The Unintended Water Birth

*Disclaimer: This is a birth story and as such has birth story type details.  You've been warned.*

Friday, June 1st, we headed to the Birth Center for a blood pressure check.  We had been told the day before that I would be induced within 48 hours depending on how things looked Friday so we knew it was a possibility they would keep us but we still had in mind they might just have us come in Saturday morning too.

After a blood pressure check - it was still high - and an internal exam - I was 2-3 cm- I was put on the monitors to check the baby's heartrate and for any contractions.  I had a couple of light contractions while on the monitor and the baby looked great.  The midwife said she wanted us to talk to Beverly, the midwife on call for the day and she wasn't in yet. So we went downstairs to the waiting area of the large birthing suite to wait.

We had never seen the Birth Center so busy before.  They had a lady in labor in the downstairs room and a lady in the upstairs room and several different couples waiting to be seen!  We waited a good hour and a half and started wondering if they had forgotten about us since we were downstairs. I was also having a constant headache that wasn't going away even after taking tylenol so I was a little concerned about that too. We finally made it back upstairs when there was enough room for us to sit up there so we would be in their line of sight and they would remember us.

Around 11:30 Beverly came to talk to us and took my BP again and it was pretty high. Since I was having a headache she said she wasn't comfortable with me going home. She sent us back downstairs to wait.

We only waited about 10 minutes and when the lady using the downstairs birthing suite went out to walk with her husband Beverly had us come in to use the bed to check me again. She said I was a 3 and contemplated breaking my water right then. But I told her we hadn't brought anything with us to stay. So she sent Ricardo home to get all of our stuff and said she would break my water when he got back.


After he left she got me settled on the waiting room couch and made that a makeshift room by closing the doors. Around 12:15 she put in half a dose of Cytotek and while she was doing that a HUGE chunk of mucus plug came out. That was very cool to me to see since I never really saw that with Jimmy and really kind of wondered what it looked like!

Then I just had to lay there while the meds started working. I was having very few light contractions and that were very inconsistent. I texted my friends and family and started the weight/length/time guesses going. Thats always fun.

I still had a headache and light contractions about an hour later when Ricardo called me to make sure he had gotten everything. He had to get Jimmy settled, pick up Mercedes and pack all of my stuff. It was laid out but not in a bag yet. While we were talking they moved me upstairs to the smaller birthing suite since it was open again.

I laid there for another hour drinking juice and just waiting for something to happen. I still had a headache and contractions. The contractions were picking up in intensity but were still all over the place time wise. I was preparing myself for a long day although hoping active labor would be a little shorter this time around.  I was still guessing it would be 8 or 9 before it was over.

Ricardo and Mercedes finally arrived around 2:30 and I had a little snack of cheese and then Beverly checked me and said I was 3 cm and she would break my water soon. I basically sent them right back out again to get something to eat since I knew they might not have a chance once she broke my water. While they were gone my birth attendant, Adrian, got there and started getting my labor chart going.

At that point the contractions were a little stronger but still very inconsistent time wise. Ricardo and Mercedes got back around 3:15 and Beverly came in to break my water at 3:25. I told her I changed my mind and I was going home. I was ready for labor and not ready at the same time. I knew it was going to be a long day and I didn't feel great but I was ready to get it over with too.   She had me squat at the bed post and checked me again and then broke my water. It wasn't a huge gush like it was with Jimmy but we got a lot of bloody mucus with it.

After Beverly broke my water the contractions picked up pretty much immediately as I knew they would.  She had me squatting at the bed post with each contraction to try to make some progress.  I would squat for a few contractions and then lay on the floor for a few more.  Laying down made them hurt A LOT worse but I physically wasn't strong enough to support myself squatting during every contraction.

By 3:45 Adrian, my birth assistant, said I was in active labor after timing several contractions.  They were lasting over a minute each and coming really consistently about a minute apart. I was slightly concerned that the contractions were already hurting that bad and lasting that long. I figured I had hours left to go I still hadn't even hit transition!  I did my best to focus on each contraction though and make my body relax through each one so that I could progress as much as possible.

Last time during labor I focused a lot of attention on relaxing during each contraction but also on not making alot of noise. This time while I wasn't loud I did moan a lot more, a little louder and a lot sooner!

I thought a lot about Jimmy between each contraction and that seemed to help me. I really made myself relax my pelvis and bottom during each contraction and kept thinking "come on down baby!" I don't know the exact time but I want to say within about 20 minutes I started feeling like I needed to poop at the end of each contraction. I knew that could be a sign that I was dilated more than I thought but I also knew it hadn't been that long and maybe I just needed to poop...but I never did.

I want to say around 4:15 they moved me downstairs to the big birthing suite where Jimmy was born and right into the water. I didn't think I would want to be in the water again but I figured I could at least try it...I also knew I wouldn't have to squat in there! And wonder of wonders it actually wasn't as bad as I remembered it from laboring with Jimmy.  It was actually kind of nice.

Probably about 20 minutes or so after getting in the water I felt an urge to push and I called out to Adrian in a panic if it was okay to push because it felt like I wasn't going to have control over it pretty soon.

She came and checked me and said I was almost at 6 cm and that I could push if I felt like it but not to bear down. I told her I knew she couldn't know any specifics but how long did she think I had? She said if I turned around in the tub (it was oval) with my back on one side and my legs frog legged on the other side I would probably make a lot more progress a lot quicker.  It was basically like a sitting squat in the tub.  She also said "he's not coming right now."

So I turned around and almost immediately my body took over and started pushing for real with each contraction.  It was almost uncontrollable and each time it happened my moans turned really gutteral.  It actually was causing me to panic a little because I was only 6 cm and I knew pushing at this point could actually cause more harm than good...but there didn't seem to be much I could do about it.  She asked if I was planning a water birth and I said no.  So she said she would start setting up the bed for me to move.

I told Ricardo to go call my mom to let her know it would probably be relatively soon and she should probably start heading towards the Birth Center.  He went out and discovered she was already there with my dad and Jimmy.

While he was gone I had several more pushy contractions and I felt Joey coming. I kept telling Adrian "he's coming" and she would say "he's not coming yet." I thought I must be crazy! But I knew something was happening! I was also in a little shock that it was happening so fast...even though she kept telling me it wasn't happening.

She kept coaching me not to push so that I could let myself stretch. I tried so hard and I did manage to slow down the pushing some but it was still almost impossible.

Ricardo went out into the bedroom since the bed was ready for me to move but I decided by that point I couldn't move.  So Adrian had to set up for the birth in the bathroom.

It was a little after 5 when Beverly came in and I told her in panic that "he's coming!!" and she looked down and told me to put my hands down and push his head into my hands!!!!! THAT FAST! So I did!! I was yelling for Ricardo to get in there. By the time he got in there Joey's head was already out and Beverly climbed over me to perch on the other side of the tub and Ricardo positioned himself to catch Joey as he came out. Then I had to remember how to push on purpose and it took me a try or two and then Joey was born! He was completely covered in vernix - totally opposite of Jimmy who almost had none!  I was just in shock that it was already over!!  He was here!  And he looked so tiny after expecting an aniMAHlone.  I even said "He's so tiny" and Beverly laughed and said "Uh, no he's not!"

They cut the cord pretty quickly because it seemed like he wasn't breathing perfectly and they needed to get me out of the tub since I was bleeding a little and they couldn't tell how much in the water.

They got us moved, me to the bed and Joey to the warmer.  It just felt so surreal that it was done, that he was here.  They checked me and I was happy to find out I had ZERO tearing and had very little bleeding.

After 1 hour and 31 minutes of active labor Joey was born at 5:13 pm.  All 8 lbs 21 in of him!  His head measured at 14 1/4 inches - which is 1/4" bigger than Jimmy's!

We didn't get a lot of pictures since everything happened so quickly but I'll post some soon.  He is such a good baby so far and nothing much seems to aggravate him.  Jimmy ignored him a lot the first week but this morning gave him 4 or 5 kisses, lots of head pats and lots of knuckles.  It was really sweet.