My birth story- sorry.. its kind of long!0

So i was originally due September 4th, 2016. Due to high blood pressure, and protein in my urine i was diagnosed with PIH (pregnancy induced hypertension) and my doctor scheduled me for induction for monday August 22nd, 2016. I went in, and they proceded to induce using cytotec. I felt nothing from that and it actually did nothing for me. I stayed at 3cm and 70% effaced for quite a few hours until they started the pitocin. After pitocin started, I still progressed slowly, with active labor beginning once i changed from 3cm to 4cm at about 530 am. The contractions werent bad, i was handling them and they progressively moved the dose of pitocin up, and once i got to 8 they had to back it off because i was having too many contractions back to back and I was only at 5 1/2cm and 90%. I decided to get the epidural at this point as i could barely breathe from the contractions, they were so strong.

I got the epidural and within 1 minute i started feeling very weird. I was nauseas, I couldnt hold my eyes open, my whole body broke out in a cold sweat... my blood pressure dropped from 142/89 to 62/40. I lost conciousness and couldn't talk, or open my eyes or move. The nurse pushed 10 of epi, and it slightly boosted my BP to the point I could hear and was trying to talk and open my eyes. I heard her call for the anesthesiologist to come back, and he ordered another 10 of epi. Before she could dose it, the other nurse laid me back, and i kept saying I'm going to throw up. I couldn't move or turn to my side because i was numb from the waist down. Finally after shouting as best i could that i was going to throw up they turned me on my side, and i threw up. The 1st nurse pushed the 10 of epi and within 5 minutes my symptoms went away because my blood pressure went back up. My poor babys heartbeat dipped during that whole episode. The dr. Said a drop in blood pressure is something that happens with epidurals.

Well, after a few hours, I started feeling contractions again, so they dosed me again. This time, my blood pressure dropped but not as fast, not as low but i still needed more epinephrine 2x to bring it back up. It happened a 3rd time when they dosed me again after it wore off. That time my doctor decided i couldnt have the epidural anymore. They shut off the epidural medicine when I was at 9cm and 100% effaced, and from that point on I felt everything.

By that time, it was about 745-8pm. My doctor came in when i was 9 1/2 cm and was manually stretching my cervix the rest of the way around my babys head. He told me it was time to start pushing! I felt like i only had a few minutes left before she came in to the world. I was exhausted, in so much pain and just ready to have her in my arms.

She had other plans. She was turned facing my left hip, and the nurses and my doctor tried every trick in the book to turn her face down, but she was stubborn. I dont know how they did it but I think they finally got her turned but it was such a painful process. She was also having trouble moving past my pelvic bone. I was pushing for about an hour and she had on moved a couple of mL down in the birth canal. I thought she was never going to come. I ended up pushing for another hour and a half almost 2 hours. My doctor told the nurses to have the anesthesiologist on standby for c-section but he wanted to try vacuuming her out. I hadnt wanted her to go through that but she had been in the birth canal for too long so my fiance and i agreed. I felt so bad for her though. But after pushing through another 4 contractions with 4-5 pushes each contraction, she was born. When they mention "ring of fire"... that phrase doesnt even come close to how it really feels!

My baby girl Emma was born at 1134pm, 7lbs 14oz and 19.5 inches long after 16+ hours of labor and 2 1/2 - 3 hours of pushing. She's amazing and was so worth it.

I did end up tearing, 2nd degree. But im healing great now and my little girl is 1 week old.