If you're on social media, you probably saw my post on Friday evening, admitting that I'd been duped by false labor...
It was embarrassing, but I wanted to document it so we could look back and laugh.
In fact, I came close to the same event with Isaac. I was 36weeks pregnant when my usual braxton-hicks contractions started getting strong enough that we dropped the kids at a neighbor's and headed for the hospital. But then they subsided on the drive in, so Josh and I went to Waffle House for a late-night snack and to see if they came back. They didn't, and Isaac was born 3 weeks later.
I was not eager to repeat this episode, but the problem--as anyone will tell you--is that EVERY LABOR IS DIFFERENT. It helps make the whole experience (and last month of pregnancy) so fun and exciting, but it's also what makes real labor surprisingly difficult even for a 4-time mom to identify.
But what threw everyone for a loop, was Josh's post 10 hours later...
Wait...What? I thought it was false labor?
If you're interested in the skinny on how that produced a baby in 12 hours -- or you're just a sucker for birth stories like I am, read to your heart's content...but don't be surprised if it's TMI. I want a record for the baby book, so as usual, I'm writing more for us than for you. ;)
From the Top
8:40am - It all started Friday morning as I was getting breakfast with the boys: I lost the mucus plug. It's an odd little part of pregnancy that can happen hours or weeks before labor kicks in. I saw it a couple hours before labor began with Noah, but never noticed it with Aaron or Isaac. I texted Josh and my mom just to let them know it could be a sign--or not. Josh replied, "let me know if you feel any contractions!!!!!! the second you do!!!" and my mom packed a bag "just in case."
I continued to feel a little odd, with minimal appetite, more painless contractions, more "discharge" (as the OB folks call that vague stuff we leak during pregnancy from unknown origins for unknown reasons). But I went about my business...
1:40pm - I felt a pop and watery fluid leak out. I texted Josh, who was on Skype with an interviewee when my message appeared on his screen:
I called the OB office, and based on my symptoms, they said I should head to OB Triage at the hospital. I was feeling really uncertain -- what was going on? The only other time my water broke at home, it was a gush deserving a towel, and then I didn't have productive contractions until they gave me pitocin 12 hours later. This was a small little gush, so could it be something else? But what? Or was my water leaking without breaking all the way? (I'd heard of this happening.) But even if this was for real, how long before we saw some progress down there?
Josh and Mom arrived, we re-packed for the hospital and changed our plans for Friday/Saturday (we were supposed to close on our old house at 4:30pm then take the boys to West Side Story at 7pm). Then I just paced in the family room, tracking my contractions which were frequent (3:20, 3:23, 3:28, 3:31...) but still painless. Finally, we left for the hospital so we could know for sure.
Round One
4:30pm - We walked the halls until a room became available. The contractions were still frequent and stronger than usual, but not painful. Then the nurse came in to check my progress and deliver the bad news: I was 2.5cm dilated and 50% effaced, but my "bag of waters" looked intact.
I was really surprised. And disappointed. And embarrassed. Even with my constant second-guessing, it had definitely felt like something was happening. In hindsight, I should have paid a little more attention to the dilation/effacement, since I don't usually do any of that until labor begins. But at this point, we were too focused on my waters...
So they dismissed us, and we started to spread the word: false alarm. :(
6:30pm - Then, in honor of our false start with Isaac, we set out for Waffle House -- except I spotted Cracker Barrel next door and suddenly HAD TO HAVE their cornbread. I'd lost my appetite all day but was finally able to eat a good meal -- which would serve me well...
I remember getting in the car after dinner and telling Josh, These contractions are not normal. They're definitely stronger. But I guess they could still go away... Plus, they were at irregular intervals now, so we drove home and went to bed early, exhausted.
One Way or The Other
9:30pm - Except that I could not possibly sleep. Josh was snoring next to me as I lay there in the dark, recording each contraction on my phone. They were continuing at odd intervals, so my mind was racing. Would they die down or pick up? When there was a 30 minute break around 11pm, I figured they were abating and took some Unisom to help me sleep. Besides, this was too early for me to be in real labor, right? I was only 37 weeks, and I've always had babies within 4 days of my due date...
But then I'd have another contraction, and now they were uncomfortable. I called my mom, and she decided to come spend the night, just in case.
12:40am - I felt another little gush of fluid and the contractions seemed to reach a new level of discomfort -- of pain now. They were still 10 minutes apart, but the pain was getting to the point that I didn't care about the timing anymore. I woke Josh to say we'd better go back to the hospital. Real or not, I was going to need some drugs...
Still, they were 10min apart in the car, and I started wondering if I'd woken him too soon. I suggested maybe we should wait in the car to see if they got closer together. He just laughed and said, "You're in labor; we probably shouldn't stay in the parking garage." True. So we walked back to OB Triage for the 2nd time in 10 hours...
Round Two
2:00am - And just like that, it was suddenly obvious that I was in labor. The nurse took one look and said I was 5cm, 100% effaced, and my waters were clearly broken. Plus, I was in pain. But also THRILLED. Ecstatic (at least between contractions). We WOULD get to meet Baby Girl today! Not another three weeks of waiting, TODAY! Woohoo!!
They put me in a wheelchair and rolled us to Labor and Delivery, where they found I was at 7cm. Then, they brought the drugs, and I was DE-LIGHTED to feel the pain ease, the relief spread, the rest settle on me like a blanket.
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| Dr. Weeks, me, Josh, and Cameron (overnight nurse) |
6:00am - The contractions were getting stronger, breaking through the epidural's "protective wall" and the pressure was building. My OB (Dr. Amy Weeks, who was also my first OB when I was 20yrs old) was miraculously the one on duty, so she started to gather the troops for me to push.
6:51am - It took 2 contractions worth of pushing, and there was the dark hair, the squawlky cry, and they were literally pulling Baby Girl out of me and up onto my belly, then chest. Instant skin-to-skin, where she stayed for 2+ hours.
There is nothing like those moments when you finally meet the person who's been growing and hiccuping and elbowing you from the inside. It's a miracle. A life-changing, mind-blowing, heart-stopping miracle (that happens to millions of people each year, but still...). The journey that has been the last nine months is finally complete, and there she is: a teeny little human with all the parts, sucking her thumb on your chest.
Welcome to the world, Baby Girl.
Welcome to the world, Baby Girl.
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