I can't believe I'm finally writing this post! The third trimester was so hard on me and felt so long, I honestly felt like I was going to be pregnant forever. Before I get into my birth story I must say there's no baby app, article, or advice from anyone that will prepare you for labor. I must have read up on birth and delivery so much during my last trimester but all of that went out the door when it was time for me to experience it.
The last week of July I went into my doctor's office for my 39-week appointment. The baby was full-term happy and healthy. However like I said before the last trimester hit me so hard especially as the days got closer. I told my doctor about how I had been feeling and I was diagnosed with anxiety. With my doctors ok, my husband and I decided an induction was the right decision at the moment for my sake and the baby's sake. On August 1st we were admitted to the hospital to start my induction. I was nervous, scared, and excited to meet baby girl. Once the process started with the first set of medicine I started feeling contractions right away. I always thought what do contractions feel like and now that I experienced them I can say that shit hurts like hell! Lol By the end of the first day I was only dilated 3 centimeters and I felt so disappointed. My doctor did warn us that being induced can take up to 3 days before any real action happens but I was in so much pain from day 1 I wasn't sure how much longer my body could take. By day 2 my body was still responding very slow to the medicine so they moved on to other measures to help me dilate faster. They tried a mechanical dilator and all I can say that was extremely painful and a little traumatizing mentally. I thought for sure this was going to work and help me dilate faster. By the end of day 2, I had only dilated about 4-5 centimeters total. I felt a little hopeless and my body was exhausted and in so much pain.
Day 3 (Friday) I couldn't take the pain anymore so the hell with my birth plan and I asked for an epidural. I dreaded getting an epidural from the beginning of this pregnancy but when push came to shove I asked for it. They had to try the epidural three times on my back because the needle just wasn't going through where it had to. They ended up doing a spinal catheter instead and in the middle of the procedure my water broke and I started to have a panic attack right at that moment. After that I don't remember much because I started to feel like I was going in and out of conscious and I couldn't breathe. I do remember the amazing nurse that held my hand the whole time calling for back up and her telling me to stay with her. After that, I remember waking up with an oxygen mask on and about 6 nurses and doctors in the room. That's when I had learned I was in the middle of having the spinal catheter entered while my water broke and while I was having a panic attack. That's a lot going on in one shot! After that whole ordeal happened and I was numb from the waist down I asked my husband to touch my toes. He thought it was pretty funny but being numb from the waist down while your brain is telling you to move your toes and you can't, can mess with your mind. You kind of think you are paralyzed.
I finally got some sleep now that I wasn't feeling the contractions and by the afternoon the doctors came in to check how much I was dilated. I really thought I was going to hear the magical number but I was only dilated 5. By then the doctors told us that my body wasn't dilating and I had already been in the hospital for 3 days they weren't sure how much more my body could take. Later on, we found out because of the way the baby was positioned it was letting me dilate.
Again my birth plan when out the door and we trusted our doctors and went for a c-section. My body felt a sense of relief but at the same time, I was scared. I never read up on c- sections because I was set on a vaginal delivery. I did know it was a major abdominal surgery and probably had a much longer recovery. Once we opted for the c-section everything moved pretty fast! I was prepped and my husband was in scrubs in about 10 mins then I was being wheeled into the room. I should have prefaced this blog post by letting you know I have never broken a bone or had surgery before so being in that room getting ready to be opened was a little scary for me. At exactly 8:35 pm on Friday, August 3rd I heard more of a laugh than a cry and saw this blue baby being held up over the blue curtain in front of me. I honestly couldn't believe my daughter was here! Hearing her cry while she was being cleaned and weighed had me in tears the whole time. After I was closed up and I finally got to hold her, it was the best feeling in the world that I just can't describe into words.
Leah Cristina
6 pounds - 11 ounces - 19.5 inches
Recovering from the c-section while adjusting to life with a newborn has been hard but I must say my husband has been amazing through it all. Becoming parents to Leah Cristina has been the best thing to happen to us.
XO
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