Our Family: My Labor Story

Ok this may seem weird but I really want to write down my labor and delivery experience before I forget the details. This post is more for me as I want it recorded. I want to remember this day because although it was the most frightening day of my life it was also the most beautiful day of my life. Not sure if it is a good idea to bring back the brutal details of the day as it was quite traumatizing and may prevent me from ever wanting to procreate again...I will just have to take my chances. Truthfully I vividly remember saying to Nathan after having our baby that I will NEVER do this again (this meaning pushing a baby out of me). I told him if we want more children we will have to adopt (and I was dead serious at the time). Nathan actually agreed with me as he was also quite traumatized by what went on in that room and agreed that he didn't want me to feel like I had to go through it again (what a good man I have!). It is funny because Nathan told me after that he thought there would be a sheet shielding him from seeing anything but my face during the delivery (lol, I guess I failed to warn him of what he was in for). In hindsight my viewpoint has slightly changed now because I can honestly say that the outcome of that day far outweighs the pain and terror I experienced. Ok I know I sound really dramatic but I am dead serious...it hurt alot!
So my story goes like this. My due date was June 25th. On the evening of June 22nd I thought I was in going into labor because I started to get painful contractions that were 5-6 mins apart for 2 hours but then they stopped. The next day I had lots of tightenings in my uterus during the day that started to get a little uncomfortable as the evening approached. Since I had false labor the night before I wasn't sure what to expect. I decided that night around 10pm that Nathan and I should get one last date in as I figured I would be going into labor soon enough. So we went to Joe Kools on Richmond Street. We ordered Nachos...I asked for an extra helping of Jalapenos to see if they would help get my contractions stronger as I was so excited to have our baby. While we were at the restaurant my contractions really started to pick up and they were actually getting a little painful...after Nachos we planned to walk to Victoria Park as we wanted to keep the intensity of the contractions up and thought a little walking may help achieve this. We got home just before midnight and we got right into bed as I thought I should try and get some rest as I figured I was in the early stages of labor. I was in bed for no less then 5 minutes because the contractions were too painful for me to lie down. Since this was the first time I personally felt labor it was hard to judge how far along I was in relationship to the pain I was feeling. All I knew was that most first time moms are in active labor for 12-18 hours. Truthfully within one hour I was already telling Nate that "I don't think I can do this without drugs" (My plan was to try for a drug free delivery). I felt bit wimpy because it was only an hour into it. I went into the shower and the hot tub (we turned down the temperature prior….no worries!) to help pass time and relieve the pain. My original plan was to labor at home and call the midwives in the morning. My fear was waking up my midwives in the middle of the night and being only 2 cm dilated, I didn't want to get embarrassed so I tried to fight the pain at home for as long as I could. However by 3:30 am I was going out of my mind and I no longer cared about waking up my midwives because all I cared about at this point was getting DRUGS!!!! The midwives told us to meet them at St Josephs Hospital at 4 am. The ride to the hospital was crazy...I was in the backseat and felt like I was dying...by this time my contractions were coming every minute. Needless to say Nate got us there quick, we pulled up in front of the hospital and when I got out of the car I had the worst contraction yet...I actually felt like I wanted to push. Having worked labor and delivery I knew that I was probably a lot further along then I originally thought. We went into triage and the midwives checked me and I was 9 cm dilated, fully effaced and the head was down low, and my sack of waters was still intact and bulging. This is when everything was a blur...I remember Nathan calling my mom and sister to tell them to come to the hospital quick, I remember my midwife telling me there was no time for drugs and that the pain would not get any worse, I remember changing into a gown and freaking out a bit. I remember walking with Nate down the hall to the delivery room. I remember starting to push once we got in the room. My mom and Shayna showed up right after I got into the delivery room. I remember Shayna and Nate each had a leg and my mom was up by my head. The pushing was the worse because they ended up having to give me an episiotomy (with no freezing) because the baby's head was too big (ya think??). Anyhow it was brutal but when my little boy finally came out I remember feeling so relieved. I remember his big eyes looking right at me as they placed him on my chest, I remember thinking he was so long, I also remember being surprised at how clean he was, some babies have a coating called vernix on them when they come out but my baby was so beautifully clean. It was love at first sight! A moment that Nathan and I will never forget!