Ask The Pros
Pregnancy Photos
Pregnancy Calendar
Birth Plans
Birth Stories
Bookstore
Boy or Girl
Cesareans
Chat Room
Complications
Doulas
Educators
Episiotomy
FAQs
Feeding Baby
Fertility
Finding a Class
Health
Interactive
Labor
Message Board
Monitoring
Newborns
Newsletter
Postcards
Postpartum
Pregnancy
Reviews/Awards
Search
VBAC
Week by Week
Who We Are

Tierney Shea's Birth

September 8, 1994
8lbs. 15.8 oz.

Tierney was concieved about one and a half months after I miscarried our first baby. The pregnancy was a real eye opener. I spent the early months alternating between my bed, the couch and the bathroom. I was so sick. Then came the awful heartburn, and finally the aches and pains of carrying a 3rd trimester baby. Nine days after Tierney was due dh and I stayed up until three in the morning. We had decided to snack in bed and play chess(knowing it was one of our last moments alone for a long time). I woke up at nine am sat up in bed and pop! my water broke. It felt like I was wetting my pants, but I knew what it was. The whole pregnancy it had been my fear that my water would break and I would have to be induced, and lay in bed and get an epidural,etc. I was so angry at myself. It seems silly now, but I couldn't believe this was happening. Also there was this sudden fear. This was it. This baby was coming! I woke my husband around 11am(he was working nights) and asked him to go for a walk with me. I was hoping to get labor started before I went to the hospital. Well, it didn't work, so I called the hospital around noon, and got there at about 2:30 or so.

They did want to induce labor, so I was hooked up around 3 pm or so. I am not sure when the contractions began to get really hard. I think around eight pm. Around nine I asked for an epidural. The military GP said I was at about six cm. After the epidural took effect I was bored. There wasn't anything to do. The nurses seemed much nicer, though. I wonder if they learn to tune out a woman in pain.

The doctor did allow me to have water, which was such a help. I can't imagine going through labor with those useless ice chips. Around 1:20 am it was determined that I was ready to push. During contractions, I could feel the head pushing, but it wasn't exactly painful. The nurses were doing some type of massage to the area while I pushed, which was uncomfortable, but I figured if it could be helpful... At first we were excited and pumped up, but after awhile I began to get tired and sick. As everyone left between contractions, I felt sick and mentioned it. A nurse handed me this tiny plastic bowl, and I almost laughed. Like it would do any good! I ended up projectile vomiting the vegetable broth I had had for lunch 13 hours earlier. The stuff went past my feet. It was soooo gross, we all just cracked up. The nurse was so happy she had got up for a minute or she would have been covered! Finally, I was so worn out, I was almost dozing between contractions, and sending dh for more water with each contraction. Finally, the head was coming. I remember that despite the epidural, I could feel the burning of the baby coming out. The head came out, and they kept yelling for me to push. I was so mad! I felt the doctor do an episiotomy, it hurt, but it wasn't excrutiating. Then my little girl slid out, all slippery and wet. It felt like a slippery wet fish or something. I looked at her, and all I could think was that her chest looked huge.

They cleaned her up and let Brian(my husband) hold her. They gave him a glove and had him hold his finger in her mouth to pacify her. I tried to hold her, but they were still busy with the bottom of me, and it was hard lying down. It was so frustrating as the doctor was stitching me up. His supervisor was overseeing and in a bad mood(how dare I have a baby at 3:03 am?). He was annoyed that the stitches were hurting me, and griping at the poor gp about his "work". The poor guys hands were shaking, like he really needed to be yelled at! I took off the oxygen mask to say something to my husband and he snapped at me to put it on. Is it necessary to be rude to someone who has just gone through the most intense experience of their life?

They took the baby to the nursery and me to my room. I ate some candy, kissed Brian goodbye, and took a nap. We had a hard time getting used to nursing. We were both new at it and I was uncomfortable handling a baby. The next night "Taryn" cried all night. At five am, the nurse came in and took her to the nursery against my wishes. I was so upset. I just thought of my tiny baby, in some ugly nursery without her mommy. The nurse did promise to bring her back to feed. I waited and waited. The doctor came in and saw me crying. I was too upset to tell him what was wrong, so he decided I hadn't bonded with the baby(I know, I read my records when we withdrew them to move). Then I called my husband to come up. I WAS going home that day! Well about noon, someone came up and asked if I ever planned to feed my baby again. I was so angry! I had wanted her the whole time, but didn't know I could just go get her! It turns out they had bottle fed her three times. Around one I called dh again. He had gone back to sleep. This was a lousy day. He came up, but had forgotten the car seat, so he had to go get it(a 45 min. drive each way). I had to sign out AMA, and promise to take the baby back to be checked the next day. She was healthy,except for a broken collarbone from birth and being slightly larger than average. I don't know why that is a problem, but that is what they told me.Some friends invited us over for dinner, but I ended up being to tired to go. The next day my mom came, and we had a blast. I has some adrenaline or something pumping. The pounds were dropping off(I had a lot of water weight) and I was going all day! After my mom left a week later, I settled in with my now successfully nursing baby, whose name I had changed the time she cried all night to Tierney Shea. My precious baby will be turning four this week(September 8) and is the big sissy to Caleb Hessee.