On Monday, February 27th, Jason went to work and was home mid-day to take me out for a nice lunch. At this point, I was very uncomfortable and it had been very hard to walk due to the sciatic nerve pain. However, I knew I should enjoy a nice meal before going to the hospital. So, later that afternoon, I went through my checklist to make sure everything was done, ready, and packed. At 1500, I received a phone call from a nurse to tell me that they had run out of hospital beds and that I needed to come in at 1800. No problem! I was too embarrassed to take all my stuff in my hospital room because it looked like I was ready to move in. Like with most things, I over prepared. So, we took just the necessities for me and left the rest to sneak in later. I met with the nurse on shift and Dr. Foreman. After a check, Dr. Foreman determined I was 2cm dilated and decided to use cervidil to help me progress with labor. It didn't take long before my contractions were steady and strong. They were 3 minutes apart on average that evening. The weeks prior to labor I had experienced a lot of spinal pain when I used my right leg so I had an inkling that BC was sunny side up. During the evening my speculation proved right. I experienced back labor and it was pretty painful. The nurses had mercy and gave me systemic pain medication to take the edge off. After the medication, I had my last meal. *sigh* Throughout the night, I experienced very strong contractions and lots of back pain. I could hardly stand to bear any weight on the left side of my bottom. The night went on with very little sleep and lots of nurse visits.
On Tuesday, February 28th, my contractions were still steady and Dr. Ajala came in to check to see if I had made any progress. Unfortunately, my cervix had not progressed at all. Dr. Ajala decided pitocin would most likely help speed things up. The nurse started at the smallest dosage and before too long she had increased it to the highest. By 6pm, Dr. Ajala decided if there was no progression we would have to discuss a c-section. I shuddered at the thought. At this point, BC was still doing quite well with my contractions and showed no signs of distress. I, on the other hand, developed an infection. I was put on three different antibiotics and had spiked a fever. My body was shaking uncontrollably and I did my hardest to do the Lamaze I had learned through each contraction. Just when I thought I had enough, the nurse came in and helped me decide to have an epidural. After 24hrs of back labor, I decided it might be a good idea since I was only 4cm dilated. After the epidural, I felt alot better and tried to get some rest to hopefully labor soon. Throughout the night, I still had a great deal of pain and pressure. Again, I could not bear weight on the left side of my bottom. Throughout my discomfort, Jason was always by my side to help alleviate it in any way he could. My second night in the hospital was also very sleep deprived and I worried if I would have the strength to deliver.
Wednesday, Feb. 29th, the doctor came in around 0900. After checking me, she determined there was not enough progress and we had to get the baby out. BC's little head was pushed against my cervix with each contraction but went no where. As a result the nurse could feel swelling on her head. Also, my infection was starting to affect her. The doctor said that my contractions were strong and steady enough to have made me fully dilate but my body was not allowing it to happen. Most likely because BC was too big and my pelvis was too small. So, I was prepped for a c-section. As the doctor went through the risks involved, I was pretty scared but knew that it must be done. I had been on pitocin so long that the doctor feared it might take longer to stop the bleeding after surgery. After a quick prayer and a phone call to parents, I was wheeled into surgery. Jason was soon by my side and before long I heard the most beautiful noise ever: my baby's first cry. She was finally here! Camille's little cries were music to my ears. She actually came out holding her umbilical cord. After being cleaned up, she was right next to me in Jason's hands. As soon as I spoke to her she stopped crying. Her little eyebrows lifted and her eyes opened and she looked right at me. We locked eyes and she started cooing. It was like she was telling me all about her experience. She kept going for 30 seconds and it was amazing! I gave her a kiss before feeling a wave of pain. It felt like my organs were being pushed down and my heart was on fire. I didn't think this was right because I was in a great deal of pain. I became sick and was in tears. The nurse asked what was wrong and I told her "I can feel it. I feel alot
After 40hrs of labor, Camille finally arrived via c-section and we went home two days later. Now the real adventure begins!
Here are some photos from the hospital. Camille is 1 day old :)
