FTM detailed birth story - born exactly on his due date!

Thursday May 16th around 8 pm I started timing the contractions I'd been having. They were 1 minute long and 8 minutes apart. I went to bed that night thinking in just a few hours we'd be at the hospital having a baby. I stayed out on the couch so my husband could get some deep sleep before having to help me through labor. Unfortunately for me things never really progressed. They stayed consistent at 8 minutes apart all night! They were to intense to try and sleep through so I spent time bouncing on a yoga ball, in the bathtub, walking around and anything else I could think of to either get things moving, or make it stop. All day the next day it stayed the exact same. Finally, after 26 hours at home without any change I called the hospital. They told me I could come in and get checked if I wanted, but should try and wait till they're 5 min apart (such a generic answer I don't think they were truly listening to me). So we went in. I got checked and was at 3.5 cm. They don't admit until 4 cm. My blood pressure was a little high so they decided to keep me around for a few hours and monitor me and if I progressed they'd admit me. 2 hours later I got checked again. Same thing... 3.5. but the doctor decided to admit me anyways because of my blood pressure being slightly high and just seeing how exhausted I was already. Since I CLEARLY wasn't making any progress on my own we started a low dose of Pitocin, stepping it up every half hour. I got to the point where I was having contractions one on top of another and they were terrible! I tried being in a tub for awhile as well as moving around and trying different positions but nothing was helping so I requested I be checked. 4.5 cm.... I then requested an epidural because I was completely exhausted and in so much pain I couldn't handle it. The doctor "forgot to order it" and the anestisiologist didn't get to the room for another hour (the nurse was the one that called to check when he was coming). I was super nervous to get an epidural, but it was really nothing! The worst part was I had to stay still through 6 contractions while it was going in. Immediate relief! The pain started to back off the second it was in, and within 20 minutes all I could feel was the pressure. They stepped up the Pitocin to actually get me moving now, turned the lights off and let me rest. My husband passed out immediately. I was so exhausted but struggled to actually rest because of the adrenaline rush I had going. I'd get checked randomly and did finally doze off a few times. I got stuck at 9.5 cm dilated for quite awhile, but finally the time came for me to push. My two amazing nurses set everything up and coached me through what pushing would be like. Then they called the doctor in to start. I pushed for 45 minutes like every push was going to be the last one! I finally felt his head push through and then with just a few more short but strong pushes I felt the rest of his body come out. They immediately put him up on my chest and started clearing out his nose and drying him off a bit. I started crying and threw up just out of emotion! They told me to give them one more little push for the placenta which I didn't even feel. My husband almost passed out and had to sit down for a few minutes. Once he recovered he got to cut the cord. The time went really fast but after about 45 minutes they weighed and measured him. I had one tiny tear and a couple "stretches" that required a couple of stitches, but for a FTM they were impressed (also asked my husband if I ever pooped - which I didn't! Lol). After about 2 hours the epidural had mostly worn off and I could walk with assistance. That's when they moved me from the labor room to our family care room for recovery. Finally after 2 full night's with no rest I got to sleep! Husband and baby we're very tired and aside from being checked on by doctors and nurses every hour or so I got to sleep for like 6 hours!

Lucas Albert was born on his due date, May 18th, at 11:23 am weighing 8 lbs exactly, and measured 21" long. He has a head full of dark blonde hair just like me :). He immediately had his eyes open and was looking all over the place. I labored for 39 hours total (26 at home, 13 at the hospital). He's absolutely perfect!