On induction day, we arrived at the hospital right at 7:30. I was excited and nervous and all the feelings you have on labor and delivery day. I changed into my gown and got in bed. The first snag of the day was the nurse’s inability to find a good vein to put my IV in. I have never had a problem with this in the past! She actually blew a vessel on my right hand (resulting in a HUGE bruise lasting for weeks) but finally was able to find a good one on the opposite hand.
At 8:30, I was started on just an itty bit of Pitocin and contractions started right
away. When I was checked a few days earlier, I was already 4cm and 75% effaced, so my doctor knew it wouldn’t take much to get things going. She broke my water around 9:30 and
contractions quickly picked up in intensity. I labored for about 45 minutes to make sure things were steady before asking for an epidural. And 30 minutes
later…
Probably the scariest experience of my life! I should preface this by saying that I’m a big fan of epidurals and have a five for five track record. But this time around, nothing seemed to go according to plan. The anesthesiologist had trouble placing it in my back, audibly mumbling, “Hmmm” multiple times. Not words you want to hear, haha! I was sweating profusely and my pulse and blood pressure were through the roof. When she finally finished, I expected the instant feeling of relief and…it wasn’t there. The anesthesiologist asked if I felt the tingling in my legs and when I said I didn’t, all she could say was, “Interesting.”
progressing so quickly that the epidural couldn’t keep up. So essentially, I had
my first sort-of natural birth! It was disconcerting, especially when I was expecting that epidural, but I kept praying “Whatever God wants” through each contraction…and then quickly adding, “But God, if you want to get that epidural to work, I’m totally good with that too.” A saint I am not, haha.)
But the fun didn’t stop there! Immediately after delivery, he was very quiet. They discovered
that he had had the cord wrapped around his neck as well as two fairly tight knots. The nurses quickly whisked him away to the warming bed and I was in a weird haze of relief and confusion. (His 1 minute APGAR score was 4/10) After what felt like forever, he finally cried, pinked up and was able to nurse. We left the hospital with a perfectly healthy baby 24 hours later.
As I reflected on the entire pregnancy and the adventure-filled birth, I came to believe that my blood pressure problems were all part of a plan to save my son’s life. We had so many doctors and nurses tell us how critical it was to have him arrive just at that time and because of the cord knots, how quickly we could have lost him. We don’t always see past the next step but this experience has shown me how critical it is to trust. I mean, REALLY trust in Him who loves me and sees the entire picture when I only see a sliver. Patrick is, without a doubt, my proof.
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