Birth Story: Welcome Henry Steven
Labor & Delivery Story
The end of pregnancy is always such an interesting time- the “in between” where you can shift at any moment from pregnancy to postpartum. In hindsight, this is such a sweet time in waiting, but in the moment it is hard. The unknown is something that I always struggle with, but there is another level of complexity with the second in having to navigate child care for your first too.
I started contracting at 36 weeks with Lillian, and followed suit with Henry, but contractions were irregular and not causing any cervical change. It is hard not to compare with subsequent pregnancies, and it sure makes you overthink in the process. I ended up needing pitocin to jump start labor with Lillian, and it was absolutely miserable, read more about her birth story here if you’re interested. I did not have much of a birth plan this time around, but all I knew is that I really did not want to have to be induced with pitocin again. In fearing for an induction, I couldn’t help but feel discouraged that I was not dilated at all by 38w3d with my second pregnancy.
Another week passed, and I was feeling so good that it felt like I could still have weeks left. I brought Lillian to the appointment with me, thinking that it would only be a quick check in on baby since contractions remained very irregular. Lillian loved hearing the heartbeat so she really was pretty easy to bring with me, and that way Brian did not have to take off of work.
I will never forget the moment that the sweet nurse put the doppler on my belly, and I almost immediately said “that is a little slow, isn’t it”. The nurse reassured me that it was still within a normal range, but the doctor would be in to take another listen. Lillian snuggled in on my chest as we waited for the doctor to come in. Upon walking into the room, she quickly started telling me that it is normal for the baseline heart rate to dip toward the end of pregnancy. I voiced concern again that this seemed to be a big change in the heart rate (110-120) compared to his baseline throughout pregnancy (140-150). Hearing the low heart rate then made me question if he had been less active in recent days too. It felt like I was overthinking everything, but something just did not feel right. The doctor put the doppler back on, and there was an audible dip in the heart rate during one of my mild contractions. She decided to monitor more closely, and after about 20 minutes it was apparent that he was having a dip in his heart rate with every contraction that I was having. Contractions at that point were somewhat frequent, but irregular and far from active labor contractions.
I worked on antepartum for 3+ years at the beginning of my nursing career, and I knew what conversation was coming next… recommendation for induction. She discussed the situation in depth, with the biggest concern for cord entanglement as the cause for the heart rate decelerations. Being full term at 39w3d, there was greater risk to staying pregnant at that point. I will never forget sitting there, trying to hold back tears while trying to simultaneously listen and entertain a toddler on my lap. The only thing I did not want was an induction.
She told me to head home, put Lily down for a nap, and she would call me back with a plan after speaking with the hospital.
I left the office in tears as I called Brian, who was just as much in shock as I was… it was time to have this baby.
Soon after getting home, I got the call that I need to get to the hospital at 9pm to start an induction.
I had to have a swift mindset shift, and reminder that the ultimate goal is a healthy boy in my arms.
It was time to have a baby.
We got plans set for Lillian to go to Brian’s sister’s house, and I spent the afternoon snuggling Lily until Brian could get home from work. We finished packing a few last minute things, dropped Waylon off at daycare, and went to grab our last dinner as a family of three. It was only fitting to get a cheeseburger with extra cheese, fries, and a chocolate milkshake since that is all that I craved all pregnancy. And it was delicious. We stopped by the park, and got home in time to give Lillian a bath before Brian’s sister picked her up.
I will say, an induction sure does make the planning side of things easier.
Henry was always the most active in the late evening time, and when I finally slowed down enough to pay attention, he was much less active then normal. I laid on the bed for a good 20-30 minutes and did not really feel him kicking or moving at all. Knowing that he was just having decelerations at the office, I started to panic a little bit that I was not feeling him move. We decided it was best to head to the hospital a little bit early, I just needed to hear his little heartbeat and make sure he was ok.
8:36 PM: we got to the hospital. They brought me back pretty quick after I voiced concern for low fetal movement, but I was thankfully reassured hearing his heartbeat when they finally got me on the monitor.
Eager to meet our boy
Last photo taken pregnant.
10:00 PM: I had my IV placed, and was given oral cytotec to soften the cervix with the plan to start pitocin in the morning. I was about a fingertip- 1 cm dilated and 50% effaced at this point. Contractions were still frequent but irregular and only mildly painful.
I cannot really say that I rested at all overnight, contractions became increasingly painful and more regular. It felt like I was kicking into active labor, but I did not know if the plan would still be to start pitocin in the morning.
4:00 AM: contractions were strong and painful every 2-3 minutes.
7:00 AM: contractions remained very strong and painful, and I was starting to tire. I was undecided on whether I wanted to get an epidural, but it was becoming increasingly difficult to manage. I had the nurse check me again, and I was only 4 cm but completely effaced.
I decided at that point to get the epidural since it seemed like I still had a long way to go.
7:30 AM: epidural placed.
8:00 AM: my water broke. The doctor came in, and I mentioned that I progressed rather quickly with Lily from 4cm to complete. She checked me, and I was still 4cm, but she felt he was sunny side up. The doctor recommended that I get on all fours to try to flip his positioning as that is a more difficult fetal position to deliver.
8:30 AM: I stayed on all fours for about 30 minutes, and in the process of repositioning back onto my back I physically felt him flip. Almost immediately, I felt the sudden urge that I was going to throw up. I knew in that moment, I was transitioning.
I told the nurse I was transitioning, she checked me, and I was complete.
4cm to complete in less than an hour.
9:16 AM: started pushing.
Brian and I could both feel a sense of urgency to get the baby out. I couldn’t see the monitor, so I just kept asking again and again if he was okay. I knew that he must have been having worsening decelerations when they put oxygen on me in between contractions.
The doctor then looked at me and said “I need you to get this baby out, right now”.
9:28 AM: 3 pushes in total, he was here. The cord was completely wrapped around his neck with one tight knot. It was pretty incredible watching the doctor swiftly untangle him and put him on my chest.
Our perfect little boy was here, and safely in my arms.
My doctor looked at me before leaving and said “we will never know what would have been if we didn’t follow your instinct on that change in his heart rate, but I am glad that we don’t have to”.
He was here, and that is all that matters.
She also said that I progressed so incredibly quickly that if we decided to have a third baby, B would likely be catching at home LOL.
And quick reminder, it is OK if your birth story is not exactly as you initially hoped it would be. In the end it is a beautiful story unfolding exactly as it is supposed to.
Kelly, Brian, Lillian, and Henry
our family of four.
Postpartum recovery:
I recovered very quickly it seemed after having Lillian, but man, I felt so good after having Henry.
I think I was feeling so good because I essentially had no tearing. According to the doctor, I had a small “paper cut” that she decided to put one stitch in just to help it heal better. The postpartum cramping was a bit worse I’d say the second time around. I used helichrysum oil on my belly to help with the cramping and bleeding. Overall the cramping did not seem to last as long as I remember the first time.
I truly felt so good postpartum, we were walking a mile each way to the park by day 3.
I was much more consistent with perineal prepping using Claraderm, and I have to think that really helped prevent tearing. Claraderm also feels so good postpartum with pericare. Claraderm is a cooling mist that is formulated using a blend of essential oils and coconut oil to be used before, during, and after birth. This is a must have.
There is just something to say about a shower and good pericare postpartum. Pericare routine: cleanse with cool water in the hospital provided peri bottle, claraderm spray, frida mom witch hazel cooling pads on top of a regular pad. I preferred the frida mom cooling pads more than the tucks pads that I used with my last pregnancy; the size covered from front to back rather than having to line up multiple tucks pads.
I will say that the most painful part of recovery for me were hemorrhoids around day 5-7. About 50% of women get hemorrhoids postpartum, so we’re just going to normalize talking about it… k?
I made a balm using babo sensitive skin ointment and 10 drops each of frankincense, tea tree, and cypress. Frankincense and tea tree oils have antiseptic and anti-inflammatory properties, and cypress has antimicrobial properties. I am so grateful that I had these oils on hand to whip up this DIY balm because it worked so well. I also used a small amount of hydrocortisone 1% twice daily for the few days that it was most painful. Symptoms completely resolved in about 5 days.
I would be cautious with which essential oils you are using topically, we only trust young living essential oils because their safety practices are unmatched.
Another factor to consider is preventing constipation as this can cause a lot of pain, but also worsen hemorrhoids. I used Comfortone supplement for about a week before delivery, and continued for about a week postpartum instead of using another stool softener like Colace that was recommended in the hospital. I literally cannot recommend this supplement enough.
young living links
comfortone | Claraderm | tea tree oil | frankincense oil | cypress oil
Full wishlist of must have postpartum products here.
