Thursday November 4, 2010
I woke up Thursday morning around 2:30am again with some light contractions and decided to move downstairs to lay on the couch and listen to my Hypnobabies tracks. At 5:00am my water broke with a gush. It turns out that it was more likely just a tear higher up in the amniotic sac because labor did not get started right away and I continued to leak fluid all the way through delivery. At that point I called Peg, the midwife and she thought things might get going in the next couple of hours. Tony had to do some urgent tasks at work, so he headed out around 5:30am.
I had sporadic and mild contractions for the rest of the day–they increased in intensity only when I was walking. At 6:30pm we went into the hospital to meet Peg and start IV antibiotics because I had tested positive for Group B Strep. At this time I was still only 1 cm dilated and so we decided to start Pitocin. Peg felt that this was less likely to lead to a C-Section and feared if we waited until morning to decide, and labor did not pick up on its own, I would be too tired to push the baby out.
I was on Pitocin through the night with some improvement in the regularity of my contractions, but little increase in the intensity. The external contraction monitor indicated strong contractions, but I was rating them only a 2-3 on the pain scale and so Peg and the Nurse were not sure what to do. They were hesitant about increasing the Pit because the contractions looked so strong on the monitor.
Friday November 5, 2010
Friday morning around 6:30am we decided to put an internal contraction monitor into the uterus to get a better read on how strong my contractions were by directly measuring internal uterine pressure. While inserting the lead, Peg discovered I had a “bag” above my cervix. I was still only 1.5 cm dilated, but the cervix was more effaced and very soft–Yay! The stage was at least set for dilation! She broke the bag, hoping that would also help move things along. At this time, they also cut the Pitocin in half hoping my body would kick in better. This is when labor got going a little more regularly.
Around 12noon I would say I went into more active labor, where I used my Hypnobabies tracks and tools. During each contraction I would turn my light switch off, breath deeply and close my eyes. Peg was finally happy to see me actually laboring! Hypnobabies worked very well–no one could believe how well I was managing the contractions–they couldn’t even tell when I was having one except for by looking at the monitor.
Around 2:30 I started feeling pushy and so Peg checked me again. She later said she was crossing her fingers that I was at 5cm. I was 9.5 cm and ready to push!! Finally! We were going to have a baby!
My contractions slowed down to about 5 minutes apart, but they were reluctant to increase the Pitocin. I pushed using the squat bar—my husband and a couple of nurses would help me get my arms over the bar for each contraction and then I would sit back down to rest between contractions–often falling asleep. I also pushed some on the toilet, which was the most comfortable and productive for me. Eventually both of these positions caused a drop in the baby’s heartbeat, and so I ended up delivering in a semi-reclined seated position.
I tried using the “Pushing Baby Out” track and had it playing out loud two times through (it’s only about 30 minutes) but then I got too frustrated because it says you don’t really have to push, just breath the baby out. This was not my experience at all—I had to push long and hard! I ended up pushing until 5:53 when little Lane Anthony was born. (Editors Note: It doesn’t say you don’t have to push. Instead it says to follow your body.)
Overall, I was extremely pleased with Hypnobabies–I enjoyed the preparation ahead of birth and really believe that it helped me to experience the entire labor and delivery process in the most positive way possible. My midwife said of the thousands of births she’s attended, in very few have the women been as calm and relaxed as I was. Thanks to Hypnobabies!