Enough of my pity party. Save a little sympathy for my husband. Not once was he asked to rush out at 11 p.m. for an emergency pickle pick-up. Instead, over the previous nine months he had to watch his wife suffer incredible pain, listen to her periods of nonstop complaining, and watch his own romantic notion of pregnancy get gobbled up by a mystery ailment.
So I was happy to hand him one Hollywood moment. At 5 on a Monday morning, I woke him to announce, “Babe, you have to wake up. My water just broke.” And there it was in a satisfying, cinematic puddle at my feet.
David did a Keystone Kops impression, trying to call my obstetrician while he was half asleep. I suggested we slow down, drink some coffee, mop the floor, and get organized. The doctor said we could labor at home in relative comfort for up to 12 hours thereafter, but no longer, because once your water breaks you are at increased risk of infection. Then he added that he had been on call just the night before, so he would not be able to deliver our baby.
This was a big blow. This doctor had been such a calm presence during my tumultuous pregnancy. I wanted him there.
My “early labor” phase should have consisted of mild contractions, 30 seconds long and about 10 minutes apart, gradually increasing in speed and intensity. In birthing class we had talked about having “early labor projects” on hand, like jigsaw puzzles.
But the contractions came on fast and erratically, lasting anywhere from two-and-a-half to four minutes, with barely 30 seconds between them. At first I could handle them pretty well, walking, bouncing on the birthing ball while watching season one of Friday Night Lights on DVD, stretching myself in the doorways of our tiny apartment. At one point I even lay down and listened to a Hypnobabies childbirth hypnosis CD. Bad idea.
Some people describe contractions as feeling similar to menstrual cramps. For me it felt like a very angry person was carving a jack-o’-lantern out of my uterus. Finally at 1:30 p.m. David began to look scared and suggested we make our way to the hospital. I was in too much pain to argue.
Next week: An awesome labor nurse and five more hours of drug-free self-discovery
Comments (2)
Oh that stinks that your doctor couldn’t be there for the delivery — it’s hard to envision the grand finale without the person who has been so involved throughout the process.
Looking forward to the next entry!! (And my own labor symptoms, which are welcome anytime!)
As I loaned out the Hypnobabies CD referred to in this blog post as a “bad idea”, I feel I should comment here for anyone who might be interested in Hypnobabies. My due date was two months before Kate’s and I was fortunate to find a Hypnobabies class near me and practice at home a lot before my labor. Kate did not have the opportunity to do either of those, just some CDs in the mail from me close to her due date. After taking the course and practicing, I found the CDs to be extremely helpful during labor. Since I won’t see the eye-rolls from other new moms reading this, I can report a bearable, un-medicated, 8-hour labor (only 2 hours in the hospital), which resulted in a 8lb 6 oz, 21″ first baby with no complications.
I realize that I was very, very lucky to have an uncomplicated pregnancy and labor. However, I also credit the Hypnobabies method for helping me stay more relaxed during labor than I would have been otherwise. Kate truly deserves a motherhood medal for going through such a tough pregnancy and labor. I just wanted to point out that Hypnobabies can work in some situations. The good thing is that healthy babies can result from all types of labor experiences!