Birth story

At 11:00 pm September 30th I started getting light contractions. Every hour they got a little stronger and closer together. They started about 7-10 minutes apart lasting for 45 seconds and by 4:30 they were 5-6 minutes apart and almost a minute long. I couldn’t sleep so I waited it out as long as possible before waking up my fiancé to drive me to the hospital. We checked in at 5:30 and were sent to a room to be examined. I was only 2 centimeters dilated so they had me walk around the hospital for an hour to see if I would dilate more. Unfortunately i didn’t so they sent us home. I labored at home for 4-5 hours. I took a nap, took a bath and walked around until the contractions were so intense I couldn’t walk and I’d tear up. Around 4 pm we left for the hospital again. I knew I wouldn’t be allowed to eat once I get there so we stopped for pizza. I got checked in and examined and I dilated to 4 cm with a bulging bag!! They admitted me and transferred us from the exam room to the labor and delivery room. The doctor was trying to do paperwork with me all while I was contracting hard. I went as long as I could without pain medication but about 2 hours after checking in I had the nurse give me a “cocktail” to take the edge off. It made me feel giggly sleepy and drunk and I could still feel the contractions but I was too distracted by the pain meds. It wore off after about 30-40 minutes and I had one more dose after and that was the cutoff. I couldn’t get the epidural till I was 6 centimeters so I hoped and prayed the medication wouldn’t wear off so fast this time. Eventually I dilated to a 6 so the anesthesiologist came up to administer the epidural. They had me sit on the edge of the bed leaning over my stomach and holding my fiancé around his waist for 10 minutes while he did the epidural. It felt like a bee sting and then an insane amount of pressure up and down my spine and I couldn’t help but shake and cry. About 5 minutes later my legs started getting heavy and tingly and my contractions started feeling lighter and not so painful. A few minutes later my whole body felt paralyzed and I couldn’t roll over or lift my legs. I was totally numb! The nurse came in to check my cervix and my water broke during the process. We all got excited and impatiently waited for her to come back saying it was time to push. We turned off the lights and tried to relax while we waited for me to finish dilating Not too long after a group of nurses and doctors rushed in and strapped an oxygen mask to me and made me lay in a bunch of different positions. Nobody was telling me what was happening so I assumed the worst and started panicking. I thought his heart stopped beating. I began to hyperventilate and shake uncontrollably while they were telling me to breathe. Then they had me get on all fours and sit like that for what seemed like forever. My gown fell down and I was completely naked surrounded by strangers and my mom, fiancé and mother in law. I felt so vulnerable and scared and still wasn’t told what was going on. I kept looking at my mom and fiancé for reassurance but they kept telling me to calm down and breathe. Still didn’t give me an answer but I could tell they were worried. Finally his heart rate stabilized and I was able to lay down again. Apparently when my water broke his head went down farther and he was squishing his umbilical cord and depriving himself of oxygen. Not too long after, my epidural started wearing off even after continuously pressing the button for more and the nurses refused to give me anything else for pain. Next thing I know she comes back in to check my cervix and I’m at a 10 so it’s time to push. I start panicking because I’m starting to feel everything. The first couple pushes weren’t bad but they quickly became almost unbearable. My baby was stuck under my pubic bone so every push felt like total agony and no matter how hard I tried he would barely move. It wasn’t working so She brought in a “squat bar” which is a bar that attaches to either side of the bed and she tied a towel around the middle. So I put my feet up on each side of the bar and with every contraction I pulled myself up using the towel. By this point my epidural has completely worn off and it feels like I’m on fire. The contractions made me nauseas and I had an uncontrollable urge to push and I just cried in pain when she made me wait until the contraction was at its peak to push. I pushed for an hour and a half and each time was worse than the last. I’m dripping in sweat begging for something for pain but they all ignored me and just kept telling me to push harder. Finally after 27 hours of labor and an hour and a half of agonizing delivery, with one final push Jaxon Emmett Frost was born 💙