LABOR & DELIVERY

Alright it is time to share my labor and delivery story! I am currently sitting in the hospital on day 7 of having Weston! I have been discharged, while he is still getting the care that he needs and I figured that this would be the perfect time to write this while it is fresh in my head! Sort of!

It all started Saturday July 14th. Joseph and I got up and went to make some money off of all the extra junk we had sitting around our house! We were at our yard sale from like 10-4 ish. I had done a lot of sitting and when my butt hurt I would go bounce on the yoga ball I was trying to sell!😂 I was having more contractions that day, but nothing intense. They would go from being frequent to being hours apart. Just very random. We ended up leaving around 4, but stopped to see my mom and work for a bit. We then went to the store to get the necessities, like water, milk, and Oreos. You know, the important stuff. When we got home neither of us felt like cooking so we popped some corndogs in the toaster oven. (very healthy and nutritious) I NO JOKE got 2 bites into my corndog, and I felt myself leaking. I jumped up and pulled my pants down and low and behold my water broke! I waddled to the bathroom, while Joseph quickly gathered all of our things! We didn't waste anytime either! I think we were out the door within 10 minutes of it breaking.

We got to Labor and Delivery around 7. They checked me to make sure that it was my water and tested the liquid to make sure that it was that and not pee. And it was! The nurse also told me I was only dilated to a 2.5/3ish. Which surprised me because that means I had sat at a 2 for over 2 weeks. They admitted me, and got my IV going. They also told me to let them know when I wanted my epidural and they would get that going for me. Joseph, my mom, and I just sat around and talked. The rest of the family came and sat at the hospital all night! They were just all so excited! They also gave me flavored ice, and it is THE BEST THING EVER! Strawberry coconut is where it is at! Finally my contractions were getting bigger and closer apart, I decided to get my epidural. And I honestly was so scared to get it because I am so scared of needles. But the anesthesiologist was really cool and nice which made me feel a little better! I was sure that I was going to cry during it, and I actually did really well! But I coped with it by trying to make myself and everyone else laugh! I highly recommend epidurals! I thought it was going to hurt so bad, and honestly it didn't hurt at all! I would take an epidural over a regular shot any day! If you can deliver a baby without feeling anything pain, why would you! Joseph was watching my contractions on the monitor and they were like every 1-2 minutes apart, and I couldn't feel a thing! It was so nice! It also was the weirdest thing not being able to feel my legs. Like, my fingers could feel them, but my legs couldn't feel my fingers! Weirdest feeling ever!

I was good for a couple more hours, just visiting and laying there. I was slowly dilating which was good, but it felt like it was taking forever! It finally started to slow down and I was only progressing like 1/2 a centimeter every time they checked me. Around 2 AM I started to get super nauseous, and started throwing up. I don't know if throw up has ever hit that fast in my entire life, and I am not even kidding! Also with the epidural I couldn't sit myself up, so my mom and Joseph had to hold me up! So gross I know. They told me I should try to sleep, but every time I laid down and closed my eyes, I got nauseous again! It was exhausting! I went through so many throw up bags it was ridiculous. So from 2-4:30 I was throwing up every 5 minutes or so. I also wasn't throwing up anything because I didn't have anything in my stomach. They also put me on oxygen to see if that would help! Which it did, but I hated having that thing on my face. It was making me claustrophobic. It got so bad, that the nurse finally decided to give me some nausea medicine even though she didn't want to. During this time, I hadn't made any progress in dilation. I was at an 8 and stayed at an 8, because I was throwing up so much and my body was so tense it couldn't dialate. After I got that, I finally was able to kind of rest. I think I slept, but that time period was just foggy. I do also remember having a mini panic attack, but I don't know why, when, or for how long. I just remember I couldn't breathe and feeling the tears run down my face while my mom held my head trying to help me breathe.

YAY! It was finally time to push! I kept feeling a little bit of pressure in my canal, and I knew it was time! The nurse checked me, and said that he was pretty far down and could feel his head really good. They called by doctor to let him know, and went over how to push with me. When he got there everything was all ready and we started! I pushed for 3 contractions (10 pushes per contraction) and then 1 final push and he was here! It was only in the 10-15 minute range. Some people push for hours and I did not want to be one of those people! But since I had taken nausea medicine I couldn't take Pitocin so I had to labor on my own until it was time. And honestly that was the best thing I think I could have done! It made pushing a breeze because he had already worked himself far down. My labor lasted a total of 12.5 hours. Delivering him was THE MOST surreal moment ever! It felt like a dream! I can't believe that I carried him in my body for 9 whole months! The instantly cleaned him up and we did skin to skin for about 2 hours. I loved everything about him and I couldn't believe that he was all mine! I did have 3 minor tears that my doctor decided to stitch up, but they probably could have done without. After they got me all cleaned up, the rest of my family came in to look and hold him! What a sweet moment that was!

  

Weston was born July 15, 2018 at 7:25 AM . He weighed 6 lbs 10 ounces and was 20 inches long. Which we knew he would be tall and skinny! He is now an entire week old, which makes me so sad! Like, it seems like yesterday he was just born! We did have some complications with him and are still in the hospital but should be going home tomorrow! Weston was treated for Jaundice which made my mom heart break! That was the longest 24 hours of my life, and many trips to the nursery to sit with him while he was under the light. He has been on antibiotics to fight an infection (which he has to be on for 7-10 days) and he did test positive for a pretty scary disorder called SCID which is Severe Combined Immunodeficiency Disorder. We did lab work and sent them up to Primary Children's to be looked at. They did confirm that it was a false positive due to the type of infection he had, which we are so grateful for. I couldn't imagine trying to raise a child with no immune system and my heart goes out to those who do. The doctors and nurses have been so awesome to us and I couldn't be more grateful for them and all they have done for us and Weston. It has been the longest week of my life! Recovery has gone extremely well, and I am feeling really good! Living in a hospital room has been so hard, and I never want to do it again! I haven't been outside in a whole week! What a blessing it is to bring such a sweet spirit into this world. I am so ready to start this new adventure of being a mom💕

 

 

xx