Baby #2 Breakdown

I seriously can't believe that I had a baby 4 days ago!!

I've had quite a few requests and it will be nice to have it documented, so here we go!

Monday the 13th I decided to take Mellie to the mall.  She wasn't feeling well, but was well enough to still want to run around, so I figured the mall was a good place to keep her mind busy but her body still.  I also thought it may be nice to get out of the house since after having a baby I knew I'd be stuck in the house for weeks.  I seriously had no intentions of 'walking myself into labor' but I suppose that this may have started it all.  I pushed the stroller and walked for a solid hour!

The rest of the day was normal, went about my business cleaning house and making dinner, finally convinced that my baby wouldn't be coming early.  Because Mel wasn't feeling well, she woke up around 1am, so I went in to rock her and help her get back to bed.  I picked her up and got a contraction....I laid her down and got a contraction....I got into my bed and got a contraction.  Up to that point I hadn't had any contractions at all, so I definitely started thinking.  By that point it was about 2:00am. 

I woke up Tyler around 2:30am and told him I would probably have a baby soon and I would call our moms in about an hour.  30 minutes later I decided to go ahead and call them and Tyler decided to take a shower.  In the 10 minutes he was in the shower I went from hesitantly calling moms to swaying on my hands and knees on the bed.  My first few contractions that night were in my uterus, but they hit me in the back hard around that time.  Weirdly enough, people say that uterine contractions are easier, but after having both, I would take back labor.  Maybe it's because I know how to handle them, but I think it's easier to find relief with counter pressure...you can't push on your gut to make it feel better :)  Tyler told me to stop being stubborn and made me call a neighbor at 4:00am so we could go to the hospital. 

I totally rode to the hospital with my knees on the seat, thankfully it's just a 5 minute drive.  We got to the hospital around 4:30am and I swear the emergency department check in ladies were just having the best time ever as I stood with my hands on the counter swaying my hips and starting to moan to control the pain.  I had 3 contractions at the check in desk and 2 in the wheel chair on the way up to the OB department.  The nurse looked at me and said, "I think we're going to take a risk and just skip going to triage".  I looked at her and said, "I think that's a good idea". 

I had the most amazing nurse who checked me and I was 5cm...my goal before I got the hospital!  She let me labor on my hands and knees in the bed and was so encouraging.  She knew I wanted to go natural and had the perfect phrases and support strategies to help me through it.  She would talk me through contractions and Tyler would push on my back like crazy.  I would literally melt into the bed in child's pose for the 30 seconds between contractions and then come back up to my knees when I got another.  I asked the nurse to check me to see if I could get stadol because it was so intense, I was at 7cm, so no pain medicine for me!  At that point things got serious and I just focused as well as I could. 

Some people say they think about a happy place or picture the baby coming down and out of them but none of that was working for me.  The ONLY thing that I could focus on at all was what I needed to do in my garden and my to-do list for the young women at church.  As crazy as it sounds, as I got into transition it's almost like the pain became more tolerable.  I think my brain and body had become slightly numb to the pain because it was so intense.  Don't get me wrong, it was still crazy-town, but not as bad as it seemed to be at around 6cm. 

The doctor got there at about 8cm and broke my water around 6:00am, my mom finally got there around 6:20 and my body started pushing on its own.  I was still on my hands and knees and I just couldn't bear to turn over and deliver on my back.  Thankfully my doctor was AMAZING and just let me stay right there.  She got out the mineral oil, put on her catching gloves, and let me deliver my baby. 

Hayley Mae was born at 6:37am! 

I rolled over they put her on my chest, Tyler cut the cord, and the doctor just let us sit there for about 30 minutes while I breastfed her and delivered the placenta.  They didn't even weigh her or move her until after 7:00am.  It was an amazing experience!