Hmmm, something different

We are having our 6th child. The first 5 were in the hospital, with the 1st being a c-section because she was in the breech position. The other 4 were successful VBACs, successful as the hospital setting goes anyway. With Grace, I received an epidural too soon and it slowed my labor down. By the time I was at the point of pushing, I felt nothing because of the epidural. My mother-in-law and the nurse had to hold my legs up since I couldn’t even feel them. I dilated so quickly (I went from 6cm to 10cm in under 30 minutes), I threw up whatever was left in my stomach (they wouldn’t let me eat and I had been there for over 36 hours). Her heart rate went down to 60 with the contractions, and so she was born with help from the vacuum. She was gray and not breathing. But I believe the non-breathing part was my fault. A few days before her birth, I took some caster oil to try and get labor going. It didn’t work. All it did was give me the runs and gave her the runs, too. There was a lot of meconium in the bag of waters and she had inhaled some of the meconium.

With Isaac, my labor was again long, but I tried to go as long as possible without medication. I didn’t want the experience that I had had with Grace’s birth. I did, however, get pitocin because (as I know now) I have long labors and I wasn’t progressing as fast as I should have (according to the doctors). It was horrible!! For 3 hours the contractions were so fierce that I was having 3 in a row right on top of one another. The next one would start before the last one even stopped. By the time the doctor came in, she said I was looking at a c-section because of failure to progress (they had already broke my water by this time). I was so exhausted by this time that I was okay with a c-section. Thank goodness Adam was in a better frame of mind and said that an epidural was the better option to try first. The doctor didn’t like this, for she didn’t want to “hear about it” from the anesthesiologist if it didn’t work and we ended up with a c-section anyway. But we went ahead and did it. Within 1 hour, I had dilated from 5cm to 10cm and he was out.

By the time I was expecting Malachi, I knew that my body would get to a certain spot and then “stall out”. I think it’s because I’m not able to relax enough, which is why I dilate so quickly upon getting the medication. With Malachi, my labor was 17 hours from start to finish, but I did recieve an epidural. I was scared of having another labor like Isaac’s, so I decided to get the epidural before I got to the “begging for a c-section” point. I think it may have been 3 hours later he was born, but I don’t remember for sure. I need to add that with all the pregnancies since Isaac, I have tested positive for group b strep (which is a form of Strep found in that area and could lead to serious problems for the baby if left untreated). So they want the mothers to get at least 1 dose of antibiotics before the birth, which takes 4 hours for 1 dose . It was inconvenient, yes, to be hooked up to an i.v. the whole time, but I figured it was necessary. That is until a friend of mine tested positive like me, had more than the appropriate amount of antibiotics before the birth and her daughter still got the strep and had complications from it. I started thinking, that if the antibiotics are given and the child can still get it, what’s the point? (I didn’t test positive with the girls because at that point, it wasn’t a mandatory test as it is now. I’m sure if I had been tested it would have been positive, and yet the girls are fine.)

Now with Nathaniel, I have already documented his birth and the happenings after it. But to summarize here, I went to the hospital twice before his birth, having regular contractions and with dilation at the beginning. But at some point, the dilation and contractions stopped and I was sent home. On Wednesday morning, contractions began and never stopped until he was born. Even though they were only 10 minutes apart, I had to breathe through them and concentrate very hard through them. I was finally admitted on Friday afternoon at around 3pm. at 4:3-pm, they broke my water and found that, once again, there was meconium in the water. At around 5pm, I received a shot of Nubane and by 7:35pm Nathaniel was born.

All my labors have been monitored, medicated, some-what dictated and defiantly out of my control or say. Not that labor at any time can be controlled, but you know what I mean. I have already been tested for the Strep and am considered positive, even though I was tested before 9 weeks! So I know that the i.v. thing is going to happen. I know that if I’m not in a “progressive” stage of labor, they will not keep me (due to me being a VBAC, they have to have every doctor in the hospital, just in case I need a c-section and that amounts to the bottom line.). I know that I can’t labor in the position I desire. And I know that at some point, it will come down to medication because my body, lying down in a bed or even sitting in a chair, can’t realize enough to keep dilating.

So where does all this lead to? I have been praying about something for some time, I have been doing research and have come to the conclusion that a home birth is right for this baby’s birth. Adam is fine with it and I really have a peace about it. Now we just need to find a midwife that services our area! I am also leaning towards a water birth, but since I need to find a midwife first, I best do that and talk with her first before I make a decision for sure on that one. I told my mother-in-law and sister-in-laws today. My mother-in-law was instantly against it and one of my sister-in-laws was soon following her (the other one didn’t say anything). They said that I don’t have a good track record in birth (citing Grace and Nathaniel) and that I would be better off in the hospital. Obviously I disagree and while they certainly are entitled to their opinion, this is not up for vote or debate. It is a decision that needs to be made by Adam and I. No one else. And it’s not something that I woke up this morning and said, “I think I’ll have this baby at home.” I have learned through experience, that if I don’t have peace about something, that I shouldn’t do it. I really believe that this is right for us at this point and that if the Lord has His will in this, then He will provide a midwife. And if He doesn’t, well then I know His answer for sure.

I haven’t told my mother yet and I can just hear what she will say. But we’ll get to that later. For now, I need to find a midwife. Anyone have any suggestions?

Oh, yeah. By the way: HAPPY MOTHER’S DAY!