Oliver's Birth Story

On my previous post I wrote about the few incredibly challenging weeks towards the end of the pregnancy and about how the pain really made it difficult to enjoy the journey and see the silver lining, so it's only fitting that I start this post where I left off the other...

As I was trying to fight through the challenges, I convinced my doctor to schedule me for an elective induction at 39 weeks gestation; he agreed and everything was set for September 23rd; at this point I was happy to finally see a light at the end of the tunnel but the night before the BIG day I got a call from the hospital to tell me the induction had been canceled because there were too many "real" emergencies at the hospital.  Needless to say I was super bummed and incredibly upset; after all I had gone through how could these people be so insensitive to my needs??!? But that is life and I had to suck it up. 

On Thursday, September 24th I went to my 39 week appointment to check on the baby and follow routine since the induction had been cancelled. I was still in a lot of pain so the nurse practitioner referred me to the hospital to get an IV pain medication because at this point, I could barely function with so much sciatica pain and she felt it wasn't fair to keep me waiting in suffering! (Thank you, Laura!). 

I got to the hospital on Thursday at 7pm and went straight to Labor & Delivery triage, where they hooked me up to monitors to check on the baby (he was perfectly fine, of course) and ran a few tests including an NST and a biophysical ultrasound.  They set me up in a room and I was given pain meds (Nubain) on an IV; I finally felt some relief and decided to rest a bit. 

A nurse came in shortly after and told me she had orders to start a Cervidil induction; even though my cervix was already soft at this point the doctor thought it'd be a good idea to use the gel and maybe the contractions would just start without the need for any other meds...and they were right! 

After just a few hours of the Cervidil, my contractions started and I was ready to get the show on the road. Within a few hours I was dilating fast and easy and sure enough begging for an epidural because I was SO DONE with pain at this point. 

The epidural process was long and hard because I couldn't sit still due to my severe sciatica issues; at one point I thought I wouldn't be able to get it and was preparing myself to go through labor without anesthesia (thank God that wasn't the case!)

Shortly after I got the epi, my doctor came in and broke my water and that's when things got REALLY exciting; I progressed from 6cm to 10cm in a matter of two hours and was ready to get the baby out! I did have some nausea and vomiting throughout the labor process but nothing too bad. 

Around 6:40pm I started to push and after 20 minutes the baby was out!

Oliver Gabriel was born exactly at 7pm on Friday 09/25 weighing 7lbs 11oz and measuring almost 20 inches. He didn't cry right away, which was a little scary, but apparently the little guy had swallowed some fluid on his way out and was given a little oxygen upon arrival. 

When they put him on my chest, it felt like my world was now complete! I had a piece of the puzzle which I never knew had been missing and Ignacio and I just looked at each other and cried like babies. It was such an emotional and heartfelt moment.  All the doubts about my ability to love this baby instantly disappeared and everything just felt right.  He was so perfect and beautiful and we were overjoyed with so many emotions!

The hours following the labor and birth are really fuzzy. I know we got a few visitors (mainly family), I know the baby ate and cried, I know I cuddled and kissed him like there was no tomorrow and then the sleepless nights and days started...and we're at it!

The girls met him within a few hours of birth and my heart never felt so full!

We're now a family of 5 (wow!) and settling into our new "normal". 

Oliver is such a good baby; he eats a lot and loves mommy's boobs more than anything.  We are spoiling him rotten and are so thankful to God for this little miracle!