At my 36 week doctor’s appointment, I had my Group B Strep (GBS) test done (which was negative), so I opted to have my first internal exam. That was extremely uncomfortable, but I was told that my cervix was dilated to 2 cm and was 50% effaced. I didn’t get checked at 37 weeks, and at 38 weeks I was a tight 3 cm and 75% effaced. I went to my 39 week appointment (a few days early) on the morning I went into labor, but decided against having a cervical check. Everything looked good for both me and baby, so I went into work on Thursday, September 8. Around lunchtime, I noticed that I was having more discharge than usual. I had been losing my mucous plug since 36 weeks, and had what I thought was bloody show right at 38 weeks. So, discharge was nothing new, but this seemed more liquid-like.
At 2 pm, I went to a department meeting, and when I got up to leave at 3 pm, I felt a small gush of fluid. I didn’t make a big deal out of it, so no one noticed, though my pants were wet. I knew that my water had broken (and that it had been amniotic fluid that I was leaking earlier), so I went back to my office, got my things, and headed home. I called my OB’s office and my husband on the way home to let them know what had happened. I told my husband to finish packing the hospital bag and get the dog ready to go to my mom’s house. The OB nurse called me back and said that even though I was GBS negative, they wanted me to check into Labor and Delivery right away since my water had broken. Though I was sure it was my water, I never experienced that big gush of fluid that everyone describes, so the nurse told me I could come into the OB’s office to be evaluated first, before I went to the hospital (the OB and the hospital are in adjoining buildings).
I came home, we grabbed the hospital bag and car seat, and left to drop our dog off at my mom’s since I knew this wasn’t a false alarm. We got to the OB’s office, and by the time the midwife came in to examine me, I had leaked all over the table. She took one look at me and said, “Yep, your water broke. Go to Labor and Delivery to have a baby!” As soon as I stood up from the table, I had my first large gush of fluid. There was no mistaking that one. So, we walked over to the hospital, headed up to the maternity floor, and got checked in. I still hadn’t felt a single contraction yet, and it was about 5 pm by this time.
After I was put in a labor room, I was given a saline lock, a Non-Stress Test (NST) for the baby, and an internal exam. I was 3 cm and 90% effaced. It was about 7 pm at this time, things looked good, and I was contracting, but I didn’t feel them, so I knew they weren’t causing any progress. I was so happy that my water had broken naturally and that my body went into labor on its own, but I knew that there was a time limit on getting the baby out since the risk of infection increases after your water breaks. I started walking the halls, hoping to start active labor and prevent any augmentation, like Pitocin. Since I wasn’t in pain yet, I don’t really consider those first couple hours actual labor.
Right before midnight, I felt my first real contraction. There was no warm up and no warning. One second I was fine and not feeling contractions, and the next I was doubled over in pain. It didn’t feel good, but at least I was finally in labor…and didn’t need any help to get there! After that, things moved quickly. The contractions were so intense and painful…I went from 3 cm to 6 cm in 45 minutes, and so I asked for the epidural. After it was placed, I couldn’t feel anything in my abdomen, but I still felt pressure and some pain in my pelvis during contractions. I also had what they call the “baby shakes.” Apparently a lot of people start shaking when they actually deliver, but I started shaking earlier than most. I knew when a contraction was coming because I’d start shaking uncontrollably.
From 1 am to 4 am, I went from 6 cm to 9.5 cm, but the doctor was concerned that the epidural was having an effect on the baby. I was put on oxygen, and they turned the medication down by half. The doctor came back in and said “you’re 10 cm and 100%, it’s time to push.” Then, she had the epidural turned off so I could feel the urge to bear down. Since it had already been turned down previously, it didn’t take long before it felt like I was feeling everything. The baby shakes and extreme pain/pressure in my pelvis told me when to push, and as I felt the baby’s head moving down, I asked if they would turn the epidural back on at the lowest setting. I pushed for not quite an hour, and our beautiful baby girl was born at 5:02 am on September 9, 2011. I had two first degree tears, and a few stitches were necessary; so, I’m glad that I had the epidural turned back on at the end for them to sew me up.
Brinley Ryann (Bryn) was 7 pounds, 5 ounces and 20.5 inches long. Her Apgar scores were 9 and 9, and she’s perfect. She shares a birthday with her grandma, and my mom constantly says how she’s the best birthday present ever :). All in all, I had a pretty good delivery experience. For a first time mom, having my water break naturally, laboring for 4 hours, and pushing for 1 hour was better than I ever expected.
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