Friday morning, around 3:45am, I called Eric and told him I needed him to come back to our room from the lobby, where he had been sleeping. My contractions were starting to get a little stronger and closer together, 2 minutes apart and lasting 45-60 seconds each. They were beginning to get more uncomfortable than they ever got the day before, and this was without any Pitocin. By 5am, each contraction was taking my breath away and I started to throw up. I am not one to throw up, but I threw up more during labor than I have in the past 10 years. This began the part where I could have cared less what my hair looked like. ;)
The next 2 hours were a blur, but I remember my contractions being extremely painful and when the doctor checked me, I was still only 1cm dilated. I kept telling Eric I didn't know how I was going,to make it until 4cm to get my epidural. The night nurse had told me they like patients to wait until 4cm, especially since I was progressing so slow. I had done well emotionally over the past 2 days, but these contractions really started to break me down. Part of the problem was that the contractions were so close together that I didn't have a break in between. Nothing seemed to help the pain- walking, standing, rocking, back massage, laying down- I couldn't find any relieve.
At 7am, the nurse came in to start the Pitocin again. I was truly dreading this since I was already in so much pain. When the doctor came to check me, I was still at 1cm. I asked the doctor how long I would stay on Pitocin before they decided I wasn't progressing and we went to a csection. She told me that we will do the same as yesterday, if the Pitocin didn't help me progress, they would stop it Friday night and start again Saturday morning. As soon as the doctor walked out of the room, I lost it it! I couldn't believe there was a possibility of having to start over again on Saturday. Apparently God knew that I had reached my breaking point because after the doctor left and shift change happened at 7, things took a surprising and pleasant turn.
Side note...we had trouble with the air conditioning in my room the entire 2 days we were there. It was either freezing or burning up, no in between. Around 7:30 Friday morning, it started to get really hot. Even the nurse who was always cold said something about how hot it was. She called the maintained man, but within 10 minutes decided we needed to move rooms. I was in so much pain and it felt like the heater was on. She could tell I was on the verge of an anxiety attack, so she quickly got me out of bed and moved me across the hall.
When we got in the other room, I started asking about pain meds again. The nurse said they could give me Stadol, which went in through my IV. Before labor, I hadn't wanted any meds like this, since I knew they would make me feel not all the way present. I'm allergic to Codine, so I was worried about having a reaction to other meds. But, by 8am, I didn't care what they gave me, I needed some relief. As soon as the nurse gave me the Stadol, I instantly felt more relaxed and the contractions eased up. They were still intense, but not nearly as painful. A few minutes later, the doctor for the day came in. Dr. Rizzo was the doctor that ended up being our final doctor for the stay. She introduced herself and checked to see if I was dilated anymore around 8:15. When she checked me, I was 5cm!! That meantime went from 1cm to 5cm in about an hour! Dr. Rizzo said she thought we would have a baby by noon. I was so excited to see some progress and told the nurse I wanted my epidural. =) The nurse said the anesthesiologists have a 30 minute window to respond, so I knew I only had to make it to 9am. I was able to rest some during this time due to the Stadol. I called my parents to see where they were. They were on their way to get breakfast and come to the hospital, but decided to skip breakfast and come straight to St. John's.
My parents got there around 8:45 and the anesthesiologist came in shortly after. Dr. Rizzo wanted to check me one last time before the epidural to see how much medicine I would need. I kept telling her I felt tons of pressure and I couldn't stop myself from pushing. At this point I wasn't in unbearable pain, but just felt like I had no control anymore. When she checked me, I was 10 cm! That's right friends...I went from 1cm to 10 cm in 2 hours! After the long 2 days before, my labor definitely took a positive turn!
The anesthesiologist ended up giving me a spinal instead of the epidural. I know he explained the difference, but I wasn't really interested at that point. I actually started to feel very calm and thought to myself that this might actually be a pretty good experience. I remember leaning into Eric's chest, trying not to push as I got the spinal. As soon as that was finished, I was ready to push! The spinal made the pain go away, but I was never completely numb. I could still feel my legs and move them around. It really was an amazing experience! As I started to push, my contractions slowed down. The doctor increased the Pitocin to help speed things along. I ended up pushing from 9:30-10:20. It was all very surreal and I actually took little naps in between contractions. I didn't realize it at the time, but Eric was texting our families in between contractions to keep them up to date...oh how technology has changed the world!
When Madison finally came out, it was the most incredible thing that has ever happened to me! They put her on my stomach and she was perfect! She was also a lot cleaner than I thought she would be. I loved the way her face looked, so little and perfect. She was so beautiful and perfect. I remember the first thing I noticed was that her mouth was full of fluid. It seemed like it took forever for them to clean it out, but it was really only about 10 seconds. I immediately started crying because I was so happy she was hear safe and I had no idea that delivery could be so painless and wonderful. Eric was worried I was hurting, so he didn't know if he should go with Madison or stay with me. I kept telling him I was fine and crying because I was so happy. One neat thing about St. Johns is that you stay in the same room from the time you arrive until you leave. I was able to watch Eric go with her to the warmer while they weighed Madison and cleaned her up. The doctor said the umbilical cord was wrapped around Madison's neck when she came out. This may have been what caused her heart rate to drop on Wednesday when we first got to the hospital. After Madison was born, I couldn't believe how easy the delivery was and how good I felt. I was ready to take on the world! My back pain went away, I had so much energy and my stomach went down immediately! Since the spinal wasn't very strong, I was able to get out of bed about 30 minutes later to walk around and see her. Our families came in about 45 minutes after she was born. It was amazing how quickly all that happened after she was born.
The anesthesiologist ended up giving me a spinal instead of the epidural. I know he explained the difference, but I wasn't really interested at that point. I actually started to feel very calm and thought to myself that this might actually be a pretty good experience. I remember leaning into Eric's chest, trying not to push as I got the spinal. As soon as that was finished, I was ready to push! The spinal made the pain go away, but I was never completely numb. I could still feel my legs and move them around. It really was an amazing experience! As I started to push, my contractions slowed down. The doctor increased the Pitocin to help speed things along. I ended up pushing from 9:30-10:20. It was all very surreal and I actually took little naps in between contractions. I didn't realize it at the time, but Eric was texting our families in between contractions to keep them up to date...oh how technology has changed the world!
When Madison finally came out, it was the most incredible thing that has ever happened to me! They put her on my stomach and she was perfect! She was also a lot cleaner than I thought she would be. I loved the way her face looked, so little and perfect. She was so beautiful and perfect. I remember the first thing I noticed was that her mouth was full of fluid. It seemed like it took forever for them to clean it out, but it was really only about 10 seconds. I immediately started crying because I was so happy she was hear safe and I had no idea that delivery could be so painless and wonderful. Eric was worried I was hurting, so he didn't know if he should go with Madison or stay with me. I kept telling him I was fine and crying because I was so happy. One neat thing about St. Johns is that you stay in the same room from the time you arrive until you leave. I was able to watch Eric go with her to the warmer while they weighed Madison and cleaned her up. The doctor said the umbilical cord was wrapped around Madison's neck when she came out. This may have been what caused her heart rate to drop on Wednesday when we first got to the hospital. After Madison was born, I couldn't believe how easy the delivery was and how good I felt. I was ready to take on the world! My back pain went away, I had so much energy and my stomach went down immediately! Since the spinal wasn't very strong, I was able to get out of bed about 30 minutes later to walk around and see her. Our families came in about 45 minutes after she was born. It was amazing how quickly all that happened after she was born.
Within an instant, Eric and I became a family of 3. It was nothing I could have ever imagined, so much better. Despite the long first 2 days, the final hours before she was born were picture perfect. I would have many more babies if the delivery was that easy the next time! We are so thankful that we are able to be Madison's parents. She has made happier than we ever thought possible. I hope we never forget those first 24 hours that she was born and our time in the hospital. We could have asked for a better experience.
Madison Elisabeth Konesheck
September 6, 2013
10:19 am 7lbs 9oz
Madison's Birth Story
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