That MOM With Sparkly Heels: Charlotte's Birth Story (Fast and Furious!)

While Charlotte's birthday morning happened to be the scariest time I can remember, I still don't want this to turn into a typical, "Never get induced, they end up in C-section" kind of stories. I was induced with Hunter, and his labor was one of the best, most easy going experiences of my life! AND- look at my sleeping beauty! Isn't she gorgeous?!

Tim and I got to the hospital around 5:45 in the morning, and were immediately given a room. We filled out some paperwork, and got dressed. Last time around, I was really scared of the IV and ~~demanded~~ asked for a numbing shot (which only anesthesiologists do, apparently), so we got a late start. This time, I figured I would buck up and just get it. It hurt. Crap. But- at least we got to get started on the pitocin earlier, around 7:30. The doctor came in at about 8:30, checked me (I was now a 3), and broke my water. The hour before she came was filled with increasingly painful contractions, but Charlotte was handling each one just fine.

They asked if I wanted my epidural when they broke my water, and I said, "Sure!", I was totally not trying to prove anything by laboring, then screaming around for hours just to ask for one later. What's the point?

The anesthesiologist came in at about 9:30 and started the epidural (right as my parents walked in, just to be shoo'ed back out), and the whole process only took about 15 minutes. I got all laid down and was just waiting for it to disperse and take it's wonderful effect. They checked me, and I was 100% effaced and dilated a 5, so I was making decent progress. After about 5 minutes, I got super hot, and started sweating all over. I also felt nauseous, but I am known to do that when I get really hungry so I waited a few minutes to say anything. When I finally did, they gave me a bag to throw up in, just in case. Then, it turned scary.

I told them that only my right leg was numb, so they turned me over to my left side. I thought this was to help the medicine disperse, but it was really because Charlotte's heart rate had dropped down really low. My blood pressure had dropped really low as well, which could have been from the epidural, or the fact that my placenta had broken off the wall of my uterus.

All of a sudden three nurses rush in. One puts on an oxygen mask and says "Don't touch it", one starts putting tight socks on my legs, and one wants to give me a shot. I thought the shot was for my tummy ache, and since there were so many people doing things all at once, I asked if we could wait until they were done. She said quickly that it was to calm down my uterus, so I asked, "Don't we want it to be.... not calm?" Nope. Shot given. The whole time, Tim and I are exchanging scared out of our minds looks, but he did a good job of trying to calm me down.

Then one nurse says, "Baby is not handling this well, we're going to prep you for a C section just in case, but we are calling your doctor to see if that's what she wants to do".

Prepping me just in case? Yeah right! There were a least 4 nurses in there, all moving at rocket speed, tearing open sanitized packages and throwing them all over the floor, shaving me down, throwing hair nets over Tim, myself, and themselves, more tight knee socks, and finally unplugging me so they could wash my belly and run down the hallway. I whizzed by my parents with tears streaming down my face, still not 100% sure of what was going on. Of course, all they saw was nurses rushing in, and 10 minutes later, their crying daughter being rushed down the hallway. Scary crap.

We get in the OR, and Tim is in the hallway trying to get dressed. He is with my parents, getting amped up, little did he know, by the time he got in there, Charlotte would already be born.

When I got in the OR, my doctor had just gotten there, and it is so odd to see so many doctors and nurses in there, all focused on you and while you can sense the urgency in their actions they keep their voices calm. It helps, but only a little! They strapped me down, arms outstretched and with monitors everywhere. Suddenly, my IV hand (that had remained useless since the IV started) didn't hurt so much as it was getting yanked and stretched and more monitors were attached to it. I kept asking if my husband was there, and my doctor said, "Don't worry, we're working on it!", but I could feel them prepping my belly. I kept looking around at all of the eyes in the room, hoping to find his.

I could feel cutting. I screamed and said, "I can feel it!! On my left side! It hurts, please stop!" It was the most odd, scary, and disgusting feeling I have ever had. I was also lifting my knees, and was one step away from yanking down the curtain, so my eyes could at least see exactly what my body was feeling. I think the anesthesiologist knew I was yanking at the curtain, too, because he said, "let's try one more dose, it will calm you down".

I'm pretty sure it just knocked me out. I woke up to my husband, saying that Charlotte was here, screaming, and beautiful. He got in the room after she was born, but well before I was cleaned up. He stood in between Charlotte and I, bloody towels getting thrown around his feet. He got to take a look at the placenta, which was described as NOT good. Grayish and falling apart. It had started to separate from the uterus. Crappy placenta= IUGR. Poor girl was fighting every day of her womb life to get nutrition.

Did I mention that they wheeled me in and I saw the clock say 10:09? .... She was born at 10:12. Three minutes from my entry into the room, to her entry into the world. I only got to see her for about 15 seconds, but I was so out of it. I remember trying to rub her hair, her fuzzy brown hair, but Tim remembers me poking her face. Who remembers correctly? I guess we'll never know, but since Tim wasn't all doped up, you can choose his side if you want to, haha!

They whisked her off to the NICU, and me to recovery, where my parents were waiting anxiously.