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Anelyse's Birth

First of all I would like to say how much I enjoyed reading everybody else's stories in the weeks before the birth of my first child. It not only helped to pass the unbelievably long final days but also prepared me for every possible complication there is. Being a Navy wife and not wanting my husband to miss any of the milestones of our first pregnancy we had decided to wait four long years for shore duty to try to conceive. Near the end of our tour in Guam-during Typhoon "Dale"-our daughter was conceived. She was due July 25, 1998. I had a fantastic pregnancy. Morning sickness only lasted 6 weeks and aside from a little unexplained spotting in the 7th week I had no complications. As my due date approached-at a turtle's pace-I started having killer Braxton Hick's every night. At my 38 week check-up the doctor told me that I was 50 percent effaced and 1 cm dialated. I was so excited-I guess all that false labor was doing something. I thought this was a sure sign that I would deliver early. One week later I was still at 1 cm but was now 75 percent effaced. And to make things seem even more desperate the doctor informed me that the baby's head was somewhere near Alaska. He must have thought that that was funny but I did not see the humor. I was 39 weeks and the baby hadn't dropped-a sure sign I would deliver late. The day before my due date I had my final doctor's appointment where my doctor informed me that the baby had dropped and that it would be "any day now". I came home and spent 3 hours on the internet reading birthing stories and then scoured the labor and delivery section of my baby books one more time before going to bed. The next day-my due date-I noticed that the white discharge I had experienced my entire pregnancy was much thicker and prominent and even though it wasn't pink yet I knew what it meant. That evening it turned pink and at 3:30am I had my first contraction. My curiosity as to what labor would feel like was immediately met. My contractions started strong-like somebody stabbing me in the lower back with a butcher's knife-and frequent (between 3-8 minutes apart) but short (30 seconds long). I was informed not to go to the hospital until they were 3-5 minutes apart and 60 seconds long for at least an hour. Well some were 3 and some were 8 or 9 so I waited. After 12 hours I called the hospital. The nurse informed me that I was probably in early labor and since my water hadn't broken I believed her. She told me I could come in and be checked or take a shower and try to relax. I told her that I was sorry to bother her but that I was worried because the last few contractions I felt like I had to go to the bathroom. She said that I should probably come in to be checked but would probably go back home. Well as soon as I hung up the phone they were consistently 3 minutes apart. We made the 3 1/2 mile drive to the hospital and arrived at 4pm. The nurse checked me and said I was at 6cm and that meant I was not leaving. I had one contraction and was at 7cm. The baby's head was at +2 station and my water had not broken so the urge to push from all the pressure was unbelievable. The nurse offered me drugs but since it wasn't the pain of the contractions but the unbelievable need to push that I wanted relief from I declined. With each contraction I would dialate another centimeter so when the doctor arrived at 5pm I was at 10 and boy was I ready to push. He broke my water-which was supposed to relieve some of the pressure but didn't-and then gave me instructions on how to push and told me to start on the next contraction. After four contractions, at 5:33pm, our beautiful daughter Anelyse was born. They put her on my stomach and she looked so small I thought she must only weigh 4 lbs. When I expressed my concern I was laughed at and informed that she was a healthy 8lbs 3oz. Since a previous doctor had told me that I would not be able to have a big baby naturally I was in shock. I had a two stitch episiotomy and can honestly say that I did not feel any pain when she was born. She is now 6 weeks old and amazing. I asked a friend of mine who had her first child 11 weeks before me what motherhood was like and she told me that it was the "very best thing that you can do in your life". Now that I am a mother I would have to say that she is so very right.