I can't think of anything I love more that a good birth tale, lol, so I decided to share mine. SO, congratulations, my first child was due on November 21, the pregnancy progressed fine and dandy, no problems. As my date approached, I would groan, "Doc, if I don't have this baby soon, it's gonna weigh a ton!" His reply? "Oh, at least lol." Our lil unborn surprise was so funny, even in utero. You know how it is, your belly is so big and in the way, so..well...you prop things on it lol. Every Sunday in church, I would prop my Bible open on my belly, and that baby would kick and kick until I couldn't even read the pages, it would wobble so badly! I guess things were getting tight in there; as soon as I moved the book from my belly, he would stop lol.
On what was to be my last office visit, the doctor said he wanted to stretch my cervix a bit. Let me clue you in to something, if anyone ever says this to you? RUN!! LOL, I thought they were going to have to peel me off the ceiling. He said, now if this doesn't put you in labor (and goodness, it should've!!) then you come back and we'll induce you. Sure enough, the appointed day arrived and we got ourselves to the hospital at a chipper 6 a.m. for the induction. Once stripped of my dignity  , I found myself hooked to a monitor, where the nurse informed me that I was already having regular contractions. (Who knew?) Induced me anyway, and boy I could tell when they stepped away from the bed. That Pitocin is some spunky stuff lol. Busy day in babyland that day, I progressed along nicely, got my Epidural and didn't feel another thing. Soon, we were huffing and puffing and pushing...my husband was so cute, I remember him saying, "it's got curly hair!" as the baby crowned. Unfortunately, it WAS a big baby, I wasn't feeling a thing and as I said, busy day in babyland..maybe it was the pre-Thanksgiving rush? In any case, I crowned that boy at about lunchtime...and he was finally suctioned out at 4:50 that afternoon. I had been on oxygen all afternoon for some irregular fetal heartbeats, and he'd been all squished up in the birth canal for hours! When he finally made his entrance, all 9 pounds of him, it wasn't a happy one. He was just as blue as could be and was rushed off to the neonatal unit. There was no 'set the baby on mommy's belly' like they do in the movies, no sweet kisses or tender hugs...they touched his head one time to mine and ran out the door. My poor husband was caught in the lurch, not knowing whether to stay with me, go to the nursery, go to our families in the waiting area. I said, "GO, go with the baby!"
I was a long time in recovery and I had very little news of my baby, except well-meaning OB nurses who kept trying to reassure me. My mom came in to me very soon, saying she needed to check on HER baby. She said our baby was in the unit and they had no news. What I WASN'T told at that time was the baby nurse had run to the elevator with my baby, past all our families who knew our birth was imminent. Mama asked, "Is that our baby?" and was answered, "Yes ma'am it is and if you want to go up with us, you better come on NOW." As soon as they reached the ICU window to see the baby, a different nurse slammed the blinds closed in their faces. After some anguished moments, she gruffly came to the door to relate the news, "Don't get your hopes up." My baby was not breathing normally and was not getting enough oxygen. His APGAR scores were not good and they were working on him.
In recovery, my phone rang. It was my brother on the line, who had a friend who worked in the neonatal unit. He had called the friend, and asked if she could help. Here was my first real report on my baby! He explained it all to me, told me to hang in there and he'd call with anything further; the baby was in good hands. No one wanted to tell me the experience at the nursery window; my dad, normally a very reserved person, got so upset that my mom had to take him outside. "We're gonna lose him," he cried, as they comforted each other best they could.
Finally, I was released to my room, and our first stop via wheelchair was the neonatal unit. My first memories with my baby are ones of tubes and wires and monitors...but they placed him and all of his periphernalia in my lap. You could hardly see a baby under all that stuff! My husband and I held him as long as they allowed. Many times during that long first night, my nurses would find me missing from my room, only to discover me down at the nursery window. Every time they entered my room, I asked for an update. Toward morning, a nurse came in, picked up the phone and dialed a number. In a minute, she handed me the phone. I could hear this squawking, shrieking, obviously extremely mad baby on the line...a smile slowly came, with tears, as she said, "that's him!" Anyone who could make that much noise was certainly breathing!
Around 9 a.m., there was a knock on the door to my room. I wondered if it was my husband returning from getting a bite to eat, perhaps a family member. My pediatrician poked his head around the door, announcing, "Hey! Somebody wants to see you..." and turned the corner with my beautiful baby boy. I sobbed so, I have no idea what that man said lol. All I could do was cry and nod as I held our precious gift, who was the most gorgeous pink now, breathing on his own normally, and suffering no ill effects.
Ain't God good? |
