Nathans Birth Story September 10, 2019

HAPPY BIRTHDAY NATHAN! 

Little Nathans due date was September 6th. Which also happened to be our 5 year wedding anniversary. I was hoping that he'd either come before or after,, because I didn't want to share my anniversary with a birthday for the rest of forever. When i'd gone in for my last appointment the week of, I was dilated to a 3.5, so I felt sure he'd be here any day. Sept 6th came and passed. I'd lost my mucus plug and had a bloody show on the 4th/5th.
Dr Watkins suggested that I get induced on Monday the 9th since she was on call at the hospital, and she was afraid that he was going to be a huge baby. They did an ultrasound on the 3rd, and guestimated that he was 8lbs 8oz. She knew that I wanted to go natural and said that the sooner the smaller. haha. I went in for an appointment Monday the 9th to get checked and see if I was progressing and maybe get my membranes stripped. I was still at a 3.5. ugh. She scheduled me to get induced that night at 7:30, stripped my membranes, and told me to go walk. So, we went and walked alllllll over the Sugarloaf Mills mall. I was exhausted. We ate lunch at Panda Express, then James suggested that I do one of those massage chairs. It was amazing. It felt so nice. We also bought Benson a gift from baby brother that we'd give to him at the hospital. We landed on the Spiderman backpack.
We went home and James ran all of our last minute errands and I tried to take a nap since I knew I probably wouldn't be sleeping much that night. Amber and Stephen had Benson, and told us to just take the day and do whatever we needed. We went to say goodbye to him around 6pm. I was feeling all kinds of nostalgic knowing that this was my last moments with him just being my only baby. I've worried so much that he would feel misplaced by the new baby, or that we didn't love him as much. He's been my best little buddy for so long just he and I. I'm so grateful for the 3.5 solid years that we've had together. He's such a good little boy. I kept trying to cuddle and love on him, but he had no interest and just wanted to play. haha little stinker. <3.
We got to the hospital at 7:30pm and got all checked in. It still didn't feel real that we were about to do this! After getting back to the delivery room they checked me to see if i'd progressed at all. NOTHING! Still at a 3.5. All of that walking for nothing!! haha. The nurse laughed and said that really didn't do anything to help induce labor. ugggghhh! Then they tried to get an IV port in my arm..... 4 tries later I had three very bruised sections on both arms, and an IV in my left wrist. I've never had a problem with nurses finding a good vein, so I was super annoyed at all the failed attempts. The worst one was on my right arm. Every time the blood pressure cuff went off, the whole region just throbbed!

They finally got me on the Pitocin and the Penicillin(I was strep B positive) about 9pm. They said that the monitor was picking up a slight contraction every 13 or so minutes before they started me on the medication. So I guess that was something. Dr (Melanie)Watkins  phoned the nurse and said I needed to have two doses of the Penicillin, four hours apart. They put me on a slow Pitocin drip and said I would need to stay in bed until I was contracting on my own, so, probably a few hours. I told the nurses that I was planning on doing hypnobirthing and went over several of my preferences. (Low lights, quiet, no interns or students, go through James not me so I could focus, delayed cord clamping, leave the vernix on baby, etc) Then the nurses left us be.
We chatted, I read some more out of the hypnobirthing book about birthing positions, and trying to go over positive affirmations before stuff got real. James went out to the car to get our game Splendor. This was around 11PM. While he was gone, Dr Melanie came in and said she was going to break my water to get the party started. Thats always such a weird sensation. Don't mind me... I'm just leaking all over the bed. haha. James came back in and was like, wait a second! whats going on!?! Everytime I leave soemthing goes down! When I was delivering Benson he stepped out to the hallway to call his family and when he came back ten minutes later I was on oxygen. He freaked out. haha.
After she broke my water they gave me some mesh panties and a giant maxi pad and unhooked me from everything and gave me a birthing ball in case I wanted to use it. James and I played a game of Splendor (which I won), and then the contractions started to get a little stronger. The nurse came in and checked the babies heartbeat to make sure everything was progressing and that he was ok. They said they would unhook me for 40 minutes at a time, then monitor heart rate for 20 minutes. I haaaaaate the dumb monitor they hooked around my stomach. It felt so distracting. Around midnight, we heard the woman on the other side of our wall screaming bloody murder, and then a baby cry. That was a little intimidating knowing I was going into this hoping to do it without medication. We looked at each other and kind of gulped.

Shortly after that, I felt like I needed to get in the zone, so we pulled out the wireless headphones and James noise cancelling, shooting headphones. I told the nurse I was going to phase her out at this point and for her to talk to James from here on out. I was hooked up to all the cables and crap, so I sat on the birthing ball and just got in the zone. It was seriously the coolest thing. I'd been having regular contractions every 2 minutes and they'd been getting stronger, but once I started listening to my afirmation tracks on Youtube, I honest to goodness couldn't feel the contractions! There was NO pain. I mainly focussed on my breathing. Breath in for 4, out for 8. Every once in a while I would feel butterflies in my stomach, which I assume were somehow related to the contractions. That particular youtube track was about 25 minutes, and I think I barely felt maybe 2 contractions the whole time. It was crazy. And awesome. I kept thinking, I know these are happening. But holy cow I can't feel them. 
I got in the bathtub for about an hour, and things definitely started getting more intense. James helped push on my lower back to create counter pressure to the contractions and that helped a ton. I'd eaten a granola bar sometime earlier before things picked up, and while I was in the bathtub I felt like I needed to throw up.... So... that happened. Fortunately James was nearby so he handed me a trashcan in time. I'd been at it for about 3 hours at this point and was starting to feel a little impatient. Shortly after this, the nurse came in again and wanted to check babies heartbeat. Which was frustrating, because they'd totally throw off my groove every time they came in and got all up in my business. So, James blocked the door. I had no idea any of this was happening, until Dr Melanie showed up because he had told them to leave me alone and let me focus on being in the zone. 

She had me come and lay down on the bed so she could check my progress. She asked if I wanted to know how far along I was, and I told her no. I was afraid that I would only be at like a 5 or something and feel discouraged. About this time, the contractions started feeling really painful, but I figured that it was because they'd completely thrown me out of my state of relaxation and zen. After struggling through several strong contractions, I asked her if *hypothetically* it was too late to ask for an epidural. I was semi considering it, but mostly wanted to know how far along I was without actually asking how far along I was. She hesitated for a second, then said that hypothetically I could still get one, but that she believed in me, and knew I could do this without it. (She knew I really really wanted to do it natural. So I really appreciated her enthusiasm.) More than anything though, what I gleaned from her answer, was that I was right on the border of not being able to get one, which meant I was most likely at a 7. Which felt a little defeating because I thought i'd been at this long enough to be farther along. I gripped James hand and the side of the bed as Melanie talked me through some intense contractions, and "riding the waves" back down to the release of the surges. She started chatting with the nurses, making it sound like she'd be back to check on me in a bit, when all of the sudden, I felt like it was go time and that I needed to start pushing.

Honestly it felt like I needed to poop. When I was pushing with Benson, I was trying to refocus my efforts to where I thought I needed to push, not realizing, I was completely missing the muscle zone needed. I pushed for 2.5 hrs with him, and it was so rough. This time around was SO different.

Hypnobirthing birthing strategy is to "breathe baby out." Pushing is not part of the mantra. The idea is, you're so relaxed, your body does all the pushing for you, and the baby kind of ... blossoms out of your body. You only push when you feel like your body is indicating that is the next step.

Anyways, I was so excited that it was time, but it was like, all my practicing kicked in all of the sudden and I was able to completely relax and get in the zone. Things quit hurting, and I was super calm. They all started running around getting me situated and everything ready. I was on my right side, with the bed angled up about 45 degrees to help with gravity. They lifted my left leg up into the stirrup, and Melanie stood down there to catch him. It was SUCH a different experience this time around. I felt so in control of my body, and PRESENT in the moment. I wasn't mentally exhausted or numb, and I felt so in tune with how this whole process was supposed to go. And it didn't hurt! As each contraction surged, I felt him coming closer and closer to coming out. I definitely could have done more "breathing out" but I was so excited.
After the first contraction when I knew it was time, it was almost like I was able to tense certain muscles, and keep him where he was so we didn't lose the momentum of the last surge. With the next contraction, I felt things start opening up, and I knew I was at the largest part of his head. I remember thinking, "huh.. I think this is the "ring of fire." But it DIDN'T HURT! It was for reals crazy. With the third contraction I felt him slide right out. It was such an amazing sensation. My placenta delivered a few minutes later, and Melanie pushed it around in the container a minute and showed me what it looked like up close. SO cool!

I asked them to not cut the umbilical cord until it had stopped pulsing blood into the baby, and that they didn't immediately wipe off all of the vernix. I'd read a lot of studies that talk about the benefits of extended placental connection, and the benefits of vernix. Dr Melanie was always so incredibly obliging to all the different things I asked to do with this birth. I didn't want to seem all bossy and like a weirdo, but  she was so cool about it all.

As soon as he came out, they made sure his airway was clear, then immediately placed him on my chest. (well, as far up as the umbilical cord would allow him to come.) He. Was. MAD. He immediately started crying, and crying LOUD. James and I both just looked at each other and kind of laughed. He was definitely louder than Benson had been. He cried for a little bit, letting me know how he felt, but then he kind of just burrowed into my arms and chest and mostly calmed down. (Letting out occasional yells, so I didn't forget about him. lol). He was so perfect and precious, and huge! He was born at 3:48 am. 8 lbs 15 oz, and 22 inches long.

I got to hold him for an hour before they took him to clean him up and weigh him and all that jazz. I tried nursing, but my dang nipples are so flat that I had to use the silicone witch hat thing that helps babies with the sucking reflex. I know I said it before, but this was seriously such a different experience than my first. With Benson, i'd been in labor for so long, I almost felt delirious. I was exhausted, and my brain felt ... mushy. I was starving, and due to the epidural, I couldn't feel my legs or walk for over 24 hrs. James had to carry me to the bathroom, and I had to have a catheter to pee until the sensation wore off. It was so embarrassing. I felt like an invalid. With Nathan, I was able to get out of bed, walk to the toilet, go pee, then walk over to the wheelchair where they wheeled me up to the recovery room. And I was able to chat and have a real conversation with the nurses, doctor, and James. I was present, and felt so powerful. It was such a special experience. One of the nurses was totally baffled that I had handled labor so well. No screaming or crying, or any medication. She said she was out in the hallway googling things about hypnobirthing because she'd never seen anyone try and do it.

We got wheeled up to the recovery room just as they were switching nurses. It was about 6:30....7am. ish. And I was TIRED. I'd been up all night laboring, and just wanted to sleep. I asked the nurses to mostly just leave us alone for a while while I tried to get some rest. I was amazed at how little they bothered us this time. With Benson, I felt like they came in every single hour. But this time around, probably because I wasn't a first time mom, they left us be until almost noon. They brought me breakfast at 8, but otherwise, we were mostly undisturbed. Which was awesome.

James went and got Benson to come and meet him that afternoon, and Sammy Heil came with him to take pictures. It was such a sweet thing of her to do for us. I'll cherish them forever <3.

My parents flew in on the 10th, and came to see us a the hospital the next day. We gave Nathan his middle name Neil, after my dad's middle name. 

Heidi Simpson came to visit while we were in the hospital, and she brought me an Edible Arrangement basket. It was so incredibly sweet of her.

Going Home <3

Benson was playing with the chest clip on our carseat, literally minutes before discharge, and he broke the clip. We had to call the Rooses and borrow their carseat to get him home. haha

Headed home