The Birth.

So I've been pretty slack about posting this month but I have a good reason. We had our beautiful baby girl on November 3rd. A week and a half late and one day before I was scheduled to be induced. So, if the Babe will sleep long enough for me to type this out I'll tell you the birth story.

Wednesday morning I woke up with cramps at 4 am. I had been desperately waiting for any sign that labour was going to begin so I was aware that cramping might be it. But the pain was mild so I went back to sleep.

I had tests scheduled at the hospital that morning to check on Babe before they started my induction on Friday. By seven that morning I was having pains every twenty minutes or so. I called my mom and asked her to drive me to the hospital for my tests in case I was starting labour (I didn't want to be in labour and stuck in traffic).

They first sent me for an ultrasound. Like always the place was packed so I sat in the waiting room for almost an hour. During the wait it was becoming painfully clear (pun intended) that I was in fact starting labour and probably didn't need the tests. But since I had come all the way downtown I figured I'd do the tests just in case. I finally got in for the ultrasound where the tech informed me that my baby would weigh approximately 9 lbs 14 oz! Just what every expectant mom wants to hear.

I then had a non-stress test booked to check on Baby's heart rate etc. It was during this test when the tech informed me that I was in fact in labour and my contractions were about 10 minutes apart.

After my tests I called my mom to pick me up and headed home to meet J and wait for the contractions to be close enough to go back to the hospital. J and I spent the rest of the day watching TV shows, pausing them every seven minutes to ride out the increasingly painful contractions. Meanwhile my good friend was heading over from Vancouver Island to attend the birth.

As the evening progressed it became clear that I was destined to suffer through back labour. Babe had been turned the wrong way for weeks so it wasn't a surprise when the back labour started. I can't explain the pain. It felt like my lower back was going to explode. By midnight the contractions were still somewhat irregular and more than five minutes apart but I was reaching the end of my rope and wanted to be at the hospital where pain relief was an option. We called the midwife and told her we were heading in. Unfortunately she told us that the hospital we had chosen to deliver at was full. I was very disappointed to be going to another hospital but in the end it actually worked out for the best.

We called a cab. We grabbed the bags. We waited for the cab while I moaned in pain. We waited longer. We called the cab company and found out the driver was at the wrong address.

When the cab finally arrived it was obvious that I was in labour and the driver looked tense. To ease the tension I asked him if he had ever delivered a baby in the taxi? With that the driver flew into Formula 1 mode and raced at twice the legal speed limit the rest of the way to the hospital. The ride was almost as scary as the rest of the delivery. I guess he didn't want to deliver my baby.

We got to the hospital sometime after 1 am on Thursday. The rest of the day is a blur. I didn't want to have an epidural so I tried different positions, the shower and the gas. But finally

I caved in and begged for the epidural. By this point I had been in labour for almost 24 hours.

When I got the epidural we asked if it could be stopped if I didn't want it anymore. I was assured that removing the epidural wasn't an option because the body's natural pain relief (adrenaline etc.) would stop once the epidural was administered. Then if the medication was taken away the contractions would be even worse than before.

Once the epidural was working its magic J, my girlfriend and I all rested for a few hours. Now that I couldn't feel the back labour I was able to doze a little and J took a nap on a foamy on the floor. Hours passed and my progress slowed as a result of the epidural. Babe was still in the wrong position and I was warned a couple times that a cesarean was now a possibility.

Around noon on Thursday I was finally dilated the full 10 centimeters and by some miracle Babe had moved into the right position. It was time to start pushing.

I have no concept of time from this point on. I thought that I was only pushing for half an hour or so but I've been told it was closer to three hours. Unfortunately my efforts were going nowhere. Babe was getting more and more cone-headed as her head tried to move down the birth canal but her body stayed put. And her heart rate was dropping during the contractions which at that point were almost back to back.

Just as I was being told that a cesarean was necessary the unthinkable happened. My epidural crapped out and in a matter of seconds I went from pain-free to pain-full! I'm not sure if it truly was more painful than pre-epidural or if it was the shock of being thrown into full back labour so quickly, but whatever the reason it felt ten times worse than before.

Now I had to listen to disclaimers, sign forms and worst of all: sit perfectly still while contracting as the doctor poked and prodded my spine with needles to prepare me for the surgery.

J was allowed in after everything was set up and they were ready to go. The cesarean took about twenty minutes. I was really nervous and my upper body was convulsing from one of the meds they gave me so to keep calm and focused I mostly stared at the clock and listened to the doctors. I know it's a routine surgery for them but I was still amazed by how nonchalant their conversations were. Two women were talking about a friend's jerk boyfriend and a man behind me was on the phone telling someone how to record with his PVR. I was distracted and calmed by listening to them.

And J was great. He comforted me and assured me that everything would be fine.

At 4:23 pm our perfect little girl was lifted up into the air! I only got to see her for a second before she was whisked across the room to be examined and cleaned up. I lay there listening carefully for her cries. I could hear them suctioning her and then faint little whimpers but she never did wail like you see on television.

The cesarean left me feeling like we missed out on a lot. I'm disappointed that the cord wasn't left intact for a couple minutes after her birth and that J didn't get to cut it. We didn't get to cuddle her skin to skin immediately after - she was wrapped in a towel when I got her back and I couldn't hold her without help because my arms were shaking so badly. We have no pictures of the delivery however J did get some of her being cleaned up and dried off. My girlfriend missed the delivery because only the father is allowed in the room during surgery which was disappointing for her and I.

And of course the cesarean sparked a slew of problems afterwards too. My milk was very slow to come in causing nursing problems, weight loss for Babe and subsequent supplementation with formula which made me feel like a failure. My incision was slow to heal and the combination of my need for pain medication longer than usual, Babe's maximum 10 per cent weight loss and the lack of milk meant a longer stay in the hospital.

But despite all of these little disappointments and stresses we were lucky to be blessed with a healthy baby (9 lbs. 3 oz.) and that's all that really matters. I recovered well (after I got off required bed rest for an irritated incision) and it turns out we were lucky to be diverted to the other hospital because it has the best cesarean team and unlike our chosen hospital, the one we were at allowed me to stay with the baby after the operation instead of recovering for a few hours separately - which would have broken my heart and made me very nervous.

So that's how our daughter arrived. Hopefully things will calm down a bit and we'll get into a routine and I will be able to post more regularly.

The Push Before the Pushing.

Well today is my due date and for the last two weeks I've been trying to gently nudge my body and Baby into action. Like all preggos at the end of the journey I'm exhausted, sore and completely ready to get this show on the road. At 36 weeks I had many pre-labour symptoms and I thought for sure that I would deliver early. But everything stalled and nothing has changed in weeks.

I'm not ready yet to take any drastic measures to jump-start labour but I have been trying a few things this past couple weeks to get my body "ripe" for action.

Walking

The beautiful Minoru Chapel on a fall afternoon

I have been on the big side through this entire pregnancy. I guess because I had a small frame and torso to begin with there was nowhere for Baby to go except straight out in front. So exercise really slowed down for me early on because the extra weight out front put so much pressure on the ligaments in my abdomen and pelvis. Even walking a couple blocks back at 15 weeks was too much some days.

But since my due date has been approaching (and is now here) I have been trying to walk for a little while each day. Some days I feel fine and other days I get a block from home and the pain is so bad I have to sit on the curb until it subsides and I can walk back.

Since we moved we are close to Minoru Park and it's nice to walk over there on the good days.

Pressure Points

J has been pressing some pressure points in my feet and ankles that are supposed to help prepare the cervix for labour, help the baby drop into position and induce labour. If you're interested in trying these techniques get the OK from your doctor. We watched some videos on YouTube to learn where the right spots are. Click here to see one of the videos we watched. However it certainly hasn't induced labour and my lady bits didn't change much from one week to the next so either we haven't actually found the right spots or it doesn't always work.

Lemon Verbena Tea

A couple weeks ago my midwife gave me some verbena oil and a recipe for a cervical-ripening tea in the hopes that it would speed things up a bit. Again I don't really know if it works but I'm still trying (got a cup of the brew beside me right now). The recipe calls for a stick of cinnamon, cloves, ginger root and the verbena oil. You brew the tea and then add a couple drops of the oil afterwards. My midwife said to drink it at most only every other day so make sure you find out how much is too much before you start downing it every night before bed.

Acupuncture

After finding out today that there is still little sign that Baby is on the way my midwife suggested I try some acupuncture. I used to go to a great acupuncturist in West Vancouver because I hate needles and he was/is well-known for getting them in without the patient feeling it. But treatments are really expensive so J and I couldn't afford to splurge on this method of labour-induction.

But my midwife told me about a place in Vancouver called Poke which calls itself community acupuncture. It's a really cool little place at Kingsway and Main St. where you sit in a room filled with comfy recliners and other patients and one acupuncturist treats everyone. The atmosphere is super quite and chill just like a spa and everyone was so relaxed they were sleeping.

The best part is that the price works on a sliding scale so you pay between $20 and $40 per session -- whatever you can afford. Poke makes acupuncture available to people who wouldn't otherwise be able to afford the treatments so it's a great service to the community. But...

I hate needles. I don't find acupuncture relaxing at all. While everyone else lay peacefully in their recliners with eyes closed and blissful smiles on their faces I sat upright, frozen, with eyes as big as saucers scanning the room for a distraction. I had flashbacks to my past acupuncturist in who was so irritated with my inability to relax during his treatments that more than once he threatened to not allow me to return. I remember he used to leave the room and I would spend the half-hour of "relaxation time" laying perfectly still so as not to shake the needles and counting all the right angles in the room. There were a lot because the neon ceiling lights were covered with those grates with all the little squares. Pathetic, I know. But his treatment did work and so I have hope that the lady at Poke made some progress today.

My eyes still feel a little crossed from spending twenty minutes staring at the needle jutting out of my forehead. When she put it in she said that most people get one in that spot because "it feels so good". Uh huh. It freaked me out so much I finally took it out and then at the end of the session I lied and said it fell out. Of course by then I had pricked my fingers several times because I was nervously playing with it while I waited for my 20 minutes to be up.

FYI: If you're one of those freaks that find having needles stuck in your body enjoyable, Poke allows you to stay for as long as you'd like. Apparently many patients doze off for an hour or so. I did not. But I do have another appointment in a couple days.