Downing Table for Six : Lucas' Labor, Delivery, & Hospital Stay

It's hard to say when my labor with Lucas really began. I had a really long, drawn out early labor at home. I had several nights of serious contractions for weeks before Lucas was born. At my 37.5 week appointment, I was 4 cm dilated, which is considered "active labor," and I wouldn't be surprised if that had been the case for awhile. My doctor did not think I would make it to my appointment a week later. Many times during that week, I did not think so either. It was a long and exhausting week! However, 7 days later, I was back in my doctor's office sitting at 38.5 weeks.

Before the doctor even came in, she had the nurse hook me up to the Toco machine to check my contractions. They had been off and on, and this particular morning, they weren't doing much. I think I only had one strong contraction on the monitor. My doctor came in and said there wasn't enough activity to justify sending me to the hospital. So we started talking about other options and about my appointment 6 days later. The only disappointing part in all of these scenarios was that I knew my doctor would not be able to deliver Lucas because she was scheduled to be in NYC. As we were talking, she asked if I wanted to see if my contractions had progressed me any further. I told her I was curious. It's a good thing we checked. I was almost 7 cm! She told me to go straight to the hospital and that I would be having my baby that night. That was a roller coaster of a conversation! The great news about this was that my doctor was scheduled to come on at 5 pm and would be on for 24 hours! She said she'd call the hospital and tell them I was coming but would also tell them not to get my labor going any more until she got there.

Josh was at work, so I called him and told him to go ahead and work a half day and tie up some loose ends there. My doctor told me I could go home if I wanted to grab a few things. I was torn on what to do. It's an hour and a half round trip. I had my bags, but there were a few things I thought I kind of wanted to get/finish up at home. But after talking to my mom and my good friend Sandy, they offered to bring me anything I wanted and to come get my van so that my kids could come to the hospital once Lucas was born. So they met me up in labor and delivery, along with Jacob and Aleah. I was glad to see them; this was going to be my first time leaving Aleah overnight!

I checked in about 11 am. Mom and Sandy came around 12, and Josh came around 1. He offered to bring me lunch, but I wasn't hungry at this point, and I figured the baby would be born shortly after my doctor got there at 5, so I decided to wait, which ended up being a mistake! I had Sandy bring our Parenthood DVDs, which is a TV series that Josh and I have been watching. He and I just sat there all day watching episodes while waiting for things to get going. I did require 2 doses of penicillin this time, so it was good that I had time to get those in comfortably before my labor got intense.

At 5 o'clock, they said my doctor was still at her office, but she wanted them to start me on Pitocin to bring the baby's head down a bit. I was a little nervous about being on pit. I had it with Hannah, and it was fine, but I didn't have it with Jacob or Aleah. I was also planning on no epidural once again, and I wasn't sure if this would make my pain worse. In the end, the pit did make my contractions closer together and stronger, but they still weren't what I would describe as "painful" for quite awhile. The nurse asked my pain rating and I said "1." Josh thought I was kidding, but I was being honest. They weren't bad! They were just "tight" but not "painful."

My doctor ended up in emergency surgery and was not available until after 9 pm! By then, I was really wishing I had eaten something (they cut me off from that opportunity at 3, and I hadn't eaten since 8 am!). I was also getting annoyed by my contractions that were starting to hurt. I was just afraid they weren't doing anything without having my water broken, which is how my labors really got going with my others. I told the nurse that my contractions were starting to get stronger, which usually means something's about to happen for me. She asked if I wanted an epidural. I still was not anywhere near the point of wanting one; I just told her I wanted her to know that things might be happening quickly.

Thankfully my doctor walked in just a bit later. She said she was going to set up the whole room before she broke my water because she figured things would happen fast. She broke it at 9:47 and we talked for awhile before it was time to push. Once I felt ready, it didn't take too long for Lucas to come. He was born at 10:16 pm! It was a really good delivery. My doctor and the nurses were very encouraging. They acted impressed with me. They kept commenting on my "amazing control," which I have heard during every delivery. I don't know if they say that to everyone or what, haha! One of the nurses said I should be on a childbirth instructional video because I have it down. She kept saying that she wanted to be me when she grows up. Again, maybe they say these things to everyone; I don't know, but it was encouraging!

The hospital is very big on babies staying with mom "skin to skin" for as long as possible, so I just got to hold Lucas for the first few hours, which was great. We didn't weigh him or get his bath or anything until about 2 am, I think. Josh went to get us dinner while I was holding him. I loved the first few hours of holding him, and he was a very welcome distraction from the pain. He had a lot of hair, which appeared dark. It was a little lighter once washed. His eyes were dark blue, so I figure they will be brownish/hazel like mine, Hannah's, and Jacob's. We thought he had "Sudlow lips" and Josh's nose. Lucas measured 21.5" and was 8 lbs. 4 oz. He was perfect in every way.

It was a few hours before I got out of bed, and once I did, I nearly passed out. I've never experienced that after giving birth. I don't know if it's because I didn't eat all day or what, but I really did not feel well! They made me sit up and look up and keep my eyes open, when all I wanted to do was lay down and close my eyes. Thankfully it passed after a few minutes. We got to bed about 3 am, and then I was basically up for the day again by 4:30.

Lucas was considered "large for gestational age," so he had to have a lot of blood checks to make sure his blood sugar was staying up. While only a minor stress in the scheme of things, it was exhausting and got really old after awhile. I hated seeing him get his heels pricked so many times! He needed 4 good tests in a row. He kept getting 3 and then failing, it seemed. It was also frustrating because the numbers would vary a lot between the instant reading in the room and the samples they sent to the lab. The lab is more accurate, and those were coming back good, so the whole thing just started to seem unnecessary! Josh was home with the kids on the second night, and they started talking about Lucas not being able to go home at the 48 hour mark, where I went home at the 24 hour mark with my last two! Also, the NICU was mentioned at one point, which stressed me out. Finally, the doctor decided his sugars had stabilized enough to be released. I think he trusted me because it was my 4th baby and because I had successfully breastfed my last 3 babies. He wanted to make sure I would feed him frequently to keep his sugars up.