Naomi's Birth Story

No pressure to read this because I know it's SUPER long, but I've had a couple people say they'd like to hear the 'birth story'. I'd like to have it documented somewhere because I know I will soon forget the events surrounding Naomi's birth, so here's how I remember things at least...

Friday August 21st 4:15am

I woke up to go to the bathroom and came back to bed having some lower abdominal cramping. It felt different than any other 'contractions' I had had before. I got back in bed and starting having chills and was shaking which was kind of strange. My stomach was upset as well and I kept having to go to the bathroom. I continued to have the cramping so I started 'timing' them and for the next hour I felt what I guessed were mild contractions every 6-12 minutes. Being that I was 6 days past my due date I wondered if this might be the 'real thing'. I was hoping that it might be, but at the same time didn't want it to be happening today because my parents were leaving to move my brother into college at Union University (my alma mater as well) in Jackson, TN.

6:30 am
I was scheduled to have a biophysical profile (special ultrasound)to check the baby's movement, breathing, and my amniotic fluid level since it was on the low end earlier in the week at 8am. I decided to get up and try to get ready and see if the contractions continued. I continued to have them, but they seemed to be less painful and were further apart. I called my parents and let them know I thought I might be having some contractions, but told them to go on to TN. They did thankfully. I didn't want them to miss moving my brother in to college (especially if this ended up being false labor).

8:00am
We decided to go ahead and go for the biophysical profile. Everything looked good and my amniotic fluid level was actually up from 7.4 to 11. By the end of the ultrasound the contractions were only coming every 30 minutes or so. We came back home and Spencer got ready to go to work. He was scheduled to work 10am-6:30pm.

10am-1pm
After Spencer left for work I blogged about what seemed to be a 'false alarm' and gave an update of our ultrasound. I tried to lay down and take a nap and put in the second half of Pride and Prejudice (the BBC version, which is one of my favorite movies). I was able to sleep for like 30 minutes then I woke up with a contraction. So I decided to get up and try to do things to see if they continued. I unloaded the dishwasher and made sure I had everything I wanted in my hospital bag 'just in case'. I tried to eat something, but kept feeling sick at my stomach and made several trips to the bathroom throughout the day. I only had like three contractions during those three hours so I figured things were dwindling again and that these just must be 'Braxton Hicks' contractions.

1:00-1:30pm
I had 3 contractions in 30 minutes so I decided I should probably start timing them again. I pulled out a notebook to keep track :)

1:30-3pm
Since Spencer was working and my parents were out of town, my grandmother and one of my aunts kept calling to check on me. I think they knew I was probably in real labor and were worried about me being alone. But I felt so bad and kept having to go to the bathroom that I really didn't want anyone with me. I went from the couch to the bathroom to my exercise ball and even though the contractions hurt, they were bearable.

3:45pm
The contractions became more regular. They were about 40 seconds apart and coming anywhere from 6-9 minutes apart. I called my mom and she thought I should probably go ahead call Spencer and tell him to come home, but in childbirth class we learned not to come to the hospital until the contractions were 5 minutes apart lasting one minute each for about an hour. I didn't want to go to the hospital too early and be told to leave. How embarrassing would that be for a nurse!

5:00pm
I tried to stay busy so I wouldn't worry. I decided to try and dust the living room while waiting for Spencer to get off at 6:30. I dusted a couple things then I had two contractions about 3 minutes apart and one actually took me down to the ground. So I decided I better go ahead and call Spencer. Spencer later told me that when I called he knew this was the real thing (or else I wouldn't have called).

6:00pm
From 5-6pm the contractions came every 4-8 minutes apart consistently. Spencer came home and quickly started getting everything in the car. I told him to relax we didn't have to rush. Plus I knew that the nurses would be changing shifts at 6:30pm and I didn't want to go in the middle of shift change! But Spencer wouldn't let me wait. I knew that I really needed to eat something because they wouldn't let me eat in the hospital so Spencer stopped at the grocery store on the way to the hospital to get me some saltine crackers since my stomach had been so upset. 6pm on a Friday night is not the time to go to the grocery, but thankfully someone let him cut in line (he didn't even tell them I was in labor in the car, God just was working for us :)).

6:30pm
We walked in and told the receptionist at the Women's Hospital entrance that I thought I was in labor. She asked my due date. When I told her that I was 6 days overdue she was like 'oh!' and quickly got a wheelchair to take me upstairs. I guess there are so few people these days that go into labor on their own (with all the inductions and c-sections) that she was surprised. They took me to a triage room and I put on my hospital gown. When the nurses came back in I was hunched over on Spencer having a contraction. They could tell I guess that this was real labor so they decided to go ahead and admit me. The nurse checked me and I was 3cm dilated and about 80% effaced. I had only been 1cm and 50% 4 days prior at my doctor appointment. At this point I finally realized that I was in labor and we were probably going to be meeting our daughter sometime soon!

7:00pm
I told the nurse that I was hoping to try for a non-medicated delivery and wanted to be able to walk around as much as possible. So we went out in the halls to walk. That lasted probably 30 minutes and then the contractions became too painful. I remember during one of the contractions I was out by the nurses' station and had to lean on Spencer through a contraction. One of the nurses said, 'poor thing, you look like you are in so much pain.' I was thinking, 'haven't you seen this before, this the place people come to have babies and it is pretty painful?!'

7:30pm
They got really busy on the unit so they called in an extra nurse for help and she became my nurse. She looked younger than me and I thought...'oh great, I've got a new nurse.' But she was awesome! She had had one of her kids without pain meds and was a supporter of natural birth (such an answer to prayer...I had prayed specifically for a nurse who would support my decisions). She showed me how to use the birthing ball and would sometimes just come and sit with us through my contractions encouraging me. She even let me have a popsicle :)

8:30pm
They checked me again and I was only 4cm and about 90% :( I was pretty frustrated because the contractions were coming about every 2-3 minutes and were pretty painful. Not to mention my back felt like something was constantly stabbing me. My parents were on their way back from TN at this point.

10:30pm
By this time my contractions were coming every 1 1/2 minutes or less and I was hurting bad! I just couldn't get any relief because my back was constantly hurting. I couldn't get comfortable and couldn't hardly breath through the contractions. I kept holding my breath and then telling Spencer that I was going to die. It was at this point that I realized my reasons for not getting an epidural were mostly out of pride and at this rate I didn't know if I was going to make it through the night. My parents walked in about this time too so they got to see me at my best :)

11:00pm
I decided to get an epidural. Spencer supported me whatever I decided. They checked me again and I was still just 4cm. I thought, 'oh no, now I'll never progress' because I know that epidurals often slow down labor. Getting the epidural itself was pretty painful (not to mention my back hurt really bad from it for like 3-4 days!). They had to stick me twice. I was having contractions one on top of the other and I remember one time when they stuck me I jumped and said, 'I'm sorry'. I couldn't believe how immediate it worked though! I didn't realize the epidural would make me not feel anything (i know I'm a nurse, but hey!). I kept asking Spencer after the epidural to look at the monitor and tell me if I was still having contractions as big and as close together (because I couldn't feel them). He always said 'yeah', but later told me that they did slow down a little (he knew I'd worry if he told me that during labor). I also switched out nurses at this point. I was sad because I really liked my nurse and wanted her to be with me until Naomi was born, but I undersand what it's like coming in extra and with me not being more than 4cm I knew it could still take a while.

Saturday August 22nd 1:00am
My new nurse was much different, but she was great too. She had 7 children of her own and had been a labor and delivery nurse for 25 years. She checked me again and I was now 8cm and 100% effaced! I couldn't believe it...I had progressed 4cm in 2 hours! I really think having an epidural was the right decision for me. It allowed me to relax and my body to progress. The nurse said it wouldn't be too much longer before I could start pushing. I started to feel some sharp pain in my right side (leg, groin, abdomen) that wouldn't go away with positioning, so they redosed my epidural some and that helped a lot!

2:00am
My nurse came back to check me and asked if I felt an urge to push yet because I was 10cm! I didn't feel anything other than heaviness, but I started pushing like she told me to. I had to keep asking her if I was doing it right because I just couldn't tell. She was so encouraging though and really helped me feel like I was getting somewhere. In between contractions we talked to the nurse about our time in Africa...it was so weird because other than being exhaused (and really hungry...I remember my stomach growling while I was pushing) I could talk like normal. When they started to see the head they noticed that Naomi had a lot of hair. Different staff that came in while I was pushing would keep commenting on how much hair she had! After about 30 minutes or so my nurse went to call the on-call doctor (I had never met him before). While she was gone I started to really feel the urge to push (probably because Naomi's head was getting ready to come out!). I don't remember exactly when the doctor got there, but it couldn't have been more than 15 minutes before she was born. I remember a little before 3am thinking that things sure did seem to be taking a while. Then at...

3:02am (or 3:04 according to her birth certificate)
Naomi Grace Essenpreis was born! She was 7lb 8oz and 20 1/2 inches long. I thought that they would say 'her head's out' and then it would take a couple pushes to get her body out. No, it just happened all of a sudden in one push her head came and her body slid out with it! Spencer cut the cord and I remember hearing Naomi cry and then Spencer cry. Then they layed my precious little girl on my chest. It felt so surreal! I couldn't believe that this little girl was really ours. She was beautiful..with big dark blue eyes and a lot of dark hair :) I was so relieved that she was alive and healthy!

Recovery on the other hand is a different story. I learned that I do not like being a patient in the hospital. I had a lot of pain from the birth itself as well as back pain from the epidural and back labor. To make matters worse I had horrible insomnia and anxiety while in the hospital (thanks to hormone changes). The night before they discharged me I was so worried I wouldn't be able to take care of this precious baby because I was physcially hurting and was so exhausted. I remember praying and reading my Bible and trying to quote scripture to myself just to get through the night. Thankfully God's mercies are new every morning (Lamentations 3:22-23) and He is giving me the grace to make it through each day. Spencer and my mom have been a tremendous help. I don't think I could have made it without them! Some days are pretty good and other days are still hard, but I know God has a plan and is working for my good and His glory! I love being a Mommy. I have always wanted to marry and have a family. I feel like this is what I was meant to do and life is so much better having Naomi to love and care for. For the one or two of you who made it this far...thanks for reading :)