Clara’s birth story

Those that are not interested in reading about the labor and delivery are forewarned.

I knew this labor and delivery would be different from Samantha when at 39 weeks I started having contractions one night. For at least 2 hours they were 5 minutes apart, but didn't seem very intense. Feeling very much like a first timer, I called the on-call midwife who suggested maybe getting in a bath and seeing what happens. The contractions panned out and I was able to go back asleep. The next morning I went to the clinic to pretty much go "what on earth was going on last night?" and still felt like a first time mom. We found out I had dilated some (to 3-4 cm) which is good news since I didn't get to that point until at least 15 hours after being induced last time. Cut out 15 hours of labor? awesome.

The next week was extremely busy as I continued to distract myself from the fact that the baby had also dropped during those contractions and it was uncomfortable to sit on anything but a ball. But I also felt great, as my nausea (and a complete mess of my GI tract) of the previous week+ had lifted, and I was able to go and get supplies and buy a "bring home" outfit for the baby. Some of me wanted to go into labor and some of me didn't and since I didn't feel sick I was much more willing to stay pregnant.

On the morning of March 2nd I had my 40 week appointment. I had mentioned once to my mom that my due date was 3-2-1-0 and she thought it'd be pretty cool to have the baby that day (Stephen did too), but I didn't think it'd happen since I hadn't had another bout of contractions since the previous week. The previous week the midwife had also mentioned they could strip my membranes this week if I hadn't gone into labor yet. So, thinking it may do something but not necessarily that it'd be a for sure thing I had her do that. The midwife I saw that day was coming on call at 9pm and also liked the 3-2-1-0 thing and said that I should come in around 9:30 and have the baby at 11:30. 2 hours at the hospital? I thought she was crazy.

I went grocery shopping on the way home to pick up a few things and my back started hurting. I knew the stripping would cause my uterus to do something just because it got irritated, so I just figured it was a bit irritated. Most of the day, however, I spent laying on my side with a heat pad. It was super uncomfortable to even sit in a chair to eat or go on the computer. That night there was a Relief Society Meeting (dinner) at 6:30. I had been getting a bit more uncomfortable around 6 or so but had ultimately decided to go because if I didn't everyone would wonder if I had had the baby. While there I watched the clock a bit and figured out my contractions were about 8-10 minutes apart, and as I sat there I was having a harder time carrying on a conversation without being totally obviously in pain. (I didn't do a very good job, though. I was told later that people were talking about me and that they all thought I looked very uncomfortable.) I decided to go home after eating and get in the tub, instead of staying for the talking part of the evening.

I got home at 7:45 while Stephen was heading to the gym with Samantha. I told him to keep his phone near him and that I was going into the tub. Around 8:20 I decided that I had to focus way too hard through contractions (and they were more like 5 min apart) and called Stephen and told him that his parents probably needed to get Samantha. Stephen called his dad to have him meet him at the gym while he took a quick shower. I hadn't thought I was actually in labor (never gone into labor before), so I hadn't sent Stephen with anything for Samantha. Fortunately, Samantha had taken care of herself. I had gotten in the habit of packing the car in the morning and that day Samantha had decided to bring her backpack to the midwife appointment and had filled it with every diaper she could see in the house. As it was one more thing to carry in, I had left it in the car when we got home. So Stephen gave his dad a bag of diapers and a key to our house if they needed anything.

While waiting for Stephen I had called the midwife and we determined that I should probably head in since I'd had a child before and I was having a hard time talking. So when Stephen got home we tried to get last minute things (that I was not helpful with, I'm glad I had packed the car that morning) and headed off to the hospital. We got to the hospital and I got a wheel chair (back was still killing me) and the security guard waved us through. After a quick "where do we go?" to the guard (we had forgotten where it was), we headed to L&D. They were expecting me in L&D and took me right into triage to be assessed. It was pretty clear that I'd be staying, I was 5 cm dilated.

I had asked for a water birth so they took me to my room and started getting the tub ready. The hospital doesn't have a tub plumbed in, instead it's a portable one (think of a real tall blow-up baby pool) and the nurses were having a heck of a time trying to get the lining in and then filling it up from the sink. I actually wasn't paying attention to them as I was dealing with contractions. But I did hear Stephen ask if they wanted him to start carrying buckets in from the jacuzzi tub that was full. I was around 7 cm when the tub was finally ready and I got in. (I purposely didn't look at the clock at all, except for once later). The warm water instantly took the edge off of the contractions and took the pain away in my back. I was in for a while but my low blood pressure and my low body temp (I average below 98° as a body temperature) got the better of me and my lips and feet started going numb. At first they gave me some oxygen but ultimately pulled me out of the tub.

Out of the tub, my back continued to hurt and as I was in full blown transition everything was a bit more painful intense. The entire time all I could focus on was on an action that my mom mentioned my sister-in-law doing when she was my doula with Samantha's birth. She would always try to get the tone of my voice to go low. Once your groans and voice start going high you're tensing up and the more relaxed you attempt to be the easier dealing with the contractions are. So my entire labor I had a little Sarah on my shoulder telling me to groan lower and lower, I think it helped.

My water broke while I was still out of the tub. I should say it exploded, actually. I'm not really sure what all was going on, but at one point the midwife was checking the color of the amniotic fluid and told Stephen to come look. He said it looked like a white balloon and then all of a sudden he jumped and my midwife was covered. After that I asked to get back in the tub. I knew the pushing was soon to follow and if there is any pain relief in warm water... I wanted it. (It was a bit after 11:30 at this point in time. I remember thinking "really, only 11:30". It had felt like so much longer.)

I think I was most afraid of the actual delivery without meds than anything else. Between some contractions my midwife had said "you can do this" which I quickly said "no I can't" and then chastising myself started chanting to myself like the little engine that could "yes I can, yes I can" trying to be somewhat positive. I even asked after one contraction if it really was too late to get an epidural...

Amazingly, I did do it. Stephen was on the sidelines giving me stats that only an engineer would "1 inch is out! 2 inches! 2 1/2!!!" The midwife reminded me to "breath the head out" to help with the stretching so I wouldn't tear. I reached down at one point and could feel the head making it seem all the more real that, yes there was a reason I felt like this. It felt like forever... and then it was done and there was a baby on my chest with a mop of hair. Longest 4 minutes of my life.

Clara's a great baby. We're having typical latching issues every once in a while. But for the most part she is a completely calm, content baby. She has the cutest little smiles and coos and loves to cuddle. I'm still in awe of her hair, we'll see if it goes light.