What labor and delivery were really like...

The one mostly honest and accurate thing I heard about labor was you have to experience it yourself to really know what it feels like. All other descriptions were sugar coated by comparison. While I was going through the entire process, I was trying to document each experience in a notebook with the help of my husband. I wanted to be able to look back and truly remember what it felt like. That way I'll know what I'm getting myself into, if there is a next time.


1. We checked in at midnight. I was tired, but really nervous. We had to wait in a waiting room, and then a nurse came and called us into the Labor and Delivery room. Jorge had to wait outside, while I got into a horribly long hospital gown, and answered a million questions with a nurse. They also took a urine sample. I was really glad at that point that I had water before getting to the hospital.

2. I had to get into the hospital bed and get an IV inserted. The Labor and Delivery nurse who did it was actually pretty good. I didn't feel a thing.

3. I was on the IV drip for 30 minutes. Then...the most awful thing happened. The nurse inserted one of the dilation pills. (Did I mention I was getting induced? That's why I had to have those horrible pills.) The pills are not oral...let me just say that. This nurse was also really rough and I felt an incredible amount of pain.

4. The contractions started, and they weren't really all that bad...yet. I do have a high level of pain tolerance. They just felt like cramps with a little back pain.

5. After 2 hours, I had to have an enema and get "prepped" with a razor. The enema was awful! The feeling of warm water filling your intestine is not a good one. Almost immediately I was in the restroom. I had to walk in the room for 45 minutes to make sure I got everything out. Jorge was laughing at me cause we were watching VH1 to distract me. I kept doing squats every time I got a contraction in beat to the music. It actually made them feel okay.

6. I had to get back in the bed and get checked...and get another pill inserted. At this point I hadn't dilated even a little bit. My contraction pattern was awesome, but I was making no progress. The pill hurt just as much as the first time.

7. Then...the contractions got really bad. They can only be described as the worst period cramp times 10 million, with someone squeezing you from the inside out at the same time. You want to get up off the bed and run, but you can't move. Mine were so bad...I started vomiting everywhere.

8. This apparently made my doctor and nurses nervous so they gave me the epidural without any dilation. The epidural did not hurt a bit! There's a lot of pressure, but after a contraction it's like nothing. Once I had that baby...it was smooth sailing...for a while.

9. The pills started to work...finally...so they started the pitosin. This medicine was supposed to help make the contractions stronger. It did. The epidural didn't last forever and I started throwing up again. So they put in another dosage of meds into the epidural. That's where it all went downhill.

10. I had been making good progress. I was at 6 cm, and at a 0 with 80%...but I spiked a fever. The baby's heart rate was going crazy too. So, the doctor ordered an emergency c-section.

11. It really was quick. I was shaking violently from the fever and fear. They took me into the OR within five minutes. Three minutes after cutting me open...he was out. (The iodine prep takes longer than the removal of the baby.)

12. As soon as Jorge and I heard his little cry we cried. Then I saw him and he was sooooo cute. I was in love with the little boy that had been kicking me repeatedly the past few months. He looked like my niece when he came out. They brought him to me and he looked at me with direct eye contact while I touched his little face. I wanted to hold him so bad...but I couldn't. The joys of a c-section.

13. Jorge left with the baby and I was in the OR another 40 minutes. I had some complications so it took them a while to put me back together. Then I had to go to recovery for an hour. I refused to sleep in there. I wanted to see my baby and my husband badly.

14. Finally, I was wheeled out and Jorge met up with me and told me the baby was perfect. He also showed me some pictures and he looked just like his daddy.

Would I do that all over again? For this little guy, yes. I'm not sure I'm ready to have another child just yet after all the physical pain. They say that second c-sections are not so bad. We'll see. For now, I'll just enjoy my little boy.


FYI: He's already trying to hold his own pacifier. He's too smart.