I went to the scheduler and she said on the order it said the doc wanted it to be before my EDD, which was Sunday the 11th, which only gave her two days. I told her early next week was fine by me too. So she looked and said Friday was booked, if Thursday was too we'd look at Monday. So after calling the hospital, she hung up and said "Okay, be there tomorrow morning at 6am" I was kind of in shock that it was going to be so soon! Especially because Robert had his advancement exam at 7am Thurs morning and couldn't miss it. So, we made our phone calls and my mom started heading this way. We figured we'd just hope for the best as far as his test was concerned.
Thursday morning I called the hospital at 5:30 to make sure that 6am was still a good time. They told me to come in at 7:30.
My mom and I arrived right around 7:30 and they had me wait for a room, took me back, got me set up, etc.
The next few hours were very uneventful. The nurse knew I needed to start on antibiotics bc I was GSB+ but my doctor wasn't there yet so she didn't know when the doc wanted me to start on them. Finally my doc arrived around 10 (Robert had just arrived as well)..they started me on my first dose of penicillin at 10:30 and said they'd be back in 2 hours to start the pitocin.
In the meantime, I started contracting on my own. Contractions were coming every 2-5 minutes and registering anywhere from 60-115. Around 1 she came in and started my pitocin. After cranking it up a couple times the contractions started coming more regularly and intensifying. They were coming every 1-3 minutes and registering 150-200. We discussed pain options but I wasn't ready for anything just yet.
At 3pm they gave me my other dose of penicilin. The nurse said the doc would be in to check me and break my water in an hour or two. So, we waited. I laid down on my side to try and rest but I couldn't get comfortable.
At 5 my doc came in and checked me. I was 4cm and 80% effaced. Archer's head was at a +2. I was so discouraged. I hadn't really progressed since the day before, even with my regular contractions on my own and the pitocin. She went ahead and broke my water..
and that's when the fun began.
Immediately my contractions got so much stronger. They were only registering in the 40s and 50s but they were very very painful. I was breathing through them and trying to stay focused. It took me 5 hours to have Xander after they broke my water. I figured I was in for a long wait and wanted to hold out on meds. But after about 15 minutes, I decided to call my nurse in. I asked for the IV meds to see if that would take the edge off enough. She told me she'd order them but wanted to check me again first. I was 5.5cm. I had progressed 1.5cm in just 15 minutes. So she started the IV meds but also told me that they would have to be stopped once I reached 8cm because they would make Archer drowsy. I was worried that if I did want the epi, because I was progressing kind of fast I might not have time to order it. So I went ahead and called for it. He was there to administer it within a few minutes. By 5:30 I was getting the epi. While sitting up waiting for it to be done, I started feeling a lot of pressure. By the time he was done, I told my nurse I felt like Archer was really low. She said she'd check me and I was 8cm. Before she could even walk away I said "No, he's like reeeeally low. I'm ready." She put her hand right back in and I was 10cm. Immediately I felt like I needed to push.
She then told Robert to press the nurse call button..and when they responded she called for my doc and a birth kit. The whole time I was screaming that I had to push. I kept saying I couldn't hold it. I was trying, but my body was bearing down on its own. I kept saying "he's coming out now. He's coming out!"
They wanted to wait to get everything prepped and get the NICU nurse ready bc there was meconium in my water..but he was ready and so was I.
When the doc came in I said "I need to push NOW" and she looked scared. I heard her say that she wasn't picking up a heartbeat on the monitor. They tried to find it and couldn't..meanwhile they let me push once and still, nothing. The doc came up beside me, looked me straight in the face and told me I had a decision to make. She said "We can't detect a heartbeat and we either need to reposition you and try to figure this out, or you need to get him out right now." I said "NOW" and I pushed once, his head came out and then they told me to get a breath..I did, pushed again and there he was.
He was purple..and silent. We all waited. He was moving, but not making a sound. They suctioned him out, still nothing. My mom, Robert, and I were all just waiting. I started to cry and said "he needs to cry..he needs to cry". The doc cut the cord and moved him to the table (which she apologized to Robert about later and said she was in a hurry lol)..they tried stirring him up and finally, there it was. His beautiful cry. I had a minimal tear and they stitched me, then I finally got to hold him.
It was funny because right at the moment that they handed him to me, my legs started to numb. My epi was just then kicking in. I told the doc and she laughed..she said "honey, that was all you. You did wonderful and did exactly what I needed you to do." I felt like superwoman.
The numbness went away quickly bc they hadn't even had time to put in the drip before I pushed. I felt really great right after delivery. Archer was doing great, I was feeling awesome..like a natural high. I could tell Robert and my mom were so proud.
Archer Reichen arrived into the world Sept 8th, 2011 at 6:02pm, weighing 8lbs 1oz (so not as big as they thought he'd be) and 20.5in. Funny side note: Xander was 8lbs 2oz and 20.5 inches. lol.
We're all doing great! I couldn't have asked for a better delivery, honestly. Totally different experience than I had with Xander. It really is true that it's different every time.
Here are a few pics:
One week old:
