We went back to the hospital when I was in labor with
Mae. I’d gone in earlier in the
day before (we left at 1 am) and had been told the contractions were small and
that I wasn’t in labor. I was scheduled
to have a c-section in three days, because the hospital didn’t allow
VBACs.
This time I was admitted and given a bed in the operating
room recovery section, because all the beds were full. Paul was told there were no chairs for
him to sit in (something our
second nurse said was a blatant lie) and was sent out to the waiting room to
lay across a few chairs and wait.
The doctor was called and the nurse returned and said that
the doctor would be sleeping at home until morning, but that they had
instructions to shoot me full of whatever that nasty-heart-accelerating-drug-is-that-stops-contractions-and-makes-you-feel-like-you’ve-had-20-large-mountain-dews-worth-of-caffine
so that the baby would wait until morning.
Then I was left alone.
After an hour I called and asked to be unhooked from the monitors so I
could get up to go to the bathroom.
A nurse came and unhooked me and told I could plug everything back in
myself when I got back. After half
an hour of trying to fit the plugs into the machine I called for help again and
she came in and struggled to do the same thing.
After shift change another nurse came and checked me (she’s
one of my all time favorites! She
was really great!). However she
was panicked. Apparently, despite
the medication, labor hadn’t stopped, and the sac of waters was coming through
and had protruded several inches.
The doctor was in her car, half an hour away, and they weren’t sure if
I, still dilated to four, was going to make it.
That scared me.
A lot. I’m dilated to four
and they thought I might half the baby in half an hour?!?! I’d wanted a VBAC but had been so
thoroughly discouraged as to any chance of the hospital allowing it that I
hadn’t mentally prepared myself for the possibility (I should have!). And apparently the other nurse hadn’t
told the new nurse that the c-section had already been ordered and that I
should be ready when the doctor got there, and so there was lots of running
around and stress, as all the people, who apparently lived in fear of my
doctor, got things ready.
When the doctor got there I was being wheeled in to the OR
and she wasn’t pleased that I hadn’t already had a spinal. The surgery went smoothly and she left
the room. Then things got kind of
weird.
The people remaining in the OR after she’d left and Paul had
gone with the baby (the other surgeon, anesthesiologist and nurses) had a
conversation about how the blood I’d lost during the surgery was and I quote:
“the most blood I’ve ever seen” with everyone agreeing. I couldn’t feel anything because of the
spinal, but I could actually hear blood sloshing. I was okay, but seriously? Kind of creepy and probably not something someone who is
awake should have to hear!
Mae was gone for a long time after she was born. It was nearing an hour and a half when
Paul dragged the nurse and Mae back into the room. Apparently Mae was the first baby the nurse had dealt with
(literally). Paul had to stop her
from putting Mae into HOT water and finally, after all that time past, insisted
that she stop whatever she’d been doing and return Mae to me. This was probably the worst part of
hospital trip #2.
Although it seemed like a cake walk, physically, after my previous experience.
Now on to Part 4...
Oh Cam, I'm sorry. My oldest was born by emergency CS. My other 3 were VBACs. First 2 births were, um, not so great (though the VBAC was better than the CS). The other 2 were much better, though I had to labor at a hospital 45 minutes away instead of the hospital 5 minutes away (the local hospital didn't allow VBACs and we had moved to a different state).
ReplyDeleteI attribute the difference to many things, including the doctors and the hospital.
No matter how well you check things out, the questions you ask, and so on...you never really know until you are in the moment how things will play out. A lot depends on who happens to be on staff at the time and so on. But, definitely put together a birth plan, talk frankly with your doctor about expectations. Call the hospital and talk to the nurses. Talk to people who used their labor and maternity services.
Best decision we made: We hired a doula for each VBAC. She was a second advocate for me and my labor needs, giving my husband the ability to support me emotionally rather than constantly worrying over the staff. Look into it.
My last two births were nearly intervention free (I did have to wear a monitor and I always have fore-bags that need to be broken after my water breaks). No pain meds, no IV drip, no frequent checks.
Yes, you can have a good hospital birth. ;0) But I understand why so many women are going for home births. Of course, that's not an option for everyone.