Contractions began right before 6 am on Thursday June 3rd. We leisurely got dressed, packed for the hospital, and dropped Addilyn, our first daughter, off at a friends house (thank goodness for selfless friends like Dan and Shinta Vaughn who were willing last minute to watch our crazy 20 month old toddler for a few hours!). We got to the hospital about 9 am and found out I was 4 cm dilated. Because Addilyn's labor and delivery lasted a little over 10 hours the doctor told me that this birth would be 5 (or less) hours long. So Jeff and I had been reading, researching, and practicing for what we thought could be a nice, short, natural birth (if it was only gonna last 5 hours, who needs drugs, right?!) Things progressed relatively slowly and at noon I was only up to 5 cm. We walked around the hospital, I hopped in the shower for a while and relaxed (according to Dr. Bradley's natural birthing methods) in bed. At 6 pm the nurse checked and I was 8 cm dilated. She said I was entering the transition phase, which is the most painful but shortest period of birth where your cervix dilates from 8 to 10 cm and then you are ready to push your baby out. My doctor showed up shortly after 6 pm and got himself and the room set to deliver our baby. He checked my dilation again and I was still at 8 cm. Once again, I tried to relax through (what I thought at the time) were the most painful contractions I had ever felt in my life (Dr. Bradley really would have been proud of me and my excellent husband-coach). Surely I had to be ready to push after those gnarly contractions, but the doctor checked me again and...sorry Mam, you're still 8 cm. By this time it was almost 7 pm and the transition phase is "supposed" to last 20 to 40 minutes (especially for a second child). I was still very nervous and hesitant that I could continue since I had been in active labor for more than 13 hours already and I had no certainty that it was going to come to a happy ending any time soon. Against my better judgement, I decided to press on...I hadn't come this far only to get an epidural at 8 cm and what I hoped was just moments before the birth of my child, I would endure! I figured a change in position and place might be just the catalyst I needed to get this phase in gear, and after 13 hours of baby's head bearing down on my pelvis, I really needed to pee. So we got up and went to the bathroom. After my elimination and a few contractions on the toilet that convinced everyone in the room I was ready to push, the doctor checked me one last time and can you guess his disgusting reply by now? Mam, you're still 8 cm. Well after I heard that, and my body actually hit a few more contractions back in bed that finally signaled the transition phase, I was finished...I said get me that anesthesiologist. Unfortunately the epidural man was back at home, so it was gonna be another 20 to 40 minutes until I felt any relief. All I could do was wait and try to relax through what I NOW know are the most painful contractions I have ever felt in my life. They were so painful, that my body started involuntarily shaking all over. They said it was an effect of the adrenaline that was coursing through my veins, and a natural effect of all the pain I was feeling. All I could think at that point was, "Alright Dr. Bradley, let's see you try and relax as your body is involuntarily shaking all over--it's simply not possible!" Thank the good God of heaven above that Mr. Epidural soon appeared, but unfortunately for the nurses trying to keep me stable so he could insert his God-given drugs into my back, the transition phase contractions did not disappear. And with my body in this new hunched over position it thought it was time to start pushing. Trying to hold back that feeling of wanting to birth a baby was the most difficult thing I have ever done in my life. And the only solution the doctors and nurses have for this feeling is pretend like you're blowing up a balloon...hardly sufficient in my novice opinion. Thank goodness I only had a few more contractions after that one that I felt before the drugs began to kick in. Once I was feeling much more relaxed from the epidural, the nurse asked if I wanted her to check my dilation one last time to see if I was ready to push. I told her I didn't feel especially pushy at that moment and maybe I would take this time to sit back, relax, and enjoy the almost numb feeling running through lower body. About 5 minutes after the nurse left us to relax, I started to feel some extreme pressure in the lower pelvic region. So I gingerly lifted up my gown to take a little look...oh, what's that I see, it's just the entire head of my unborn child. Not just slightly crowning, but the ENTIRE back of my child's head sticking out of my crouch on top of the bed. Needless to say, Jeff ran after the nurses to tell them of our urgent situation, which sent our room into a chaotic mess. Luckily for me, all I had to do was hold up my legs and hardly push out the rest of Barrett's body as the frantic nurses caught her little body. Yes, the nurses delivered our little sweet pea since the doctor returned to his office before I got my epidural. So he missed the big event, but he did make it back in time to clean me up and deliver the afterbirth. The entire day was one wild and crazy ride, but the payoff so far has been unspeakably amazing. Thank you all for your thoughts and prayers (and for reading this entire story!). We are very grateful for your love and friendships for our growing family.
Love,
Jeff, Maggie, Addie and baby Barrett
