Very long birth (and story)

I'm 13 weeks overdue with my birth story but just as I enjoyed reading all the stories here, I wanted to share mine even if it's delayed (and long).

This was my second pregnancy. I had my 1st at 39w4d.

On 39w2d, I had an appointment. I had lost my mucous plug the previous weekend and did have some period like cramps but nothing consistent.

My OB said the baby was sunny side up and still high. She was head down since 28 weeks so I was expecting her to be engaged by that point but she wasn't. OB said the cramps are a good sign as they help the baby get in a better position and once she flips, she'll probably engage. OB gave me an appointment for the following week just in case and said it's your 2nd pregnancy so baby might drop anytime before birth and as you had a successful vaginal delivery in the past, I'm not too concerned about her position as she may flip during birth or even be born that way.

On 39w5d, I started having some contractions around noon. They were consistent but not too severe. I went out for a long walk with my mom and they continued coming every 5 minutes but not getting closer together. Some would be more intense than others but they were still erratic. Part of me was thinking this isn't active labor as I had similar experience with my 1st. Another part was thinking that every pregnancy is different and some women don't realize until it's too late. I called L&D and they said you can come in at anytime to get checked so I decided to go (I kind of wanted a status update and thought it's better to go in the evening rather than the middle of the night).

We went in, they checked me out, said I'm only 1 cm (which in a person who had birth before may not mean anything) and the cervix was high and posterior. While the CTG was attached, the baby wasn't moving as much as they liked so they had me go on my side and drink something sweet. She must've been sleeping as after that, she started moving like crazy. They kept me on it for some extra time, just in case, then they said that it's still early for me and it's up to me if I wanted to be admitted or not. I decided to go home and was instructed to come back on the 1st sign of fresh blood, fluid, increased contractions or decreased movement. They also told me that I can take Tylenol and get in a warm bath to help with the discomfort. I kept having the contractions regularly but again, they weren't too severe. After the bath, I slept a bit but kept waking up with contractions, they started getting more intense but nothing I couldn't handle. Hubby woke up around 3 AM and said we should get back to the hospital.

We got there, they checked again, still 1 cm but soft and not as high. The midwife did a sweep and I got bloody show. She asked me if I wanted to wait it out at home or be admitted. I said I wanted to be admitted as I didn't want us to keep going back and forth.

They put me in a labor room and I was told to make myself comfortable. There was also a bath if I wanted to use it. I was pretty tired at that point and thought I'll try and sleep. Hubby wasn't in his best shape either so I told him that it might be better if he went home to get some rest and be with our son when he wakes up. He refused initially but when he saw there was no change, he agreed and said he'll be back if there was any progress. I was still having regular contractions and they came to monitor the baby every hour but things were not kicking off. In the morning, my OB passed by and I told her how frustrated I was feeling. She said that this is my body helping the baby flip so even though, I feel like it's nothing, it is doing something. She said you're heading there but I don't know if it's within hours or days. She offered to break my water and see if that helps but then I'll have to have the baby within 24 hrs, one way or another. I declined and asked to be discharged to continue early labor at home. The attending midwife told me that I made the right choice and she advised me to get a yoga ball and do some exaggerated circles. She also said to keep active to get things moving.

Regular contractions continued through the night. I used the ball as instructed and I could feel lots of pressure in my pelvis.

The following day (39w6d). I started feeling more pain around noon. I kept going on with my day as I didn't want to be like the boy who cried wolf 🙈. It kept getting more and more intense. Hubby kept saying we should go to the hospital and I kept saying not yet. The pain started coming in my back and then it was too painful for me to sit or lay down. At 5 PM, hubby put his foot down and said we're going. We got there, I was 1-2 cm 🤦🏻‍♀️ but the midwife said it's baby time. They put me in the same labor room. I couldn't sit back or lay on the bed due to the severe pain in my back. They had to check my vitals and the baby's pulse while I was standing. We put the yoga ball on the bed and I was using that to rock back and forth while I was standing on the side of the bed. The shift changed and a new midwife came in. She told me that what I was going was excellent and that it helped gravity work for me. She also instructed my husband to rub my back while I was having a contraction and then use a warm compress when it was done. That felt really good. As it got more severe, I asked for nitrous oxide (I didn't want to have an epidural early on as it meant I had to lay down which could prevent the baby from flipping). I don't know if the nitrous did much for pain TBH. It helped me focus on my breathing and was a distraction. It also made my lips tingly. After a while on the nitrous, I started feeling light headed and got in the bed on all fours while leaning on the yoga ball. The pain kept getting worse and worse and I was ready to ask for the epidural when a new midwife came in to take me to the delivery room. I told her I wanted the epidural ASAP and the anesthesia team came in and gave it to me. One guy kept trying to talk to me about it for the consent and I told him I know, I know!! I had it before. Where do I sign??? 😅 Once it was in, things were amazing. I was ready to lay back in bed and rest. I started taking selfies and texting my siblings. I video called my son and read him a bedtime story. Around 8 PM, They checked me and said I'm 5-6 cm and when she took her hand out, my water broke. I started feeling some pain in a small 2 inch area in my back. It wasn't intense enough to call anesthesia and I thought it's useful to help me know when I have contractions.

2 hrs later, they checked me again and I was fully dilated. My OB was in the hospital so came and checked. She said all looks good but baby is still a bit high. She said we'll give her an hour to descend more before I can push unless I get the urge earlier. She also took away my epidural button so I can feel the contractions. After an hour, I started pushing. Baby was still posterior and the pushing itself was not painful but the pressure I felt immediately after a push when she was turning was the worst pain I ever felt in my life. Once she turned, one push and her head was out. They told me to pause to check the cord then another push and her body was out and the pain was magically gone (I pushed for a total of 45 minutes and she came 30 minutes before her due date). They put her on my chest for skin to skin. They gave me an injection for the placenta. It slid right out with no pain. I had a second degree tear while my OB stitched up while I was still doing skin to skin and she latched on for breastfeeding. It was an amazing moment which I missed with my 1st as he passed muconium and I had hemorrhage. They took her to weigh her and check her vitals while I was cleaned up. We were both dressed in clean clothes before we were wheeled to our room.