Final push!

The anesthesiologist came in and she told me to sit with my legs dangling off the bed while crunching over a pillow. My nurse held my hands and was walking me through the process of getting the epidural while the anesthesiologist was getting everything set up. I had already learned about the process during one of our birth classes we took but it was still nice to listen and hear the nurse explain it.

My husband was sitting basically at the foot of the bed, so he watched the epidural be placed. He does not like needles, so he was very wide eyed after the event LOL.

When it came time to place the epidural it was SO PAINFUL. I’m not going to sugar coat it. That initial pinching pain of them placing it hurt like no other. Once the medication was going through, they asked if I felt numbness in one area versus another and without hesitation I told them that my whole left side from hip down I could not feel but I still had feeling like normal on my right side. They told me that they were going to have me lay on my right side to see if the medication would move around. I really needed to pee, but I learned that you have to wait 20 minutes after the epidural is placed to use the restroom.

After laying on my right side for a bit my legs were numb but not to the point where I couldn’t use them. They brought the wheelchair over and I was able to get in it without a problem.

I told the nurse I was still feeling the contractions after getting the epidural, so she upped the dosage, or however they do it. I then was REALLY NUMB.

They came in and checked dilation again. I was at a 7 still but they had my doctor come in and pop my water. That was the weirdest, coolest feeling ever. You feel a little pressure and then suddenly, it’s like hot tub water is gushing out of you. My husband was making me laugh and every time I laughed water would come gushing out. I didn’t know this but once your water breaks it just kind of keeps leaking. I thought it was one gush and that was it but no, that is not how it works.

I had to use the restroom again around 5:15pm and I remember getting up and walking for the first time after having my water break and I just keep leaking. I apologized to my nurse and she said “don’t worry about it this is literally my job”.

At 5:30 I started getting intense shakes. My body was shaking so much, and I could not control it. I thought maybe I was just cold at first, so I asked my husband to get me the blankets at the end of the bed. That didn’t help so I called in my nurse. She came in, looked at me and said that my body was transitioning into active labor at that point. She checked dilation and I was at a 9. She set up the stirrups and had me do some practice pushes. I told her that I couldn’t even feel that I was pushing so she dialed down my epidural. We waited for 10 minutes to let the epidural change effects. Then she had me practice again and I was doing much better at that point.

Then at 6pm it was go time. The nurse was having me do pushes almost every contraction while the nursery nurse was setting up the baby station and my doctor came in at that time as well. I felt everything. I was crying and screaming and in so much pain. I don’t remember all of this, but I know that once the head started poking out my nurse said, “oh it looks like we have red hair!” and I stopped pushing and said “It better not” LOL I was completely joking, and everyone chuckled but then it was time to get back to work.

So the head was out but the shoulders got stuck slightly. I was in so much pain that I guess my husband saw my nurse reach over and up my epidural because I was not supposed to be feeling the pain that I was. I think she upped it way too late because I felt everything. Once the shoulders were out it got a little crazy. The umbilical cord was wrapped around babies’ neck twice and knotted.

We had planned on my husband announcing the gender once he saw it but since the doctor went into immediate “save baby” mode she told us and then was able to get the cord unwrapped quickly. WE HAD A BABY BOY!

They asked if I wanted to hold baby right away and I said, “give it a bath first”. They wiped baby boy down and then placed him on my chest.

The next thing was to deliver the placenta. This was not painful at all, but it was a weird experience. It just kind of flops out of you. I don’t know how else to describe it. After this my doctor informed us that I had a second-degree tear and that she was going to give me stiches while I held the baby.

After I was all taken care of, they let us be for a while. We ordered room service. Finally, a MEAL! We were able to eat while holding our new baby boy. Then they came in and gave him his first bath and showed us how to do so. We were then moved to our recovery room.

Our recovery room was not the typical room. It had a full-sized bed which was so nice! My husband didn’t have to sleep on a couch or a chair, which he was grateful for, and I love being close to my husband, so I was also very thankful he was able to sleep beside me.

Baby boy was born at 6:22pm weighing 8.1 pounds and was 21 inches long. We named him Kaison Lloyd Brown. Lloyd was the middle name of my husband’s uncle that we lost while I was pregnant.

So the hard part of bringing a baby into the world was done but the healing process was just beginning.