Tuesday, March 19, 2013

Birth Story - Andrew William Rice 3/2/2013

What a joy it was to bring home our beautiful baby boy two weeks ago! After months of anticipation, getting to meet our son and stare at his precious face is one of the greatest joys in my life. Andrew William Rice was born at 12:10 pm on Saturday, March 2, 2013 at 6 pounds, 10 ounces, 20.5 inches long. 




My main birth goal was always "Healthy baby, healthy Laura." Secondarily, I hoped to get to the hospital pretty much as close to my baby's birth as possible so that I was less likely to go down a road of interventions that may not be necessary. Turns out I didn't really know what I was wishing for, but both of my goals were achieved due to the childbirth preparation I had done and because of my amazing doula, Abby.


Andrew was born at 41 weeks, technically one week "late" according to the doctors, but right on time as far as we were concerned. That said, the pressures that mount after one has passed one's due date - whether from well-meaning loved ones or from doctors discussing/prescribing induction - become unwieldy. At 40 weeks and 5 days, Thursday 2/28, I went to an acupuncturist to help get things moving naturally, figuring that this would only work if my son was ready to join us. Driving home at 5pm on Thursday, I started to feel pretty consistent, totally manageable birthing waves. Justin and I were well prepared for a natural birth and had taken a 6-week course through HypnoBabies (about  which I must rave - instructor Rachel is amazing and the whole process made such a huge positive difference in my pregnancy and birthing time). HypnoBabies teaches how to create mental anesthesia and full relaxation during birthing from the earliest stages, focusing on feeling pressure and stretching rather than pain. Since I was driving I stayed focused on the task at hand and updated Justin after I got home that something might be starting. I didn't tell anyone else except our doula yet, in case these waves dwindled off and birth was still days away. 


Thursday night I managed steady waves by listening to tracks on my iPhone and slept/rested most of the night. On Friday afternoon we had a non-stress test scheduled to make sure the baby and I were both doing well, and some of my waves showed up on the monitor. The nurse said I was having low-level contractions (they didn't feel low-level to me, but what did I have to compare it to?). They had been steady for about a day at this point, but I didn't argue. We went and got frozen yogurt after the test (which I ended up eating about 6 days later). By the time we got home, my waves were pretty intense and I needed Justin to track them and help me move through birthing and yoga positions for comfort. By Friday evening, I was experiencing waves every 5 minutes that were at least a minute long, which is typically when moms are recommended to head to the hospital. I am so grateful we didn't leave then and spend the next 15+ hours there instead of at our home. 


Justin measured my waves and helped me move throughout the house for comfort. Around 2am, I remember telling him that I might need a narcotic when we got to the hospital, just to take the edge off. I think now this was when my body was beginning transition and dilating steadily. About 5:30 am, Justin called Abby (who had been apprised throughout the process of my progress) and asked her to come over. Once she arrived, he slept for about 3 hours (a major reason to consider a doula!) while Abby and I worked through intense waves on the couch. She provided me with counter pressure massage and reminded me to use my tools to manage discomfort, breathe through coming waves and not fight my body. I had been having intense pressure that Abby was able to identify as involuntary pushing, which I had thought was just my need to go to the bathroom. Abby explained that the pressure I felt could be because my bag of waters had dropped, something I hadn't considered and which made me feel like maybe we were getting somewhere. :) After 3 hours on the couch (which only felt like 45 minutes to me and as I was able to relax almost fully!) Abby recommended I get back in the tub. I had been in twice before and hadn't liked it the last time because I couldn't get comfortable, but followed her recommendation albeit reluctantly.


This was around 9:00 am, and Justin got up and went to take Chance for a walk. As I relaxed in the bath and breathed through my waves, I decided to check myself. Imagine my surprise when I felt a water-balloon-style bag of waters and my delight when I felt the top of my son's head within the bag! That moment was so exciting - I had a surge of adrenaline and felt so amazed that he was really there and getting ready to come. It was clear I would be meeting my son much sooner than I had anticipated! As my waves continued, we could tell I was making significant progress and Abby explained that we should head to the hospital, though if it turned out I wasn't as far along as I thought I was we could always choose not to be admitted. Justin returned from walking Chance to find out we were heading to the hospital NOW and hurried to pack the car and help make me comfortable for the drive over. 


Much to his credit, Justin drove safely and carefully as I experienced four very powerful pushing waves during the ~10 minute drive. We walked into Mary Birch hospital and he talked to the staff while I listened to mp3s to stay in the zone, getting us quickly up to triage. He answered their questions about my allergies etc., and then they asked when my waters had broken. I explained, "I think they broke on the way here. When I checked myself at home I felt his head, but I'm not sure about my waters." 


"I'm sorry, what?" was the nurse's quick response, as they beckoned me to a nearby bed. When I undressed they could see the bag of waters, which had meconium (baby's first poop) in it. I was whisked to a labor and delivery suite within minutes of arrival. 


Our nurses were amazing - and their commenting that I was a rock star for getting to 10 centimeters naturally certainly helped my adrenaline and excitement surge. :D We arrived at the hospital a bit after 11 am and after about 45 minutes of pushing at my own pace with my waves, we welcomed our beautiful baby boy into the world at 12:10 pm. After they suctioned out his nose and mouth to make sure he was breathing fine, Justin cut his cord and we was brought quickly to me for skin-to-skin bonding time. What an amazing moment that was; I was and am overwhelmed still by his magnificent features and perfectly-created little self. I had a bit of bleeding they needed to get under control, so Justin got to hold him for a nice long while, and after scrutinizing him and a little discussion, we decided he was our Andrew William.