Nash Ryan~ A Birth Story

*Lengthy. Detailed. Birth documentary-esque post ahead.
That is sure to entertain.
Just sayin'...

I left off last week after my appointment.

I was five days overdue at that point, and had just came home from an ultrasound that revealed little amniotic fluid left, and possible meconium or vernix inside the sac {per my OB you can't tell what it is on an ultrasound. But regardless, it doesn't matter if you expose the baby to it for three seconds or six days, if it is meconium, you will have to have a good suction upon delivery}

So.

The next morning, Friday, I went to my last OB appointment.

Just me and the three babes.

Early.

And we made it. No problem. On time even.

{My Sweet had a really full schedule planned that day, with an appointment that happened to be at the exact same time.}

I finally got to be seen at almost 9:20am.

{my appointment was scheduled for 8:45am}

Upon examination my OB asked me what I wanted to do. And immediately, I said I wanted to be induced. That same day if possible.

I explained how yesterday revealed meconium/vernix, that my non stress test showed I had contractions, but they were not productive, and that I was still only 2cm. I clearly needed a little push.

And what better time than now?

Like right now.

She obliged. And called the on call physician to verify induction would be fine for today.

GREEN LIGHT! GO!

And that was it.

I had picked my delivery date.

Again.

I hurried home.

{after a Dunkin Donuts run for pre promised donuts and an iced tea}

Gathered the mostly packed labor bag, video camera, photo camera, baby bag with the baby book and newborn outfits, my overnight bag with a change of clothes for My Sweet and some PJ's.

While clammering to nail down childcare for my kids, and talking to my mom, my sister, and my Sweet I then packed the kids some things in an overnight bag.

Soon after, my sister in law came and loaded us all up to drive me to the hospital, where I would meet my Sweet at the entrance.

I was giddy.

Full of excitement.

And ready to do this!!

I got wheeled up to L&D and was admitted to room 2203 at 11:30am.

A stocky little nurse came in and said to put on the oversized gown that was laying on the end of the freshly covered bed. 

Bottoms off. {Duh.}

I smiled at my Sweet. 

This was really happening. We were going to have another baby!

I nestled into the bed, pulling the blanket up over my mint colored toes.

12:00pm~ A nurse came in and started my IV.

I did pretty good considering I hate IV's. Especially when they are in the hand, or in this case the forearm. Yuck!

12:10pm~ My Nurse Christa introduces herself, and administers Cervadil to help ripen my cervix. I am 4cm.

{4cm?!}

I just went to the doctor yesterday and she said I was 2cm! 

Did I just start induction for no reason?! 

Was my body on it's way to going into labor on it's own?

Not that it matters now, but I probably should have asked my OB to check at my appointment that morning.

Although, I was already set {mentally} on induction, I may have waited to see if something would have happened over the weekend, had I known I was 4cm.

1:05pm~ Oxytocin is started via the IV. 

And while I was having some contractions on my own, they were not uncomfortable, barely noticeable, and basically unproductive.

My Sweet leaves to go get some lunch, and some shoes. Yes. I said shoes.

Whilst packing the bags earlier I forgot to also bring my Sweet some shoes to change into. Which wouldn't have been a problem, but he didn't feel comfortable walking around the hospital in the Snoozie fleece slippers I did pack him, or the wingtip dress shoes he was wearing from being at work earlier... with shorts.

So I surf the Web while he is gone, and even update my Facebook account a little.

The Pit {Oxytocin} is making me start to really feel the forced contractions, so I tell my nurse that I would like to have the Epidural before things get too out of control.

My Sweet returns. And even brought me a Turtle candy for after delivery.

2:40pm~ Epidural is administered. My cervix is 5cm.

I have gotten an epidural every labor. Holding out the longest with my first born.

Every time I get one, I am slumped over a bedside table with pillows and come up in a mess of tears.

This time though, I didn't get a bedside table.

Slumped forward, breathing through contractions, I took that long needle in my back, like a CHAMPION.

I even surprised myself.

2:50pm~ Catheter is inserted. And she breaks my bulging bag of water with her fingers.

It is clear!!

Must have been vernix afterall.

{Another moment, I slightly regretted my decision to be induced.}

Cervix is 7cm.

Whoa!!!

That was FAST!

{We are going to have this baby before dinner!!}

I literally went form 5 to 7cm in a matter of ten minutes!

And, Nash... wasn't happy about it.

3:20pm~ Nash is having major decelerations in his heart rate. He managed to get down to 42 beats per minute at one point! And as a previous Nursing student who went through OB {and loved it}, I knew that was not good. At. All.

{Another moment I was regretting being induced.}

3:25pm~ I am administered Brethane via a Subcutaneous injection in my arm after my nurse decided that my uterus just wasn't letting up after I switched from laying on my left side to my right side. The Oxytocin is stopped. My nurse, and another nurse are now in my room. I am given an Oxygen mask to put over my face. I am starting to feel extremely tired. 

Like it is hard to keep my eyes open, kind of tired.

3:45pm~ My contractions have slowed. But now my Blood Pressure won't stay in a normal range and is dipping into the 66/33 range for the second time in a one minute reading sequence. My Nurse touches my shoulder and asks if I am okay as I lay on my right side with eyes now closed.

I tell her I am really tired.

Duh.

I am about to shut the lights out, of course I am tired.

She tells me my blood pressure is getting low, so they are going to give me some Epinepherine to bring it up.

I am trying to stay calm. Breathing in and out with the oxygen mask on, slow and deep breaths. Concentrating on getting things under control in my mind.

I know that 66/33 is dangerously low.

Like low enough, with the earlier decelerations in Nash's heart rates to have nearly been wheeled into the OR for an emergency C section, low.

3:50pm~ Epinepherine is administered. My blood pressure levels are better. And then, they drop again.

3:55pm~ My Anesthesiologist is back in my room, and is checking the Epidural medicine levels. Decides to slow them.

I am given another bolus of Epinepherine.

I start to recoop from the drop in blood pressure, but still feel very tired.

I am told that when my water was broke it augmented the epidural medicine and that is why I had the sudden drop in blood pressure. They said they usually see complications from an Epidural within ten or twenty minutes of receiving the Epidural, not usually an hour later... 

but all seems to be better. For me, and Nash.

I am left to just relax for a bit.

My Sweet and I are caught up in chatting and laughing about some silly MTV dating disaster show where they set up people on fake dates with obnoxious partners and see how long they can hold out, to win money.

Which is hilarious to me {not the show} because I remember watching the same show when I was laboring with Nadie.

4:45pm~ Oxytocin is restarted.

My Sweet and I are still watching TV, and feel like lazy bums. He is antsy, and feels like he isn't doing anything, and I have been sitting in the same bed for hours now. It is driving me crazy that we are almost at dinnertime {respectively} and still no baby.

5:50pm~ I am starting to feel my contractions again. And remember that they had turned down my Epidural medicine. I am a 3 or 4 {out of 10} on the pain scale at this point.

My day nurse leaves for the day at 6pm, because she had a dinner party that night.

6:00pm~ In comes my new Nurse, Bethanny. She is shorter. Stocky. Has moussed shoulder length curly hair. And a tattoo on her left wrist.

Already I don't like her.

Her smile reminds me of a smirk. Like someone just said something funny outside in the hallway that she wasn't supposed to tell, kind of smirk.

And my Sweet feels the same way.

We just kind of looked at each other.

My intuition tells me I should ask for a new nurse right then. But, I am tired. Ready to just get on with the show. And instead, I bite my tongue.

6:30pm~ My contractions are becoming strong. I can feel them in my belly and my back. Like I am wearing some sort of contraction belt. I power through each one at a 7 or 8 level of pain. I hold on to the bed rails and push my arms straight to lift myself off the bed with each one. My Nurse is alerted to give something for pain.

6:45pm~ A bolus is given through my IV. I am still powering through each contraction by breathing and holding the rails of the bed. My Sweet is at my side telling me to just breathe. My nurse watches at the foot of the bed, as I work through yet anotherv painful cramp.

7:00pm~ My nurse comes in again to see if the bolus has helped.

It hasn't.

I am still at the same pain level. And they are coming every minute and lasting 20-30 seconds at full magnitude before tapering off. Another bolus is given via my IV. I move into a Semi- Fowlers sitting position {the head of the bed is at a 45 degree angle} as opposed to the way I was sitting before {bed broken with feet lowered, sitting up}.

7:25pm~ My Anesthesiologist is back in my room and gives me yet another bolus via my Epidural line. My pain is still the same.

7:45pm~ Finally feeling relief from my contractions. My nurse checks my cervix. I am 9cm!!

All those Pit contractions were worth it!!

I am going to be pushing soon!

Or so I thought.

My nurse informs me I also have a thick anterior lip that still needs to thin out, but asks if I would prefer to have the female or male  on call physician deliver.

I opt for the female, and she goes out of the room.

7:55pm~ I am resting on my back. Feel so tired, but my contractions are not really a problem anymore, so I am relaxed.

8:10pm~ I talk to my Sweet about being uncomfortable. My ribs hurt. Like the muscles between them are strained. I ask him to help me turn on my left side, since my lower half is heavy again with numbness.

8:15pm~ My nurse comes in. Asks if I need anything.

{Nope! Just a baby!!}

I ask her about the anterior lip. 

She said it was thick, and that she wasn't going to check me again yet.

8:20pm~ I am resting on my left. My Sweet is watching some ridiculous videos show on MTV now, and laughing. Asking me randomly if I saw that?

{No. I am not watching. I did not just see that. Mine eyes... are closed. But, I'm not sleeping.}

8:45pm~ I hear my nurse come in. She tears the strip of paper from the machine. 

Asks my Sweet if he needs anything, and then leaves the room.

I open my eyes right after she closes the door, and my Sweet and I joke about her asking him if he needs anything. 

What??

8:50pm~ I move from my left side. I am uncomfortable.

I lay back on my back and can feel Nash high up in my abdomen.

I push down on my belly, so as to push him out of my ribs.

I immediately feel nauseous. 

Throwing up during labor is very normal for me. 

I have done it with all of them.

It is the subconcious way my body deals with extreme pain, epidural or not.

8:54pm~ I ask my Sweet for a vomit pan.

He is by my side rubbing shoulders, as I start spitting.

My mouth is watering like crazy.

I know it's coming.

8:55pm~ And then, it does.

Just come.

I am sitting up slightly, crouched forward.

And, ralphing.

I hate when my Sweet sees me like that. Vulnerable. Helpless. And ralphing... ew.

8:55pm~ I feel a 'pop' down under. And then, another.

8:56pm~ My Sweet pulls the blanket on the bed back, and we see Nash laying on the bed!

Say what {?!!!!} just happened?!

My Sweet runs into the hallway and tells the nurses sitting at the nurse's station, :"The baby is HERE!!!"

Indeed. He was.

8:57pm~ Four nurses come running in my room and grab Nash sans gloves. One clamps the cord, while the other cuts it. My nurse finally arrives and is rubbing Nash dry under the warmer.

All I can do is look at My Sweet who is now a very light color in the face.

The doctor enters and takes over. Drawing blood from the cord so they can send it to lab to have it typed.

I start crying.

Crying because Nash is just fine.

He is a healthy 8 pounds and 6 ounces.

22 inches long.

With Apgars of 9 and 9.

Perfect.

Crying because of what just happened.

{What did just happen?!}

Aside from the obvious, I was in shock.

From the event of how it happened, not from what had just happened.

Crying because... it's finally over.

The long forty week and six days pregnancy was over.

And we now had this beautiful baby boy to snuggle and love.

I am dressed. Made to be comfortable at best, and we are left to drink in our new baby.

We are skin to skin. And he cries softly for just a few more minutes before he is just silent looking through his ointment glazed eyes into mine.

His daddy holds him a while, before getting on the phone to announce his arrival and stats.

9:35pm~ My other littles came up to the hospital to meet their new brother.

It was a lovely little hour that we all shared. 

Meeting and greeting.

Hugging.

Giving kisses.

And then they left to spend the night with their beloved cousins.

My Sweet and I finally got settled into our postpartum room at almost 1am.

I fed my little monkey and tapered off to sleep.

Feeling blessed beyond any sort of measure for yet another healthy delivery.