neener1211
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Member since 4/07 22952 total posts
Name:
J
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Braydon Kenneth October 16, 2008
I was originally due with a  on October 9th, but that day came and went, as I was scheduled for induction for the 16th of October. We arrived at St. Charles hospital at 6:30 am and were brought into a delivery room where I was hooked up to monitors and all my information was taken down. One of the questions were, "Are you looking for pain medication when you need it, and what is the level from 1-10 that you would be looking for relief?" 1 being you are going strong, and 10 being 'someone is cutting your leg off with a chainsaw.' Yeah, that's a good way to scare a person half to death. I said 7 or 8 I would be looking for relief, as I really didn't know my own pain threshold. My nurse also got me a new gown, because seriously, the gown they gave me was 1/2 a gown I felt so exposed. I loved this nurse, she was so sweet, so I found it very easy to thank her for everthing she did. At one point, she said, stop thanking me, you are just too happy and nice.
After they started the Pitocin, I started to get contractions very quickly, and by about 10:30, the doctor finally came in and checked my cervix. I was still the same 2 cm that I had been the Monday before.  The nurse asked if he was going to try to break my water, but he said my cervix was posterior, so the exam itself was very painful. She wanted the water broken because the baby kept moving away from the monitors, and she wanted internal monitors. As he said he was not going to, he broke my water (yay). So I was on the way! He put the internal monitors in for me and the baby, which was weird, bc when the baby moved, I could feel the wires move on the outside of my leg. My mom, dad and grandfather came soon after that because my mom believed that after the water was broken, the baby might come fast. I told her I doubted it, but she was insistant, so they came anyway. She said that on the way, my dad said that the contractions might stilll be false labor...obviously someone who had no clue  . During this time, I was having contractions about 4-5 minutes apart and pretty strong where I would have to breathe through them.
After they left me to rest, at around 12-1 ish, the nurse came in to ask my pain level, I said about a 4/5, she thought that was good, and also mentioned that my contractions were coming every 3 minutes. This started to get very exhausting, as well as DH randomly waiting for me to be in the middle of a contraction to ask me the annoying qustion of 'what pain level are you at?' Um, you're not a nurse, your ticking me off, and usually my response was 'shut up!!!' I got so frustrated with him waiting to ask while in a contraction about the pain-did I not look like I was in pain????
As the day went by, the contractions got stronger and stronger, so much to the fact that I did not want the epidural because of just the unknown. I decided to get Demerol because the nurse said it woud take the edge off. It didn't. It just let me pass out in between the contractions, but I still felt the full force of the contractions. The nurse told me that she would monitor the level of the contractions, but the pain I was feeling was probably not even 1/2 of what I would feel. I was like  . She said she wanted the level of the contractions to be somewhere around 60-80 in whatever measurement they used for full labor pains. After 3 contractions, she took a double take, and told me I was having contractions at the 80 level at some points, and then realized that I really was taking the brunt of a lot of the pain.
At this point, it was around 6 at night, and I was holding onto the bed rails actually crying with tears down my face saying, "I wanna go hoooooommmmme, I don't want to do this anymorrrrre" while whimpering. I was just in so much pain I wanted to forget the whole thing and keep the baby in. Seriously.  I finally decided that I could not take the pain anymore and I wanted the epi. They came in and told me all about what would happen, and the fact that I would have to remain still during my contractions to do this. I never thought I could, it was so painful.
The anesthesiologist came in, sent my DH out to the waiting room and prepped me for everything. Finally, I started to slowly feel my feet getting numb, then my legs. When he was finished hooking me up to the monitors and medication, I told him he was my new best friend. He laughed and told me everyone says that. I told him the I really MEANT it.  My nurse Laurie got me settled again and complimented me on my gown, I told her some really nice nurse gave it to me  . She also had to put a foley catheder in, which I was nervous that it was going to hurt, but she assured me, that if I wasn't feeling the contractions I was having, this would feel like nothing. It was a piece of cake!
At this point, I was only 4 cm, and was hoping that my body would progress. At around 7, I was told that I was still only 5 cm, and my nurse left me, because it was a shift change. I really liked that nurse, she also told me she would check on me the next day to see how we did. We got another nurse, who was very young, but very sweet as well. At this time, our doctor changed, to the doctor that I originally wanted to do the delivery, yay! He checked me and told me that he does need me to progress to prevent a C-section, no kidding.  By this time I was as happy as anything and didn't let it bother me, I was able to watch Survivor which I was very excited about.
At around 9:30 pm, the nurse checked me and told me that I was fully dilated and that she wanted to go get the doctor for him to check me. This took a while because there had been 4 other women getting C-sections that day, and I was the only one in for an induction. When he came in, he told me that I could start pushing, and that is what I did. DH went out to tell our family I was going to start pushing, little did they know it would take so long. For the next hour, when I would feel the pressure of the contraction, I would push with the help of DH and the nurse. I seemed to be progressing with each push, and after an hour, they could see the head and the baby's hair. DH didn't realize it was the baby's hair and asked in concern what that was.
The doctor came back in around 11 pm, he was delivering another baby in another room and wanted to give the nurse the room number. It was 6559. After he would say the room number, she would repeat 6599. She was so busy, she just couldn't remember the number. So the doctor kept repeating it. And she repeating it wrong. Finally, I say, it's 6559, I'll remember it the nurse and doctor both laughed, it was the last thing they were expecting me to say during active labor. The doctor also checked me, and said that he didn't want me pushing for so long, and that if this baby was not out within the hour, 'we needed to talk.' I totally didn't want to have the C-section 'talk' and really willed this baby out.
At about 11:30 pm, the doctor came in, as the baby's head was just about to crown. This was just about 2 hours of pushing at this point. He told me that after the baby's head came out, he would have me take one good breath, and then push like i've never pushed before. Another assisting nurse came in, and told me she was writing the 16th on all of the baby's paperwork, so I better get that baby out because she didn't want to change it. I personally also wanted the baby to be born on the 16th, because it was an even number-I know, I'm weird.
Finally, I had the doctor in front of me, and the baby's head was out. Ugh, what sweet relief!!!! I had that burning feeling before the head came out, and an incredible pain on my pelvic bones, it hurt so bad, as they had decreased the epi by now for me to be able to feel the pushing. Although, thank goodness, they did not turn it off completely. 
As the head came out, the doctor said ok, now one more good push and push until I tell you to stop. So I took a big breath, and pushed so hard. The baby came right out, and they put the baby on my stomach to get him to cry and to get him moving. I heard that crying and looked at him, and just said, "Hello my sweetie, I'm your mommy!" The nurses and DH were all looking at the baby and saying hello, and then I realized to ask, "Is it a boy or a girl????" They all responded BOY!!!! and I started to cry. I had waited sooooo long to meet this baby and was happy he was here. They asked me the name and I said Braydon Kenneth.
They took him over to the warming bed and cleaned him off, weighed him at 7 lbs 15 oz and declared he was born at 11:44 pm. We made the 16th with 16 minutes to spare!! DH got to cut the cord, and he was just smitten with his son, staying right with him the whole time. I watched the biggest smile on his face as I stayed on the table and got stiches for a 2nd degree tear-not bad at all. Coming off of the drugs was a little rough laying there so exposed, I was shaking it was so cold.
The got us both cleaned up, and they sent DH out to the button to press to play a lullaby letting everyone know on the floor that there was a baby born. They then handed us the baby to meet him, and told us that DH should go tell the family waiting outside in the waiting room. At this point, we had my parents, his parents, my two aunts, and my brother and sister in the waiting room. It had gotten too late for my grandfather, so he went home about 15 mintues before the baby was born.  I sent DH out with the video camera on, walking down the long corridor, to tell our family, and get it all on tape, because I wanted to see their reaction. We have a great video of 8 grown adults jumping up and down screaming with joy as my husband announced "It's a boy!!" 
They allowed our parents to come into the labor room to see the baby, and then they allowed my 2 aunts and sister and brother in to see the baby. Everyone got to hold him. He had to get to the nursery by 12:40, so everyone had about an hour to meet him and take pictures.
They took me to the maternity ward at around 1:30 and got me settled into my bed. I was told not to get up on my own at all until the next day. The nurse helped me get cleaned up, and go to the bathroom etc. They took my vitals and all was good. Then they started going over paperwork I needed to look over, which at 2 am, I totally didn't want to do, I just wanted to sleep. Finally, they shut the lights and let me pass out. 2:30 am, a nurse opens the door abruptly, puts the lights on, and wheels my son to me to feed. I was told they were going to feed him a bottle for his first feeding, but they were bringing him to me now, because I had originally said I was going to breastfeed.
So as I try to hold Braydon with one arm all hooked up to the iv, and one breast, the nurse is trying to tell me what to do. I try to get him to latch, and the nurse starts talking about not smothering him with my breast. I wasn't smothering him, but my boob was bigger than his head, so I just got very frustrated, and nervous, and decided to bottle feed. I just couldn't commit to it, and was so overwhelmed with just giving birth.
I later was satisfied with my decision as my roommate would breast feed for hours on end, and my son would be done eating in a half an hour. I know I made the right decision for me, because I will be going back to work in 6 weeks, and don't believe I could have committed to all that work for him. I just wanted to make sure he was getting fed properly.
My roommate was a luney toon, who wore bare feet all around the room and into the bathroom , snored, and seemed to have a cold . She also started to brush her hair next to my baby's bassinett during visiting hours, she wasn't too bright. .
We got to go home on Saturday morning. Since I had delivered before 12 on Thursday, that counted as one day. That was fine though, I would rather be at home, plus, I am so tall, that the bed at the hospital was not long enough for me to sleep in and be comfortable.
We did however have our little boy snip-snipped, and he did not like that at all!! Well, who would. They brought him to me after it was done, and his poor little face was all scrunched and upset. I heard his 'in pain' cry for the first time, and I just could not console him. So we cried together.  He is fine now, but I think he was in pain for the rest of the day, he just wasn't his usually quiet self. I also told him 'Daddy made me do it.' I was heartbroken for him. We did have a special visitor thouh, our original nurse came in and found us, she was so excited that we had the vaginal birth, and we were just so thankful to her for being so good to us.
We had a really good experience with St. Charles, and the entire staff was incredibly supportive and helpful. We are so in love with our new little boy, and our familes are just so overjoyed. I think that is just about it, it was a very long process for us, and we thank everyone for their support and for their well wishes. Thank you for letting me share!
Message edited 8/31/2011 4:27:57 PM.
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