Sybil's due date was Thursday, November 18, 2011 (my brother Nathan's birthday and my great-grandmother Newsome's birthday). I began contractions on the night of November 17th and we were sure she was going to make an appearance the next day so we called Seth's parents and told them to come on down. They came down and contractions stalled out. My mother joined us as well on that Saturday. That Sunday Seth's parents made the decision to go back home because labor would start then stall out. My mother continued to stay with us. That Monday night I was really craving sushi (the non-raw kind) so we went to our favorite Japanese restaurant and while I was there contractions began regularly. We finished dinner, came home, put the kids to bed and I tried to relax. Seth offered to stay up with me and I told him to go on to bed because he would need his rest and there was nothing he could do for me at the moment. At this point I was almost positive that this was the real thing. I could feel the baby moving down with each contraction. For the first part of labor I laid down and tried to get some rest. I would sleep between contractions. Labor began getting very active around midnight so I split my time by being in the tub and walking around. Seth was a great coach and would time my contractions and get me water or Gatorade as I needed it. During natural childbirth it is a good idea to eat snacks as well, but I can't remember if I ate anything but I kept hydrated. Contractions were painful but manageable. Throughout the labor they were about 3-4 minutes apart and 45 seconds- 1 minute long. At about 4:30 I told Seth I thought it might be time to go to the hospital but I was going to lay down and make sure. With the next contraction my water broke so we scrambled out the door and I called the doctor's office. The ride there was very painful and I started going through transition and started crying- partly from the pain and partly from my emotions being so raw. At this point I started moaning with pain. When we got to the hospital the lady at the front desk started asking me lots of questions and I got pretty short with her. I was thinking to myself, "Can't she see I am in pain here and I don't feel like answering stupid questions?" Another nurse could see my pain so she took me to a room and got me in the bed at 5:00 AM. They checked me and I was 8 1/2 cm dilated. I was in agonizing pain at this point and I progressively got out of control with my pain management. The contractions were so hard and on top of each other. While they were still getting ready I started screaming, "She is coming!" I pushed once without anyone ready and they started to rush around getting a doctor from another room to deliver me. FINALLY they got set and through my blood curdling screams I pushed out Sybil Elizabeth House at around 5:30 AM on November 23, 2011. She weighed 8 lbs 13 ounces and was 20.5 inches long. They placed her on my chest and then quickly whisked her to the baby bed. She was very blue. While they got her situated they fixed me up. I was not feeling well at this point so they gave me IV fluids and pitocin to help me contract. Shortly after I was holding my sweet baby girl. She was beautiful and I started nursing her immediately. What a blessing she is to our life!!!
We were anxious to get home so they let us leave the next morning which was Wednesday before Thanksgiving. We have so many things to be thankful for! The recovery was really easy and I was up making Thanksgiving dinner with the help of Seth two days after having her.
The labor was very manageable but I would be lying if I said the pain at the end was not VERY hard to bear. It was excruciating and traumatic. Apparently my placenta started to detach and that makes for a very painful labor. Towards the end I kind of felt like I was going through a car wreck and was completely out of control with the things going on around me. But even through all that I would do natural childbirth again. I know this sounds weird but I feel like it has strengthened my relationship with God. Through my pain I cried out to the only one who is in control of ALL things and He heard my cry. Not that I will ever experience the kind of pain He felt on the cross, but I feel like I had a taste of just a little of what He went through and it makes me even more grateful of His sacrifice because He loves me so much!
I had an epidural with both Ella Katherine and Reid's birth. Some of my friends have asked me if I felt the labor was better with the epidural or without. Here are my thoughts on it.
-Length of labor- I felt it went by faster without the epidural.
-Enjoyment of Labor- I actually enjoyed the first stage of labor better without an epidural. It was work but I knew with each contraction things were happening. Also, I was able to drink and eat and walk around. With an epidural I had to just wait in the bed and it got really boring. Through the pushing stage I would say I definitely liked the epidural labors better. I felt without the epidural I was so exhausted emotionally and physically that I really wasn't able to enjoy the first few minutes of Sybil's life. I still had to be stitched up and had to deliver the placenta so all my remaining energy was focused on that because I had nothing for the pain.
-Recovery- For the first two hours after Sybil's birth I was exhausted. I was dehydrated and I had no energy. After two IV bags and pitocin and some pain medication though I felt much better. I also was able to walk around a lot sooner and take a shower. The overall recovery was much better this delivery but I am not sure if it had to do with not having an epidural or the fact that this was my third baby.
-Pain- Obviously the pain was better with an epidural but the contractions without pitocin were much better than with. Pitocin contractions are SOOO painful and you always feel crampy even in between. With natural contractions you have them and then you have a break so they are a lot easier to manage.
Based on my experience (which is totally not scientific), there are not a ton of advantages to having natural childbirth but I still would do it again. Some websites and movies and books will make you believe epidurals are the devil, but I think that is simply not true. On the other hand, there are risks, albeit small, with having an epidural. Risks that can affect you years down the road. A friend of mine had a reaction and she had HORRIBLE back and neck pain for several months after and is still having some pain even though her baby is almost a year. So I don't want to take the risk again. Each woman needs to decide for herself which is the best method for them.
Ella Katherine and Reid are smitten with her.
