Jaxon's Birth Story: Part II

If you missed Part I of the story, you can find it HERE.

Part I RecapNicholas and I were taking maternity photos when I got bit by a ton of carpenter ants.  I had a severe allergic reaction and we went straight from the park to the hospital.  While in the ER, I was being monitored by the labor and delivery nurse manager.  All of a sudden, my baby's heart rate dropped from the 150s to 60 and I was being rushed down the hallway, up to labor and delivery for an emergency c-section.  

When we arrived in Labor and Delivery, the OB on-call that night was already in another surgery so they placed me in a recovery room.  While there, baby's heart rate started to climb back up to a normal level.  I focused all my energy and every thought onto taking deep breaths in and out from my oxygen mask, trying to ignore the itching (although it had greatly subsided by this point) in the hopes of helping the baby.
And it worked.  When the OB came in to my room, she decided that they would move me to a regular room and keep me overnight for monitoring and release me the next day.  With baby's heart rate now at a normal rate, she didn't see a reason to move forward with the surgery.  Being pre-term, she wanted him to stay put as long as he could.

Once we were in a regular room on the labor and delivery floor, they monitored me closely.  The nurse manager, C., was in my room frequently, checking on me.  They didn't want me getting out of bed just yet, so that meant peeing in a bed pan, which was pretty awful considering I was already peeing every 45 minutes before this happened, and now I had IV fluids running through me.  Those poor nurses.  I was paging them every 25-30 minutes to come put the bed pan under me.

I was still having contractions frequently, but baby's heart rate would decelerate and then climb back up once it was over.  They asked me if I could feel the contractions and I said, "Yes, but they just feel like the Braxton Hicks I've been having the past 12 weeks.  Just a tightening of the belly." And it was left at that.

Nick and I just hung out, as nurses interrupted us every 5 minutes for various reasons.  As he was sitting on my bed next to me, I said, "We almost had a baby and didn't have a name picked out.  We didn't even have it narrowed down to a definite two.  I think now is the time to really decide on a name."  He agreed and I said, "So what about Jaxon?  We both have loved that name for a long time now; long before we were pregnant.  The only reason we decided to explore other options was because so many other people are naming their son Jackson.  But should we really not pick it because of others when we loved it so much?"  He agreed that maybe we should strongly consider it but then we were interrupted again and we were still where we were before, without a definite name picked out.

Around midnight, Nick asked if they thought it was okay for him to run home for a bit.  C. was pretty certain we were in the safe zone, and there would be no urgent c-section since baby seemed to have improved, and said he should be fine to go home.  Since home was about an hour away, he knew it wouldn't be a quick trip.  But he wanted to change into comfy clothes since he was still in the clothes from our photo shoot.  I also wanted more comfy clothes because I didn't want to leave the hospital the next day in my dress.  Not to mention, I really wanted to brush my teeth and wipe my makeup off with a makeup removing towelette.  More importantly, our poor dogs needed some food and attention since we had both been gone all day at work.  And most importantly, I wanted food.  I hadn't eaten since lunch at 11am that day.  While I was not allowed to have anything except ice chips until this point, C. said by the time Nick got back, I should be able to eat food again.  She also said the night shift had some left over Tijuana Flats and she'd be happy to make me a plate, but I was really craving (don't judge me) McDonalds.
Nick called once he was home to see what I wanted him to grab.  Since I was prepared many weeks ago, I just had him grab my hospital bag.  It already had comfy clothes and toiletries in it so it was easy for him.  I would just restock and wash everything before the real deal.
Being the overly paranoid person I am, I told him to go ahead and grab the baby's bag as well as our DSLR camera...just in case.  His baby bag wasn't ready to go, but it had some of the essentials I'd want in the event he did arrive.  I then asked Nick to go up to the nursery and just grab a Cardinals onesie...again, just in case.

While Nick was gone, they told me that I could now get up to use the restroom if I wanted.  Thank goodness.  Laying down, lifting my butt, a nurse putting a bedpan under me, and just letting it flow was....not pleasant.  It was downright odd to just pee myself.  Especially when the nurse wasn't too helpful with the entire process.  So about 20 minutes later, I paged the nurse, who unhooked my IV and monitors and I went to the restroom.  When I came back, she hooked me back up.  She then stood there, just staring at the monitor for a good 10 minutes.  She then put an oxygen mask on me, asking me to lay there, taking deep breaths in and out.  She didn't explain why, but I could sense something was wrong.  She again stood there for another 5-10 minutes before leaving for a few minutes and came back with another nurse.  They then told me that I wasn't allowed to get out of bed anymore or eat real food. The baby did not like me getting up and moving around.  His heart rate would drop and it was taking far too long to climb back up.
Of course hearing this scared me and thus, I was keeping myself in that bed.  I'd put up with peeing in a bed pan and having a sore tailbone for this child.  Anything for him.

About every 10 minutes, the nurse continued to enter my room and readjust the monitors because they kept losing his heart rate.  I took his activeness to be a good sign though!

The nurse then asked me, "Do you feel your contractions?"  I again explained that I felt the tightness in my belly but it wasn't anything I wasn't used to from the past 12 weeks.  She asked me to rate it on a scale of 1 to 10 and, again, I rated it a 0 because they weren't painful, just uncomfortable.

Eventually Nick came back, with McDonalds, that sadly I couldn't eat anymore.  He was a little shocked to see the oxygen mask on my face so I told him that I had gotten up to use the restroom but the baby didn't like it so I wasn't allowed to eat or get up and needed to keep the oxygen mask on.

We tried to get some sleep.  Nick was successful at this, but he's also able to sleep at any time, anywhere, in any situation.  I, on the other hand, never got a wink of sleep.  I was worried.  Not to mention, how can you sleep when nurses are coming in and out of your room every 15 minutes to adjust your monitors, to draw your blood, to take your vitals, to ask about your pain level, etc.

Around 3:30am, my nurse came back in and for the millionth time, asked me about my contractions.  This is how the conversation went:
Nurse:  "Can you feel your contractions?
Me:  "Yes."
Nurse:  "On a scale of 1 to 10, how would you rate the pain?"
Me:  "A 0.  They don't hurt.  They feel like the contractions I've been having the last 12 weeks.  Just the tightening of the belly."
Nurse:  "Were they always this frequent?"
Me:  "I don't think so.  I did have them often but I feel like these are more frequent.  Is that due to the allergic reaction?"
Nurse:  "Well, these contractions are 3.5 to 4 minutes apart.  And they're showing to be pretty strong.  Definitely stronger than Braxton Hicks contractions.  Do you have a high pain tolerance?"
Me:  "I guess?  I used to for sure, mainly because of all I've been through."

They then decided to give me a shot to stop the contractions.  The nurse stayed in my room for 25 minutes then left, only to return 5 minutes later.  "I talked to the doctor.  The shot worked for a little bit, and your contractions slowed down to every 8 minutes, but then they picked back up and got back to 3.5 minutes apart so we're going to give you another shot."
So another shot was given and my blood was drawn again because my hemoglobin was pretty low two hours before when it was drawn.

About 30 minutes later, at 3:30am, my nurse told me that the shots weren't working.

Then things got real.

Nurse:  "When was the last time your cervix was checked?"
Me:  "It hasn't been.  Well, they checked the length of it via transvaginal ultrasound, but they haven't done that since 34 weeks.  They said they don't check for dilation until 37 weeks since so many women are dilated to 1 or 2 cm for weeks.  So my next appointment I was going to be checked."
Nurse:  "We're going to go ahead and check it and see if you're dilated at all from all these contractions."

I've never had my cervix checked and thus had no idea how painful it truly was.  As she has her hand way up in me, she's moving it all over, making the most confused face.  She pulls her hand out.
Nurse:  "Are you sure you don't feel any pain with these contractions?"
Me:  "I'm sure.  I mean, I FEEL them, but they aren't painful.  Just uncomfortable.  Am I dilated?"
Nurse:  "If I'm feeling it correctly, yes.  To about 3 maybe 4 cm.  Let me go get another nurse to check."

She leaves and returns 5 minutes later with another nurse.  She checks me and says, "Yeah, you're dilated to 4cm."  She then asked the same questions of the pain scale. They told me they were going to get the doctor to come in and check me and see what she thought.  They then tell me that I'm in labor and they're completely shocked that I have no pain.  "Most women are miserable by the time they reach 4cm and those that want pain medication are asking for it now.  Which is good for you since you want to go natural!"  I asked, "Isn't it normal to be dilated for weeks though?"  To which the nurse replied, "Yes, but with your first, usually only 1-2cm.  Once you hit 3cm, that's the start of labor.  For most women.  And by 4cm, almost all women are in pain and most are definitely feeling more than uncomfortable."  She then informs me that she'll have the doctor come in to confirm.

About 20 minutes later, at 4am, the doctor came in.  She checked my cervix and as her hand was up there, she said, "Yep, about 4cm and I feel the baby's head."  She removed her hand stood up and said, "I know this isn't your hospital and you'd like your doctors to deliver your baby, but you're in labor.  You aren't going home today.  You ready to meet your baby?"

Say what?!  "Are you serious?  I'm really in labor?"
The doctor responded, "You're really in labor.  You're dilated to 4cm, you have significant bloody show, and your cervix has dropped.  Normally, your cervix is back a lot further, but yours is right there.  You're having your baby today."

Holy.  Shit.  I couldn't believe it.  But I was happy.  I was going to meet my son today.  And it seemed like things were looking great for my natural birth since he was head down and I wasn't even feeling pain yet!

She left and I called out Nick's name because he had been asleep through this entire episode.
Me:  "Nick!"
Nick:  *sleepy voice* "What?"
Me:  "I'm in labor."
Nick:  "No you aren't."
Me:  "Yes I am.  The doctor was just in here."
Nick:  "No you aren't."
Me:  "Nick,  I am.  I'm dilated to 4cm."
Nick:  "But they say you can be dilated for weeks."
Me:  "That's what I said, but they said not to 4cm.  And my cervix has dropped, his head is right there, and I have bloody show.  I'm in labor.  We're having a baby."
Nick:  *finally sits up*  "Are you serious?"
Me:  "I'm serious."
Nick:  "We're having a baby?"
Me:  "We're having a baby."  As tears start rolling down my cheeks and he gets up and walks to me with a big smile on his face, embraces me in a tight hug and gives me a kiss.


Stay tuned for Part III (the actual delivery story)!!

Jaxon's Birth Story  |  Part I