My baby is now a day and a half old and I’m still in shock of how my labor went.

This was my second pregnancy, and with my daughter’s birth two and a half years ago, it went much more like I thought it would. At 37 weeks 6 days, I went into L&D for a false alarm water leak. They checked me there and found I was at 4 cm and assured me I wouldn’t make it through the weekend. Sure enough, getting up the next morning, my water gushed and we rushed back to the hospital as I was GBS+. I didn’t get my first contraction until I was at the hospital, and I got the epidural immediately (thankfully!!). I arrived at the hospital at 6cm and labored for 10 hours total, pushed for an hour and 10 minutes, and gave birth to a massive 9 lb 13 oz baby girl.

This pregnancy was much different all around from symptoms to how I was carrying. Sure enough I was pregnant with a baby boy, who thankfully, was measuring smaller than his sister 😂 even though he was measuring smaller, my doctor said there was still a high likelihood that I would deliver around the same time.

At 37 weeks and 6 days, I had an appointment and I had my membrane swept. I was at 4 cm and 80% effaced, so my husband and I didn’t think it would be long before this baby showed up. At 38 weeks exactly I started having painful and somewhat regular contractions that were getting closer together. Knowing I was GBS+ again, we asked my parents to come pick up my daughter to watch her for the night, thinking we’d have to go in to the hospital soon. My biggest fear was that I wouldn’t get on antibiotics in time and I wouldn’t be able to get an epidural.

Though my contractions were still somewhat irregular, we went to OB emergency at midnight, and I was at 4.5 cm. They monitored me for just over 3 hours, and I was unchanged. Though I was in excruciating back pain, they sent me home because the criteria for admission is 5 cm or water breaking. They gave me a shot of morphine to help with the back pain and we went home.

I was able to get maybe three hours of sleep before I woke up and texted my work thy due to a false alarm and lack of sleep, I wouldn’t be making it in that morning. I fell back asleep and woke up maybe 20 minutes later at 8:20 to definite leaking!

I woke my husband and we had a quick laugh at how similar that was to my daughter’s birth, but my laugh quickly died out when the contractions hit almost immediately and were hard and fast! No more than a minute or two apart. My husband drove 95 down the highway and got us to the hospital around 9:10 am. I couldn’t walk, couldn’t hardly move, so they got us a wheelchair and my husband raced me up to where we were just 6 hours before. I immediately asked (practically begged) for the epidural even before they could get me a room in triage.

They checked to see if it was indeed my water that had broken 🙄 and yes it was. The nurse then checked to see how dilated I was and she said I was a 9!!! I may or may not have yelled out a choice expletive at this point because I was in so much pain and I think I knew deep down that it was too late for the epidural and that I might not be able to get the antibiotics that my baby needed.

They immediately pushed my bed over to L&D and my room was filled with so many doctors and nurses. Another nurse checked me and said I was really an 8, so they hooked me up to antibiotics quickly and then called the anesthesiologist over I think to give me false hope. They said I had to promise to hold still through my contractions but that it still might not even take effect in time. Then my worst fear. I had a contraction that made me feel like I needed to push. I told them it was too late for the epidural and they laid me back and told me to start pushing.

I pushed once as hard as I could because I did not want that pain to last long, and they immediately told the attending physician to come in. I pushed two more times and my son came out!

From my water breaking around 8:20 am, my son was born at 10:09 am in the most unexpected way! We never even had a chance to call anyone to let them know I was in labor!

My March baby was born at 38 weeks and 1 day on February 28, 2019 weighing 8 lbs 2.5 oz. I was able to get the first dose of antibiotics, but they’re still monitoring him closely while we’re in the hospital. Thankfully he’s doing great 😊

Emmett James