Charles' Birth Story

Charles’ Birth Story: 

(lengthy but I wanted to document it for myself)

During the last month of pregnancy, my doctor began checking to see how my cervix was progressing in anticipation of baby’s arrival.  Here are my “stats” the last few weeks:

35 weeks: 2 cm dilated, 40% effaced

36 weeks: almost 3cm dilated, 40% effaced

37 weeks: 3.5cm dilated, 50% effaced

38 weeks: 4cm dilated, 50% effaced

39 weeks: 4cm dilated, 50% effaced

Although I was dilated, she wasn’t too impressed with the effaced part.  Nevertheless, I stayed in Memphis my 39^th week to avoid a frantic hour and half drive from Tupelo (since I was delivering in Memphis) and really didn’t want a highway delivery.

So Friday, April 26, I went for my last doctor’s appointment and although my doctor was out of town, the doctor I saw of course said anything could happen but guessing the baby wasn’t coming over the weekend.  So I was for sure thinking I would be arriving at the hospital for my 5am scheduled induction on Wednesday, May 1.  I went to my cousin’s baby shower Friday night and to a friend’s baby shower on Saturday.   I will say that I was relieved that I made it through both celebrations without my water breaking because it was certainly haunting my thoughts.

I woke up on Sunday around 8:30am.  I was exhausted and checked the clock and thought it was strange because it was only 10:30am and that was ridiculous that I was so tired and only up for 2 hours.  Harris was gone to the farm and my mom was doing real estate stuff so I was relieved when Clayton decided to take a nap around 1pm since I was even more exhausted trying to keep up with her.  We both took a nap but around 3pm I woke up to what I thought were more uncomfortable Braxton Hicks contractions.  So I got in the shower to get myself clean and wake myself up since I really would have preferred to continue napping.  I began timing the contractions but wasn’t really good at it and kept losing track.  My mom came home and she tried to time the contractions for me but she would be in one room or outside and I would have one and it wasn’t so accurate.  I did notice that the baby was moving differently than typically and it’s whole body would move and not just a jab or kick here and there.  That was another reason I wasn’t able to keep track of the contractions because it was difficult to tell a contraction from the baby’s whole body moving since the baby was pretty big and when it moved so much it was painful.  Anyhow, I convinced myself later that evening that it was nothing, had a glass of wine to relax myself and went to bed.

I got Clayton to sleep and then as I lay in bed the contractions kept coming on and off.  I found an app on my phone that timed contractions and tried to keep up with them.  I decided I would try to go to sleep and I’d wake up if they were the real deal.  As I dozed in and out of sleep, I attempted to time the contractions but couldn’t figure out if I had slept for 3 minutes or 30 minutes so finally decided to wake myself up and pay attention.  After timing for a while I realized that they were getting closer together and were about 8 minutes apart.  At 2:30am, Harris (who was in town to handle some business the next day) woke up and asked me what I was doing.  I told him, “I’m not doing so well over here.”  He jokingly asked if my stomach hurt and that I should take some Mylanta and I’d be fine.  My response, “No, I think I’m in labor.”  He asked if he needed to get in the shower and I told him no that I was the one getting in the shower.  So I took an hour-long bath and continued to time the contractions.  They were around 6.5 minutes apart. 

I got out of the bath at 5am and went downstairs.  My mom was in the kitchen and she asked why I was awake so early, hair wet and in my robe.  When I told her I’d been up all night long and my contractions were 6.5 minutes apart she said I needed to get to the hospital.  I wasn’t so sure since I was convinced my body wouldn’t just go into labor and really didn’t want to be that hypochondriac that went to the hospital at the slightest bit of pain.  But then when I had a contraction while sitting at the kitchen island that I couldn’t talk through and wincing in pain, she insist I wake up Harris and we head for the hospital.  I reluctantly agreed, although I wasn’t convinced I was in labor.  My doctor said to go to the hospital when I was having contractions 5 minutes apart lasting for a minute.  But with already being 4cm dilated at my last appointment, I was worried I wouldn’t get there in time and would miss my opportunity to get an epidural.  May as well shoot me dead. 

We both got dressed, I packed my bag and I kissed my sleeping angel and took her picture just in case it was her last picture being an only child but thinking I would see her shortly after I got rejected for being a pansy.  And off we headed to the hospital at 6:30am. 

As we drove down Walnut Grove it was surreal as we were heading to the hospital.  I had hoped for a drive to the hospital like in the movie Nine Months if I ever went into labor but it was a calm one.  I only had one contraction and was getting mad at myself for listening to my mom.  As I was about to tell Harris to head to Chick-fil-A and let’s go home, we pulled into a hospital parking spot and I had another contraction.  So I said, I may as well go inside and figure out if I’m in real labor because I really didn’t want to live like this for two days until my induction. 

We signed in the hospital and they called me back.  The nurse hooked me up to monitors and asked me a bunch of questions.  I expressed to her many times that I knew “this would happen”.  No more contractions.  I had one in the time I was chatting with her and it wasn’t much of one.  Finally she checked to see if I was dilated and all she said was, “Well, were you wanting an epidural or not?”  I said, “Why?”  Her response, “You’re 7cm dilated and you’ve been having contractions the whole time.”  Well, hello idiot.  Why didn’t you tell me that since I’m sitting here cussing myself for even being here?  I said, “So I’m not leaving?”  She said,” No.  I bet you will have a baby before noon.”  Instantly, my mind switched to “get me an epidural and I need it now mode”.  They brought Harris into the room and I told him the verdict.  As we waited for them to move me into a L&D room, we hear through the walls a very distraught lady being admitted and screaming in pain.  The nurses were trying to calm her.  Anyway, she must have waited too late to arrive to the hospital (I mean what idiot would hesitate coming to the hospital?) because her baby was coming like at any second (less than 10 minutes later).  I expressed to the nurse that if I didn’t get my epidural that I would be worse of a patient than she was. 

I got moved into a room and they started my penicillin IV to treat Group B Strep (a bacterial infection they test you for during pregnancy and treat during labor to prevent passing it on to baby during delivery) around 8am.

The doctor who would deliver my baby (mine wasn’t on call) came in a little after 8.  I laughed to myself when he entered the room because while I was pregnant with Clayton I would always see this really young doctor in the office.  I told my best friend (we go to doctors in the same OB group) that I would “die” if he ended up being the doctor on call when I went into labor because he couldn’t be much older than me and maybe even younger.   And it was him!  Oh how things change and how much I didn’t care.  Just gave me a chuckle and I couldn’t wait to call Rachel 1) to tell her I was in labor and 2) to tell her who my doctor was.  Dr. O said for me to get my epidural and that he would break my water after that since I was insistent on getting my epidural and worried that if he broke my water before that that I may not get one in time. 

Around 9ish the anesthesiologist gave me my epidural.  I had requested that a student not do my epidural like I did when I had Clayton.  Really don’t want anyone practicing on my back and it’s the one thing that makes me uneasy with childbirth.  With Clayton I had a nurse anesthetist and she was incredible.  The anesthesiologist had a little bit more trouble getting the needle in and Harris said I gave him hell.  After it was inserted and he was getting the meds going, I began feeling really hot.  I asked Harris to get me a wet rag, which the nurse began getting for me, but I burst in a downpour of sweat and my blood pressure dropped and I fainted.  Quick administering of some IV fluids and drugs fixed me right up.  However he was great to adjust the medicine and I had a little bit more feeling down south than with Clayton, which I think helped in the pushing department.

The doctor broke my water around 11am and told the nurse to start the Pitocin (a drug used to strengthen labor contractions) after he broke my water, however the nurse thought he said to wait until I had received my 5 hours of penicillin.  It didn’t bother me because I didn’t mind the extra time if it meant my baby being better protected against contracting Group B Strep.  So at 1pm, she began my Pitocin and upped it again at 1:30.  They had laid me flat when my blood pressure dropped after my epidural and I attempted to sit up awhile later however I had another near fainting episode.  So my nurse had me lying flat and on my right side to help prevent fainting and nausea.  By 2:10, my contractions were 1 to 3 minutes apart according to the monitor.  I couldn’t feel them thanks to the wonderful epidural.  At 3:15, they were 1 to 2.5 minutes apart.  (Harris took this picture of the contraction monitor because he said the spike was when I "tooted" and he wanted to send it to my mom.  Children having children.)

Around 3:30 the doctor came in and said I was at 10cm.  I told him I didn’t want to attempt to start pushing yet since I was nauseous if I sat up.  So he gave me meds for the nausea.  The nurse said he gave me the Cadillac of meds for the nausea and they certainly worked wonderfully.  Because the baby was still not as low as he would have liked, he suggested I sit up for awhile and let gravity take affect so I wouldn’t have to push as much.  Less work for me sounded like a wonderful plan. 

He came back a little after 5pm and I told him I was good to go.   I began pushing and did one set of three pushes.  Then another set.  I guess I closed my eyes because at 5:20pm on the third push he said, “Congrats!”  I thought to myself congrats to what and I opened my eyes as he was flipping my little baby over and my eyes instantly saw boy parts.  I was in disbelief that it was a boy.  I looked over to Harris, who had “carefully” positioned himself against the couch during the pushing phase, and he was wide-eyed.  He smiled but didn’t say anything.  I looked back over and said, “Do you see what it is?”  He nodded, smiled and said, “Yes!”  I think we were both in shock since we both thought it was going to be a girl.

They placed our beautiful baby boy (no name at this point) on my chest.  I cried, as I knew I was instantly in love.  I thought of how excited Clayton would be with her little brother, how absolutely amazing childbirth is, and thanked the Lord for blessing us with another baby.  He didn’t make any loud cries so the nurse took him under the heat lamp to suction him and get all his ID bracelets squared away.  Finally he made a little bit of noise but we decided he was a quiet, sweet little boy just like my parents say my brother was when he was little.  After they suctioned Clayton, she took after me and her cries were LOUD and could be heard by all.

Our waiting room fan club was small, so after baby and momma were all set, Harris went to the waiting room and brought our moms and Rachel, my best friend, to the room where I announced that in my arms was our little baby BOY.  I called my dad, who was keeping Clayton, and told him the exciting news that he had a grandson!  We all loved on our nameless baby boy until Harris and I could discuss his name when alone later that night (since the last thing I wanted was opinions).  We sent out baby “announcements” (texts and emails) with name TBD, (to be determined).  We had a few more visitors including my dad, who brought me much-needed Wendy’s since I hadn’t eaten anything all day, and Harris’ brother Jourdan and his wife, Carey.

After visiting hours were over at 9, Harris and I loved on our little boy until around 11 or so then sent our little boy to the nursery so we could get some sleep and he could get a bath.  Harris had a couple drinks celebrating with Jourdan so we vaguely discussed his name but I decided to wait until the morning when we were both refreshed.

We woke up on Tuesday, showered, and discussed his name.  No, we didn’t wait until our baby was born to see what they looked like.  I am not going to get into detail of what the baby actually went through to be birthed, but picking a name when their face has been squished to say the least doesn’t sound like a genius idea in my opinion.  But Harris never liked talking baby names so I decided to not waste time when all he did was say no to names I suggested and never add any suggestions to the discussions and picked out a girl’s name and had two boy names.  I thought that if we actually had a boy that Harris could pick which one he liked best.  So we decided that our baby boy would be named Charles Harris Rhea.  We made it official when we called and told our parents.

And so that is the story when our family grew, hearts fell, and life changed with Charles Harris Rhea.