Sam's Birth Story: Part 2

Ok friends... Sorry I just left you hanging... on with Part Two.  (In case you missed it, read Part 1 here.)

...When we first got checked at the hospital, the nurse asked if I wanted to go ahead and get prepped for an epidural.  I was NOT opposed to having drugs for the pain; but, I had read about how epidurals often slow labor down.  Plus, I wasn't in that much pain just yet, so I thought we should hold off... The nurse, however, strongly recommended that we get started because she said the process could take about an hour.  (It was almost the middle of the night, so they would have to call the doctor on call to come in from home to check me, get a bag of fluid in my system, etc. all before the anesthesiologist came in.) I decided to go ahead with it then.
 

And... thank goodness I did.  The process ended up taking two hours.  After my water broke, labor progressed REALLY fast and got much more intense.  By the time my doctor got there at about midnight, I was already dilated to a 6, and he commented on how strong my contractions were... You're telling me buddy!  By now, they were definitely hurting! (Looking back, I don't really remember much of the pain, but I can tell by the way that Jeff describes it, that I was NOT a happy camper.  I do remember that I cried and told the nurses that I didn't expect to be so loud.)

The nurses also had some trouble getting the iv started in my hand (let's just say, Jeff had a shirt ruined with my blood in the process), so it was 1AM before I finally got some relief from the epidural.  (I had been so nervous about it; but, by that point it felt like a piece of cake.) Right afterward, the nurse checked my cervix again, and I was at 9!  We would be having this baby even sooner than we thought!! 

At that point, Jeff called our families and told them to come on to the hospital (his mom was already in the parking lot - Haha).  Here's one of my favorite photos of them arriving.  (Hope no one was trying to sleep anywhere nearby.)

Once I was feeling like a human again, I remember thinking "I can't believe how easy this has been!"  (A terrible idea to get ahead of myself like that.)  The thing was, I'd been fully prepared to have a c-section, or - at the very least - a very long and difficult labor.  The idea that I would go into labor at home, check in to the hospital, and have a baby a few hours later had NEVER crossed my mind... I don't really know why exactly; except that easy had never really been an adjective used to describe this pregnancy. (I may or may not have also thought to myself: "This is going to be a boring birth story on my blog."  Little did I know...)

At 1:40AM, after about 30 minutes of "laboring down," the nurse declared that it was time to start pushing.  Again, my expectations were totally blown out of the water.  I'd imagined Jeff standing "above the sheet" coaching me; but instead, there was no sheet, and he was (literally) given a leg.  The doctor, I learned, wouldn't even be called in until the baby started to crown... Crazy!

Approximately one hour later, my doctor came to check on me even though there was still no head in sight.  I felt like I'd been working SO hard, but we weren't really seeing any progress.  Although the nurses were encouraging; I'd later learn that they had been sneaking outside to call my OB all along... Something wasn't quite right.

When he "investigated the situation" (you like that polite terminology?), he found that not only was our little one's head apparently stuck on my pelvis; but, his heart rate was elevated and his body felt warm - not good signs.  In the doctor's words, "[I] could push for another two hours and it might be possible to have this baby; but, I could also be in the same situation I'm in now but a lot more exhausted."  His recommendation of a c-section did not surprise me one bit.

Looking back, I sincerely believe that God had been preparing me for that moment.  I am so grateful for the peace that I had about getting the c-section. It was like I was already ready for it.  Jeff and I didn't doubt the decision for one minute; we just went with it.  We just wanted a healthy baby.  I wasn't sad.  I wasn't even scared.  I just was ready to meet Sam.

To be continued... (One more part, I promise!)