So I just have to warn you that this post is going to be long. I need to have the story written down and I figured those interested could read it too.
On May 24 at 2:30 am I woke up in a puddle. Yes, that is gross but it happened. I thought my water had broken so I woke up Kyle and he asked if I wanted to go to the hospital or wait. I had heard friends say that they had peed in their sleep before and I didn't want it to be that. It didn't smell like it. I figured we could wait til he got up for work at 5:30 and see what we wanted to do then. I wasn't having contractions or anything and I felt just fine. Kyle rolled over and went back to sleep, but of course I couldn't.
At 5:30am we got ready and headed to the hospital. "This is it", I thought. Kyle and I were so excited and ready for the baby to come. We signed in and a doctor talked to us in the triage room. She said that my water hadn't broken and took a swab to double check. I was 2cm dilated and 75% effaced but it was a false alarm with the puddle I woke up in. So, she sent us home. To this day I still don't know what happened that morning. I don't know if it was a leak from my water or what.
That day I started to get contractions. In the early afternoon they weren't so bad, but then towards the evening they started getting stronger and stronger. I couldn't sleep that night because they were so strong and really close together. I didn't want to get sent back home from the hospital (it is like 35-40 minutes away from us) so I waited. The next morning Kyle went to work and said to call if he wanted me to go to the hospital. My contractions were so intense and so close together, but again, I didn't want to get sent back home... so I waited. By noon I was in so much pain that I couldn't even get around the house so I called Kyle and said I should go to the hospital.
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| The Navy Hospital (Balboa Hospital) |
Apparently that day everyone decided to have their babies. We had to sit in the waiting room for a while with all of the prego women and wait for a triage room to be available. When we got in they checked me and said I was 4cm dilated but that my contractions weren't close enough together. WHAT!!!! They didn't want to send me home so the doctor said to walk around the hospital for a couple of hours and then get checked again.
While we were walking around the hospital grounds I had to stop every few minutes and hold onto something because of contractions. After about 45 minutes we stopped at the McDonald's and I got chicken nuggets so that I had something in my stomach.
When we got back up to the labor and delivery ward I was dilated to 8cm! So in less than an hour I had gone from a four to and eight. Whoo! I told the doctor that I was wanting to get the epidural but I didn't know if it was too late. I was told that I could still get it and we got me a room. I felt so much better just knowing that I was finally getting admitted.
Apparently, there are blood tests that have to go to the lab before the epidural can be administered. While waiting for the results from the lab the nurses put some medicine in my IV to take the edge off. They told me it would make me feel drunk, and it worked immediately. I felt great... well a little loopy. Kyle said that I was talking to myself. I don't remember doing that. I could have sworn that I was talking to the nurses. The nurses switched shifts after I was all checked in and my IV was done. My nurse that helped during the entire birth process was named Virginia.
When I got the epidural I had to get turned onto my side to even out. My left side was getting numb faster than my right side so we had to even it out. The anesthesiologist kept checking on me to see how it was working. That little button is awesome. Once we made sure it was working fine I got the catheter put in. That's right I didn't feel it. Ya! Virginia said that at 10:00pm the doctor would break my water and then at midnight they would have me start pushing.
There was a medical student that was there during the whole process too. He was a very interesting person and I think it was his first time watching someone give birth. He pretty much was just observing everything and I didn't mind that he was there. It didn't bother me at all. Every time he knocked on the door to come in, Virginia would ask who it was and he would say, "it's the med student". I don't think anyone knew his name until after the baby was born and they had to put in their records who was there.
At 10:00pm the doctor came in and broke my water. It felt super weird. Yes I had the epidural but I could still feel the pressure being released. Very interesting feeling. After that we just relaxed, slept at bit, watched TV and waited for midnight to come. I figured since everything had been running smooth I would be able to just get the baby out in no time. Man was I wrong...
Midnight came and I started pushing with every contraction. Virginia had coached Kyle and I on what to do earlier so we were prepared. I pushed, and pushed, and pushed. Because of the epidural I didn't know how I was doing with my pushes. Virginia was coaching me, but I couldn't feel myself pushing. We tried turning me on my side and pushing. Then we got the bar out and had me hang on to that and try pushing. The doctor kept getting called in because I would get close, but the baby wasn't coming out. I asked for the epidural to be turned down a bit so that I could feel myself pushing a little bit.
Virginia said that I was doing just fine and that I was getting close, but then the baby would just go back in. Pretty much he was "prairie dogging" the whole time. Sorry if you don't know what that means, but I don't want to explain. The baby just wasn't coming out.
The doctor came and realized that the baby's head was tilted and rotated, so he tried going in and turning it. Baby would just turn it right back though. We had another doctor come in, a female one, and try the same thing. The baby was just turning his head right back. Thank you epidural because I am so grateful that I didn't feel that.
I think I almost made the medical student pass out while he was watching. He was at the end of the bed and one time he started breathing really hard. I was thinking, "Hey I'm supposed to be the one that has the issues, not you". Oh well. I could tell that he was trying to make me feel more comfortable. He would give me compliments on how I was doing or just talk. Once, the doctor told him to do something, and I could tell he was nervous. I would have been nervous too if I was him, but it was kind of interesting having him there.
At 3:00am, after pushing for three hours, and after Kyle had counted to ten way too many times, the doctor said to take a break. "We can't have you so tired that you can't get the baby out. You are exhausted. There are other options. We can try the forceps but there are risks to that... or we can do a c section." Everyone left the room so that Kyle and I could discuss what to do. He mentioned that he didn't want to do the forceps because he didn't want the baby's face to possibly get scratched up. I didn't want to have to get a c section. I wanted to keep trying to push, but I was absolutely exhausted. After discussing for a few minutes, we decided that I would keep trying to push, but if he wasn't out in a while then I would get a c section.
I had asked the anesthesiologist to turn the epidural down so that I could feel myself pushing, but the pitocin wasn't turned down. I was able to feel my contractions more which wasn't pleasant. I asked if they could turn it back up again. While the epidural was getting turned up, Virginia and I decided that I should just push through the contractions. So I started pushing again, and again, and again. Nothing seemed to be working.
We all discussed that I was relaxing too much in between pushes and that I need to keep the pressure down there. This was really difficult for me because I was tired, and my whole body would tense up when I tried to keep the pressure. I was getting super discouraged.
Virginia mentioned bringing the mirror out. For months before giving birth, I knew that I didn't want to have the mirror. The thought of watching myself have a child just didn't sit well with me. Virginia said that it would probably be good incentive for me. I was up for anything though so she brought it out. It wasn't pretty at all, but surprisingly it was good motivation. I could see how far along I was and seeing the baby come out helped me get the guts to keep pushing.
I was getting close again so that doctor was called back into the room and the mirror was pushed away. I remember praying because I really needed that baby to come out. I don't think I would have been able to do it without help from my Heavenly Father.
Then it happened. On May 26, 2012 at 4:29am, weighing 7 pounds 10 ounces and 22 inches long, Clayton Mathew Blackburn was born.
After the corpsman cleaned Clayton off she mentioned his long toes. Kyle looked over and said, "He gets that from me." Kyle was so proud to hold that new baby boy, and I loved seeing him so happy.
I had done it. I had brought a human being into this world. He was perfect, and Kyle and I couldn't have been happier. We were officially parents!
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| terrible picture of me but my boys look wonderful |
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| Clayton had jaundice and had to be under the lights in his "tanning bed" for practically an entire day |
Now, baby Clayton will be three months old on Sunday. I can hardly believe it. Time has gone by so fast and he has grown so much. Kyle and I are so in love with him, and we both look forward to watching him continue to grow.
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