Labor Day!
I saw this meme floating around last year and thought to myself “Self, remember this for next year”.
And I did not remember.
Luckily Jill posted this today as well, so while late, here it is!
How long were your labors?
son: 22 hours from start to finish, but 12 hours in active labor.
daughter: 16 hours from start to finish, 4 hours in active labor
How did you know you were in labor?
son: my water broke
daughter: contractions started and stayed 5 minutes apart.
Where did you deliver?
son: Hospital, it was the only place I wanted to be
daughter: Hospital, but wanted to be at home. (no $ for a homebirth)
Drugs?
son: I had wanted to go natural, but succumbed to an epidural when the doc said I had to have pitocin.
daughter: went in knowing more of my options and rights, and had an awesome, empowering natural birth!
C-section?
Neither.
Who delivered?
son: My OB with the assistance of a vacuum, most likely due to all of the interventions.
daughter: I did!! I delivered my baby! The intern and resident caught her as the on call OB looked on.
And tell me your stories too!
Post Partum Recovery
While recovering from labor and delivery will take different lengths of time for each woman (depending on how long it took to push, tearing, etc.) there are definitely things you can do to help speed things along, ease pain, and increase comfort. After I had Cody I didn’t take the time I should have to recover and it took weeks longer than it should have. Not only did I have to take several trips in to the doctors for his jaundice, we were taking him all over town at just a few days old to visit with friends and family while we were already out for his appointments. And when he was just a week old I had enough energy to clean the house, so I did. And that set me back several days!
So after learning my lesson last time, here are a few things I’m doing this time around.
- Orange juice after delivery. It’s something I read about in the Bradley Method book that drinking a good cup of orange juice after delivery helps bring your blood sugar back to where it should be. And they talked about it so much I decided to juice my own oranges, freeze it in a mason jar, and bring it to the hospital with me! Let me tell you, it tasted awesome after wards! Plus it was super healthy being freshly squeezed and not pasteurized.And yes my husband was totally embarrassed when I had him haul it out of my hospital bag. The nurse thought it was pretty great though!
- Ibuprofen is my friend after delivery too. While not natural in any means I do take it when needed. And I normally take it to help ease the pain of contractions while nursing. Yea, cruel joke, huh? You still get contractions after delivery. And last week while nursing some of mine got pretty unbearable, lasting a couple/few minutes each time. And I’d like to enjoy nursing, not dread it, so I took some motrin in the early evening since I knew the contractions would get worse as the evening went on.
- I’m staying home and staying on the couch for 2 weeks! It’s been one week already and I’ve been lucky enough to have Todd home with me until today. I haven’t cooked or cleaned, I’ve barely even picked up my toddler. Todd’s done all the main household chores and been on toddler duty so I can rest on the couch. And while he may not do things the way I would and my floors are kinda messy, I’m gonna look the other way for at least another week! And even though he’s gone back to work today, he still gets to be on dinner, clean up, and laundry duty for a bit longer. Anything even slightly heavy will have to wait for him.
- Post partum herbal sitz baths have also been great in not only helping me relax, they also help in healing! You can use store bought ones (normally from a health food store – I’ve never seen any sold at conventional stores) or you can make your own. I made my own. And you can do it so many ways as well, whatever works best for you! Here’s my basic herbal “recipe”. I froze it in ziploc bags and then take out what I need to put in the bath, but you can also use it in a squirt bottle for after going to the bathroom, and even pour it over panty liners and freeze them for “ice packs” after delivery. Seriously though, a daily nice hot bath does wonders for your sore muscles and nether regions. Shoot for a bath each day for at least the first week, even if it’s as short as 15 minutes, you’ll feel so much better!
- Make sure I take my vitamins! I’m taking my daily multivitamin (prenatal still) as well as a B-Complex and will be taking a fish oil supplement as soon as I get out of the house since I don’t have any right now. (both the b-complex and the fish oil help with energy and post partum hormonal issues as well as post partum depression)
- I’m also taking a probiotic to try and ward off any yeast issues. Since I was positive for Group B Strep I was placed on antibiotiocs during labor. Unfortunately these antibiotics also killed off the good bacteria in my system, so I need to work on replacing it not only for my immune system, but so that neither baby or I suffer from yeast issues. After a round of antibiotics, women can suffer from actual yeast infections, both mom and baby can suffer from thrush, and baby can have rashes that turn to skin yeast infections. (I’ll also be trying to eat yogurt every day, or at least every other day)
- Along with supplements, I’m trying to eat the best foods I can. With nursing I need an extra 500 calories a day so I’ve been trying to make those calories count and stick to protein rich snacks and lots of nutritional smoothies. Granted, I have had some ice cream though!
- And I’m using a belly band this time around! With Cody I didn’t get out to get one till he was a few weeks old and by then it didn’t really do anything other than move the excess flab around and make me uncomfortable. This time I put it on as soon as I got home. And having my tummy pulled in and tightened feels fabulous! Other cultures actually wrap mom tightly in a blanket after birth and have for centuries. I bought one at a maternity store, but you can easily find them online or just use extra wide ace bandages to wrap yourself. Wrapping or binding your belly is also supposed to help it shrink back down to size as well as help with muscle tone. I don’t know about that yet, but it sure feels great being able to walk around without a big loose tummy jiggling everywhere. It seems to help with the leftover muscle pain from labor too.
So those are some of the things I’m doing and they’ve been working great for me! Anything else you’ve done to help recover?
Post Partum Herbal Sitz Bath
There are lots and lots of herbal sitz bath recipes on the web if you do a search for them. Some include only one herb, while others include a whole list of them. I decided to kind of make my own and use what I had on hand (or could easily get my hands on).
Here’s the “recipe” I used to make my post partum sitz baths.
1/2 gallon boiling water
1/2 cup sea salt (or epsom salt, but it doesn’t have the same healing properties)
1/2 cup comfrey leaves
1/4 cup uvi ursi leaves
Mix together and let sit, covered, for at least a few hours to steep. Basically what you’re doing is making a really strong herbal tea. Strain into a clean container and keep in the fridge, or freeze in Ziploc bags if you make it ahead.
It can be used in the bath after delivery: just pour a couple of cups into a warm bath and soak for at least 15 minutes. This is my favorite!! Not only do I get a few minutes of “me time”, it has really helped relax my sore muscles.
Can be used in a squirt bottle to use after going to the bathroom.
Can also be used to make “ice packs”. Just pour a bit onto panty liners and freeze. Then place over a regular pad to help ice your perineum. They don’t stay cold for long though. Oh, and they don’t freeze solid since it’s salt water.
Not only does this sitz bath help promote healing because of the herbs and sea salt, it does wonders for sore and achy muscles. And after hours of contractions, you’re muscles are gonna be sore!
I sure wish I had known about herbal baths after my first delivery, I think it would have made a world of difference in how I felt!
The Birth Story
So last Monday I had an OB appointment. I sat and waited for over an hour in the lobby. An hour! Finally I was brought back to a room only to have the nurse called out as soon as she was in the door. She comes back a minute later to tell me the doctor had been called out for a delivery. Seriously? I almost lost it. For one, it was the appt. where she was going to check me to see if anything was going on, second I found out I tested positive for group B strep again and had to have antibiotics during labor. Something I was hoping to avoid.
I left in tears.
That right there should have sounded the alarms.
See, I guess I tend to get a bit to emotional right before labor begins. And it rolled into the evening as well, tears starting at really stupid moments.
Poor Todd. 
Then after laying down for an hour that evening I stood up to find that baby had fully engaged after dropping a week earlier. I figured it would be an uncomfy nights sleep, but still thought she had another week or so to bake. Throughout the night I woke up from contractions every few hours but thought it was due to the fact that I hadn’t had enough water to drink or the fact that I had overworked myself a bit that day.
The next Morning
6:30am:
I sent Todd off to work and just happened to mention I didn’t sleep well because of a few contractions. Neither of us thought much about it and off he went.
7:00am:
Contractions started. Every five minutes from the very first one. After a half hour or so I knew she was on her way. I knew we were starting from no dilation just from how the contractions felt, so I just went about my morning and didn’t bother calling Todd. I knew he could put in a full days work and there wasn’t any reason to bother him or make him worry.
7:30am
Cody’s awake, we eat breakfast and I clean up the kitchen and clean out the fridge. Since I know she’s coming soon, I don’t want to come home to a messy house! Start drinking lots of water to keep hydrated.
9:00am:
Todd calls. He never calls during the day but somehow he knew something was amiss. He’s not to surprised I’m in labor! I’m pretty relaxed and still able to walk and talk through contractions so there is no reason for him to come home just yet. I figure I was barely dilated to 1. He promises to call through out the day and makes me promise to call him if I need to go in right away.
Still going about my business, cleaning and organizing. I start packing our hospital bag just before lunch. I clean out the van, get out baby stuff for when we get home, and pack Cody’s overnight bag. I also make a batch of muffins. Might as well right? I also start working on laundry to make sure I don’t just sit and wait.
10:00
Showered. And teh water felt so good I stayed in a bit longer than normal.
12:00pm:
Eat a protien filled lunch for extra strength and endurance. Hard boiled eggs, leftover chicken, plus a regular lunch. Maybe at 2cm at this point. Call mom after Cody is down for a nap to let her know he’ll be sleeping over that night! Reread a few pages of “Husband Coached Childbirth – The Bradley Method”. Keep cleaning and moving around so as not to slow down contractions. Water, water, and more water.
3:00pm:
Todd comes home and I’m just beginning to have to slow down during contractions. Figure I’m about a 3 at that point. I have a snack and drink some extra water. Cody is still napping so we get things into the van and sit and relax together waiting for him to wake up.
4:30:
Cody finally wakes up so we get going. At this point I’m starting to have to breathe through contractions and figure I’m at about 4cm. Riding in the car was absolute torture. Really. I’m glad at this point we got to the hospital when we did. I can’t imagine trying to relax and breathe through contractions worse than those while in the car.
5:30:
Arrive at the hospital. Found it odd that I had to walk in myself. Last time they met me at the car (different hospital) and wheeled me in. Give my name and info to the front desk. They wheel me back to registration and I give my info all over again. Finally a nurse comes down and brings me up to the labor and delivery triage area. Get into one of those lovely gowns and they start hooking me up to machines to check on baby.
Doogie Howser the intern than walks in.(seriously this guy looked young!) Checks me and I’m at 5 cm, just where I thought I’d be. Nurse basically asks me my life story and then the Doogie comes in and does the same. *sigh* Seriously, we can’t get this all done at once? And while they’re asking me all these questions I randomly (well, not so random really – every 5 minutes- just close my eyes and focus on breathing through the contraction) I also handed over my birth plan to the resident on staff at the time and he went over everything with me and they were happy to follow along after we discussed things like the eye gunk and vitamin k shot. They were very pleasant to work with!
6:00:
Finally get to a delivery room and they hook me up to antibiotics to let it run through for about an hour. Todd tells the nurse they have to turn it way down or it hurts me to much (I had that problem when I had Cody). I think all she heard was “yadda, yadda” cause it hurt like the dickens, and when I finally got out that it hurt worse than the contractions, she turned it down! Stupid antibiotics! After it ran for an hour I was able to be completely unhooked from the IV and just had the hep lock in just in case it was needed. It did bother me throughout labor though as I couldn’t bend my hand certain ways.
7:00pm:
New nurse came in at shift change and she was super sweet showing me different ways to cope with labor and how to use the birthing ball and recommended the shower to which I soon hopped in. While the water felt great, it was hard to concentrate and focus on getting through contractions, but I stayed in there about half an hour anyways. Went back to the bed to lay down on my side to make it easier to breathe through contractions. Turned down the lights as far as they’d go and told hubby to turn down the movie he was watching.
8:00pm:
Checked again and was about 7cm dilated. Still chilling out in bed getting through one contraction at a time. The Bradley method of breathing really seemed to work for me and made the contractions less painful and easier to get through. (While on your side breathe in to make your belly extend out, then breathe out while focusing on relaxing every muscle in your body) The only time they got really hard to deal with was when Todd thought it’d be fun to be funny while I was going through a contraction, or when they moved me around to monitor the baby again. And I basically wasn’t getting on my back for anything! It’s no wonder some women deal with so much pain during labor, laying on your back hurts!!
During this time I’m pretty sure I told my husband I hated him. Not because of the pain I was in, but because he wasn’t figuring out the whole “rub my back between contractions, squeeze my hand and NO TALKING during”. But we worked it out. And the Lord seemed to send me the right verse right when I needed it. “I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me”. Over and over again as I breathed out.
around 10:00pm:
Contractions were getting longer and closer together, sometimes with no break between them. Water still hadn’t broken at this point. Each contraction seemed to get stronger and I figured I was going through transition. Even at this point the nurses and staff were pretty much leaving us alone and only coming in every once in awhile to check to see if we needed anything. I think because I was so still and quiet, they didn’t think things were progressing much. Resident came in and I thought I was going to deck him while he proceeded to try and make me feel better during a contraction by rubbing my leg.
11:00pm
Checked again by Doogie the intern and I’d made it to about 9.5cm. He asked if I wanted my water broken or if I wanted to maybe deliver her in the bag. Trying to think while dealing with almost non stop contractions was ridiculous! I did decide to have them break my water even thought I knew it would make it more painful. At this point, it was probably only the difference of maybe an hour or so.
11:07pm:
Umm, breaking my water was not fun. They hooked me up to more antibiotics, which were burning my arm, and I had to go through a couple contractions on my back. Not fun.
11:16pm:
After only 2 contractions I looked over at Todd and told him to call the nurse, I had to push! As soon as the nurse answered the page I was most likely heard saying “I can’t stop pushing”! We heard a click and 5 people came running into the room and by the time they had they’re gloves on, they could see her crowning. Another contraction and her head was out and all of a sudden about 3 hands went in! All I remember was yelling at the OB “What are you doing?!” I guess the cord was wrapped around her neck and they were just getting it off her. But yea, that’s the only part of the delivery that actually hurt. Another contraction and she was out at 11:21pm.
After she was delivered they let the cord stop pulsing before they cut it and then plopped her up on my chest while they wiped her off a bit. After they cleaned up and had me ready to go, they left. It was so nice just being able to hold her and start the bonding in a nice quiet room. She was still all white from the vernix and just laying there quietly looking around. (She didn’t even cry after she was born, they had to smack her butt to get anything out!) After the nurse came back in we started nursing and then she cleaned her all up for us, just washing her head, but just rubbing the rest of her off.
I really couldn’t have asked for her birth to go any better. I loved the fact that I had the same nurse, intern, and resident the entire time. I knew they had all read and agreed to my birth plan and they knew exactly what was going on with me. The nurse even followed us to the post partum room and was with me till early morning.
They did take my little girl from me for a couple hours to warm her back up as she was losing a bit of her body heat. I was ok with it since I had tested positive for Group B Strep and losing body heat could be a symptom of infection so we figured a warming blanket would be the quickest way to get her back to normal.
So there you have it, our birth story. I still can’t believe she’s already here and I’m loving each minute of being a new mommy again. And going through labor and delivery naturally, I actually felt better afterward and it wasn’t near as bad as I thought it was going to be. After having both a medicated and natural birth, I would totally do another natural birth! I felt more in control and liked the fact that I could actually feel my legs. I also liked that I wasn’t so tired during and after that I forgot things that happened or wasn’t totally aware when they put my baby on my chest. That bonding time was so special!
The hospital-moon
This morning I check out of the hospital. Not a moment to soon! While I don’t mind staying one night (it’s actually nice to have a whole staff at your disposal to get you what you need!) these beds are not made for sleeping. Even with all those adjustments, there is absolutely no way to get comfortable! My bum hurts from sitting on it, my legs hurt and back hurt no matter how many pillows I use. And the mattress is anything but soft.
Oh, and the food here is horrible! I can’t find anything on the menu (besides fruit) that doesn’t include refined sugar or flour, and a lot of it includes high fructose corn syrup. Yuck. I thought my “roasted” turkey lunch would have been alright yesterday, but no. For one, you could barely tell it was turkey! It was more of a processed lunch meat cut really thick. And it tasted horrible. So for dinner I just went all out and got pizza. I figured if everything else on the menu was considered junk, I might as well get junk food, right? Pretty sad that a place that’s supposed to “heal” people, serves food that does just the opposite.
I did try to upload some pics, but for some reason, no matter how small I make them, blogger just won’t upload them them at the moment. So those will just have to wait till I get home!
The Birth Day: part two
We welcomed our little baby girl into our lives today at 11:21. All 8lbs 4 oz of her! It was a long labor, but she came quickly after they broke my water. We’re both doing great and feeling good, I was able to make it the whole way with no drugs too! Can’t say the last hour was fun, but it wasn’t as bad as I thought it might be.
As I type now, she’s sitting next to me in her little bassinet slowly stretching about and getting comfy. She sure is a quiet little thing! We’ve only heard her cry once and the nurses had to make her do it! She also seems to be taking to nursing quite well and was opening her eyes and looking about soon after birth.
She’s beautiful and perfect, and I’m full of new love for her. Life just can’t get any better than being able to stare at God’s greatest creation.
I hope to have some pics up soon for you all! Thanks again for your prayers!
The Birth Day
Looks like my blogging break may come sooner than I expected. This little girl wants to be here 2 weeks early just like her big brother! I’ve been having contractions all day and will probably head to the hospital by tonight. Please keep me in your prayers, and just to let you know – I’ll be updating my twitter account (donielle) and my other blog as long as the wireless works at the hospital.
Baby Bump Update: The Birth Day
So I was all ready to post a new update and picture today, but it seems this little girl wants to come 2 weeks early, just like her big brother! Instead of telling you how my pregnancy is going, now I get to tell you how my labor is going!
The Birth Day part one:
Yesterday I had an appointment with my OB, who after waiting an hour to see, was called out for a delivery. As I was finally being led back to a room!! But the nurse did all my vitals and I was out of there. I was so mad at waiting so long for nothing I walked out without checking out too. They can figure out I’m gone.
Then last night right before bed, I stood up after laying down for a bit and felt that she finally was fully engaged. All night long contractions woke me up every hour or two, but nothing steady. Then starting this morning at 7:00am they started coming every 5 minutes or so, but was really light labor. And now here I sit at home, at almost 2 o’clock, just waiting for them to get stronger. They have increased in intensity, but no where near intolerable yet.
Sorry- had to stop for a contraction a moment!
So far I made some muffins and cleaned the kitchen as well as did the laundry and started to put things away so I don’t have to come home to a messy house. And now I should probably get off my duff again so as not to slow down progress! Plus I need to pack my bags and put the baby seat in the car.
I’ll update here throughout the day when I can, and if our wireless works at the hospital, we’ll update there as well. I do have a couple of prayer requests though before I end this post.
Could you please pray that labor proceeds well and not stalls? I’d like to avoid pitocin this time around and have a natural birth.
And pray that I receive great care at the hospital and have nurses assigned to me that support a natural birth.
And that I’ll be ok leaving Cody. I’ve never been away from him at night and just the thought bothers me a bit. OK, a lot of bit. He could probably care less though!
Oh, and please pray that a name comes to us when we see her!
Thanks everyone!!
Still here!
Yup, I’m still around – no baby yet. We just had a long weekend with my son hurting his eye and not sleeping and it’s taken me all week to catch up! I do have a feeling the next few weeks might be a bit more sporadic as the posting goes though. The baby has officially dropped and my body seems more and more ready to go! And if she comes 2 weeks early like my son did, that’ll mean she’ll be here on Monday.
I will be around as much as I can the next month or so, but if you could: please pray that my energy and endurance holds up. I’ve been making sure to eat well and take my vitamins, but this little babe sure is taking a lot out of me right now! And also pray that the delivery goes well. As of last weekend we now have a laptop so I’ll be able to bring it along with me to the hospital and update via blogging or twittering. (maybe it’ll keep my mind off things a bit!) So don’t worry, if I go into labor, you’ll know!!
Tired, Sore, and more tired
Lest you think I’m complaining about the last few weeks of pregnancy, I’m not. Not really anyways. It just takes a lot more effort now a days to get things done and I’m still busy trying to get things ready for baby. And you know? This whole pregnancy thing sure was a lot easier when I worked full time in an office where I could sit around all day! Taking care of a toddler that wants to run around all day and push limits when I’m to tired to discipline sure takes a toll on a mama!
And this week I thought I’d better listen to my body and get some extra sleep, lest I go into labor already exhausted! Even better, the Lord has blessed me with a few great nights sleep, without being woken by a toddler, some sleeping in, and some refreshing daytime naps! With all that extra sleep I needed you can probably figure out why I haven’t been around much this week!
That being said, I have been busy around the house. So don’t think I’m sleeping the day away! Let me show you a bit of what I’ve gotten done the last couple of weeks.
I made a trip to Country Life Natural Foods to stock up on lots of baking supplies. We’ve now got pasta, flour (you can’t see the 50lbs I bought!) sugars, dried fruits, yeast, oil, and tons more I can’t remember. But now my pantry is full and I won’t have to worry about running out for something silly for the next few months.
I also made a bulk order from Mountain Rose Herbs for all my seasonings, some sea salt, and a gallon of coconut oil. I was impressed with everything and will definitely order through them again.
I also made up a big quart size mason jar of taco seasoning since it’s an easy meal Todd can make for us while I take a kitchen strike on my babymoon!
I also made a double batch of GF carrot zucchini muffins and some whole wheat banana bread.
A double batch of beef stew for dinner and lunches.
Some spaghetti sauce all packaged up and frozen.
Packaged up some bulk shredded cheese.
And put three more loaves of bread dough in the freezer.
And of course I didn’t take pictures of some of what I’ve done, so we can also add these to the list:
- Batch of bean soup for Todd’s lunches
- Double batch of chili for Todd’s lunches
- Chicken casserole, again for Todd’s lunches
- Double batch of granola bars
- Fresh OJ made and frozen to bring to the hospital for after labor
- and of course, the baby’s clothes washed and hung up.
This weekend I hope to get a few dinners in the freezer and all bags packed and ready to go. Because if you remember, Cody came 2 weeks early. So if this one does too, it’ll be within the next week. And she is definitely dropped and engaged at this point! But don’t worry, I won’t leave you hanging, I’ve got a laptop to bring with me to the hospital now!
