In case you’re curious: Part 1.
10p: I semi un-packed my hospital bag hoping to grab a few things at least, but my husband convinced me to leave everything. So I just leave everything in disarray (which was a bad idea).
11p: The ride over was even more uncomfortable than the one going home from the restaurant. I definitely can’t do this ride, in labor (how do people get to the hospital in active labor??). Plan B, we get a hotel room next to the hospital till I’m ready. We arrive at the hospital, and head up to triage. It’s pretty empty and the mood is chills. The nurse hooks us up to some monitors and we wait for the on call doctor to check me out.
12a: I’m far enough along that my OB is on her way in they want to check again in 2 hours. I can leave and come back or just hang out here. Ok, 2 hours is pretty easy to kill, lets just stay. NYU had birthing balls, so I snagged one and walked and bounced for 2 hours.
2a: And…yep I’m definitely in active labor, I’m getting checked in (note, without my hospital bag). I’m moved to a birthing suite, which was surprisingly spacious.
Some time at night: My plan was to be able to be able to in a tub or at least a shower to help me cope with the pain. So naturally, 1. there is no tub 2. there was not hot water! So I got the epi around 5cm. (I was really hesitant about getting it, but I had a good experience.) I basically fell asleep afterwards. I’m not sure if this was the cause but it seems pretty correlated, soon after I go the epi by contractions slowed, and I felt like it prolonged my labor. So we waited, and just as we finished the paper work to induce labor, my contractions picked up! whew!
11a: 10 cm fully effaced, it’s showtime! Hm not quite, my water still hasn’t broken yet, what?? Just as they’re about to break it for me, it breaks on its own. Whew, what timing! I wanted as much of this experience to follow my body’s cues and not induced.
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As for the labor:
- The breathing was nothing like the “lamaze” breathing on TV. Nor did my birthing class prepare me for how to do it. It was kinda hard figuring it out in the mist of labor… I was instructed to take a deep breath, hold it and push with my abs tightened, while relaxing my face… All of those things seemed to conflict for me. Plus I had no idea where my abs were by then!
- And you know how they always showed pregnant women eating and not moving much in the movies… well, boy was I glad about all the yoga and exercising I did during pregnancy because labor takes strength and endurance! (And I’ve taken a non-stop 8 hour black belt test).
- My birthing class did touch on this but I really went in with no idea what I was going to do, but I certainly did not give birth laying flat on my back like in the movies.
1p: I’m holding my beautiful baby girl on my chest, and I can’t think of much else. For all the things that didn’t happen, this was the most beautiful moment just like the movies.
Afterwards:In the end I didn’t need anything except a small toiletry kit, water bottle, a comfy lounging outfit (which I technically didn’t NEED but was glad to have) and an empty suitcase to take all the goodies home. As for my husband, a nice camera, warm clothes and maybe blanket cause he was mostly freezing.