Fast and Furious

Warning this is very long winded. I haven't left out much, partly so I can remember.
I wanted to go epidural free this time around. I was determined. I also didn't want to be induced since that dramatically increases the need/want for an epidural. I read books, sewed rice bags (for heat packs), packed essential oils and clothing for the jacuzzi. I was ready to labor medicine free.
My due date was January 18 and my ultrasound due date was January 19.

Tuesday January 18, 2011
I picked my mother in law Lauri up from the airport in the morning. Lauri would be here from Tuesday to Saturday baby or no baby. The trouble was that my back up babysitter would be leaving town on Sunday for her daughter to have a baby. So I needed to have Nola soon.
2:20pm I had my 40 week doctor appointment. 3 cm dilated 90% effaced. The doctor informed me I was his most due patient, just what I wanted to hear. I asked about having my membranes stripped. He said that it isn't proven to make much difference. His theory is if you go into labor after having your membranes stripped you were already destined to have the baby soon. I asked does it help sometimes? As he was wrapping up the appointment he said lets do it, it won't hurt.
As I left I scheduled an induction for Friday with Sally the nurse. She informed me that by faxing in the induction paperwork it had magical powers that would put me into labor. Boy was she right.
I headed to Trader Joe's because I realized I needed to feed my family and veggie pizza sounded delicious. I was having contractions. But I had had 9 days of false labor around 37 weeks so contractions were nothing new to me.
When I got home Lauri and I chatted while we made pizza. It was so good.

5:30pm I texted Tyson and told him not to plan on going back into work because I was pretty sure I was in labor. I has having steady contractions but could still carry on as normal.
After dinner I packed the hospital bag.

7pm Tyson got home. We got the kids in bed and chatted some more with Lauri.
I really wanted to labor at home. But because I am group b strep positive and my last labor was fast I knew I needed to head to the hospital soon, for my 4 hours of antibiotics. If I didn't get 4 hours I would be released from the hospital at 24 hours and Nola would become her own patient and would need to stay a total of 48 hours. The trouble with her becoming her own patient is I would then have to pay a copay and deductible for her and me. We would also need to move rooms. So I was trying to avoid all of this.

We arrived at the hospital at 10pm. I was brought into the triage assessment area. Got all hooked up.

10:30pm 3 1/2cm dilated
Let's just say the nurse was not impressed and didn't think I was in labor. She wanted me to walk for an hour to see if it really was labor. I had no doubt. But before I could walk they needed the baby to have a variable heart rate for 15 minutes. This is were the heart rate goes up and down as apposed to it being static like it was.

11:10pm We are sent on a walk. In the beginning I was walking through the contractions. During the hour walk I had to pee not joking 8 or 9 times. So our route was planned around the bathrooms. By 11:40pm I definitely was not walking or talking when a contraction hit.

Wednesday January 19, 2011
12:15am The nurse checked me again and to her surprise, not mine I was 4-5cm. She called my doctor who was on call and in the hospital to have him order antibiotics.

12:45am We arrived into my labor and delivery room. I sent Tyson to get our bags out of the car. The nurse then tried to get the IV in. It didn't go so well. She said that the vain was rolling with the needle in it. So she was trying to roll it back. Ouch. Second attempt much better. Yesterday a friend said it looks like I am a drug user. I am still bruised.

1am I started shaking really bad and I was freezing. Dr arrives checks me and I am 7-8cm dilated. He told the nurse to get the table ready because I would go fast.

1:05am I throw up my delicious pizza and Italian Soda during a contraction which is quite a feat. At least I had chewed well.

1:10am I got up to go to the bathroom. Had to stand up twice while in the bathroom because the contractions were so intense. When finished I opened the door and the nurse asked if I needed to push. I said no. She asked if I wanted to get in the jacuzzi, since I didn't want an epidural. I said yes. Walked to the bed and saw that there was blood 2 1/2 to 3 feet up the iv tube. I couldn't even speak I just pointed. The nurse kid you not said "what did you do?" All I could think was what a funny thing to say to someone in so much pain. While she is fiddling with the iv I manage to say I need to push. At this point I am having a very hard time speaking, forming words and even coming up with answers in my head. There was some talk as to whether the nurse should check me or get the doctor. At this point the triage nurse is still trying to turn me over to the labor nurse. They decided to get the doctor but didn't know which way he went to sleep. Luckily Tyson was paying attention when the doctor left and pointed Raisa the nurse in the right direction.
I couldn't get on the bed I was holding on to the bedrail through a brutal contraction. The doctor arrives and asked be to get on the bed so he could check me. But another contraction came and I didn't move. Finally I was able to get half way on the bed when I told the doctor I needed to brake my water. He said okay then push. I did and my water broke.

1:15am Doctor checked and confirmed I was indeed ready to have this baby. My arms and legs were tingling. I ask if that was okay, they answered but I couldn't understand, so I asked again. Finally I heard a nurse say "Megan you are hyperventilating you need to slow down your breathing". Finally I understood. The nurse was trying to get the monitors hooked back up with no luck. I start pushing. The nurses were busy still trying to get the room ready for Nola's arrival. So Tyson was the only one by my side as I was pushing.
At some point during the pushing the doctor was giving me an instruction and I remember say to him "I have no idea what you are talking about". I was amazed how my ability to process even the simplest thing was gone. I could only focus on one thing and that was having the baby.

1:27am The Doctor finally gets an internal fetal monitor on and her heartbeat is only 99, which is very low.

On my last contraction Tyson starts to blackout. The nurses have him sit and get him juice.

1:30am Nola is set on my chest, Tyson chugs the juice and gets up. The cord was around her neck 3 times. She was posterior (face up). I pushed for 3 contractions. They told me her weight but I couldn't retain any of the info they said so I asked several times. I also asked 3 times "Is it a girl? Are you sure?". The worst part was I knew they had already told me all of the info and that I just couldn't remember it.

The shaking returns with a new force that is unbearable. The shakes lasted for about 2 hours. I had a second degree tear, minor. But I could feel each stitch being sown. The labor was over but I had little relief for about an hour.

So it took 3 hours to go from 3 1/2 cm to baby born. After she was placed on my chest I couldn't even lift up my head. All I wanted to do was see her face but I had no strength. I think it was 20 minutes later when finally she was wrapped up and Tyson brought her to me and held her up to my face.
And this picture sums up how I felt after.
But it was all worth it for one reason..Little Miss Nola.

6 lbs 15 oz

Peaceful.

All and all it was as planned. I wish it could have slowed down a bit. It was such a whirlwind at the end. I didn't get to use my rice bags or essential oils. There comes a point in labor you move past trying to manage the pain to just trying to make it through it. Luckily for me just trying to make it through it only last 15 minutes.