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| Pittsburgh Parents |
| Public group from Pittsburgh, PA |
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Congrats again, Lisa! Our Shanti Kate was born on the 27th. She weighed 7 lbs. 11 oz. and was 21 inches long. We've been home since Thursday, and this is the first chance I've had to get on the computer. Everyone is doing very well. I wrote out her birth story this morning. I'm going to copy and paste here in case anyone is interested in the details. I can't wait till we're all recovered enough for play dates!
I finally have a moment to write, though it'll be one handed as Shanti is in a milk coma in the other arm and I am positive that if I lay her down she will immediately begin screaming. Except now that I've typed that I decided to try it since she changes day to day and it looks like she might let me lay her down next to me- err- maybe not back to one handed. Ah- wait, if I lean back and rest her on my chest, I can put the computer on my lap and type with two hands as she sleeps on me. Another challenge passed.
Let's see, where should I start? How about the beginning? I called the midwife on Monday to see if I should make a dentist appointment because my gums were bleeding a lot every time I brushed my teeth. He said not to waste my time as that's pretty normal late in pregnancy, but since I was having contractions still did I want to come be checked. I did, and we went. He checked me and I still was not dilated. He measured my blood pressure and it was too high. It had been getting higher each week for about 3 weeks so this time he sent me to the hospital to get evaluated for pre-eclampsia. We were kind of stunned, but went (almost) straight to the hospital. We stopped and got pizza first because we figured we'd be there through dinner and I wanted to make sure I wasn't too hungry. When we got to the hospital we sat in a triage room for hours while they measured my blood pressure over and over, and took blood samples. All of which ended up being inconclusive, but close enough to the danger zone that they decided to induce me. Now we were REALLY stunned. We hadn't brought the hospital bag, cord blood collection kit, or anything with us. Ajay called my parents and they came to the hospital so Ajay could go home and take care of Charlie and gather all the things we wanted to have with us.
The hypertension and induction put me in the "high risk" category, so I had to be attached to monitors all during labor. That and the IV put a damper on our Bradley Method plans for natural childbirth. I tried doing relaxation techniques and actually ended up moaning/humming quite a bit to deal with the pain. Eventually, Patrick checked me again and I'd gone from 3 cm with very little pain- which happened quickly- to 4 cm after 4 hours of constant contractions and LOTS of pain. I was already exhausted from having contractions for so long, so I asked for something to let me sleep for a little while. I think it was like 2 am or something. They gave me a shot that put me out immediately and I slept for about 4 hours. When I woke up, they checked me again and I was 4.5 cm and the contractions had slowed down. They decided we had to up the pitocin dose so my contractions would come stronger and closer together. I couldn't take the thought of more minimally productive pain, which Patrick was saying could last the rest of the day- so we decided to go ahead and get an epidural. Thank god for modern medicine! I was scared to death of the needle in my back, and worried that it would affect the baby, but I was even more afraid of the pain and just not being able to do it and ending up with a c-section. As soon as they finished putting in the epidural I actually started enjoying myself. I chatted with Ajay and my parents and sister and just relaxed in bed.
They turned up the pitocin and the contractions started coming closer together but not any harder. Patrick decided to break my water, but when he went to check how dilated I was it broke on its own. And- it had meconium in it (Shanti had her first poo in the womb), so now I was considered even higher risk and was basically on a timer till they performed an emergency c-section. When I insisted that Patrick tell me if this was the case and he said yes, I started to get pretty nervous. But then the contractions started getting stronger and I was at 6 cm the next time they checked. I decided to get a bit of sleep- the epidural made me rather drowsy- a few hours later I started feeling the contractions as painful again and asked Ajay to call Patrick (who'd also gone somewhere to sleep) and tell him. He came in a checked me and I was 10 cm and ready to push!
So, I did. I can't describe the intensity of that experience. There was a mirror above me so I could see her start to show up. I could see all this black hair that would show up when I was pushing then disappear when I stopped. It was really really difficult, and I totally went into myself. I was completely focused on feeling the contractions and pushing as hard as a possibly could. It was a little scary, but having Ajay next to me on one side and my mom on the other made me feel safe. There was also a nurse in there who talked through each push and encouraged me without being too cheerleader-ish and that was helpful. And of course, Patrick was helpful as well though he kept doing perineal massage, which was really painful and did not feel like it was helping. I asked him to stop and he did. I should have let him continue, though because I ended up tearing all the way to the muscle of my rectum. But at that point- and honestly until the next morning when I had to use the bathroom- I did not care because it just hurt and I felt like his hand was in the way.
There came a point when I started to feel like I wouldn't be able to push her out, but then her head quit going back inside when I wasn't pushing. That hurt a lot, but was also really motivating because I felt like I would be able to push her out the next time. I don't know how long that was, but eventually I did manage to get her out, then everything was a complete blur. They put her quickly on my chest and I held her while Ajay cut the cord. I watched him do that. I think I was just too overwhelmed to be completely aware that my baby was in my hands. My most vivid memory from that was just after they took her away, my hands were covered in goo and I didn't know what to do with them. Someone came and wiped them off. I just stared and stared at the little bin they'd put her in. Everyone crowded around her and started suctioning her out in case she'd swallowed or inhaled some of the meconium. I remember seeing her little hand reach up and grab the doctor's stethascope and hold on so tight she pulled it partially away from the doctor. She didn't cry very much. I think it was about 10 minutes before they brought her over to me. I was just amazed that this little creature was my daughter. I don't think I really believed it till Thursday when we came home and Ajay and I stopped at the top of the stairs and looked at each other before we carried her in and we were both teary-eyed.
So, now at the beginning of day 4 of Shanti Kate's life, I feel like I can write this stuff down and it was all real and I really am her mom. Some highlights from the last few days:
• We cannot decide who Shanti looks like. She definitely has her dad’s hands, feet, ears, and eye color. She has somehow gotten almond shaped eyes that make her look almost Chinese at first glance. She is the most beautiful baby I have ever seen, even though she also still has a lot of the hair that protected her skin in the womb. My beautiful baby has a hairy back, hairy ears, and a hairy forehead. She looks like a little wolverine baby right now. The doctor assured us this will fall out before long.
• Breastfeeding has been a painful experience so far. Shanti had trouble learning to latch properly and I didn’t know that was the case so I didn’t correct it. Add to this her desire to eat every 15 minutes for the first 3 days and my nipples are incredibly sore and a bit cracked. I started using lanolin on them yesterday and this has helped somewhat- but then my milk came in last night and now we’re back to excruciating when she latches on. But I am going to keep at it because I know it is the best thing for her. Besides, the face she makes after getting her fill is worth all the pain in the world. We call it the milk face. She looks like she’s stoned. It is hysterical!
• We gave her a bath last night, during which she screamed as if she was in pain and terrified to boot. It was horrible. We hurried through it and as we wrapped her in a towel and she started to calm down as I held her I felt so guilty that I started crying. I have never felt so bad about doing something to someone in my life. I may never be able to bathe her again. She did calm down fairly quickly, and we decided to put some oil on her skin before we dressed her because she is very dry. I held her wrapped in the towel and Ajay put the oil on her. It was very sweet and even Shanti seemed to enjoy it. Then we hear, blub-blub. Ajay asks, “What was that?” and we look down and there is this huge bubble of black poop coming out of our daughter right onto my lap. It was the funniest thing ever! I guess that’s what she thought of getting a bath!
• Sleep has been something of a challenge. In addition to the usual waking every couple of hours to eat and be changed, Shanti has presented us with a huge dilemna. She HATES to be on her back. She can be sound asleep but as soon as you put her on her back to sleep on her own, or even if you hold her with her laying on her back, she wakes up and starts to cry- okay, scream. The only workable solution we have found is to push all the covers away from us and put her in a swaddler and hold her against us sort of spoon style as we sleep. Not an ideal solution because it means we can’t have covers and can’t really change position, but it did allow me to get about 5 hours of sleep last night- which feels like an immense victory.
• I am still sore from the stitches and pushing, and still look about 5 months pregnant. Preparation H is my friend, and Advil is manna from heaven. Sleep is something of the past, but I am happier than I’ve ever been in my life. I am so in love with this little baby.
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| Posted by Jenny on 12/01/2007 05:14 PM
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Yay Jenny!!!!! Congrats! I am so happy that no MAJOR issues happened with your labor. How exciting. Trust me, I know exactly how you feel. The breastfeeding does get better in a few days. Maddoc can latch on now without bringing tears to my eyes. LOL. It will get better. I am about 9 days ahead of you and today I fit into my big girl, transitional (I hope) jeans. It was the first time I haven't worn maternity clothes in about 6 months. Give it time. I only look about 3 months pregnant now. hee hee. Good luck and if you need an ear, I am only an email away. Looking forward to letting our newest lovies meet for the first time. Enjoy the moments, as much as you can being sleep deprived and sore. Hope to hear from you soon.
Lisa |
| posted by Lisa on 12/01/2007 08:22 PM
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