Wednesday, May 25, 2011

The Birth Story

I know this is long overdue, but I figured it may not be that interesting anyway. It is kind of long and written to Addilyn because I am making a book that has pictures, letters and stories in it for her. So here it is:


Throughout this pregnancy, I was anxious about just how my precious little baby would enter this world. I thought about all of the things that I may go through to get you out. How would I know when you were ready? How painful would it be? How long would labor last? And so on. Well, I thought I had a pretty good idea of what the answers would be to these questions. However, when the time came, it was not quite what I expected.

Your official due date was May 1st but thankfully you decided to make your debut a week early. Here is your story:
Thursday, April 21 began as a normal day with no work and some cleaning to be done. Your Dad and I had been going on walks the past few night and we had another one planned for this particular evening. The day before, at work I had been telling everyone that I hoped you came that coming weekend, but I had a feeling it just wasn’t going to happen. You see, your Papa (my dad) and your aunt (my sister) had been out of town for about a month and would be arriving home that coming Friday, the 22. I’m glad you had waited thus far so that they would not miss the birth, but I wanted to meet you as soon as possible.
Anyway, back to the story. Soon after your dad arrived home, we leashed up the dogs and headed off to Tempe Town Lake. This is where the fun began! I started feeling very light but obvious contractions. It was exciting yet scary at the same time. I thought that this was it and you would be coming within the next few ours. Little did I know, you had a different plan.
I experienced contractions all night long that night but they were not that strong and very tolerable. Once daylight hit, I was debating whether or not to go into work. I ended up calling in but told your dad he should just go to work because I began to think it may be false labor. However, the contractions got slightly stronger throughout the morning so your dad decided to come home. Since I was planning on delivering you without drugs, we wanted to be together at home for as long as possible before going to the hospital.
We spent most of that Friday walking around the neighborhood and enjoying each other’s company. It was a long day and by six o-clock, you were still high up in my belly. The contractions, though, had become quite strong. We decided that we would eat a light meal and then head over to the hospital with hopes that I was dilated enough for them to keep me there. We arrived at the hospital around seven and I was only at 3cm. That was disappointing. They had me walk around for an hour to see if anything would change before sending me home.
After walking up and down the halls and around the courtyard, I was dilated to 4cm. I mistakenly thought that they would definitely keep then but since I wanted to deliver without drugs, the on-call doctor suggested that I go home and come back when I could no longer stand the pain. The nurse told us that we would probably be coming back within an hour or at least in the early morning, which gave me some hope that it wouldn’t be too much longer now.
Your dad and I headed home, slightly disappointed but optimistic. I had strong contractions all night that became more and more painful. I was prepared to stay home as long as possible before going to the hospital this time. We awoke Saturday morning and walked around the neighborhood a few more times. I also bounced on a yoga ball when I was not walking around. Lying in bed or on the couch was just too uncomfortable. I got sick of walking around the neighborhood and was afraid to stray too far from the house, so we started doing laps around the backyard with the dogs following close behind.
Finally, around noon, we decided it was time to go to the hospital. What a relief it was to find out that I was dilated to 6 ½ cm! They admitted me into a room and the doctor immediately came in to break my water. Surprisingly, that did not hurt. The contractions that followed, however, became extremely painful. With your dad coaching me, and later, your aunt, I was still able to breath through them.
Around 5:30pm or so, dilated at 8 ½ cm, I was extremely uncomfortable and had this tremendous urge to push and could no longer relax the lower half of my body during contractions. The doctor suggested that I get an epidural and I gladly obliged. You see, if you push too early, you could swell and end up having a c-section. I did not want that to happen! So I got the epidural (which was way easier than I thought because of the amazing anesthesiologist and nurse at my side). It was so nice to be able to sit up and talk. I asked for a mild dose because I still wanted to be able to feel myself pushing. I could still feel the contractions, but they were nowhere near as strong as they had been before.
An hour after receiving the epidural, the doctor came in and said that you were ready to come out and that I needed to start pushing right then. The moment had finally arrived and I could feel the adrenalin and fear rush throughout my body. It was exciting yet frightening at the same time. I knew that you would be in my arms soon!
I pushed for about forty-five minutes and then you finally made your appearance! Tears immediately streamed down my face. It was the most amazing feeling to see you. I looked over at your dad and tears were had been flowing from his eyes as well. It was such a happy, wonderful moment. The doctor put you on my chest and I could not stop thinking about how amazing you were and how in love I was. Forty-nine hours of labor, on Saturday, April 23, you had finally graced us with you presence. You were 7lbs 10oz and absolutely gorgeous!

6 comments:

Krystal said...

i love your birth story!!!! as a natural child birth teacher i commend your strength in tolerating the pain and commend Navin in being such a good coach. i remember with my third i had that urge at 7cm. i still did it with out meds but suffered the consequences. because of the swelling (and the fact my son was 10 lbs) i pushed for almost 4 hours before he came out! it was so hard. im glad you knew what was good for you and that you trusted your instincts. Addilyn is so beautiful and your story to her is as well. i can already tell what a great mama you are!!!

Geevz said...

I love birth stories! She is absolutely beautiful!

Brad and Jamie Porter said...

Oh my gosh I am such a loser I totally stsrted crying reading this ( I am pregnant I blame that) We are so excited for you guys, she is beauiful

j & s said...

you are amazing Liz and I just love you! and miss addi! oh and I guess navers :)

Allie said...

What a great story for Addilyn to have when she gets older. I'm SO glad she waited right up until dad and I got back! Love you guys and our sweet Addi!

Jonathan and Sarah said...

What a fun story! You're a champ! Congrats on your cute little bundle of joy!!!