Thursday, August 9, 2012

A Baby Story - Day 3

June 7
08:00
After a long day and night of nothing happening, we were beginning to wonder if, in fact, I would ever have this child. Kyle predicted Coen would be born at 4pm and I guessed 8pm or never. We waddled into the delivery room ready for some good news. Once the midwife checked that I was still only 1 centimeter dilated, she gave me 50mg of the German induction pill and told me to come back in 4 hours.


12:00
Kyle and I used the time to sleep and had a solid 3 hour nap which felt like the longest stretch of sleep I’d had in a few months. I woke up feeling the best I’d felt in months as well which was terrible considering I was trying to move this labor along…I honestly didn’t feel a single contraction. So, once more, we made the waddle to the delivery room. I explained to the midwife how great I felt and as I lay on the bed monitoring the contractions I wasn’t having, THEY started.


13:00
By ‘THEY’ I mean real labor contractions, the kind that hurt like nothing you could describe. I had gone through about 4 midwives by this time and my favorite one was back on duty, Ann-Marie, the 20 year old who still cared about her patients and was excited to be at work. She showed me how to use the exercise ball and hanging rope to get through the contractions and drew me an aromatherapy bath (grapefruit). The bath wasn’t as helpful as the ball/rope so I went back to the room and when she put her hand on the small of my back during a contraction, the pain magically reduced to something tolerable! Unfortunately, Kyle’s man hands weren’t as effective, but still helped significantly which made the labor pains manageable. Since my risk of infection was high from my water breaking, they were limiting examinations and wouldn’t check my dilation until “delivery pains” started. Ann-Marie said I would “just know” the difference when the delivery contractions started but I remember thinking how will I possibly know the difference (which I can laugh about now). I begged her to check again because I felt like they were getting worse and after enough begging she told me to lay down and she’d check.


15:00
As I laid on the delivery bed, BAM, delivery contractions started. By BAM, I mean I felt like a gorilla punched me from the inside. Ann-Marie checked and, yes, I was 10 centimeters dilated. She rushed around the room gathering materials and saying ‘don’t push’, which is the worst thing to hear when your body is using every ounce of energy to force you to push, but she helped direct my breathing to get past the first few contractions until she and the doctor were ready.

Kyle was absolutely perfect the entire time; timing contractions, making sure I drank enough water, starting and re-starting the labor playlist and keeping me smiling and laughing during contractions. As soon as I was situated on all fours to push, he stayed at the head of the bed, holding my hand and squeezing it through pushes.


16:10
Coen Robert Stramara is born! All 7lbs 13 oz and 20inches of him! He was immediately placed so I could see him and when I reached to him he grabbed my finger and I instantly felt an unexplainable love. Hellooooooo motherhood!

I positioned myself to lay down and after Kyle cut his umbilical cord he was placed on my chest for some skin-to-skin time. Kyle held him as the doctors finished up their business with me which took a little longer than normal because I had a few issues that I’ll spare you from.

Once the room was cleared out of doctors, the nurse took Coen’s stats and then left Kyle, Coen and I to spend some family time alone. We called our parents and siblings to tell them the good news and celebrated via cell phone and Skype.



The next few days were a blur of love, check-ups, German hospital food and waiting to get the all clear to go home, which finally came on Sunday the 10th.
loving him

loving hospital food

NOT loving see-through meat

We took Coen home to meet his sister Love and be one big happy family!

Getting ready for the Autobahn

Love kissed her brother!!

Love loves her brother!!!

1 comment:

  1. That was a fast birth! (well minus the 2 days of not much happening after water breaking) Youre lucky you weren't in the stated they would have made you have a c-section after a 24 hour window of your water breaking.... actually despite your random German drug you really got your ideal birth which is amazing!. I'm proud of you for sticking with your plan and going all natural! what a woman!

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