I’d like to start out by prefacing my birth story by saying, I’m a 20 year old ftm who has always had a low pain tolerance.

My son was due 03/26/2019 but I had been in and out of the hospital for preterm labor since 31 weeks. We ended up getting 2 steroid shots and put on pelvic rest but that was all. I was constantly having Braxton Hicks and I would ask my family how real contractions felt so I would know. The only reply I would get is “trust me, you will know when it’s the real thing.” That was sufficient enough for me, they just said to wait till I couldn’t walk or talk through contractions to go into the hospital. Well 02/26/2019 I had an appointment with my obgyn where I was told I was still 70% effaced stationed at -1 and 1 cm dilated. The only thing that had changed in the past 5 weeks was that I was now dilate and had completely lost my mucus plug. (I lost my mucus plug fully during the exam) I told the doctor I’d been having more Braxton-Hicks and he brushed it off saying I had another few weeks in his opinion. Well 2 days later on 02/28/2019 I kept having what I thought were Braxton-Hicks just in my back. They were super sporadic and I could still make myself walk and talk so I assumed it wasn’t labor. I decided to nap all day. At around 10:50pm my husband woke me up from sleeping and said “baby you keep squeezing my hand in your sleep let’s walk around.” So we got up, walked around the living room 3 times and I told him I needed to pee. So he walked with me downstairs to our bathroom. The second we got into the bathroom my water broke. I was never told about how much water there would be because it just kept coming. We live with my parents and my 14 year old little sister. I sent my husband to go get someone for a pad and he came back with my little sister. We quickly realized the pad was useless. My little sister threw me two towels to wrap myself up in like a diaper. My husband was freaking out and was rushing me to leave. But since my older sister also had her first at 36 and had 23 hours of labor after her water broke I was in no hurry. My husband literally looked at me and said “aren’t you supposed to be in more pain?”. I told him to give it a little time because things were going to progress and get really bad for me. So by 11:05pm my husband and I were in his truck speeding to the hospital. I got checked into triage wearing a big t shirt boxers and my towel diaper. No socks or shoes because I was still gushing. When I was checked around 11:35pm they said I was 4cm and being checked in. At this point is when I finally felt contractions and I begged for an epidural. They hooked me up to an IV so I could go through two bags of fluid to get it then took me to my room. I finally got to my room around 12:30am and was checked again. The OB (who was being trained) said “I don’t think we will have time for an epidural.” And ya girl lost it. By 1:00am they got the guy in and I got my epidural. At 1:10am my mom and two sisters made it to the hospital and I was feeling great. The second they got in the L&D nurse checked me and said you’re complete. We were all shocked and said what’s complete?? Turns out by the time I got the epidural I must have been at 9 cm because I was at a 10 and ready to go. We had to wait for my actual OB to come because I had a student ob so they suggested I lay on my side with the peanut ball and let my son work his way further down the birth canal on his own. They made me swear to call immediately if i felt any change. So me my husband and my family joked around and hung out until I felt pressure around 2:20am. My husband called in the nurse. They checked me and said “wow it worked because his heads right there. Do not push yet.” The actual OB made it in to supervise at 2:30am. I started pushing at 2:38am. By 2:46am 03/01/2019 at just 36 weeks and 3 days my son was born. He was 100% developed and healthy. I was up and walking by 3:15am. Moral of the story

A. Don’t listen to anybody else only you know your body.

B. If your water breaks go to the hospital ASAP because sometimes it takes 23 hours and other times it takes 3.

C. Bring a good labor team with you because I actually had a good time.