When Anthony and I got married, we decided that we wanted to wait a couple years before having kids. That all changed about half way into our first year. I had gotten some vaccines mid June 2011 and that same night, I came down with a mild fever and heartburn. After a couple days, the fever went away, but the heartburn progressively got worse, I had never had heartburn in my life, but I figured it was just from the vaccines, I mean, it started the same day, so it had to be, right? I was also super tired, which also started that same night and continued to get worse. After about two weeks, I was at the point where I could barely go downstairs to check the mail without wanting to nap and the heartbun was keeping me awake at night and making me feel super sick. I told a couple friends that I thought I was sick from the vaccines and the first thing they said was to take a pregnancy test. I wasn't pregnant, I took my pill religiously! I couldn't be! But they insisted, so the next morning, I took a test, just so I could prove them wrong...
They were right.
I remember sitting there, staring at the test stick. Two lines. There were two lines! Immediately, I was overcome with emotion: I was going to be a Mum! But this wasn't in our plans! But I was going to be a Mum! But we wanted to wait! But there was going to be a BABY! But But But....
I was so overcome that I burst into tears and ran into our bedroom to Ant. He woke up and sat up to see why I was crying. As soon as he asked what was wrong, I threw the test at him! He asked what it was and through sobs, I said, "There are two lines, it's positive!"
He said "so why are you crying?"
I said "I don't know! I feel sick"
"You're not sick, we're having a baby!"
The rest of my pregnancy was filled with sickness, excitement, sickness, back pain, a move from Tennessee back to Florida and more sickness. But we got through it and I wouldn't take back a second of it.
The final weeks of my pregnancy rolled around and I was praying and doing everything I could to avoid going into labour, in hopes that my mum would arrive in time for the birth.
I went in for my 39 week check up Tuesday February 21st 2012, and after I did the usual routine of peeing in a cup, blood pressure, getting weighed, etc. I went into the exam room and got changed into the super attractive paper gown, only to have the doctor come in, retest my BP and tell me that it was high. She did the rest of the exam and retested and it was still the same, so she sent me to L&D to be monitored. The Dr. said that if it didn't go back down, then I would have to be induced that afternoon, which happened to be my niece's 10th birthday!
We got to the hospital at around 4:30 and they hooked me up to a fetal monitor and blood pressure machine. After 2 hours my BP was normal (thank goodness! I did NOT want to be induced!) but I was having contractions 2-3 minutes apart. I could barely feel them (I thought I was just crampy from having a pelvic exam earlier in the day). My cervix was still very high and the baby was so low that they couldn't even find my cervix so they said it would be about 3 days before I delivered and they sent me home. They put me on bed rest and said to come in if the contractions got so bad I couldn't talk through them.
By the time we got in the car, they had started to get stronger but I convinced myself that it was my imagination because I was aware of them now. Nope, they kept getting stronger. By 8:30pm they were 1.5min apart and lasting a full minute, I could talk through them but was so distracted by the pain that my sentences weren't coming out properly. Well at least that's what I thought, everyone else said I couldn't talk through them. Everyone was telling me to go back in but I refused until my mum finally convinced me at 10:30.
My mother-in-law called the hospital and they told her to bring me back in, so I had Anthony and his Dad give me a blessing, we grabbed my hospital bags and the rubbish bin from the bathroom (I was sure I was going to vomit from the pain!) and we headed in.
My cervix was still very high but had dropped just enough to tell that I was dilated to 2cm. After 2 hours, there was barely any change in my cervix but because the contractions were so strong and close they gave me a shot to help me sleep. It didn't help with the pain but I was sleeping through the 90 second break between contractions. The nurse told me that every time she checked me, she pulled down on my cervix to try and get it moving for me.
By 5am I was still only 3cm but the contractions increased to 30 seconds apart so she checked again at 5:30 and I was 6cm!
At 6:30 I was an 8 so she called the midwife. My waters hadn't broken by 7 and I was at 9cm so she broke them for me. Within about a minute, I had the overwhelming urge to push, but the midwife and nurses were nowhere to be seen! I remember saying "I gotta push, I really gotta push!" and My mother in law disappeared. She came back a minute later and said "she (the midwife) said to push" uhh ok. I was sitting completely upright on the bed, where did she think the baby was going to go??!
Another minute passed before the midwife came back into the room and she realised that I really was ready to push! they adjusted the bed, she and Ant lifted my legs and she told me to push as soon as I felt a contraction start. the first contraction came, I pushed and the midwife said, with more excitement than I expected, "you're doing really well, I can already see the head!"
Next Contraction came and she said she could see him trying to cry! I looked at Ant and he had a look on his face that I will never forget, he looked up and said "you're doing great!" I thought they were just being encouraging, while I sat there and wondered when the pain was going to start.
Contraction number three, I pushed and he came right out! much to the amazement of everyone in the room, including myself! I didn't experience any pain during the delivery!
I couldnt believe that I only pushed 3 times! Our perfect boy was born at 7:37am!
Even though the labour was so bad (I had back contractions which don't mix well with a spinal injury) I pushed through, with the help and encouragement of my amazing hubby and mother in law. The actual birth was a piece of cake! It didn't hurt one bit and I loved that I could feel him come out! The look on Anthony's face as he watched and encouraged me through the birth was incredible.
We had gone in there, with a list of 3 names: Spencer, Marshall or Gage and a set middle name: Alexander. we didn't want to name him until we saw him. Well, when I held him, I just wasn't feeling any of the names, in fact, the name that came to mind when I looked into his perfect face was one that Ant had mentioned in passing just a few days before: Lachlan. I told Ant, he smiled and agreed. so that was that, he had a name: Lachlan Alexander Mojica!
I ended up with what they thought was 2 minor tears, which they stitched up, only to discover a more serious tear behind one they had stitched, so they had to cut me open and re-stitch, which was so much worse than the birth! They had to check me hourly for the most part of the day and 2 hourly after that, even through the night. I wasn't allowed to get up even to pee for hours, to make sure I wouldn't need to go to the OR but luckily I only ended up with a small-ish hematoma, the Doctorr was sure the outcome would be much worse! They told me the next morning that they wanted me to stay in at least another night and I started crying because my mum was arriving early in the morning the next day, so they said that if I strictly follow the care routine, could go home as soon as Lachlan was cleared, which was that afternoon!
So there you have it! Our first perfect boy, Lachlan Alexander was born 2/22/12 weighing in at 6lb 15oz and 19.5 inches long <3
No comments:
Post a Comment