we were going to go for it. We had a nice dinner, some ice cream and went to bed about 10:30- all ready to get up the next day and get induced and meet our son.
By 11:15 pm, I was really uncomfortable and thought perhaps the small amount of castor oil I had taken was giving me gas pains so I went downstairs with my book and tried to let Ryan rest while I moved about trying to get rid of the gas pain. I took a shower (figuring then I could sleep in a bit the next day) and tried to read but was still uncomfortable. At about midnight I finally realized that my discomfort was cyclical- every 8 minutes or so- and thought perhaps I was in very early labor. I hung out on the exercise ball, tried to watch some TV and tried another hot shower- all while becoming increasingly uncomfortable.
At 1:30 am I called my mom and told her to get on the road- I realized there was no going back now- and then went to wake up Ryan about 1:45 am. He jumped up in a startled manner and was trying to do anything to help me. Once I woke him up I was incredibly nauseous and barely made it to the bathroom where I vomited up our entire nice dinner in the bathroom sink and then was in enough pain that my only option was to get back in the steaming hot shower. While my dear husband cleaned up my vomit (what a trooper) and attempted to get dressed, time my contractions, wake up and fetch whatever I felt I needed I labored in the shower with the hot water hitting my back. Ryan called the doctor for the first time at about 2:00ish when my contractions were about 5 minutes apart, then before you knew it they were only 3 minutes apart and it was time to go so Ryan packed me a puke bucket, got my bag, his bag and the baby bag and put us all in the car At first the nice coldish air was a God-send and I loved it all and thought all was well- then we started driving over some VERY bumpy roads during contractions and nothing made me happy again. Ryan called Cheri's office again and let them know we were on our way as we drove in and then did his best to be funny and kind and help me concentrate- he did awesome. Of course I started puking again in my puke bucket as we were pulling into the hospital lot- so when I finished Ryan just put the bucket by the car and off we went. We got to L&D and they were just being notified that we were heading in. We checked in at 3:15 am.
Kate, our nurse for this adventure, put us in triage and checked me and I was 5 cm dilated and contracting consistently. Hospital policy requires 20 minutes of continuous external fetal monitoring before you are allowed to labor on your own- so I was strapped up and lying down in triage while they tried to get a room ready for us. That was by far the worst part of my entire labor- laying down with no recourse or ability to rock, sway or stand through the pain. Ryan was putting a ton of pressure on my back (thank goodness) and saying all of the right things about how fast time was going and lying to me about how we were almost done. That was the one time I feared I was not going to be able to tolerate the pain. Laying down was excruciating (in comparison to standing or moving) and I was starting to lose my cool. Ryan did an amazing job of talking me down and keeping me calm and after what felt like an eternity Kate came back and told us we were staying, she had talked to Cheri and we were heading to our own room.
When we got to the actual labor and delivery room Kate had to hook me up again because (surprise surprise) our son was not following directions and was not allowing himself to be monitored well. This meant no water, no shower, no walking- but thank goodness Kate has a kind soul and she allowed me to stand while she continued monitoring the Schmitzel. So we stood and I rocked and breathed and Ryan found my mom in the waiting room and we all anxiously waited for the 20 minutes to be over. Kate rocked- she held the monitor with one hand, typed all of my intake information with another and supported me with her words. My mom and Ryan took turns allowing me to squeeze their hand and rubbing my back all while I stood and rocked. A nurse put in my IV and started the antibiotics for the group B strep. Then finally the 20 minute monitoring requirement was met and Kate wanted to check me one more time before she let me go stand in the shower. Again the lying down was difficult- but when she checked she discovered I was already 8 cm dilated. Things were going fast! So off she went to call Cheri and off I went to stand in the shower (no tub allowed because I was so close to the end which was totally fine- all I wanted was the shower) while Ryan stood next to the shower and talked to me. The only thing I wanted to hear was the sound of his voice, I didn't much care what he said but I wanted him to talk to me and tell me things and be encouraging- and he was. He also did a good job of changing the water temperature to meet my demands- though he tells me now that he only adjusted the temperature knob about a 1/4 inch each direction- it felt like the hot and cold really alternated and helped. My mom respectfully left us alone the entire time we labored in the bathroom and waited in the delivery area of the birthing suite.
At about 4:40 am Cheri arrived and sat next to Ryan outside the shower talking to me and soothing me and chatting about the contractions. Thankfully by the time she got there my antibiotics were done and she was able to disconnect my IV so I could grip the bars in the shower better and move more freely. She wasn't there long before the intensity of the labor changed and I couldn't stay on top of the contractions as well in the shower. Cheri suggested we leave the shower and go get checked again- which sounded like a terrible idea- but Ryan reminded me that we trust her and so off we went. Ry and Cheri dried me off- there was no way I could bend over or focus at all on such a task- and walked me back to the bed. As I was getting ready to lie down to be checked I had another really intense contraction, felt the urge to push and my water broke at 5:15 am.
When Cheri checked me I was 9 cm dilated but stretched to 10 with contractions so it was almost showtime!
Cheri told Ryan to hold my right leg, Kate to hold my left leg and sat me up on the bed which she had converted to a birthing chair. Then I held my knees, curled forward and pushed with all of my might to the VERY amazing and encouraging words of Kate, Cheri and Ryan. I cannot describe or define how Cheri's words were perfect- but they were exactly the right balance between supportive, encouraging and cheerleading. Within 19 minutes of my water breaking our son was arriving. At 5:34 am Cheri told me to reach down and she put my hands under my son's arms, I pulled him to me and laid him on my chest and he was born! Ryan and my mom were both in awe- mom was crying tears of joy- and I was just shocked that he was finally here safe and sound.
I feel like everything we did all pregnancy was worth it- the exercises, the nutrition, the teas, the oils and teas, the chiropractor, the classes....All in all my labor was about 6 and a half hours, my delivery was all natural and our son was born alert and active and awake. He nursed nearly immediately and snuggled on my chest for an hour until they weighed and measured him- 8 lbs 11.5 oz and 20 inches long. It was the most amazing and empowering experience and I am so proud of myself and Ryan and so thankful to Kate and Cheri for making our labor and delivery such a positive and amazing situation. I keep saying it was the best labor and delivery ever, and while I don't have much to compare it to- I really believe that. I felt advocated for, supported and believed in, our birth plan was honored as was the health of our son. Most importantly our son Grayson is here and safe and healthy and amazing.
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