The Story
Monday, August 13th, I had a doctor's appointment. I saw Dr. Evans who, after checking my cervix, stated that the baby was in a good position, and I was fully effaced. All that needed to happen now was for me to dilate more (I was still only 1-2cm) and have contractions. Yep, I was 39 weeks and 1 day pregnant and still had no contractions at all. Because my uterus was measuring slightly larger than normal, Dr. Evans had me set up an induction date for the 21st, which was two days after my due date. He was worried about how big our baby boy was getting. So, Traz and I set up the date and went on our way. We did nothing special that day. Just watched movies, ate dinner, and went for a walk. I also did some prenatal yoga as well! We ended up staying up really late that night because someone (Traz) wasn't ready to go to sleep. Frankly, neither was I. So, we stayed up until about 12:30am and started to sleep about 1am.
And that's when it all started to go into motion.....
I was going to the bathroom a lot. I mean even more than a normal pregnant woman would do. I wasn't sleeping well either because I was very uncomfortable. Well, I went to the bathroom (again) around 2:30am or so. I got back, sat down on the edge of the bed, and felt a sudden rush of warmth come out of my "area". First thought? "Is this actually happening!?" I told Traz, who had yet to fall asleep, that I thought my water had just broken. I got up, put on some clean underwear, and waited. Sure enough, a few minutes later my panties were wet. (Not to mention....amniotic fluid doesn't smell like pee) So we grabbed our stuff and went off to the hospital!
I was admitted into the hospital, after some speculation as to whether or not my water had actually broken, at 3:30am. I was sent to a delivery room, set up with an IV (first in my entire life) and we waited. You know how I wasn't feeling any contractions before? Well...that didn't last long once my water broke. I always wondered how you would "just know" when you were in labor. Let me tell you: YOU KNOW! Holy cow!!
Dr. Evans came in around 7am and checked my cervix, and realized (after I cried out in pain from him checking) that I was really tender. So, he suggested I get my epidural so that I would be more comfortable during the other checks. So I signed all the paper work saying that I understand that I may puke, get a headache, or die from getting this. Traz was a great support when I was getting it too. For those of you who don't know, I am absolutely terrified of needles. Needless to say, this epidural was my worst nightmare. How did Traz help? He had me talk about the most random things he could think of; from cats, to movies, to food. Well, after the epidural was put in, I was in a much better mood.
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| Waiting for the epidural to kick in! |
So, after some much needed sleep, I awoke to my nurse needing to check my cervix again and give me some pitocin to keep my contractions up. I had dilated to 5cm. Traz and I relaxed, ate stuff (poptarts for him, flavored ice chips for me....so unfair) and watched TV. Remember how only my right side was giving me problems? Well, I soon needed another dose of medication to ease it off. It went away slightly but not completely like on my left.
Soon, after two more cervix checks and some labor where the baby just moved without me pushing, it was showtime!!! I was guided on when and how to push. This was the time when I actually appreciated being able to still be able to feel contractions on my one side (even after a third dose of medicine!). I was able to push much more efficiently. Sadly, the pain was getting a bit too intense and I started to hyperventilate, which resulted in an oxygen mask. Let me tell you, those things are not easy to work with when you have to throw up.....just saying.
When it came time for Dr. Evans to deliver, he was just finishing up a surgery with another patient. So, we had Dr. Allred come in and start us off. It was almost kind of silly that he came because Evans came in after one or two rounds of pushing. So, with Evans in position to catch a baby, I started what felt like a HUGE bowel movement. I was able to feel enough of what was going on that I could push efficiently. All I have to say is, I'm glad I was in choir and took prenatal yoga! Choir because it gave me big lungs to help me breathe and push well. Prenatal yoga because it gave me the ability to focus my pushes where they needed to be.
And so our baby started to crown. I couldn't see anything from where I was. Traz said it was funny because there was some hair on the baby's head that would show up when I pushed and then go back in a little when I stopped pushing. When our baby's head came out, and these are Traz's exact words, "he was very swollen and not happy". I soon lost track of all time and feeling. All I knew was I wanted the rest of our son to come out of me. This final stretch was probably the hardest because the pushes had to come so close together that I didn't get a break. Then finally, Evans pulled out the baby's legs and Nyte Ray Wayman entered the world.
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| Just after his first bath |
What a joy! I felt such a wonderful connection with our son already as he calmed down against my skin. I hummed to him and had a hard time keeping back tears. I was given pain meds, taught how to nurse, went to the bathroom and showered. Then, we grabbed all our gear and went to the mother baby unit where I would recover for the next two days.
The next two days were filled with pain, tears and a lot of joy. Pain because....well...I just had a baby and had stitches in a nit so fun spot. You would hurt too. Tears the second night because Nyte would eat for 30 minutes, then want to eat again ten minutes later. Joy because Nyte was finally in our arms. I wouldn't have been able to get through the first two emotions without Traz. He was amazing! He went without sleep, food, and more so I could be comfortable and well rested.
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| Traz and Nyte sleeping. |
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| Yes....it's a laundry basket. |
Our family gets a little bit bigger, and a little bit better.
-The Waymans
