Birth Story

I was restless all night and morning on Sunday.  It was his due date and I think I was just antsy.  I was having contractions on and off all through the morning so we decided to stay home instead of going to church just in case. Well it was an uneventful day full of sporadic contractions and naps.  Monday, July 1st I had planned on going to Rainsville to help Emily with a few projects she had planned and to just get out of the house and visit for a little while.  I was feeling great but just a little off for lack of a better description.  Again contractions were on and off and not painful.  I broke into a cleaning spree and told Emily I was just going to stay at home again just in case.  Our house is already 30 minutes from the hospital and I didn't really want to venture much further.  Monday night Scotty and I made a few last minute preparations, I had said all along that he would either come June 27th or July 2nd, so I was really hoping July 2nd would be the day.  I was restless all night and finally woke up around 4:00 with painful consistent contractions.  Up until this point my contractions had not been really painful, just a little uncomfortable, so this was exciting to me.  Knowing Scotty had to go to work I decided to go ahead and wake him up around 430 to see if he thought he should stay home with me.  During this time we started to see blood, which was exciting to me because I knew it meant things were moving along.  I think it was scary to Scotty even though I kept assuring him that it was normal.  Contractions continued to be consistent so I had Scotty go ahead and get ready for work while I walked, drank water, and moved around to make sure they were the real thing.  At 5:30 Scotty insisted we needed to go to the hospital so I went ahead and took a shower and got ready. On the way out the door I had Scotty take one last picture, as soon as he did I stepped off the steps and twisted my ankle, that pain definitely distracted me from my contractions for a while.  I was not about to go to the hospital with an empty stomach so we swung by Hardee's on the way.  Contractions certainly picked up in pain and frequency on the way in.  They were 4 minutes apart and lasting around a minute each when we got to the hospital.  We called the grandparents on the way and let them know that we had headed in and would call if they decided to keep me.  I was anxious because I really didn't want to be sent back home.  

We signed in at the hospital at exactly 7:00, right at shift change.  I was taken straight back to triage. 
I was still comfortable but contractions were consistent and strong, at 7:40 I was admitted and over the moon excited. Scotty was elated to say the least, it was really happening! 

At 8:20 they came in to move me to a room, when she had me stand up to walk down the hallway my water broke! I stood up and said "Uh-oh" the nurse and Scotty looked so confused then I said it again, followed by "Um, I am pretty sure my water just broke" Sure enough it had and I was dilated to 4 cm.

Got to the room and got settled and the family started rolling in. 
We were having a good time and just resting. I was trying to hold out on an epidural as long as I could and was pleasantly surprised at how well I was doing.

I was checked at 11:40, and had not dilated any further and contractions were becoming sporadic, so it was decided to start a low dose of Pitocin.  As soon as the word Pitocin was mentioned I decided it was time for the epidural, I certainly didn't want to wait through those contractions and I'm glad I got it when I did. Had to try 3 times to get the epidural in and it was the most painful part of the day for me.  After getting all settled in I was checked again, 5 cm, 80% Station -1.  Dr. noticed that my water hadn't completely broken the first time and decided to further tear the bag, said it was the most fluid she had ever seen especially since it initially started at 8:20 that morning.   Contractions got back on track and intensified.

Around 3:00 I decided to take a nap and rest for a while since things were moving slowly.  I was checked again shortly there after, still at 5 cm, when the nurse came in to up the Pitocin she noticed some irregular heart rhythms and had me lay on my side, but it continued so we tried the other side.  She decided to check me once more before she changed anything, this was less than 10 minutes from the last time I was checked.  I was a 10! At this point things got exciting! Scotty came in during this time and had no clue what was going on, but realized very quickly!  I needed some iv antibiotics before delivery and had not had enough of them yet, so my doctor had me rest while we waited for me to receive the full dosage.

 At 5:30 I started pushing. My doctor is quite the comedian and my nurse was very entertaining as well.  There was more laughing going on than anyone can imagine. Initially I just wanted it to be Scotty and I and Emily there to take pictures, since I was comfortable and things were going smoothly my mom, MIL, and grandmother all stayed as well.  They all took turns being leg holders and counting.  Pushing went smoothly and I never made a sound other than to laugh. 

At 6:48 Collin Reid Brown came roaring into the world.  He had a little difficulty with a stuck shoulder and having the cord wrapped around his neck, but my team kept me calm and focused and handled it well.  He was placed directly on my stomach and I got to see Scotty cut the cord, which he said he didn't think he would do.  We got to spend the next hour together just us then the families came in to visit. It was certainly a magical afternoon.