Here is our birth story:
Players:
- Me
- Danny
- Kris (My doula)
- Maggie (British Midwife)
- Alison (back up Midwife)
Duration: 7 hours
On Friday November 21, 2014 I went to my chiropractor in the morning and I got a car wash. I got home and started working, then took a warm shower and a nap @ 3pm. I don’t recall if I was dreaming anything but I woke up and I felt like my period had started.
I quickly went to the bathroom and I saw blood so I grabbed a towel and put it between my legs. I called Danny on his cell and he left work immediately. I panicked because I couldn’t find the number for my midwives. I checked the website but they moved. My heart started racing because I wasn’t sure if the baby was still moving.
Finally I found an envelope on the floor with the new number to the midwives. I called and I had to call another number to page my midwife. I was advised to wait 10 minutes. I told the lady I was bleeding and she just repeated herself to wait 10 minutes. So then I called my doula, Kris and she told me to call her after I speak to my midwife but she said she is home just walking her dog. Finally, I got a call back and Maggie was the line. DAMNIT.. I wish it were Erin instead. Maggie asks me “How much are you bleeding? A lot?”
“I don’t know, I have a towel between my legs. I’m not sure what is considered a lot.”
“Meet me at the hospital then, I can’t assess you on the phone.”
“Which one?”
“Trillium”
So then I thought, well its not that much of an emergency since I would have gone to Credit Valley since it’s closer.
I tried to pack as much as I could in a bag and grabbed the baby bag just in case. I started to feel the baby move so I was relieved she didn’t die. I wasn’t in any pain. I met Danny in the lobby. He raced his car to the hospital and I kept reminding him there is no rush. Baby is moving. I’m not in any pain.
@ 5pm: We get to Trillium and Danny parks his car in the fire route. I’m more concerned about him getting a parking ticket. I get to the birthing floor and I see a couple filling out paperwork. The lady is clearly in labour. As I got to the counter, I was asked if I was Dominique and I confirmed. They said Maggie already called and I could make my way into one of the rooms.
I sat on the bed and two nurses came in to assess me. They took my towel and said my water broke. There’s more water than blood. However I have to wait until my midwife comes to see if she’s going to send me home (which I thought was going to happen.) Maggie showed up, then Kris showed up not long after. Maggie did a vaginal check, which I thought was so uncomfortable. I tried to breathe through it, but there was no way. It really tensed me up. I told her it felt like a really bad pap smear. Kris told me to breathe through it too, which I couldn’t. Maggie said I was 3cm dilated and I was going to have the baby tonight. She was saying she was looking forward to watching Coronation Street but now that’s not happening. They placed a monitor on my stomach and were asking me if I was feeling anything. I said no.. but according to the monitor, I was having a contraction.
This picture doesn’t look right, but since I’m not in a hospital gown. I believe I was thinking “OMG I forgot this, this and that in my hospital bag.” and “I can’t believe I am going to have this baby now, I am supposed to be at home doing this.”
I was annoyed that I wasn’t able to move around since I am stuck with this monitor. Too bad I can’t upload the video Danny accidentally took of me in labour. I’m actually smiling.
Continuation of the labour: So time kinda flew by.. Danny bought me some star magazines which I didn’t even bother to read. I was looking at the clock and what was going on around me. There was no TV in the room, no radio. A nurse came in to give me an IV with antibiotics because Demi was premature and Maggie wanted to do some blood work. I asked them if they could give me 20 minutes before they began because I wanted my EMLA patch to kick in. I do not like needles. Maggie said she’d give me 5 minutes and I watched the clock. Maggie was quick to do the blood work but the IV in my hand took longer and hurt more. The nurse did play an Enya song while she did do the IV so it wasn’t too bad.
Alex met Danny in the lobby to deliver the cord blood kit. I asked Danny if Alex brought anything else from home and he said no, he didn’t ask. So I texted Alex a huge list of things I needed. I asked Kris if she had a bag of goodies. She brought the TENS machine but because I was hooked up to a monitor, we were unable to use it.
list included:
- magic bag
- saje essential oils
- Sobakawa pillow
- Saje Eye mask
- Iphone charger
- Brookestone Alarm clock
- Ear plugs
- Beats by Dre headphones
So while I waited for Alex to arrive with my stuff, I chatted with Kris and Maggie about epidurals and learned people make the request for them before they even feel anything because its the norm. They laughed when I realized that I wouldn’t have to go to prenatal yoga since it was so uncomfortable and then I could go to le scandinave and sink in the hot tub and eucalyptus steam room. Nurses were saying I am an enigma because I was talking/laughing like a woman with an epidural but I didn’t have one.
I remember Danny picking up some Tim Horton donuts for everyone. Naturally, I couldn’t have any because I had an IV.
I was told to go to the washroom, even though I didn’t feel like I needed to go. I remember Danny had to hold my IV bag and I was very stern that it had to stay above my heart so I don’t get aneurysm.
After, I asked if I could at least make some changes to the bed to make it more like I was sitting instead of lying down, so we all fiddled with that. Kris told me not to get up since Maggie left the room, just in case things changed. I desperately wanted to get up and walk around, my ass was starting to get numb. Kris told me not to rely on Alex bringing me my stuff since I think she believed that I was withholding getting this baby out. I guess I kinda was, but I knew that at some point in time, I will start to feel something before the baby comes out and I wanted to be prepared.
Once Alex arrived, I was able to relax. I listened to the Hypnobirthing affirmations since I was getting bored. I laughed because the voice kept saying “I eat right for my baby…” and I wasn’t able to eat anything at that moment. I also felt bad because I ate mcDonalds not too long ago. I closed my eyes and listened to the Rainbow affirmations. According to Kris & Danny, they started to see some progress.
Maggie wanted to check on my progression. I was not looking forward to this since I already knew what this felt like.I asked her what kind of instrument she was using and she said she was just using her fingers. ARGH. I felt like Demi was on her way out, but with this vaginal check, she moved right back up. 8cm dialated now.
Not too long after, I started to feel period cramps. I only felt the peaks of the contractions, never the beginning or the end so it seems. I sent Danny to get my magic bag heated, he came back and it felt so great. When I did feel the peaks, I would get my magic bag on my front for the period like cramps and counter pressure on my back from Kris or Maggie. Kris started using the counter pressure first and it wouldn’t last too long. Once Kris was busy and Maggie filled in. Maggie put a lot of pressure on which was great. I didn’t even tell her once that the peak subsided and she was like “Hey, it would have been nice if you told me earlier since I have stuff to do” LOL
Pain Factor: 4/10 It was more like a wave of tension and cramps. I was able to breathe through it and the thought of pain medication’ didn’t cross my mind, even though I was upset that I wasn’t delivering at Credit Valley since they have laughing gas. The IV was more painful to me.
Time for another washroom break. This time, I took the opportunity to do squats after I used the toilet since they told me not to move on the bed. As soon as I left the washroom, I felt like I had to take a giant poop, so walking to get back on the bed I needed assistance. I told Kris and Maggie that this baby is coming now.
PU-PU-PU-PUSH IT!
So I got on the bed and they laid me down (Argh.. worst position ever to have a baby) and all these people came into the room. Maggie looked me in the eyes and said “Things aren’t going to get any easier from here on in, you will need to work” Danny told me he looked at Kris, and they were both thinking ‘You shouldn’t say that to a woman in labour.’ I decided to ignore what she said to me because I knew whatever I am going to feel will go away and I will feel normal again. They don’t last long. I felt like I had to take a giant poop and my body was automatically pushing. So I closed my eyes to concentrate and I was told to push. I tried to breathe the baby down twice for 2 pushes with grunting. Then I was told that was counterproductive. I wanted to squat, but they wouldn’t let me. They said the baby didn’t like that. I need to hold my breath like I am taking a giant POOOP and bear down. Total opposite of what I have been told to do in Hypnobirthing. I recall also being told to hold my legs up at the same time. I’m thinking ‘I can only do one thing at a time, breathe or hold.’ I got yelled at during each break period because they thought I was falling asleep. I had too much energy to sleep. I was just trying to relax and get ready for the next breath holding, which was difficult for me. I held my breath so much that I thought I’d pop blood vessels in my face. 10 real pushes later and she was out.I received an episiotomy in between pushes. I looked at the clock and I thought, this was probably because Maggie wanted her out before midnight. It was 11:30pm. Before she was out, I overheard Maggie saying to push past the “ring of fire.” She didn’t have to tell me that, I felt that I was near the end that’s all I needed to know. I overheard them saying “Danny, can you see the head,” and I yelled out “Don’t look, Danny!!!,” then Maggie said “Don’t listen to her.” Then she came out and Danny cut the cord, which I didn’t see..
When Demi came out, you can see that she’s crying and it was quite loud. She wasn’t on there for long because I needed the placenta to come out. It didn’t take that long. Just in one push.
Then Maggie started to stitch. I felt most of them because whatever she used to freeze, didn’t freeze all the way and I was telling her I could feel each time she poked that needle through. I’m sure it would have been more painful than it was, if I didn’t have all those good hormones going through my body.
Then she turned to Alison and asked if she did a good job and Alison concurred.
Then Alison gave us a biology tour of my placenta. Danny was grossed out. I was laughing my ass off. She had gloves on and showed us the inside out of it. Picking it up and flipping it inside out.
Kris is in the foreground, I think she was talking about how bad the toilets were in the hospital.
Alison is in the background. She was one of the midwives that presented at the home birthing seminar in October.
I got to take a wicked wheelchair ride to the NICU to see my WHAT? Blond baby?? Are you sure that’s mine?
She’s on a CPAP machine which is equivalent to the machine my Aunt Lisette uses so she doesn’t snore.
Big premature baby
I had to stay in the hospital for for 2 nights to make sure I was ok. I felt fine. After cramps were more uncomfortable and the nurses kept asking me if I wanted any “pain relief”. I didn’t take any because I wanted to breastfeed. The only thing that sucked was when I peed and the stinging from the stitches. Even when I used the peri bottle. After I wiped, I didn’t feel anything. Danny slept on a chair next to my bed.
On Saturday, Danielle, Luke, My Mom & Dad came to visit us first. Julie & Shaun & Keegan came to visit us mid afternoon. Sharon & Dom came to visit us in the evening.
Breastfeeding or pumping was 100x easier with the hospital grade pump, hand expression was just too uncomfortable.
dirtydoubled 