I have a 3yr old son and the experience of his birth was the most rewarding yet exhausting event of my life. I counted down the days getting closer to his arrival. Finally at 1 week over due my Dr. called and said it’s time to induce. So my husband and I anxiously and nervously checked in to the hospital. It was 8 am when we checked in and the process was much slower than I thought. The Dr. broke my water at about 3 pm and from there the contractions grew unbearable. I did choose to receive an epidural and am so thankful for the medication because it was easy until time to push. After the epidural I rotated positions in the bed until fully dilated. My mom had arrived at the hospital around 4 or 5 pm but need to leave at 2:30 am for work. So it was 2 am when I finally was given the ok to push. I only had 30 min to get him out before my mom had to leave. I didn’t take any birthing classes but I was so determined to have my baby with my mom in the room. I focused all my thoughts and energy in to pushing as quickly as possible and it worked. My son was born at 2:35am, mom was there to see him born, my husband cut the cord, and we had a healthy 9 lb 12 oz baby. My husband and I stayed awake for hours and hours just holding our son and staring at him. I know some may not agree with epidurals but I believe I made the right choice for myself and my son. It was a very stress free labor and delivery although not completely without pain. I chose not to breast feed because I am a working mother and wanted to be consistent with feeding methods from the beginning, knowing that I would be returning to work in 2 months. I do not feel that my choices have affected my child’s development in an unfavorable way. He has met his mile stones thus far and I am pleased with his, social, emotional, and cognitive skills.
It was nice to read your birthing experience. I also wrote about the birth of my first child. I can relate to all of the feelings that you had. There is nothing more amazing than the birth of a child. However, when it is your first experience with childbirth, it can be very scary. I also chose to have an epidural during my labor. Unfortunately, for me the birthing process wasn't as smooth as yours. My son was delivered by emergency C-section after two hours of pushing. I was so thankful to be in a hospital where the needed doctors and resources were available.
ReplyDeleteAs I read about deliveries around the world, it amazed me the number of countries that the women deliver their babies at home. I would be so fearful of that, especially after my birthing experience. Also, in most of the other countries women do not have epidurals. Childbirth seems to be very different in the United States compared to other parts of the world.
My birthing experience was amazing because I was at work when I went into labor! I work at a hospital so it was convenient to put me in a wheelchair and proceed down the hall which was 3 minutes away. When I made it to the delivery room I was already dilated 4 centimeters and almost ready to push. I receive the epidural and glad I did because it eased some of the paid I felt. After 1 hour of receiving the epidural I was pushing my son out and my Doctor and boyfriend came in just in time to see his head crowning.
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