The paper crinkled underneath me as I sat in the exam room of my midwife’s office, swaying my feet. I was anxiously waiting for her to check me and praying for some progress since I was a few days over 39 weeks and so ready to meet our little girl. Steve’s time off was coming up and I desperately wanted him to be able to spend as much time with us as he could after Amelia was born. When we were expecting Logan, he took time off a little too soon and ended up only being with us for 5 days after he was born. I didn’t want that to happen again, but I really wanted to go into labor naturally and avoid an induction if at all possible. I expressed my concerns to my midwife, Courtney McMillian, and she gave me a few options. I could wait and hope that labor would start soon or I could schedule an induction for Sunday evening. There was a limited window that I would be able to be electively induced because the Obstetrician in the practice was going out of town.
I sighed and laid back as a million thoughts were going through my mind. I looked up at the ceiling as she said I was almost 2 cm but still no effacement. Courtney could see the disappointment on my face and reassured me that it really didn’t mean anything and that labor could start at any time. She offered to strip my membranes in hopes that it would help move things along. I agreed to have her do it even though I knew it was going to be unpleasant. Thankfully it wasn’t as bad as when I had it done with Logan. Courtney felt as though she was able to do a good sweep and said, “If it works, you’ll go into labor in the next 12 to 24 hours,” and sent me on my way.
I called Steve as soon as I got to the car and told him everything she had said and what our options were. He was open to whatever I wanted to do and said somehow he’d figure it out to be able to stay home with us a little longer if she came late. I decided that we’d let nature run it’s course and hope for the best. I went about the rest of my day like normal, taking care of Logan and doing groceries. While I walked through the grocery store I had a lot of cramping and tightness but shrugged it off as nothing since I had felt that way so many times before. I probably just needed to get home and put my feet up. We had dinner, relaxed on the couch, and headed to bed around 11pm.
At 12:36am I was woken up by a contraction. It’s happened before and I usually find comfort by moving to the couch downstairs. I laid down and instantly fell asleep. Then, 15 minutes later, I was woken up again by a contraction. This went on until about 3am and suddenly I couldn’t fall asleep in between them anymore and I felt like they were coming pretty close together. I decided to start timing them and to my surprise they were coming about every 4 min and lasting a minute long. I couldn’t believe it could possibly be the real thing so I went upstairs to take a bath and see if they would go away. I woke Steve up to let him know just in case and after just 10 minutes of being in the bath, they got stronger and closer. I called him into the bathroom and told him I think I’m in labor. His eyes grew wide and he asked me what I wanted to do. I was nervous it was a false alarm and didn’t want to disturb everyone in case it was, but he insisted on packing his hospital bag anyway. I called my parents who were an hour away to let them know so they could come to the house to watch Logan. My dad answered immediately and I explained to him what was going on. He urged me to go to the hospital right away and they would pick Logan up from there. My mom has a history of very quick births, so he didn’t want me waiting at home for them.
Next, I called my midwife and told her what I had been experiencing and she knew I wanted to try for a natural birth so she asked if I wanted to labor at home for a little while or if I wanted to go to the hospital. I told her I’m nervous about waiting too long because the hospital is a 25 minute drive for me and I needed to make arrangements for my son. In the calmest voice, she said, “Ok. I’ll meet you there.” I began getting my things together and the contractions were consistently coming every 3-4 minutes and were beginning to get stronger. I called my friend Kelsey, who was also my doula and told her I was heading to the hospital. She said she would just get her stuff together and head over.
I walked around the house trying to remember everything I needed while having to stop every few minutes and sway through a contraction. Once we got in the car, I knew for sure this was the real thing. The contractions were becoming more intense and I couldn’t get comfortable. I saw the worry on Logan’s face as he asked me, “Mommy ok?” and I tried my best to hide my pain so he wouldn’t get scared. The car ride felt like the longest car ride of my life. I managed to eat a granola bar I had stashed in my purse in case I had a long labor and wouldn’t be able to eat again for awhile. I would regret eating it just two hours later. We finally arrived at the hospital around 5am, but my parents weren’t there yet. I told Steve to wait outside for them, but that I needed to go inside because they were coming closer together.
Once I got checked in and Courtney arrived, she checked me and told me I was 4.5cm and fully effaced. I was glad there was progress, but I was hoping for more with how intense and close together my contractions were. She knew I didn’t want a lot of internal exams and told me to let her know when I wanted to be checked again, that she’d be just outside the room if I needed anything. There was such a calming presence about her that I felt better knowing she would be close by. My parents arrived and took Logan back to our house so he could sleep and waited there for updates. Steve called my mother-in-law once we were checked into the hospital to let her know what was going on and she offered to drive up to our house and stay with Logan so my parents could be with me at the hospital.
Kelsey and Steve took turns rubbing my back and offering words of encouragement. I had really intense back labor and couldn’t find a position that was comfortable to labor in. I ended up sitting cross legged on the bed for most of the time, trying my best to breathe through the contractions. About an hour after I had arrived, I looked at Steve and told him I couldn’t do it; I wanted an epidural. I told him to call Courtney so I could let her know. She was supportive of whatever choice I made and ordered the epidural right away. A few minutes later, she came back into the room and hesitantly told me I was going to have to wait a little while because the hospital is in the middle of changing shifts and the day time anesthesiologist wasn’t there yet. I was so anxious and scared that they wouldn’t get there in time and I’d have to give birth without it. I kept staring at the clock wondering when they were going to come. Kelsey put on some music to give me something to focus on and it helped relax me a little. Over an hour had passed and my contractions were 1 min apart and very intense. I told the nurse I thought I had to pee and Kelsey helped me to the bathroom. If you’ve never had a baby, there’s no shame when you’re in labor and giving birth. I waddled to the bathroom and sat down to pee with the door open. In slow motion, I saw the anesthesiologist run into the room with his long brown hair flowing behind him. The nurse was rolling in the cart of supplies and I jumped off the toilet. I was so relieved he was there. Kelsey asked if I was able to go to the bathroom and I said no but I didn’t care because all I wanted was the epidural.
Once he was all set up, I was hunched over holding Courtney’s hands so tight. I remember with Logan it wasn’t really painful and it was pretty quick. Of course as he had the needle in my back, I had two contractions on top of each other and I plead for him to hurry. It was so hard not to move and I was so nervous I was going to mess it up. Suddenly, a warmth went down my back and legs and I had instant relief. He said he gave me a spinal first since I had to wait so long. They quickly laid me down before I lost all sensation and I felt my whole body relax and my breathing slow. As soon as I laid back, my water broke and Courtney said there was traces of merconium in my water so my birth plan may need to be altered. I told her I trusted her and whatever is best for the baby, is what I wanted to do. She asked if she could check me and I agreed. I had a feeling I was fully dilated, but I didn’t want to tell anyone before I had the epidural. With a surprised look on her face, she said you’re 10 cm and she’s at -1 station. I smiled and asked if I could relax for a few minutes and wait for my parents to get there before I started pushing. She agreed and said she would get everything ready in the meantime.
I laughed and talked with Kelsey and Steve while we waited and then I felt like I had peed myself. I let the nurse know and she checked and turns out I pooped! SO embarrassing but what can you do, it happens! The nurse called Courtney to let her know as that’s a sign the baby is moving down in the birth canal. Just as she came in, my parents did too and we were ready to go. It only took two pushes for Amelia’s head to come out. I looked up at Steve and he had tears in his eyes. I wouldn’t let him look with Logan’s birth, but this time I said he could if he wanted to. Courtney suctioned her nose and mouth, and then I pushed one more time and she was out! I felt instant relief and was so happy to finally have my sweet Amelia in my arms. I didn’t know it, but she had the cord wrapped around her neck so they had to cut the cord and take her to the warming station right away to check all her vitals. It took her a little bit, but she finally let out a cry and we all let out a sigh of relief. She scored a 9.9 on her APGAR and was a perfectly healthy, little girl.
Amelia Grace was born on Friday, August 7, 2015 at 8:35 a.m. to the song “Brighter Than the Sun.” She weighed 7 pounds 4 ounces and was 19.5 inches long. We couldn’t believe how much she looked like Logan and instantly fell in love with our precious baby girl. A lot of people have asked if this birth was better than Logan’s. It was different. It was definitely faster, but more painful. Overall, I’m very happy with my birth experience and wouldn’t change it for anything. I am so glad I switched to my midwife when I was 32 weeks along. I really don’t think I would have had as much of a pleasant experience as I did with her. Even Steve was very impressed by her and was glad she was there to help us through the process.
My best friend, Courtney Jones, of Courtney Jones Photography just missed her birth by about 40 minutes. I really didn’t expect her to even be there at all since she had just had her daughter 5 weeks earlier. I was so happy when Steve told me she was on her way and grateful for the photos she was able to take. She captured Logan meeting his baby sister for the first time and Amelia’s first bath. Here are a few of my favorite photos.
And here are some photos I took of my sweet girl when she was 5 days new!
by Julie Jarrell
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