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Oliver & Benjamin

Oliver's Birth Story

I am now proud Mom of two beautiful boys I though it might be time to put into writing what I experienced the first time. The birth of Oliver was a very positive one, and joyous event in my life. Prior to getting pregnant with Oliver I had lost a baby at 14 weeks. This was extremely hard on me for I really wanted to be a Mom. I had about 6 months to grieve this loss when we had decided to move from the Midwest to Washington, DC. The plan was that I would stay in New York with in-laws until we could get into the house we had rented. While in New York I took a home pregnancy test and it turned positive right away! I was alone and feeling very scared being away from my family. When I finally joined Andrew we were very excited!

The search was on to find a Doctor. It was really very easy, because I knew what I needed and wanted in a Doctor. I had a difficult pregnancy, I was scared that something would go wrong and I was throwing up all the time this never did go away. I got so sick around the middle of my pregnancy Andrew brought me into the emergency room where they had to give me an IV for dehydration. From there everything went fine. I was due May 7, 1996. My parents came to town the week of the 7th of April we did a lot of walking and had a great time with them. My nephews kept telling me how big I was! I never did pay attention to them.

I awoke on April 15, 1996 (our second year Wedding Anniversary) with what I thought might be contractions. It had been a difficult pregnancy. I called Andrew at work and told him I thought something might happen. He said he would be around all-day and just call. Through put the day I had many of these contractions they seemed to be every hour. About 2pm I called my Mom and my Sister who both told me to call the Doctor and ask her. Well I did she had said that it was not the "real thing". I was a little disappointed but I was 3 weeks early so I understood.

That night when Andrew got home we went out for Mexican dinner. I was so happy to get out and eat. I walked outside the restaurant and threw up everything! This had been happening throughout my pregnancy so it was of no concern of mine. We went home for an early evening and to enjoy some down time with the television. About an hour after I got home I went into the bathroom and "pop" my water broke. I called the Doctor and the Dog sitter. At this point it started to rain really hard. I started to pack for the Hospital. I called my Mom and my Sister who were very calming I knew I could do this.

Then we left for the hospital. This is when I got scared. Andrew and I started to have this very intense conversation about girl names. We had a Boys name picked out but were unable to decide on a girls name. On the way to the Hospital the contraction started coming every ten minutes. As soon as we walked into the Hospital they stopped!! I walked a bit but then I was too tired and needed to rest I was able to sleep for about an hour they started Pitocin and the contraction started coming very fast I was getting scared. The nurses helped me a lot and then about 6 am Andrew woke up and took one look at me and got a nurse who gave me nubain for the pain. It took effect and worked well. I knew when it wore off. At about 8am my Doctor came in to check me and ordered an epidural. That was wonderful!! She came back at 9am I was making real progress. I started to push at 11am until 5pm. I did need all kinds of help. The other nurses pushed on my stomach that was an odd feeling. I never felt like I was not being asked or things were happening to me. I felt as though I was part of the decision making process. It was hard but worth it. I was blessed with a 6.9pound baby boy! Just as I realized that I saw a ray of sun shining through the window. I also had a wonderful Hospital and a caring Doctor.

The Birth of Benjamin
1-26-98

My Labor started at 4:45am when I woke up and had to go to the bathroom. I knew I should hurry because for some reason I knew that my water was going to break. I went into the bathroom and my water broke. I thought about what to do next. So I went to do laundry because I did not want to wake anyone. Around six AM I called my sister who would be attending the birth along with a friend who would be watching Oliver and told him to make arrangements to be here today. I did laundry for a while until I knew that people would be awake. At that point I called my parents and a few close friends and my sisters to let them know what was happening. I knew it was going to be a long day. I knew Oliver would be waking soon so I woke Andrew so we could assess the situation. I knew I wanted to stay home as long as possible but I was not having "productive" contraction. I also knew that I could go to the Hospital but I would just be waiting around. So I wanted to be at home. I just was not going to be able to deal with a toddler. So I had to wake Andrew (my Husband) who was very good at reminding me what I wanted to do. That particular day Oliver seemed to really want to be on my lap etc. After our friend showed up and we all had breakfast. I wanted to do Oliver's morning routine for the last time with out another child around. I was really happy I did. I explain as well as I could that Mom was going to the hospital and he could come and see me tonight along with his sibling. He was not at all interested in the conservation. I called the Doctor office and they really wanted me to be at the hospital. I agreed. We left for the hospital at 10AM and arrived ( it is 4 minutes away) at 11am. My sister arrived soon after wards. At 1pm they decided to give me pitocin. At 4 p.m. the contraction were getting painful at that point I got a shot of nubain. I slept for a while and when I woke up I knew I had to push this baby out. I told the nurse to get my husband who was having dinner. I put my hands between my legs and could feel the baby's head. 4 pushes latter he was in my arms Baby Benjamin 6pound 12 ounces of him. My Doctor arrived as I was being stitched up and the resident arrived after his head was out. He arrived at 6:34pm very healthy and a great loving baby. By 7:00pm we had pizza and Oliver came by to see his brother who did not have a name for a few more days.

Sincerely

Bridget@isd.net