Featured Panelists: Sunny (host), Rachele and Florinda
Special Guest: PregTASTIC Panelist Michelle and Baby Dillan

Michelle and Sunny

Florinda, Michelle, Sunny and Rachele

So we signed up for the Bradley Method, a husband-coached natural childbirth class. During this class our birth plan emerged – waiting until 42 weeks if necessary, no artificial breaking of water, no interventions (IV, pitocin, epidural, episiotomy), no constant monitoring = ability to move around during contractions, no early cord clamping etc. When I presented this to my OB/GYN, he flat out laughed at me: He always induced women at 41 weeks, hospital policy demanded 30min of monitoring on my back when I checked in as well as an IV “just in case”, if labor didn’t not progress he always gave pitocin and broke the water, if the baby seemed stuck he cut and – in any case – he had never seen a woman go through with such a birth plan, “they all want to go natural but scream for the epidural within an hour!” I was horrified.

My husband and I discussed our options for another week – should we take on a doula to help? How about delivering with a midwife? It turned out, the big hospital I was signed up with didn’t even allow doulas or midwives in the hospital, even if you hired them yourself (never mind did they provide any). One nurse watching up to 4 patients via the fetal monitor data at the nurses station and a doctor that came in only for delivery – that was it. It was a tough decision, but in week 36 we changed to the only hospital in the area that allowed midwives (a 30min drive away) and found a wonderful midwife named Doris that was fully supportive of our birth plan and encouraged us that natural child birth was possible.

We delivered our first son with Doris and with her expertise of various positions and (unfortunately, but necessary when labor slowed) a shot of pitocin we were able to achieve a natural child birth. It was a very empowering experience. So there was no question that, when we fell pregnant again 2 years later, she would be our midwife. That our second son ended up being delivered by a doctor was a surprise for all of us!

What happened? On my due date I woke up at 1am with contractions, but waited for a while to see whether they were regular. Then I woke my husband and called the midwife to meet us at the hospital. A friend came over to watch our first son and we took off at 2:15am. During the 30min car ride, the contractions were right on top of each other, every bump in the road almost unbearable. We checked into the hospital at 2:45 and while my husband was parking the car I felt the urge to push. My midwife hadn’t arrived yet, but the baby was coming! A rather panicked call by the nurse caused a doctor to come over from next door to deliver my son – just 17 min after check-in. Doris arrived about 10 min after the birth and took over (and the doctor went back to his still laboring patient next door). Even though it was not with a midwife, I had achieved another natural birth – and my husband was back home in time to make our son’s breakfast!

Now I am pregnant with my third child. We have moved to England in the meantime and I don’t even have the option of a doctor (not that I would want one). All vaginal births here are delivered by midwives. But we will try to go one step further and have a home birth! Because if labor is even faster than last time, I might not make it to the hospital anyway…

Where did the nickname Manny come from? When I was about four months pregnant with Lenny, my oldest child, Vera, declared that she had come up with a name for the baby. She comes up with fabulous names (Soriya, Alau and Zwanzanito, for example), so we were bracing ourselves. Somehow, she came up with Manny. I guess it is appropriate when you think that this was our first man-child. The name stuck and was endearing to us all. While we didn’t decide to name our son Manfred or Manuel in the end, our younger daughter Stella still calls him Manny. She confuses some people when they ask her what her baby brother’s name is.

How we picked Lenny: It was important for us to come up with a German name that was easy in both English and German. That eliminated names starting with J (pronounced as a Y in German) and names with umlauts (the two dots over the letters “a,” “u,” and “o”) for starters. It took us months, nearly the entire pregnancy and then some, to come up with Leonard. As a rule, we don’t share the name we select for our unborn babies for fear of inviting unsolicited opinions. That wasn’t a problem this time. People offered their suggestions and some friends and relatives took finding a name up as a cause. In fact, we had agreed on an entirely different name before Lenny was born: Benedikt Ho-Yeon. I wasn’t 100% about any part of the name. It was when we were in my recovery room and the nurse asked us what his name was that I realized it wasn’t going to work. She misspelled it for starters and then it was when my brother asked if we were going to call him Ben that I started to backpedal like crazy. Ben is a fine name, but it wasn’t the name I had selected for my son. We had to disappoint my devoutly Catholic mother-in-law with the news that we weren’t in fact giving our son the Pope’s name and my father-in-law jokingly asked if we were sure this time that our new baby’s name was Leonard.

We didn’t even like his original Korean name. It was just one we came up with. That’s not a good way to pick a Korean name. It’s meaning, based on its Chinese characters, serve as a beacon of what the child should become. Luckily, my parents helped us out on this one. No, they couldn’t come up with any suggestions on their own either, but they could come up with a solution. They got a consultant! They had arranged with my aunt living in Korea, that as soon as Lenny was born, she would provide the information of his time and date of birth to her local fortune teller, and he is who actually came up with Chang-Yeon. Just in case, we made the caveat up front that if we could take or leave his suggestion, but we liked it! Chang-Yeon, pronounced Chang kind of like “long” and Yeon like “ton”, means deep pond.

And why Lenny for Leonard? Because we liked it.

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Listen to Jane’s Birth Story on PregTASTIC, Episode 223

In this episode: Sunny (host), Kate and Patrice
Special Guests: Theresa, Owen (hubby) and Baby Jameson

Kate, Patrice, Theresa, Owen and Sunny

Owen, Theresa and Baby Jameson

I had been having severe right hip pain for the last 2 weeks, an apparent pregnancy related inflammation of the sacroileac joint . Barely able to walk, it was all I could do to drive my son to and from school each day. I woke the morning of November 19th with an urge to get the house tidied up and somehow managed to do some cleaning. After a chiropractor appointment, I “assumed my position” on the couch, somewhat crampy but such gastrointestinal issues were nothing new.   My first baby had been 5 days late, everyone told me this one would likely be late as well.  By my calculations, I still had days to go.

My mom stopped over on her way to babysit my nephew. It was the one night she had made plans with the stipulation that if I went into labor, my brother and his wife had to come home right away–but we all thought that was pretty unlikely.  We picked up a wheelchair that I was going to borrow for the weekend, cabin fever was getting to me. She also indulged my pregnancy craving du jour  for White Castle hamburgers. We picked my son up from kindergarten and she went on to my brother’s house.

I continued to feel very crampy and restless. When my husband came home I  said I thought something might start this weekend, maybe even tonight and here’s a list of things I need to have done–NOW.    Here’s where it starts getting fuzzy.  Things had started to change just a little–instead of a general crampy feeling, I had actual cramps and what felt like sharp gas pains. They would come and go but were not really something I could time.  I decided to call the midwife just to ask but I felt kind of silly–they weren’t able to be timed, it didn’t feel like last time–but there was some pressure… She took forever to call back and it’s so weird that at this point I knew things were progressing but I still told her that I thought it might be gas.  Even before I pressed the button to end the call, I knew I’d be going to the hospital so I called my mom who was babysitting 30 min away in one direction and my dad who was 30 min away in the other direction and set the wheels in motion.

At this point my husband was focused on my son who was getting a little nervous with the way I was acting. There was some blood, so I finally felt like this was labor. I wanted to take a shower, put on fresh makeup and hold out as long as possible before going to the hospital. In the shower I began having contractions so strong that I had to get out and be horizontal.  I worked hard to focus on my breathing and count to 10, trying to use my hypnobirthing techniques from last time.  The makeup idea went out the window.  I called a friend to come stay with Quinn until my dad arrived, I was getting nervous. I made it to the car slowly–stopping to get as horizontal as possible during contractions, counting to ten and trying to stay focused. Thankfully the bags had been packed and set by the door the day before.

In the car, I started shaking and it never occurred to me that I was in transition. My contractions seemed to be about 5 minutes apart.  I had grand plans to text my friends while in labor and post witty updates on Facebook. I couldn’t focus or keep my finger steady enough to accomplish much.  I did manage to send out a cryptic “This is NOT a drill” to Facebook but that’s about it.  As we pulled up to the ER entrance of the hospital 10 miles later, I told my husband to get a wheelchair, I thought the contractions were about 4 minutes apart  and stronger than ever.  Of course it was a busy night in the ER,  around 9:30pm.  I felt like the whole waiting room was staring at my contorted face while while the security guard kept saying “I called them, I don’t know why it’s taking so long”.

Finally upstairs and in a room, I  had to wait out a contraction before getting out of the wheelchair. Everything is a blur from this point but this is what I remember… Another surge as I hobble to the bed in the sexy hospital gown.  The nurse starts asking questions–I need to vomit, then another contraction so strong I just start yelling “Please help me, someone HELP me!!”  Then pressure and the urge to push.  The nurse says “Don’t push yet!”  The midwife enters, I have to push, she gets one glove on and checks–I’m “10″. She thinks she might be catching the baby with one gloved hand but a nurse manages to get her other glove on.  I yell “I have to push!” and get the ok to do so. I announce that my water just broke and they see the staining–the call goes out for more help, there is meconium in my amniotic fluid, a lot of it. They tell me they will let me see him for only a minute and then take him to the warmer. I push again, maybe twice, I call on Jesus to help me or kill me and then he is out. I have been in the hospital bed for 9 minutes.  Thankfully, his APGAR scores are good but he is working hard to breathe. I deliver the placenta which is so stained with meconium it is green.  My baby might have been exposed to this for hours. I’m still shaking.  I have a small tear that requires one stitch–it hurts a lot, but only briefly. They keep a close eye on my baby boy and there is a lot of joking about how lucky we were to make it on time.  My parents arrive in the doorway and I tell them he’s here already, it takes a few seconds to register.  He is 7 pounds, 1 ounce, 20 inches and  truly the fruit of my labor.

I am so blessed. My labor and delivery was fast, drug free and had a great outcome.  Still, it feels strange to look back and not remember all of the details or chronology. I feel slightly cheated out of “the process”.   I also feel empowered–by the grace of God, I managed my labor by myself–no husband, no mother, no midwife coaching or consoling me. I’m awed by this. Now, 6 months later, it’s even more of a blur and I know that it’s now or never if I want to preserve what I do remember. Though the details may be fuzzy, the  essence of the experience of giving birth–twice–is etched in my heart forever.

In this episode: Sunny (host), Jenna, Jane, Theresa, Mercedes and Jenn.
Special Guest: Former PregTASTIC Panelist, Heather

Mercedes, Heather, Sunny and Theresa

Jenn, Jane, Mercedes and Heather

Heather's Twin Girls, Ava and Mia

]]> http://www.pregtastic.com/heathers-birth-story/feed/ 0 0:31:11 PregTASTIC Panelist Heather is back to share the birth story of two beautiful twin girls. Learn more about her planned c-section. Would she do it all over again? What’s a cervical cerclage and how does it impact labor and delivery? Plus, he[...] PregTASTIC Panelist Heather is back to share the birth story of two beautiful twin girls. Learn more about her planned c-section. Would she do it all over again? What’s a cervical cerclage and how does it impact labor and delivery? Plus, her struggles with feeding her newborns and her big battle with the baby blues. In this episode: Sunny (host), Jenna, Jane, Theresa, Mercedes and Jenn. Special Guest: Former PregTASTIC Panelist, Heather Mercedes, Heather, Sunny and Theresa Jenn, Jane, Mercedes and Heather Heather's Twin Girls, Ava and Mia Episodes, Twins/Multiples sunny@pregtastic.com no no http://www.pregtastic.com/lashondas-birth-story/ http://www.pregtastic.com/lashondas-birth-story/#comments Wed, 20 Apr 2011 06:28:24 +0000 admin http://www.pregtastic.com/?p=3491 She spent weeks preparing to deliver her baby naturally, so what ultimately happened at the birthing center? How many hours of labor was too many? And why did she try to escape from the hospital in the middle of the night? PregTASTIC panelist, LaShonda, is back to share her birth story.

In this episode: Sunny (host), Jenna, Jane, Theresa, Mercedes and Jenn.
Special Guests: LaShonda and Baby Luke

Luke and Sayer playing together

LaShonda, Luke, Sayer and Sunny

LaShonda and Baby Luke

A few days before the babies’ birth I had been reading up on labor and came across something I had either forgotten or never knew.  “Sometimes labor starts with a big kick.”  Around 6:20am, I was going to the bathroom for what seemed like the 100th time and felt a bizarre kick.  It was like nothing I had felt before – more like an internal shifting of tectonic plates.  A few minutes later, back in bed, I felt the urge to go to the bathroom again.  When I stood up, there was a gush of clear fluid and my water had broken.

Labor didn’t begin right away, so I took a shower, ate a banana and waited a little while before alerting my husband.  I sent an email out to my family and arranged childcare for my daughter.

By 7:20am, I was definitely in labor.  My contractions were getting much stronger and were now only about 2 minutes apart.  I called my doctor, told him my status and agreed to meet him at the hospital.

I wasn’t officially admitted until 8:20 and by then was 7.5 cm dilated and in a lot of pain.  My nurses started an IV line of antibiotics since I was Group B Strep Positive.  I spent the majority of my labor standing, when the nurses insisted I sit in the bed for monitoring or whatever reason, I was a wreck.

Labor was fast and furious.  This time seemed so much harder than my first labor with my daughter 2 years ago.  I’m not sure why that is – I could blame the twin pregnancy or perhaps just the fact that I knew there was a level of pain I was capable of overcoming since I did it the last time; this just seemed harder.  Just when I got to the point that I couldn’t take it any more, the nurses moved me into the OR for delivery.

Twin births, whether vaginal or Cesarean, are performed in the Operating Room.  I had a team of about 7 docs and nurses inside the OR and others standing by if needed; three of them didn’t do anything but observe.  My doctor and one labor & delivery nurse were the main players in my birthing experience.  My husband was all decked out in a white sterile jumpsuit and blue shower cap, taking photos and sending encouraging words my way.

My doctor used an ultrasound to make sure that the babies were still vertex and in line for a vaginal delivery.  Then he checked my dilation and I was all ready to push out Baby A.  Which was good because I was either going to explode from pain or pressure or both!  Anna came into the world with about 6 pushes and started crying right away.  They put her on my chest and I got to look into her sweet face for the first time.

Since she was doing well and just hanging out with me, they didn’t cut her cord right away.  We waited for contractions to begin again and monitored Baby B’s position with ultrasound.  He was coming down the birth canal with his hand over his head – termed a “compound presentation”.  My doc broke my second amniotic sac and contractions began again in earnest.

It was a quick delivery again, with about 4 pushes this time, Connor was born at 10:22am.  He was in mild distress and was taken right to an isolette, but luckily started howling on the short walk over.  He got a little oxygen in his face and pinked right up.  Apparently he had a 15% marginal abruption of the placenta, which led to bradycardia – a heartrate below 60.  My doc was very cool about it and didn’t let on that there was anything amiss until Connor was safe.

The babies received high APGAR scores and were handed to me and my husband to snuggle and admire.  My labial tears were stitched up and the placentas delivered over the next 20 minutes.  We were all back in the postpartum room by 10:45am.

It was really an incredibly fast delivery for any baby, let alone two babies!  I was thrilled that it went so quickly because labor was terribly painful.  My husband was rather helpful with his high-pressure palm-on-lower-back maneuver and his attempts to distract my thoughts.  There was simply no time for playlists, proper breathing techniques, focal points or much of anything else.

The babies are doing great and we were discharged healthy on Wednesday January 19.  Hooray for another happy delivery!