New mom: Birth day

As my daughter’s first birthday approaches, I can’t stop thinking about the crazy week that led up to it.

I was very lucky to have a mostly comfortable, complication-free pregnancy. Of course there were symptoms like heartburn (which I still deal with), but I stayed active and was given good news at all my prenatal appointments – until about one month before my due date.

I’d never dealt with high blood pressure during pregnancy, but it was slightly elevated at my 36-week visit. There was also protein in my urine – a common sign of preeclampsia.

I was instantly worried, but my doctor explained that I just needed to be monitored.

A few days later, my test results were still not great. I took home a giant jug (the size of a milk carton) and was asked to collect my urine every time I went to the restroom over the next 24 hours. Thankfully, I was working from home, but it wasn’t fun.

My husband and I also monitored my blood pressure from home to make sure it didn’t rise above 140/90. This was also stressful, because my worry and tension made it difficult to get an accurate reading.

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My family still jokes about that awful jug – which ultimately was the deciding factor that caused my doctor to schedule my induction. My daughter would definitely be arriving early, though I didn’t know how early.

Before the lab results came in, I didn’t know when I would be induced. It could be anywhere from a few days to two weeks, doctors said.

I’ll always remember the day – it was two days before my daughter was born. I worked my full day, which started at 4 a.m., then drove to the obstetrician to get those lab results. My doctor calmly told me, based on the results, they would get me scheduled to be induced right away.

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My husband and I called our managers, family members and friends to deliver the big news while someone from the doctor’s office called the hospital to see when they could have a room for me. I will always remember the flood of emotions I felt – mostly excitement and some nerves – when they told me I could check into the hospital that night.

Every woman has a different birth story, but here’s a summary of mine.

Since I was induced, I didn’t experience timing contractions or waiting through labor at home. Despite my preeclampsia diagnosis, I actually felt pretty good. Instead of the rush to the hospital you see in movies, I took a long shower, triple-checked the contents of my hospital bag and ate a light dinner (as well as I could through the nerves).

We checked into the hospital at 7 p.m. I was still excited and only a little nervous.

I was induced with a Foley bulb or balloon that night. The doctor told me to relax and get some sleep. Looking back, I wish I accepted the medicine they offered me, because I experienced very painful cramps and didn’t sleep at all that night.

The induction process can be different for everyone, but for me, it was uncomfortable. This can be especially true for first-time moms who have never gone through labor before.

The balloon’s purpose is to induce labor by forcing the cervix to dilate. It did its job, falling out on its own by the next morning.

The morning was better. I met my day nurse, and she started an IV drip of Pitocin – a natural hormone that causes the uterus to contract, moving along the labor process.

I felt surprisingly comfortable for the first half of the day and didn’t ask for an epidural until the afternoon, when the contractions began getting painful.

Again, everyone has a different experience with epidurals, but getting one was not fun. The tingling, bone-chilling type of pain I felt when the needle was inserted is difficult to describe – but after about one minute of agony, it was in, and I know that minute was worth it.

In the hospital, I kept reminding myself pain was temporary. Contractions came and went, but that epidural kept me from feeling too uncomfortable. I even took a short nap.

The doctor broke my water to get things going. That didn't hurt at all.

At first, my doctor told me I could deliver that night, but as the evening went on, the contractions weren’t doing what they should. My doctor said I may need a C-section if things didn't speed up, but he thought if we waited it out there was a good chance I wouldn’t need one.

The worst pain I felt was the last 3 to 4 hours before my daughter was born. My body wasn’t ready to deliver, but my baby was in a low position, and the epidural didn’t help the intense, constant pressure I felt in my lower abdomen while we waited for “go time.”

When the clock hit midnight, I had been in labor for almost 30 hours, and I knew I would meet my baby that day.

It was good that we waited. Sometime around 2:45 a.m., it was time to push.

I welcomed my girl into the world at 3:02 a.m. – the time I usually wake up for work. I knew then she would be an early bird like me.

Over the next few days, I’ll be focusing on my daughter, but I will also remember my own “birth day,” and the tiredness, happiness, anxiety and tears of pain and joy that came along with it.