Sunday after we were out of church we loaded the boys and our overnight bag into the car and decided to go down to Pleasant Grove to spend some time with family in town. After all I was 41 weeks overdue and baby girl was showing no signs of her arrival.
Sunday evening was spent with my family having an early gift exchange at Seth and Maddies and celebrating Seth’s Birthday.
Sunday evening from about 6:pm on I noticed a decrease in Georgia’s movement and so was up all night trying to count her movements
Monday morning Dan and I left the boys with Grandma and Pa Hunt to brave the snowy roads and make it to my 8:20 am appointment with the Midwife.
The midwife checked Georgia’s heartbeat and it sounded great. Then she checked my cervix and I had not had any progress over the weekend like we were hoping. Baby was still very high and I was only 2 centimeters dilated and 50% effaced.
Because of her decreased movement I was no longer feeling comfortable playing the waiting game. Dan and I had a long discussion with the midwife about all of our options and we weighed the risks of induction against the risks of waiting it out.
Before they would induce me they wanted me to meet certain criteria that they call a “Bishop score” they like you at an 8 and I was only a 5. It predicts the likelihood of a successful induction. This was my second VBAC but they still had to consider the risks of a VBAC because the risks do not decrease with each successive VBAC.
I had also been planning and preparing for a natural water birth the entire pregnancy so I was worried being induced would interfere with that. The midwives assured me that I would still be able to labor and birth in the tub as long as all went well.
So after some thought Dan and I decided that it was best to get the baby here. They said we could come back in two hours and they would get me started.
I felt awesome and scared walking out of the midwife office knowing I was going to be in labor in two hours! Dan and I went home and gathered some last minute things together and grabbed some lunch. We then headed back down to Utah County to drop off snow clothes for the boys and say good bye. We got the boys situated and explained to them that when they saw me again they would have a baby sister. A squeeze and a few kisses and we were on our way back up to IMC in Murray.
We got there around 1:30 and they told us we could start settling into our room but wouldn’t have a nurse for another 45 minutes.
We settled in and I tried to sleep but a nurse came in quicker than we had anticipated and started taking my information. That took about a half hour and then they switched nurses and got my IV started (worst part for me) with pitocin.
20 is as high of a dose as they will give a VBAC patient and they were going to start me out at a 1 and move up by one every half hour to an hour. Things started out so slow and I was getting a little discouraged, the pitocin was not producing contractions that would get me anywhere.
It seemed like hours went by and they would continue to raise the dose by 1. Dan and I watched a couple episodes of our favorite show and walked and talked the halls over and over again. I drank gallons of water , broth, and sprite and munched on a few crackers.
The midwife had come to check my cervix at least twice in the hours that passed and there was NO CHANGE!! Nothing could be more discouraging. I told her that I didn’t want to be checked again until I started having some fierce contractions.
My dose of pitocin was at a 15 before I actually started having a normal pattern of painful contractions. I started to use the birthing ball and Dan was using pressure points to help with the pain. I loved the ball but they had an especially difficult time tracking Georgia’s heart beat when I was on the ball so that was no longer an option. I alternated between hanging on Dan with all my body weight, swaying to walking the halls. Eventually it was too painful to walk and I mostly just hung onto dan through each contraction. I really wanted to get into the water (my only plan for pain management) but they had to break my water to check for meconium. If there was meconium I would not be able to get in the water.
The midwife came in to check me when my dose of pitocin was topped out at 20. I had made a small amount of progress and dilated to a 4 and was 90% percent effaced. I was pretty discouraged at this point. It felt like I had been laboring for hours for nothing. The decision was made to break my water and then things went from mellow to all out madness within minutes.
My contractions went from painful too beyond description. I kept feeling the urge to go to the bathroom so I kept having to get up and then would have the contractions while I was in the bathroom. They started to get the tub ready which takes about 45 minutes to be blown up and then filled with water.
I was up AGAIN to use the bathroom and the midwife said she was going to wait outside in case a baby started to come out. I thought she was insane since I was only at a 4 15 minutes ago.
Well I was using the bathroom and the contractions became even more intense and I felt the sudden urge to push. I’ve never felt anything like it and I let out the most hearty scream I ever have in my life. It didn’t even sound like it came from me. The midwife and nurse rushed in and the midwife literally just reached her hand to check to see where the baby was. Baby was coming!! Go time.
It took a while for Dan, the nurse and the midwife to get me to the bed because I kept having contractions and didn’t want to move. After I made it to the bed she checked me and I was A 7!!!! A 7!!! How did that happen? I started to feel crazy. It felt like I had no control over the noises that came out of my mouth. I was screaming and grunting begging to get in the tub or shower or anything. This was the toughest point. I started to doubt myself and shouted at everyone helping me that I just couldn’t do it. I was ready to throw in the towel. Then my husband, my love, my best friend pressed his hand down onto my forehead brushed my hair out of my face and started to whisper the most tender words of encouragement. I could hardly hear him over my breathing and screaming. I was squeezing his hand so tight and felt like I was going to pass out.
The midwife and nurses were so supportive and loving. Something I could not have survived without. Right when I just wanted to roll over and die the midwife said it was time to push. WHAT? But the tub is not ready. I’m not ready. I don’t want to push outside the water!! She then told me that I could try to hold the pushes and wait for the tub to be ready or I could push now and have a baby in my arms before they could even have the tub ready. I DIDN’T WANT TO. I somehow did though. Driven by the thought of having sweet Georgia in my arms. They helped me hold my legs , told me to turn my screaming energy into pushing , tuck my chin into my chest and push my hardest.
I had it in my mind that I would give my all to two hard pushes and she would be here.
It didn’t turn out that way. I would give my all to a push and I could feel her head crowning and then the moment I stopped pushing I would feel her head move slightly back into the birth canal.
I felt energized at this point where I thought I would meet a wall of indefinite exhaustion and pain . I felt adrenaline in my body, awe in my soul and that took me through the next 45 minutes of pushing.
At 11:07 pm I gave my last push. Immediately after she was born all pain left my body and a fresh, screaming, wriggly baby was placed on my chest. I felt so much relief and happiness it was overwhelming. She screamed and screamed. I nursed her for a bit but she just wanted to scream. They wrapped her up and after I moved to the wheelchair they placed her in my arms and wheeled us down to our recovery room. She screamed for the first hour after she was born.
Finally she settled in to nursing and nursed for a good hour every two hours through the night. I snuggled and nursed snuggled and nursed and Dan succumbed to exhaustion and fell asleep on the couch.
During the night I had the terrible shakes. The nurse covered me in several heated blankets and I eventually had an hour of shut eye. I woke up soaking wet in sweat. It was like breaking a fever and after that I felt great. I felt amazing.
Dan left to get the boys and my mom met him at the hospital because Ronan was sick and had to wait in the car. So while my mom waited with Ro in the car Z came up to our room to meet Georgia. i had put two little plush puppies in the drawer of her bassinet and told z that they were a gift from baby sister for him and Ro. He thought it was so sweet.
One of the sweetest moments was seeing my first born holding his sweet new baby sister. He examined every part of her as he held her. After that the nurse came in to discharge me and we were on our way.
I was released after 12 hours to go home. It was Christmas Eve Day, the sun was shining and the roads were clear. I was so worried that it was going to be a terrible snowstorm like it had been the past few days.
Nana stopped to get PF Changs take out and came to spend Christmas Eve with us. We ate take out and stayed cozy watching a movie. I was so happy to have Georgia and be home with my family for Christmas. The very best christmas gift my first girl Georgia Gray.
