Megan's Birth Story (Part 2)

We went to pick up my mom at the airport at 6:00 p.m. By that point, I had to brace myself against something when a contraction was underway. Her first view of me as she came down the stairs at the airport was of me pushing against the wall as I breathed through a contraction.

We all went home for a few more hours. I made Todd stop at Target to get an exercise ball for me to rock on at home. We hung out for a while and I managed to eat a half peanut butter and jelly sandwich. We decided to call the hospital at about 9:00. After hearing me have a contraction or two over the phone (I couldn't talk through them by that point), they said it was time to come back. So we headed back to the hospital.

This time they let me stay, even though I was no more dilated than I had been earlier. Feeling frustrated again, we settled in for what we thought was going to be a long night.

I tried all the stuff they told me to in the birthing room. Right away they suggested I get in the tub. I argued that I'm not really a "tub person."

"Trust us," they said. "Everyone LOVES the tub." I gave it a try--still in my sports bra and gown. After about 15 minutes of trying to get comfortable and get my immense belly under the water, they agreed to let me get out. So there I was, now soggy in addition to in pain, tired and frustrated.

While the contractions kept getting stronger, I really wasn't dilating much.

I decided to try to take a nap. The nurse advised that I shouldn't lay down, that gravity would be working against me, and that I'd only be slowing my progress. However, as soon as I was lying down, I felt nauseated, threw up, and my water broke. It was really dramatic. :)

They had me sit on the birthing ball. I swayed and rolled through the contractions, which, by that point, were all I could focus on. Oddly, I managed to sleep for the 1-2 minutes between contractions. My mom thought it was the strangest thing she had ever seen. When a contraction ended, I'd rest my head on my arms on the end of the bed. My whole body would relax and I'd doze. Then when another contraction ramped up, I'd tense up and start rocking again.

By that point I had tuned out Todd's voice because of the pain. He was working on physical support (holding my hand, pushing on my back, etc) and my mom's voice was somehow making it through to my addled brain for the breathing support. I don't know if I would have made it all the way through with no pain meds at all if it hadn't been for my mom being there with us.

Then my nurse went on break. Her substitute suggested that I try lying over a bean bag. It hurt like hell! Suddenly I felt like I need to push. The nurse called the doctor in and I had dilated from 5 cm to 9 cm in about 20 minutes! They got my nurse off break and called in the cavalry.

Shortly into the pushing, the doctor asked if I'd like to feel her head. I didn't really believe that I could just reach down and feel her, but there she was. I remember thinking something like, "Oh my god! How weird!" The other strange moment I remember during pushing was hearing "American Baby" by Dave Matthews Band coming from our long-forgotten playlist on the computer. I remember thinking it was an ironic song to hear.

After only about 40 minutes of pushing (which after the contractions seemed easy--I just let my body take over), Megan was out and screaming her little lungs out at 3:31.

The doctor put her on my chest. It was the most amazing moment of my life.