Thanksgiving night, my water broke right before the six guests we had over sat down to the table. I tried to keep things low key and managed to put away two pieces of pumpkin pie before heading to the hospital. Once we arrived, they checked me and confirmed that my water had broken and even though I begged to go home to sleep they told me we needed to stay the night because of the risk of infection.
The next morning, my doctor–Jaqueline Worth–arrived (Thank Goodness!!!) She told me that I had until 8 pm to begin labor or they’d be forced to induce me. Again I begged to go home to try to get the labor started on my own. She agreed! At home, I got acupuncture, ate pepperoni pizza, took a five-mile walk, drank some castor oil, and gave myself an enema, and lo and behold, labor started!!! (I wonder why…)
We were back at the hospital by about 5:30pm as the contractions were getting closer though not gaining too much intensity. When we got there, they started getting stronger and stronger. I screamed; I showered; I mooed like a cow. By 2:30 am, I was still only 4 cm dilated. Again, the doctors were concerned about infection. My mother, who was there with me and my husband, started crying about now and begged me to get an epidural. Well: I did it. A huuuuuuuuuuuuuge difference in pain. I could still feel a bit but nothing compared to the last many, many hours. I was, though, exhausted, and I really, at that point, just wanted the strength to be able to hold my baby girl if she would ever be born.
A single thirty-minute nap later, the nurse came in to check me and–much to everyone’s surprise–I was fully dilated and ready to push. After about fifteen minutes of pushing, they decided maybe I wasn’t completely ready and let me take another thirty-minute nap. When they came in the next time, I was ready, and push I did. E J came out, wailed, and latched right on. I’ve never felt more happiness in my entire life. I had no rips or tears and needed no stitches. Now home, we’re buried in diapers and absolute bliss.
So…as you can see…it wasn’t exactly what I wanted but it was pretty darn close. It didn’t even strike me until I got home how close I was to having to get a C-section, how so many doctors at so many places wouldn’t have let me go home to induce labor naturally–a whole slew of things. I just feel ever grateful.
