Margaret's birth (long)

As promised, here's the long version. With this I'll be saying adieu and
wandering back on over to m.k.b. With two children now, I don't know if
I'll ever be pregnant again and I'm kind of sad about it. Best of luck to
all of you and thanks for all the humor and advice.

-Liz

I had painless contractions much of thursday and thursday night, started
feeling some discomfort Friday morning and noticed they finally seemed
regular and didn't change much whether I moved or rested. They were about 6
minutes apart and stayed that way all morning, I was figuring I'd call the
dr in the afternoon and settled in for some peaceful early labor in my own
nest.

Weather reports were for snow that evening, but it started snowing here
around 10am. I started worrying about getting to the hospital later and
took a nice brisk walk. Contractions stayed 6 minutes apart but got
stronger. Came home covered in snow so I took a nice hot shower. My mom,
who was going to come and get my toddler, was pretty worried about the
streets at this point, and I was starting to worry too, so I called the dr
a while earlier than I would have otherwise. They said to come into the
office right away since they were closing early.

In the mean time the weather and road conditions are deteriorating rapidly
and I'm getting worried about how long it would take for a cab to get to
me, and then get to Manhattan where my dr's office and hospital are - the
bridge especially can get scary. I decided to have my mom drop me at the
subway instead. I know it sounds crazy but in a snowstorm it's just the
safest most reliable way to get around in NYC.

I had to pour water over the burning fire in the fireplace (I'd really been
expecting much more time) and flooded the hearth. Joy. We all got in the
car, I had my bag packed for weeks already so I just left. The 1/2 mile or
so to the subway (I'm walking distance from one line, but mom took me to a
better line for getting to the dr) was really really scary. Already there
was black ice under the snow. Visibility was ok, but cars were spinning out
all over the place or getting stuck going uphill. Mom dropped me off and I
headed on in.

On the way in the contractions got stronger and a little closer together -
5 minutes now. Where I had to change trains there was a spot I could get
cell phone reception so I called the dr's office and said I wanted to go
straight to the hospital, they said ok and they'd tell them I was coming. I
didn't think the side trip would make that much difference time-wise, but
the hospital is right outside the subway stop while the dr's office would
have been a walk in the snowstorm, and then try to get to the hospital
about 1/2 mile away so I was glad to skip it. I also called my DH and told
him to meet me there - he was at work, about 1/2 hour subway ride to the
hospital with an entrance in the lobby of his building so that was no
hassle. My one fear was that some someone would realize I was in labor and
try to be helpful by hustling me off the train :*)

When I got there, my own OB was on duty that day - he's the dr who really
pushed for me to be allowed to have the version so I was very glad. He told
them to just admit me - since I was a VBAC patient he wanted me to come in
earlier in labor anyway so we could be monitored. It was really busy that
afternoon, so it was at least an hour before anyone checked me, and to my
astonishment I was already at 6 cm, the contractions were still only mildly
painful.

I got hooked up to an IV and external monitors, then I asked for a ball and
got everything settled. For the next two hours it got a lot harder to stay
relaxed, I sat on the ball for a while, stood for abit, lay on my side for
a while, stood leaning on DH which makes almost anything better. Whenever I
changed the nurse had to reseat the monitors, which was a pain, but at
least I didn't have to stay in bed the whole time. When the dr came back to
check me again I was very discouraged to find I'd only dilated another 1/2
cm even though I was in much more pain.

I agreed to let the dr break the water at that point, and got a
narcotic-only epidural a little while later - the contractions stopped
hurting but I could still move my legs and change position in bed from time
to time. By now it's around 5:30, I dilated the rest of the way and was
ready to push around 8:15.

I wasn't feeling too great by now, I still hurt somewhere on my left, the
dr thought it might have been where the shoulder was. My right leg had gone
numb and I couldn't control it much. I could feel the urge to push, which
was almost completely absent in my first labor, but when I willed to do it,
my belly felt like rubber, I knew I wasn't pushing effectively and I just
couldn't seem to do it. After an hour, the baby's head was still at zero
station and I told the dr I wanted to quit.

I know this sounds like a big disappointment after all I'd gone through to
have the VBAC, but really it wasn't. I didn't want to have a vaginal
delivery for it's own sake, I just wanted to be as well and strong as
possible for the postpartum period since I'd been pretty miserable for
weeks afterwards the first time. A number of the things I did the second
time which were aimed at giving myself the best chance of succeeding at the
VBAC helped with the real goal even though I ended up having the
section.

Quitting work earlier and going into labor well rested and postponing the
AROM and epidural till much later were both helpful. Having them when I did
was also helpful - the last stage of dilation went quickly and easily and
that helped my conserve my strength.

In the end, during the section I was alert enough to appreciate my
daughter's birth and get a good look at her. My husband got to hold her for
a good while in the OR while they sewed me back up and I could touch her
with my free arm. I nursed her for the first time in the recovery room, and
she caught on pretty well - it was so nice to feel confident about that.

The whole breastfeeding process worked just the way it's supposed
to. Margaret did a great job and my milk came in the third evening. No
jaundice at all - she did drop 3/4 lb in weight by discharge but
considering she was born 9lb 6 oz that's not exactly alarming. We're going
to the dr tomorrow but I can tell she's doing fine - endless diapers,
satisfied baby, no pain. A lot of my grief in the early weeks with DD#1
were related to the difficulty I had overcoming early problems establishing
nursing - I was pumping after each feed and getting even less sleep than I
might have otherwise.

The hospital stay was lonely, no one could make it through the storm to
visit except DH and with a toddler at home he couldn't always come
either. It was kind of surreal to watch the snow through the window and be
confined to bed through the whole storm. I just cuddled the baby and
enjoyed not having to go out to shovel or shop or anything.

Liz S. Reynolds wrote:

As promised, here's the long version. With this I'll be saying adieu and
wandering back on over to m.k.b. With two children now, I don't know if
I'll ever be pregnant again and I'm kind of sad about it. Best of luck to
all of you and thanks for all the humor and advice.

-Liz

I had painless contractions much of thursday and thursday night, started
feeling some discomfort Friday morning and noticed they finally seemed
regular and didn't change much whether I moved or rested. They were about 6
minutes apart and stayed that way all morning, I was figuring I'd call the
dr in the afternoon and settled in for some peaceful early labor in my own
nest.

Weather reports were for snow that evening, but it started snowing here
around 10am. I started worrying about getting to the hospital later and
took a nice brisk walk. Contractions stayed 6 minutes apart but got
stronger. Came home covered in snow so I took a nice hot shower. My mom,
who was going to come and get my toddler, was pretty worried about the
streets at this point, and I was starting to worry too, so I called the dr
a while earlier than I would have otherwise. They said to come into the
office right away since they were closing early.

In the mean time the weather and road conditions are deteriorating rapidly
and I'm getting worried about how long it would take for a cab to get to
me, and then get to Manhattan where my dr's office and hospital are - the
bridge especially can get scary. I decided to have my mom drop me at the
subway instead. I know it sounds crazy but in a snowstorm it's just the
safest most reliable way to get around in NYC.

I had to pour water over the burning fire in the fireplace (I'd really been
expecting much more time) and flooded the hearth. Joy. We all got in the
car, I had my bag packed for weeks already so I just left. The 1/2 mile or
so to the subway (I'm walking distance from one line, but mom took me to a
better line for getting to the dr) was really really scary. Already there
was black ice under the snow. Visibility was ok, but cars were spinning out
all over the place or getting stuck going uphill. Mom dropped me off and I
headed on in.

On the way in the contractions got stronger and a little closer together -
5 minutes now. Where I had to change trains there was a spot I could get
cell phone reception so I called the dr's office and said I wanted to go
straight to the hospital, they said ok and they'd tell them I was coming. I
didn't think the side trip would make that much difference time-wise, but
the hospital is right outside the subway stop while the dr's office would
have been a walk in the snowstorm, and then try to get to the hospital
about 1/2 mile away so I was glad to skip it. I also called my DH and told
him to meet me there - he was at work, about 1/2 hour subway ride to the
hospital with an entrance in the lobby of his building so that was no
hassle. My one fear was that some someone would realize I was in labor and
try to be helpful by hustling me off the train :*)

When I got there, my own OB was on duty that day - he's the dr who really
pushed for me to be allowed to have the version so I was very glad. He told
them to just admit me - since I was a VBAC patient he wanted me to come in
earlier in labor anyway so we could be monitored. It was really busy that
afternoon, so it was at least an hour before anyone checked me, and to my
astonishment I was already at 6 cm, the contractions were still only mildly
painful.

I got hooked up to an IV and external monitors, then I asked for a ball and
got everything settled. For the next two hours it got a lot harder to stay
relaxed, I sat on the ball for a while, stood for abit, lay on my side for
a while, stood leaning on DH which makes almost anything better. Whenever I
changed the nurse had to reseat the monitors, which was a pain, but at
least I didn't have to stay in bed the whole time. When the dr came back to
check me again I was very discouraged to find I'd only dilated another 1/2
cm even though I was in much more pain.

I agreed to let the dr break the water at that point, and got a
narcotic-only epidural a little while later - the contractions stopped
hurting but I could still move my legs and change position in bed from time
to time. By now it's around 5:30, I dilated the rest of the way and was
ready to push around 8:15.

I wasn't feeling too great by now, I still hurt somewhere on my left, the
dr thought it might have been where the shoulder was. My right leg had gone
numb and I couldn't control it much. I could feel the urge to push, which
was almost completely absent in my first labor, but when I willed to do it,
my belly felt like rubber, I knew I wasn't pushing effectively and I just
couldn't seem to do it. After an hour, the baby's head was still at zero
station and I told the dr I wanted to quit.

I know this sounds like a big disappointment after all I'd gone through to
have the VBAC, but really it wasn't. I didn't want to have a vaginal
delivery for it's own sake, I just wanted to be as well and strong as
possible for the postpartum period since I'd been pretty miserable for
weeks afterwards the first time. A number of the things I did the second
time which were aimed at giving myself the best chance of succeeding at the
VBAC helped with the real goal even though I ended up having the
section.

Quitting work earlier and going into labor well rested and postponing the
AROM and epidural till much later were both helpful. Having them when I did
was also helpful - the last stage of dilation went quickly and easily and
that helped my conserve my strength.

In the end, during the section I was alert enough to appreciate my
daughter's birth and get a good look at her. My husband got to hold her for
a good while in the OR while they sewed me back up and I could touch her
with my free arm. I nursed her for the first time in the recovery room, and
she caught on pretty well - it was so nice to feel confident about that.

The whole breastfeeding process worked just the way it's supposed
to. Margaret did a great job and my milk came in the third evening. No
jaundice at all - she did drop 3/4 lb in weight by discharge but
considering she was born 9lb 6 oz that's not exactly alarming. We're going
to the dr tomorrow but I can tell she's doing fine - endless diapers,
satisfied baby, no pain. A lot of my grief in the early weeks with DD#1
were related to the difficulty I had overcoming early problems establishing
nursing - I was pumping after each feed and getting even less sleep than I
might have otherwise.

The hospital stay was lonely, no one could make it through the storm to
visit except DH and with a toddler at home he couldn't always come
either. It was kind of surreal to watch the snow through the window and be
confined to bed through the whole storm. I just cuddled the baby and
enjoyed not having to go out to shovel or shop or anything.



Congratulations! What a nice story! Babies always come during storms and
emergecies! My boss's daughter-in-law had her baby during the power outage!
Welcome to baby Margaret!

--
Vidya
mom to Vandu(4)
EDD May 6th '04

What a nice story.
Congratulations to all of you and welcome to Margaret.

Love

--
Nicky

EDD March 26, '04. It's a girl!

Congratulations Liz.

I can't believe you went on the subway in labour - I would get freaked out
just thinking about going underground in the best circumstances. You were
very brave!!

I hope things carry on wonderfully

Camille

Glad you had such a satisfying birth experience! Sounds like the hospital
stay was relaxing even though it was lonely. Good luck and Welcome Margaret
(are you going to call her Maggie?)!
Kat
Mama to Maggie 11/03/01
and #2 EDD 02/01/04


"Liz S. Reynolds" wrote in message
...
As promised, here's the long version. With this I'll be saying adieu and
wandering back on over to m.k.b. With two children now, I don't know if
I'll ever be pregnant again and I'm kind of sad about it. Best of luck to
all of you and thanks for all the humor and advice.

-Liz

I had painless contractions much of thursday and thursday night, started
feeling some discomfort Friday morning and noticed they finally seemed
regular and didn't change much whether I moved or rested. They were about
6
minutes apart and stayed that way all morning, I was figuring I'd call the
dr in the afternoon and settled in for some peaceful early labor in my own
nest.

Weather reports were for snow that evening, but it started snowing here
around 10am. I started worrying about getting to the hospital later and
took a nice brisk walk. Contractions stayed 6 minutes apart but got
stronger. Came home covered in snow so I took a nice hot shower. My mom,
who was going to come and get my toddler, was pretty worried about the
streets at this point, and I was starting to worry too, so I called the dr
a while earlier than I would have otherwise. They said to come into the
office right away since they were closing early.

In the mean time the weather and road conditions are deteriorating rapidly
and I'm getting worried about how long it would take for a cab to get to
me, and then get to Manhattan where my dr's office and hospital are - the
bridge especially can get scary. I decided to have my mom drop me at the
subway instead. I know it sounds crazy but in a snowstorm it's just the
safest most reliable way to get around in NYC.

I had to pour water over the burning fire in the fireplace (I'd really
been
expecting much more time) and flooded the hearth. Joy. We all got in the
car, I had my bag packed for weeks already so I just left. The 1/2 mile or
so to the subway (I'm walking distance from one line, but mom took me to a
better line for getting to the dr) was really really scary. Already there
was black ice under the snow. Visibility was ok, but cars were spinning
out
all over the place or getting stuck going uphill. Mom dropped me off and I
headed on in.

On the way in the contractions got stronger and a little closer together -
5 minutes now. Where I had to change trains there was a spot I could get
cell phone reception so I called the dr's office and said I wanted to go
straight to the hospital, they said ok and they'd tell them I was coming.
I
didn't think the side trip would make that much difference time-wise, but
the hospital is right outside the subway stop while the dr's office would
have been a walk in the snowstorm, and then try to get to the hospital
about 1/2 mile away so I was glad to skip it. I also called my DH and told
him to meet me there - he was at work, about 1/2 hour subway ride to the
hospital with an entrance in the lobby of his building so that was no
hassle. My one fear was that some someone would realize I was in labor and
try to be helpful by hustling me off the train :*)

When I got there, my own OB was on duty that day - he's the dr who really
pushed for me to be allowed to have the version so I was very glad. He
told
them to just admit me - since I was a VBAC patient he wanted me to come in
earlier in labor anyway so we could be monitored. It was really busy that
afternoon, so it was at least an hour before anyone checked me, and to my
astonishment I was already at 6 cm, the contractions were still only
mildly
painful.

I got hooked up to an IV and external monitors, then I asked for a ball
and
got everything settled. For the next two hours it got a lot harder to stay
relaxed, I sat on the ball for a while, stood for abit, lay on my side for
a while, stood leaning on DH which makes almost anything better. Whenever
I
changed the nurse had to reseat the monitors, which was a pain, but at
least I didn't have to stay in bed the whole time. When the dr came back
to
check me again I was very discouraged to find I'd only dilated another 1/2
cm even though I was in much more pain.

I agreed to let the dr break the water at that point, and got a
narcotic-only epidural a little while later - the contractions stopped
hurting but I could still move my legs and change position in bed from
time
to time. By now it's around 5:30, I dilated the rest of the way and was
ready to push around 8:15.

I wasn't feeling too great by now, I still hurt somewhere on my left, the
dr thought it might have been where the shoulder was. My right leg had
gone
numb and I couldn't control it much. I could feel the urge to push, which
was almost completely absent in my first labor, but when I willed to do
it,
my belly felt like rubber, I knew I wasn't pushing effectively and I just
couldn't seem to do it. After an hour, the baby's head was still at zero
station and I told the dr I wanted to quit.

I know this sounds like a big disappointment after all I'd gone through to
have the VBAC, but really it wasn't. I didn't want to have a vaginal
delivery for it's own sake, I just wanted to be as well and strong as
possible for the postpartum period since I'd been pretty miserable for
weeks afterwards the first time. A number of the things I did the second
time which were aimed at giving myself the best chance of succeeding at
the
VBAC helped with the real goal even though I ended up having the
section.

Quitting work earlier and going into labor well rested and postponing the
AROM and epidural till much later were both helpful. Having them when I
did
was also helpful - the last stage of dilation went quickly and easily and
that helped my conserve my strength.

In the end, during the section I was alert enough to appreciate my
daughter's birth and get a good look at her. My husband got to hold her
for
a good while in the OR while they sewed me back up and I could touch her
with my free arm. I nursed her for the first time in the recovery room,
and
she caught on pretty well - it was so nice to feel confident about that.

The whole breastfeeding process worked just the way it's supposed
to. Margaret did a great job and my milk came in the third evening. No
jaundice at all - she did drop 3/4 lb in weight by discharge but
considering she was born 9lb 6 oz that's not exactly alarming. We're going
to the dr tomorrow but I can tell she's doing fine - endless diapers,
satisfied baby, no pain. A lot of my grief in the early weeks with DD#1
were related to the difficulty I had overcoming early problems
establishing
nursing - I was pumping after each feed and getting even less sleep than I
might have otherwise.

The hospital stay was lonely, no one could make it through the storm to
visit except DH and with a toddler at home he couldn't always come
either. It was kind of surreal to watch the snow through the window and be
confined to bed through the whole storm. I just cuddled the baby and
enjoyed not having to go out to shovel or shop or anything.

In article ,
Cam & Shane wrote:
Congratulations Liz.

I can't believe you went on the subway in labour - I would get freaked out
just thinking about going underground in the best circumstances. You were
very brave!!

Not really, I'm a native New Yorker, the subway is a way of life. I didn't
get my driver's license till I was 22, cars are such a pain here.

I hope things carry on wonderfully

thanks!

-Liz

In article , SMK wrote:

Congratulations! What a nice story! Babies always come during storms and
emergecies! My boss's daughter-in-law had her baby during the power outage!
Welcome to baby Margaret!

Apparently it got really crowded that day, one of the women in my discharge
class said she almost had to deliver in the hallway that night it was so
full up. Guess there's something to the storm theory, one of the nurses
said it always gets nuts during storms - she thinks the drop in barometric
pressure brings on labor. I've heard lots of sillier things so who knows?

-Liz

In article ,
Kat wrote:
Glad you had such a satisfying birth experience! Sounds like the hospital
stay was relaxing even though it was lonely. Good luck and Welcome Margaret
(are you going to call her Maggie?)!

Not sure yet, I've got a cousin who goes by Maggie and another who goes by
Margie. The great-aunt she was nominally named for went by Peg. I like
Margery, we'll just see what fits, there's lots of choices.

-Liz

Congratulations and thanks for sharing your story!


--
Sandi
Mommy to Abby, 3
Natalie, 16 months
and EDD 6/3/04


"Liz S. Reynolds" wrote in message
...
As promised, here's the long version. With this I'll be saying adieu and
wandering back on over to m.k.b. With two children now, I don't know if
I'll ever be pregnant again and I'm kind of sad about it. Best of luck to
all of you and thanks for all the humor and advice.

-Liz

I had painless contractions much of thursday and thursday night, started
feeling some discomfort Friday morning and noticed they finally seemed
regular and didn't change much whether I moved or rested. They were about
6
minutes apart and stayed that way all morning, I was figuring I'd call the
dr in the afternoon and settled in for some peaceful early labor in my own
nest.

Weather reports were for snow that evening, but it started snowing here
around 10am. I started worrying about getting to the hospital later and
took a nice brisk walk. Contractions stayed 6 minutes apart but got
stronger. Came home covered in snow so I took a nice hot shower. My mom,
who was going to come and get my toddler, was pretty worried about the
streets at this point, and I was starting to worry too, so I called the dr
a while earlier than I would have otherwise. They said to come into the
office right away since they were closing early.

In the mean time the weather and road conditions are deteriorating rapidly
and I'm getting worried about how long it would take for a cab to get to
me, and then get to Manhattan where my dr's office and hospital are - the
bridge especially can get scary. I decided to have my mom drop me at the
subway instead. I know it sounds crazy but in a snowstorm it's just the
safest most reliable way to get around in NYC.

I had to pour water over the burning fire in the fireplace (I'd really
been
expecting much more time) and flooded the hearth. Joy. We all got in the
car, I had my bag packed for weeks already so I just left. The 1/2 mile or
so to the subway (I'm walking distance from one line, but mom took me to a
better line for getting to the dr) was really really scary. Already there
was black ice under the snow. Visibility was ok, but cars were spinning
out
all over the place or getting stuck going uphill. Mom dropped me off and I
headed on in.

On the way in the contractions got stronger and a little closer together -
5 minutes now. Where I had to change trains there was a spot I could get
cell phone reception so I called the dr's office and said I wanted to go
straight to the hospital, they said ok and they'd tell them I was coming.
I
didn't think the side trip would make that much difference time-wise, but
the hospital is right outside the subway stop while the dr's office would
have been a walk in the snowstorm, and then try to get to the hospital
about 1/2 mile away so I was glad to skip it. I also called my DH and told
him to meet me there - he was at work, about 1/2 hour subway ride to the
hospital with an entrance in the lobby of his building so that was no
hassle. My one fear was that some someone would realize I was in labor and
try to be helpful by hustling me off the train :*)

When I got there, my own OB was on duty that day - he's the dr who really
pushed for me to be allowed to have the version so I was very glad. He
told
them to just admit me - since I was a VBAC patient he wanted me to come in
earlier in labor anyway so we could be monitored. It was really busy that
afternoon, so it was at least an hour before anyone checked me, and to my
astonishment I was already at 6 cm, the contractions were still only
mildly
painful.

I got hooked up to an IV and external monitors, then I asked for a ball
and
got everything settled. For the next two hours it got a lot harder to stay
relaxed, I sat on the ball for a while, stood for abit, lay on my side for
a while, stood leaning on DH which makes almost anything better. Whenever
I
changed the nurse had to reseat the monitors, which was a pain, but at
least I didn't have to stay in bed the whole time. When the dr came back
to
check me again I was very discouraged to find I'd only dilated another 1/2
cm even though I was in much more pain.

I agreed to let the dr break the water at that point, and got a
narcotic-only epidural a little while later - the contractions stopped
hurting but I could still move my legs and change position in bed from
time
to time. By now it's around 5:30, I dilated the rest of the way and was
ready to push around 8:15.

I wasn't feeling too great by now, I still hurt somewhere on my left, the
dr thought it might have been where the shoulder was. My right leg had
gone
numb and I couldn't control it much. I could feel the urge to push, which
was almost completely absent in my first labor, but when I willed to do
it,
my belly felt like rubber, I knew I wasn't pushing effectively and I just
couldn't seem to do it. After an hour, the baby's head was still at zero
station and I told the dr I wanted to quit.

I know this sounds like a big disappointment after all I'd gone through to
have the VBAC, but really it wasn't. I didn't want to have a vaginal
delivery for it's own sake, I just wanted to be as well and strong as
possible for the postpartum period since I'd been pretty miserable for
weeks afterwards the first time. A number of the things I did the second
time which were aimed at giving myself the best chance of succeeding at
the
VBAC helped with the real goal even though I ended up having the
section.

Quitting work earlier and going into labor well rested and postponing the
AROM and epidural till much later were both helpful. Having them when I
did
was also helpful - the last stage of dilation went quickly and easily and
that helped my conserve my strength.

In the end, during the section I was alert enough to appreciate my
daughter's birth and get a good look at her. My husband got to hold her
for
a good while in the OR while they sewed me back up and I could touch her
with my free arm. I nursed her for the first time in the recovery room,
and
she caught on pretty well - it was so nice to feel confident about that.

The whole breastfeeding process worked just the way it's supposed
to. Margaret did a great job and my milk came in the third evening. No
jaundice at all - she did drop 3/4 lb in weight by discharge but
considering she was born 9lb 6 oz that's not exactly alarming. We're going
to the dr tomorrow but I can tell she's doing fine - endless diapers,
satisfied baby, no pain. A lot of my grief in the early weeks with DD#1
were related to the difficulty I had overcoming early problems
establishing
nursing - I was pumping after each feed and getting even less sleep than I
might have otherwise.

The hospital stay was lonely, no one could make it through the storm to
visit except DH and with a toddler at home he couldn't always come
either. It was kind of surreal to watch the snow through the window and be
confined to bed through the whole storm. I just cuddled the baby and
enjoyed not having to go out to shovel or shop or anything.