Luke's birth story

One week ago right now I was being prepped for surgery, so close to meeting my little boy!

Here is his birth story....

As most of you know I was trying so hard to have a natural birth. After the horror story of Nathan's birth (18hrs of pitocin contractions and having a Csection on a botched epidural), all I wanted was to do things as naturally as possible. I hired doulas, practices breathing techniques, pushing positions, etc, but I suppose it was not in the cards for me. Wednesday the 29th I found myself 41 weeks pregnant and still not even close to being dilated and going into labor. I was having tons of contractions for weeks but they were doing nothing to progress me. I had to beg my Drs to let me go past my due date so I could go into labor on my own.

I went to my 41 week appt with Mike and Nathan. I had Dr. Zaita and she started an NST (where they monitor the baby's heartrate and movements to make sure he was OK). I had had a bunch of sugary juice and a snack on the way to my appt to try to make sure he was up and ready for the testing. After about 20 minutes of testing, Luke was barely passing so the Dr jiggled my tummy some trying to make him move a bit more. I was not surprised because he had been so sluggish for the past few days and I kept having to do kick counts to make sure he was OK. She decided to do an ultrasound to check my fluid levels. It was apparent after a few minutes of the u/s that things were not optimal. I was almost out of amniotic fluid. There was only one small patch by his feet. My Dr suspected a leak (I had had quite a bit of watery discharge the day before but had not thought too much about it). She told me that Luke had to come out within the next 24 hours. She said that without fluid, there was a risk that he could roll over and smush his cord, depriving him of oxygen. I knew I did not want to be induced (my body does not seem to be favorable to pitocin since it did not dilate me at all last time even after 18 hours) so I opted for a Csection. My instincts were telling me that it was the best thing to do at the time. I did not want to do anything to risk my baby's health. I did not feel that I was anywhere close to being in labor and did not feel it was the right thing to do to wait it out.

So Mike, Nathan, and I headed to the hospital and registered and I got hooked up to the monitors. Jon came to pick up Nathan and Mike and I waited for surgery to start. It was quite nerve wracking to sit and wait. Was this Csection going to be anything like last time? I was so tempted to ask for a sedative so I would not panic, but I wanted to make sure I was alert as possible so I could remember all the details of Luke's birth. When it was time for surgery (close to 4pm) I walked into the OR to get my spinal. It was surreal! I sat on the table and the Drs scrubbed up around me. Dr. Hodges was going to perform my surgery. He was sifting through cds trying to pick a good one. He joked that he was going to put on Jeff Foxworthy cd but wasn't sure it would be what my baby wanted to hear during his very first moments. He settled on Miles Davis.

Getting my spinal was rough! The Dr tried 6 times to get it in. It took 50 minutes. It was torture trying to curve my spine and lean over my big 41 week belly for that long. My neck and back were killing me! Finally she called another Dr in and he got it on the first try. Phew! I was worried there that they'd have to resort to general anesthesia.

Once surgery started, I did panic! I was so scared. Mike helped calm me down. Once I realized that I was being cut open and I did not feel anything (what a change from the first time!) I was able to settle down. I remember feeling the tugging sensation of them pulling Luke out and hearing them suctioning his nose. Finally I heard a big loud cry! Luke is a loud guy! I was so excited I could not believe he was actually here. They took him to clean him up and I told Mike to go to him. I was able to pull the curtain away just a smidge to peek at them cleaning the baby. He was so red and had so much dark hair! I could not believe it. They held him up to show me his face and Luke made a funny pirate face at me, haha. Finally they wrapped him up and brought him over for kisses. I was so happy to be able to smooch my little boy. Luke was 7lbs 15oz and 20 3/4 inches. He had a ton of curly black hair and dark grey eyes. He was beautiful!

Mike went with Luke to recovery and I was wheeled there a few minutes later. It was great to be able to see Luke every step of the way. He was being checked over by the Drs and everything was fine! The only thing Luke had that is any way a problem is a sacral dimple (a small divot over his bottom hole that looks like a second butthole!) The Drs said that since it was closed it was most likely not an issue at all, but that we'd have to keep an eye on it and maybe do some tests because it can be indicative of spinal problems. She did not seem worried though.

About 30 minutes after he was born, they brought Luke over to me and I was able to nurse for the first time. Luke is a natural and latched on right away. It was so wonderful to be able to hold him and nurse him so soon after birth. I felt so alert and was not in any pain. For just having surgery, I felt great!

Recovery has been so much easier this time around. Luke has been a great baby. He loves to nurse 24/7 and sleeps in between. It is hard not being able to devote all my time to Nathan, but he seems to be adjusting just fine. He is incredibly sweet and gentle with his new brother.

Luke is perfectly healthy and I could not ask for anything more. Every Dr's visit and post partum check has been a breeze because everything is going so well.

I can't say that I am not at all disappointed that I did not (and will not ever) get my natural birth I had worked so hard for, but it was all worth it in the end. I am so happy that I was given the chance to go into labor on my own anyway, even if it did not work out. I am just happy that Luke is here and healthy.