Preston's Birth Story

To say I am in love is an understatement. From the moment I saw and held Preston, I was overwhelmed with emotion. Sometimes I just sit and look at him and become tearful at his existence. His birth was so amazing to me and I can't believe I created and carried such a precious gem.

His birth story started on Saturday when Danielle and I went to the chili fest as a distraction. It was a beautiful day and we had a great time together. We decided that night that I would try some castor oil to get things moving. Around 6pm I took some and by 7pm I was feeling the unpleasant effects of it. I went to bed early in hopes that I could get some rest before going in to labor. I just had a feeling. By 3am Sunday morning I woke up to what I thought were contractions. By 3:30am, I was sure that they were. The contractions were anywhere from 6-10 minutes apart, mostly around 6-7 minutes and lasted for a minute. I remember thinking thank god, they were only a minute long. Knowing that allowed me to get through them much easier. By 5am or 6am, I had to get out of bed to manage them. I watched tv, finished up laundry, finished packing our hospital bag, straightened up the house, ate breakfast, walked around and used the exercise ball. The breathing we learned in lamaze class really helped.

Around 10am, I went back upstairs and fell asleep with Danielle but didn't have another noticeable contraction for 50 minutes. I felt defeated at the time wondering how my contractions went from 6-7 minutes to 50. I thought "man, I went through all of that and it was false labor." Danielle felt defeated as well because she was so hopeful that it was the real deal and now we weren't sure.

Around 11am, I called Mr. Midwife who said he would be in the office doing paperwork and asked us to come in. From the sound of it, he too, thought it was false labor. We took a shower, packed the car with our things and met with him at 12:30pm. He did a cervical check and surprised us all (including himself he admitted) that I was already 4cm dilated and had just a little lip left that had to efface. His office is in a cute neighborhood with many shops so he encouraged us to walk around for another hour, get something to eat/drink and return to his office. So we did just that. I wasn't very hungry and could only tolerate a toasted bagel from Brueggers. I remember the cashier looking at me in concern as I dealt with contractions. Upon returning to the midwife's office, we learned that I was 5cm dilated and my water broke showing that our little guy had passed meconium in utero. So with that he encouraged us to go to the hospital and he would meet us there.

The man is like superman, by the time we got there and to the sign in desk, he was already in his scrubs waiting. I labored in the birthing room for 7 hours drug free on top of the 12 hours at home. The jacuzzi tub was heaven sent. It really helped ease the pain. However, by hour 19/20 in to my overall labor, I hadn't progressed past 7cm and I couldn't manage the pain anymore. I went off mentally to some other place. I remember during my second time in the jacuzzi, Danielle suggesting pain meds and at that point, I accepted. My goal was to try to have this birth drug free with the back up of an epidural and honestly, I have no regrets. I was really afraid of getting the needle in my back but as I was getting out of the jacuzzi, I remember wondering how fast the anesthesiologist could get to my room.

I laugh now because Danielle said I was really snippy with the anesthesiologist team. I remembering looking up to see about 3-4 extra people in my room and in my birth plan I wanted as few people as possible. I'm also all for med students and teaching moments but the med student who was administering my epidural took forever. The doctor who was observing/teaching her would show her and then have her do it. It really was a teaching moment and at the time not really appreciated by me because I was in so much pain. However, with that said, once it was in, I felt so much better. I still had movement in my legs and just felt pressure with each contraction.

About an hour and a half later it was time to push. I did a few pushes on my back and then got on my knees, faced the back of the bed, using it's upright position for support and pushed that way. Danielle said I pushed for 1.5 hours. It really didn't seem that long but I was just in another place mentally and lost track of time. Danielle said that she and Patrick were so up close and personal but instead of being grossed out, she was completely mesmerized watching his head move further and further down. When he started to crown, they packed a lot of ice around my bottom to deal with the burning sensation. I remember before the last push thinking, okay this really burns so I can either push and get him out or sit with this pain. With one more great push, he was out.

Because of the meconium, a doctor examined him right away to make sure he hadn't ingested any into his airways. He was then handed over to Danielle while I was being stitched up (tore slightly) and cleaned up (birth is sooooo messy) then handed over to me for some skin to skin time with warm blankets placed over us. The moment was magical. I get so overwhelmed at times to think that I carried him for 9 months and then here he is in my arms. He was truly worth all the wait, the 2 years of trying, the 16 tries, the heartache and sadness of bfn's after bfn's, the wanting and waiting, he was worth it all. I love him so much.