Birth Story

The stats:
Baby girl, Indra Alexandra
Born via cesarean (breech) on 9/16/09 at 7:17am
6lbs 2oz 19 ¼ inches long
Apgars 9/9

I expected a routine doctor’s appointment on the 14th, just my GBS results and my cervical check. However, when my OB felt the baby’s bum instead of her head everything changed. While I knew she was breech (head under my ribs for months) and I knew I’d probably need a C-section, I didn’t know my doctor would want to do it on Friday!

I still had a ton of work to do before going on leave. So, I put in nearly 12 hours on Tuesday trying to wrap things up. I intended to do the same on Wednesday… but our little one had other plans!

I woke up Wednesday morning at around 4am to use the bathroom. As I was sitting there, I heard a faint pop, and heard a trickle. I thought to myself, I have way too much to do for my water to have broken! I wiped and there was mucous, a little pink, but I’d been losing mucous a lot lately.

I jumped in the shower, because either way I thought a shower would be a good idea. This is when I felt the first menstrual-like cramps. I got out of the shower and put a pad on. DH came downstairs to check on me. I told him I think maybe my water broke. He was tired (had actually just gone to bed) and I didn’t sound very convincing so he went back to bed. I called the hospital, and was told to come in if I soak the pad or if my contractions get harder.

Sure enough, I felt the need for a more absorbent pad, and my contractions proceeded from dull nagging to painful. I went upstairs and asked DH to wake up and help me finish packing. I thought we had a few more days, so only a few things were in my bag. But, at least I had my list.

At about 5:10am I timed my contractions at 4 minutes apart. I could still walk and talk through them, but they definitely gave me pause. We finished packing way too much stuff and headed out, luckily the hospital was only 10 minutes away. I now know why contractions and cars don’t mix! I think we arrived in emergency shortly before 6:00am. Next came a long brutal walk to L&D, if I knew how long I would’ve taken up their offer for a wheelchair, but I made it!

Finally in my room, I changed into the gown and laid down for a game of 5 million questions, with the questions repeating whenever a new doctor or nurse came into the room. Yes, I had pre-registered. Laying down was awful. They hooked me up to the monitor and asked me how long I’d been contracting like that! But they did tell me I was doing very well with them, and that contractions that strong were usually rated at a 9 on the pain scale. My mom arrived (DH had called her) and I whined that I thought I was going to get to skip the labor part! No such luck.

I squeezed DH’s hand and breathed through the contractions. At some point they gave me a shot of terbutaline to slow my labor down. It did space out the contractions. My OB was called, and decided to come in early for his shift. He did a last minute ultrasound to confirm breech. They prepped me and I rode in a wheelchair to the OR where I sat on the table to receive the spinal. It wasn’t bad at all, the hard part was getting the right curve in my back during contractions. DH said my expression changed instantly when the spinal took hold. My legs felt blissfully warm (not numb yet, just warm) and they told me to go limp so they could lay me down properly. I was actually pretty happy, and excited.

The drape went up and they let me get nice and numb, couldn’t feel a pinch, but I still felt like I could breathe just fine. Mostly I was glad to be through with the contractions. I felt various tugs and pulls when they were operating, but it was more interesting to me than frightening. No pain at all.

It didn’t seem like long at all before I felt some big tugs and heard a cry! I immediately started crying in response. It was 7:17am on my little brother’s birthday. I heard various voices saying how cute she was while they moved the little body to the plastic bassinet in the corner where they could clean her up a little and check her out. She wailed and wailed and I wanted to comfort her so badly! They finally placed her on my chest where I could stroke her cheek and talk to her. Her eyes were open and she was already calming down. She has tons of dark hair and grandma’s nose.

DH carried her to the nursery while they finished stitching me up. I was alert and actually interested as the nurse anesthetist was describing the spinal to a student (I said the students could watch). It didn’t seem to take long before the drape was dropped. It was so weird to see them moving legs that looked like mine but certainly didn’t feel like mine! They transferred me back into my bed and wheeled me back to the room where I stayed for the rest of the hospital experience.

DH came to see me not long after, while my parents were with our baby in the nursery. He showed me pictures from the nursery on the back of the camera. I think she was brought to me at shortly after 9am. I tried nursing her for the first time within the hour, and it went very well.

I was itchy from the drugs, but I said I didn’t want anything for it. I really wanted to stay alert, and I was so happy to spend the next several hours (days) snuggled with our baby. I had some problems with nausea at first, strangely it would always hit me during breastfeeding. Indra was only away from our room once, to get an ultrasound on her hips (a breech thing that will probably resolve itself without intervention). We left the hospital on Friday, I’m recovering nicely, and our little 1 week old baby is doing just fine. At her Dr Appt Tuesday she had already gained an ounce over her birthweight.

Here should be a link to some pics on Photobucket:
http://s194.photobucket.com/albums/z201/faedrake/Indra/

Precious

I promise to post more pictures soon. Alas, the laptop is on my lap, the camera is across the room, and the little one is getting hungry. :)

However, I did want to record these words while they were in my head and heart. She is so precious. She has never been unkind to anyone, never made a mistake, never experienced regret. She is pure and precious and I know now in ways I never quite understood before... why babies are so beloved. Yes, their little features are adoreable and heart-melting, but what they represent is, to me, the greater treasure.

Even as I look forward to her growing awareness and all of the joys and pitfalls it brings... I wanted to make note, and take stock, and love who she is right now.

Indra is here!

The last time I posted, I had a C-Section scheduled for Friday (yesterday). But, our little girl had other plans! She is a whole 3 days old today, her name is Indra Alexandra.

I will post the cliff's notes version of the update until I have a chance to fit in the whole enchilada.

Monday September 14th – Indra is breech! A c-section is scheduled for Friday

Tuesday September 15th – I work a long day to prepare for leave.

Wednesday September 16th
4am – water breaks! Though not with a gush, so I’m in denial
4:30am – contractions start! No more denial. I wake Ryan to help me
pack (he had just gone to bed).
5:10am – contractions are ~4 minutes apart
5:30am – checked into the hospital
6-7ish - received spinal, surgery begins
7:17am - Indra is born with eyes open and crying!
6 lbs 2 oz, 19 ¼ inches, Apgars 9 and 9

Friday September 19th
1:00pm - Finally came home. :)

You can't tell from the pictures, but our precious little girl is tiny in the most adorable possible way. I'll have to find some other pictures that include more stuff for scale. :)





Last but not least, I'm recovering well and we are SO HAPPY to be home. Dad is beyond awesome, I didn't even change a single diaper until yesterday.

Ready or not!!!

I went in today, expecting more of the same. Maybe the results of my GBS test, maybe a little more dilation or effacement (though hopefully not too much more) and that's it. Thanks, see you in a week!

That's not what happened.

My 38 week appointment began as usual, with the happy friendly heartbeat of my baby. But, the pelvic exam brought ominous sounds from my doctor's lips, and a quick call for the ultrasound machine. While the nurse wheeled in C3P0, he said (in more medicalized verbage) that he was feeling butt crack instead of skull plates. The gooey wand confirmed the head I've felt under my right rib for ages.

Yep, she really is breech. He sounded very disappointed, swearing in a near Flandersesque fashion. Me? Not so much. Again, my preferences are for an uncomplicated natural vaginal birth or planned C-Section. Not that I expect anyone to understand my dueling extreme preferences.

What really threw me for a loop is what came next. I dressed and met my doctor in his office for a talk about the options. I already knew I wouldn't be a good candidate for an external version. I already knew vaginal breech births weren't an option at that hospital. What I didn't know is: "Do not pass go, do not go into labor, report for a c-section Thursday or Friday, we'll call to let you know which." Apparently the little girl is wedged in there tight, and he doesn't want her wedged much tighter before having to pull her back up and out.

Thus, I'm going to be a mom in 3-4 days and its blowing my mind. Also, by the way, that timeline that I got my boss to push back was reinstated by my boss's boss. So, that's my top priority. Yuck.

I'm going in to work tomorrow at 5am-ish and probably staying until that late tomorrow night, and maybe the day after as well. Hell, I might as well live at work for the next two days. At least that way I know I will have done as much as I can.

Week 37 Loud and Clear

I was a little freaked out earlier this week, not just by my progress. I've been seeing unmistakable evidence of plug loss over the past couple of days. While I know it could still be weeks, it is another way my body is telling me to get ready! I'm definitely listening now.

So, I managed to wiggle out of some timelines at work yesterday (boss is having medical issues too, so it really makes sense to put some things off to January for both of us). This is a big relief, now I can focus on properly delegating stuff with what time remains for me at work.

DH's timelines changed too, so now he's free to paint the nursery. Finally, we can BOTH focus on the nest, yay! We'll pick up our bassinet and breastpump and a couple of odds and ends today and make some final decisions about a play yard that my mom wants to get us. Then we'll focus inward.

I have the newborn and 0-3 baby clothes washed. They consist of 10 onesies, 6 sleepers with footies, and a couple of sleep gowns. But, I forgot to wash the socks, I'll have to see how many of those we have. If I don't feel we have enough maybe I'll find an easy pattern and knit a pair. Thanks to the generosity of friends and family we haven't had to buy a single clothing item yet. Though we may pick up a gender neutral outfit today, just in case.

Last but not least, I need to finish sanding the furniture so it can be painted. Its supposed to rain tomorrow but I think I can finish the rocking chair today. Hopefully the dresser can wait until Monday or next weekend...

In short...

36 week appointment, baby seems head down to the Dr, I'm 2cm and 80% effaced. Even as tired as I am, moving my office over the first week of school, I have been terrified into action. It could be days or weeks, and I'm hoping for the later.

Time to do more dishes and wash some baby clothes.