Our labor story:

This post is overdue, considering the fact that my little one was born two months ago, but I only thought it appropriate since she arrived a little late herself.

Felcity's "guess date" was April 6th, and by the next week my Nurse Practitioner was getting antsy to get things moving. I, however, was in less of a hurry. Having researched and prepared for natural childbirth I was concerned that spending more time in the hospital being hooked up to Pitocin would lessen my chance of birthing the baby without an epidural. So Fran (NP) and I discussed waiting two weeks past my due date and then considering an induction.

I'd been having frequent, though weak, contractions since my 7th month of pregnancy, dilated a centimeter and had effaced about 50%, and lost the mucous plug by the time April 19th rolled around (and still no baby!) which helped me feel more comfortable with the induction. I felt like all my body really needed was a kick in the pants to get going (which ended up being true). Had I not felt that my body was ready, however, I seriously doubt I would have gone forward with the induction.

So April 20th, Derrick and I made the 20 minute drive to Brigham and Women's Hospital in Boston, Ma. We arrived early (about 7:30am) to avoid traffic caused by the Boston Marathon and when all was finally said and done I was hooked up to an IV and on low doses of Pitocin by 10:30am. I was already having infrequent contractions, but the contractions started picking up and by about 1:00 they were becoming more intense. After catching up on sleep I knew I'd need later, Derrick and I started pacing the hallways (with IV in tow) to help get things moving. My Pitocin dosages had started low (at a 1) and went steadily up about every 15-20 minutes or so until I eventually reached 15. The contractions became more steady and felt like moderate menstrual cramps which became more intense. After walking for a while, we stepped back into our room, where I would lean against a stand during contractions and fall back into a rocking chair between. The contractions were coming about 3-4 minutes apart.

Time definitely warped until eventually I told Derrick to call my friend, Ginny who was nice enough to be my Doula (a certified birthing coach, to learn more click here: http://dona.org/). I continued to work through the contractions, which became more intense until Ginny arrived to help us out. Since Fran couldn't be there, she set us up with nurses who would be sympathetic to "natural childbirth". Throughout the course of the day, we went through three nurses, all of whom were completely supportive and wonderful. A little after Ginny arrived, the nurse on duty suggested we "unhook me" and let me get in the shower to relax a little. A big bath would have been better, but even the shower felt wonderful.

All told, I was off the Pitocin for about 4-5 hours, continued to have steady contractions and it felt wonderful. If anyone tells you there isn't a difference between induced and natural contractions beware. I learned later that women's bodies produce a natural Pitocin called Oxytocin, which crosses the blood/brain barrier and signals your body to release endorphins to help your body cope with the pain. Pitocin does no such thing and so your body is left without any natural painkillers to fall back on (thus the higher % of women who get epidurals while being induced). During my time off the Pitocin I recognized that I didn't feel exhausted between contractions as I had before; I felt rejuvinated! Unfortunately, this wasn't to last long. The doctor on duty checked my "progress" and felt that since I'd been off the Pit, I hadn't dilated a sufficient amount. She suggested breaking my water which I refused and so I went back on the Pitocin at about 9pm.

This time however, my body already being in steady labor, the pitocin only made the contractions more intense. The pain eventuallly became so bad I threw up and started considering an epidural. Before that, however, I told them I wanted to get OFF the IV. The doctor came in with a stern face and informed me I wasn't following the "curve" and that my options were either getting back on Pit or getting my water broken (a.k.a rock and a hard place.) Before making a decision we sent the doctor out of the room while Derrick, Ginny and I consulted about it. We decided I really hadn't been in labor long enough to constitute an emergency (I'd been in labor for maybe 11 hours and the baby's heart rate was excellent) and so we told the doctor to come back in with the intention of requesting some time for my body to do it's thing on it's own. The doctor came in, having consulted with the nurse in the hallway and told us we had three intervention-free hours before she checked me again, at which time if I hadn't dilated significantly we would again discuss breaking my water. We had a deal! They took me off Pit. Again.

By this time I was so tired (it was about midnight) I really wanted to lie on the bed or get in the shower, but Ginny suggested we do everything we could to get things moving before the three hour ultimatum was up. We stomped through the hallways and during contractions I would lean against the railing, squat and groan loudly while Derrick squated behind me and held my belly which helped enormously. I could feel that the contractions were stronger than ever and it must be said that had Derrick not been there I could not have gone through with it. He was an amazing help to me and the best birth partner ever.

After a while of that, we went back in and Ginny suggested I get in the shower. Sitting on the bath chair was too painful so we put towels on the shower floor while I knelt and rested my upper body on the bath stool. Derrick had the shower head in hand, regulated the temperature and constantly doused me with it while I worked through the contractions. Ginny, meanwhile kept me hydrated and gave a lot of vocal encouragment about how great I was doing. I hadn't been in the shower long when I started feeling the urge to push. That's weird, I thought, not really considering that I was actually dilated enough to need to push. But after an hour or more (again, time warp; it felt like minutes) Ginny asked me to reach up and see if I could feel the head. The head?! I still don't know how she knew I'd progressed that much, but I kind of wonder if she recognized the unearthly noises I was making and knew it was getting serious. After the head had descended lower, she pulled the help cord in the bathroom and the doctor quickly came in, ushered me to the bed and delivered the baby 15 minutes later. It was April 21st at 3:15am, exactly 3 hours after our discussion.

When they put Felicity on my chest, I couldn't believe how beautiful and perfect she was. She was SO clean and chubby. She cried just a little and then as I held her close she promptly stopped crying.

Just moments after being born.

Here we are, exhausted, but happy.Ginny, the amazing Doula.

Weighing in at 8lbs. 12oz., 18 3/4 inches.Derrick, the proud new daddy.

Now that all is said and done, I don't regret any of the decisions I made before and after the birth, induction included. However, in the future I would like to avoid it in addition to avoiding the hospital and considering a midwife and/or a birthing center. I understand that doctors are concerned, but I feel that although they aren't out to ruin me or my baby's life I would rather avoid them unless I feel there is a real problem. Giving birth this way was one of the most amazing experiences of my life and Derrick's as well. It was a huge bonding experience for us and an achievement we're proud of.
I am glad I studied out my options and read up about the risk of certain types of medical interventions. I also would recommend to anyone else considering "Natural Childbirth" to consult or meet with a Doula. Husbands only have so much energy and so many arms! Doulas often also have the additional experience to coach the husband so that he can be more involved and not left out.
And now...the reason it was all worth it:

Thanks for reading!

Trying not to count down

So as everyone can see from the floating baby on the corner of my blog, the pregnancy is swiftly coming to an exciting end! We're doing great and I really feel like I can't complain about the pregnancy at all after the first 3 months were over. I've had very few aches and pains, emotionally I've been fine (just take my word for it; don't ask Derrick!) and we've had lots of reassurance as to the health of baby Felicity.

We are feeling ever more prepared. Brigham and Women's Hospital conducts free Hospital Tours which we attended with about 5 other expectant couples, and we were able to have some of our questions answered about Wi-Fi, the labor, etc. The labor/delivery room is awesome and very roomy and we were told that yoga balls and bed-bars are available upon request. Unfortunately, no bathtub, but the staff seems to be pretty open to me moving around during the labor process, getting in the shower, etc. We are preparing for a "natural birth"; I never felt comfortable with the idea of an epidural and we've had a lot of support from some of the mothers in our ward, some of whom are experienced Doulas. They've really helped educate us about Hypnobirthing and natural labor.

All in all, we are VERY excited and ready for our baby girl to come to us; tomorrow is my last day of work with the Jobin-Leeds family, who have been SO awesome and supportive. Derrick's school schedule hopefully won't take too big of a hit, but he seems to not be too worried.

We've been terribly neglectful of posting pregnancy pictures, but we have been much better about taking some and will post a few very soon. More soon!