James' Birth
I had trouble getting pregnant due to polycystic ovaries and needed to take Clomid in order to conceive. My pregnancy started out pretty uneventful aside from the horrible morning sickness that lasted well into my fourth month. At 28 weeks I was diagnosed with Gestational Diabetes and had to carefully monitor my blood sugars. I was able to control it through diet and did not have to go on insulin.
I was monitored by ultrasounds to watch the baby's weight, because if he (with all those ultrasounds, we were able to find out the sex) grew too large I was facing a possibility of a scheduled c-section - something I *definitely* did not want. I had wanted to avoid having an epidural because of fear and it is a necessity for c-sections.
Starting at 36 weeks I went in twice a week for non-stress tests. We had a scare once when the baby wouldn't respond and I had to go to the hospital for monitoring but he was just snoozing. At 39 weeks, it was determined that the baby was too close to 9 lbs., my OB's cut off for a vaginal delivery and she strongly recommended that I schedule surgery. With more than a few tears, I scheduled surgery for May 4th, his actual due date. The out of town family was notified.
Meanwhile, my husband and I had been laying ceramic tile in our kitchen and bathrooms since my 35th week. Yep, I was down there laying tile, pulling out spacers, cleaning grout, etc. It was kind of crazy, but actually other than being enormous, I felt better than had during the earlier trimesters. I had extra amniotic fluid along with that chunky baby and was measuring 3-4 weeks larger than my dates. We finished the tile on Sunday, April 26th and had new carpet installed on Monday and Tuesday. I had been gradually swelling more and more but it reached a critical point on that Monday and I was told to stay off my feet. I had not packed a bag or finished the baby's room because of the remodeling. My mom planned to take Friday, May 1st off to help me tie up last minute details.
Well, bright and early on the morning of May 1st, I got out of bed at about 5:30 because I was in a lot of hip and back pain at that point and couldn't sleep flat for much more than 4 or 5 hours. I got up to go to the bathroom and to move to the couch. I was also fighting a bladder infection and had to pee constantly. At about 6 am I felt a dribble down my leg and figured that I needed to go to the bathroom again so off I waddled. Thank goodness I was standing on the tile! I started leaking more, grabbed a towel that happened to be on the couch and started calling for my husband. I was pretty sure that my water had broken. No hubby...hmm...so I waddled into the bedroom with this beach towel between my legs and there he is, snoring away. He did not wake up until I smacked him a few times on the arm...sigh.
We made a few phone calls and were told to go directly to the hospital. I called my mom and told her to meet us at Labor and Delivery rather than at my house. So much for finishing up the house, the hospital bag, or the nursery. I was pretty excited because I thought I was going to get out of having the cesarean. The contractions were very mild and irregular at that point.
After arriving at the hospital, yup, water was broken alright and I was admitted. They hooked me up to the external monitors and we waited until my OB stopped by. When she got there, she wasn't happy with the progress of my labor. I wasn't even in active labor so she suggested pitocin to speed things up. This was about 10:30am or so. That was fun. The contractions of course were closer together and stronger. Every once in awhile I would have a real doozy that would cause me to vomit. By about 2:30pm I wasn't a very happy camper although I *was* still cracking jokes. They suggested a shot of Nubain to take the edge off and help with the vomiting. I love Nubain. I immediately fell asleep for over an hour and the contractions were manageable.
My OB stopped by at the end of the day (5ish) to check on me. At that point, I was only 70% effaced and 5 cm dilated. She said that it looked like I might have to have a c-section since my pelvis wasn't allowing the baby's head to engage. I decided to go ahead and have the epidural because I figured I was probably going to need to have the section anyways and why suffer any more than I had to. I had an incredibly good anesthesiologist and still being goofy from the Nubain definitely helped. I didn't feel a thing. The block was very good and amazingly, I was still able to move my legs.
So, I hang out like this for a couple more hours. I had my husband, mom, grandmother, and sister-in-law who flew in that morning from L.A. there keeping me company. I could feel his head knocking at the door, but he just wasn't dropping. At 9pm, the on-call OB came in and asked me what I wanted to do. They were willing to let me go longer if I wanted to. But, at that point, I was so tired and I just wanted my baby. I was prepped for surgery and whisked away. James Alexander was born at 9:29 p.m., May 1st, 1998 and weighed in at 9lbs 5 oz. and was 21 inches long. Wow! No wonder he didn't come out normal channels.
He was a beautiful baby, born with a full head of dark, dark hair. I fell in love instantly! He nursed within an hour of birth. I had a wonderful experience with the caregivers at the hospital.
